South Africa E-commerce Database
Explore 80.7k e-commerce stores in the South Africa. Instant access to technologies, contacts, platforms, and market dynamics.
· · Next full refresh: February 2026
E-commerce Platforms Distribution
WooCommerce leads with 49.9% of stores with physical delivery (39,501 stores) , followed by Shopify (31.8%) and Custom (9.2%) .
Note: This distribution covers only stores selling physical products with active shopping carts and physical product shipping. Digital products, services, and non-transactional sites are excluded. All stores are verified by our proprietary AI model to ensure accurate e-commerce classification.
Top 10 Platforms (Physical Delivery)
39,501 stores
25,200 stores
7,288 stores
3,732 stores
975 stores
714 stores
547 stores
526 stores
424 stores
299 stores
Visual Distribution
| Platform | Stores with Physical Delivery | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | 39501 | 49.87% |
| Shopify | 25200 | 31.82% |
| Custom | 7288 | 9.20% |
| Wix eCommerce | 3732 | 4.71% |
| Squarespace Commerce | 975 | 1.23% |
| OpenCart | 714 | 0.90% |
| PrestaShop | 547 | 0.69% |
| Magento | 526 | 0.66% |
| BigCommerce | 424 | 0.54% |
| nopCommerce | 299 | 0.38% |
All Stores Distribution
WooCommerce holds 60.6% share of all South Africa e-commerce stores (82,474) , with Shopify at 19.3% and Custom at 5.4% (January 2026) .
Note: This broader distribution includes all stores with e-commerce indicators such as platform detection, shopping cart presence, or payment integration. This liberal approach may include some false positives (e.g., WooCommerce installations used for non-commercial purposes) but provides comprehensive market coverage for lead generation and competitive analysis.
Top 10 Platforms (All Stores)
82,474 stores
26,249 stores
7,288 stores
12,483 stores
4,803 stores
888 stores
572 stores
621 stores
462 stores
323 stores
Visual Distribution
| Platform | Total Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | 82474 | 60.57% |
| Shopify | 26249 | 19.28% |
| Custom | 7288 | 5.35% |
| Wix eCommerce | 12483 | 9.17% |
| Squarespace Commerce | 4803 | 3.53% |
| OpenCart | 888 | 0.65% |
| PrestaShop | 572 | 0.42% |
| Magento | 621 | 0.46% |
| BigCommerce | 462 | 0.34% |
| nopCommerce | 323 | 0.24% |
Categories Distribution
Clothing & Accessories leads with 21.9% of all stores (12,610 stores) , followed by Health & Beauty (20.1%) and Food & Beverages (9.9%) .
Top 10 Categories
12,610 stores
11,567 stores
5,722 stores
5,668 stores
3,099 stores
2,820 stores
2,757 stores
2,476 stores
2,180 stores
2,105 stores
Visual Distribution
| Category | Number of Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing & Accessories | 12610 | 21.88% |
| Health & Beauty | 11567 | 20.07% |
| Food & Beverages | 5722 | 9.93% |
| Electronics & Technology | 5668 | 9.84% |
| Furniture & Home Decor | 3099 | 5.38% |
| Home & Garden | 2820 | 4.89% |
| Vehicles & Parts | 2757 | 4.78% |
| Jewelry & Watches | 2476 | 4.30% |
| Sporting Goods & Outdoor Gear | 2180 | 3.78% |
| Arts & Entertainment | 2105 | 3.65% |
| Gifts & Special Occasions | 1560 | 2.71% |
| Business & Industrial | 1485 | 2.58% |
| Tools & Hardware | 1453 | 2.52% |
| Pets & Pet Supplies | 1190 | 2.07% |
| Books & Media | 931 | 1.62% |
Payment Providers Distribution
MasterCard leads with 22.1% among AI-verified physical stores (3,560 stores) , followed by PayPal (19.3%) and American Express (13.5%) .
Base: 10,560 AI-verified physical stores with detectable payment providers (13.1% coverage of all stores). Percentages show share of detected provider instances (stores may use multiple providers).
Detected from checkout/payment scripts and provider tags; off-site/manual payments excluded where undetectable.
Top 10 Payment Providers
3,560 stores
3,099 stores
2,173 stores
1,643 stores
1,243 stores
1,085 stores
693 stores
625 stores
415 stores
350 stores
Visual Distribution
| Payment Provider | Store Count | Market Share |
|---|---|---|
| MasterCard | 3560 | 22.12% |
| PayPal | 3099 | 19.26% |
| American Express | 2173 | 13.50% |
| Stripe Connect | 1643 | 10.21% |
| Bolt | 1243 | 7.72% |
| PayGate | 1085 | 6.74% |
| VISA | 693 | 4.31% |
| Apple Pay | 625 | 3.88% |
| Paddle | 415 | 2.58% |
| BitCoin | 350 | 2.18% |
| Google Pay | 332 | 2.06% |
| Klarna | 301 | 1.87% |
| JCB | 246 | 1.53% |
| iDEAL | 180 | 1.12% |
| PayU | 146 | 0.91% |
Shipping Carriers Distribution
The Courier Guy leads with 22.6% among AI-verified physical stores (3,140 stores) , followed by UPS (16.7%) and Pudo (10.5%) .
