Online shopping gains popularity in the Netherlands

According to the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), online shopping is steadily becoming more popular in the Netherlands.

In 2013, 7,5 million residents reported making regular purchases online. Last year, that number climbed to 7,9 million.

This means that nearly twice as many people are now "e-shopping" in the Netherlands as in 2005. It also indicates that half the country’s population may soon be favouring the convenience of a laptop over the bustle of a shopping mall.

The number of those who only occasionally buy goods or services online sits at roughly 2,5 million.

Trips, clothes favourite online purchases

Of the total 10,4 million people who e-shopped in the Netherlands in 2014, the most common purchases - as in the year prior - were travel bookings, clothes and sports equipment. 66 per cent of frequent e-shoppers bought these products and services online last year.

Tickets for events also remain popular online purchases, regularly bought via the internet by 55 per cent of frequent e-shoppers in 2014.

However, other kinds of companies are now making significant headway into the world of internet retail in the Netherlands. Last year there was a notable jump in the number of people who used the internet to shop for household items like furniture and washing machines, as well as food, cosmetics and personal care products.

Many of these goods and services are supplied from within the Netherlands. In 2014, 94 per cent of e-shoppers bought online from Dutch companies.

When it comes to medicine, meanwhile, most people still favour trips to the drugstore - fewer than 10 per cent of e-shoppers have converted to online shopping for pharmaceuticals.

Online shoppers pay by internet banking

In the Netherlands, internet banking (via systems like iDEAL) remains by far the most popular means of online payment for goods and services. It is used by 92 per cent of all e-shoppers, whereas only 44 per cent use credit cards.

The popularity of prepaid cards and "e-wallets" lingers below five per cent.