Base: 10,017 AI-verified physical stores with detectable shipping carriers (12.4% coverage of all stores). Percentages show share of detected carrier instances (stores may use multiple carriers).
Detected from checkout/shipping pages and shipment widgets; cross-border carriers included where visible.
Top 10 Shipping Carriers
Visual Distribution
| Shipping Carrier | Store Count | Market Share |
|---|---|---|
| The Courier Guy | 3140 | 22.62% |
| UPS | 2315 | 16.68% |
| Pudo | 1464 | 10.55% |
| DHL | 1390 | 10.01% |
| FedEx | 1153 | 8.31% |
| USPS | 1119 | 8.06% |
| Aramex | 891 | 6.42% |
| Fastway | 751 | 5.41% |
| 4PX | 356 | 2.56% |
| Speedy | 319 | 2.30% |
| PostNL | 242 | 1.74% |
| Royal Mail | 198 | 1.43% |
| DPD | 187 | 1.35% |
| Dawn Wing | 182 | 1.31% |
| Hermes | 174 | 1.25% |
Store Launch Timeline
Over the past 12 months, 19,678 new stores were launched in South Africa , with the highest activity in 2025-12 (1,572 stores) , demonstrating ongoing growth in the e-commerce market.
Last 12 Months
1,572 stores launched
2,243 stores launched
2,261 stores launched
1,899 stores launched
1,964 stores launched
1,892 stores launched
1,614 stores launched
1,647 stores launched
1,343 stores launched
1,527 stores launched
1,229 stores launched
487 stores launched
Monthly Trend
| Month | Stores Launched | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-12 | 1572 | 7.99% |
| 2025-11 | 2243 | 11.40% |
| 2025-10 | 2261 | 11.49% |
| 2025-09 | 1899 | 9.65% |
| 2025-08 | 1964 | 9.98% |
| 2025-07 | 1892 | 9.61% |
| 2025-06 | 1614 | 8.20% |
| 2025-05 | 1647 | 8.37% |
| 2025-04 | 1343 | 6.82% |
| 2025-03 | 1527 | 7.76% |
| 2025-02 | 1229 | 6.25% |
| 2025-01 | 487 | 2.47% |
Active Stores by Launch Year
Currently, 79,037 active stores in South Africa are tracked in our database , with the most stores launched in 2026 (3 stores still active) . This shows the distribution of currently active stores by their original launch year.
Active Stores by Launch Year
3 active stores
20,239 active stores
8,631 active stores
6,265 active stores
5,537 active stores
6,171 active stores
5,970 active stores
4,069 active stores
3,807 active stores
3,821 active stores
1,543 active stores
1,236 active stores
1,216 active stores
1,697 active stores
1,043 active stores
Distribution by Launch Year
| Launch Year | Active Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 3 | 0.00% |
| 2025 | 20239 | 25.61% |
| 2024 | 8631 | 10.92% |
| 2023 | 6265 | 7.93% |
| 2022 | 5537 | 7.01% |
| 2021 | 6171 | 7.81% |
| 2020 | 5970 | 7.55% |
| 2019 | 4069 | 5.15% |
| 2018 | 3807 | 4.82% |
| 2017 | 3821 | 4.83% |
| 2016 | 1543 | 1.95% |
| 2015 | 1236 | 1.56% |
| 2014 | 1216 | 1.54% |
| 2013 | 1697 | 2.15% |
| 2012 | 1043 | 1.32% |
| 2011 | 1097 | 1.39% |
| 2010 | 901 | 1.14% |
| 2009 | 871 | 1.10% |
| 2008 | 722 | 0.91% |
| 2007 | 676 | 0.86% |
| 2006 | 606 | 0.77% |
| 2005 | 391 | 0.49% |
| 2004 | 439 | 0.56% |
| 2003 | 437 | 0.55% |
| 2002 | 347 | 0.44% |
| 2001 | 457 | 0.58% |
| 2000 | 322 | 0.41% |
| 1999 | 226 | 0.29% |
| 1998 | 165 | 0.21% |
| 1997 | 84 | 0.11% |
| 1996 | 39 | 0.05% |
| 1995 | 9 | 0.01% |
Featured Stores
Discover the strongest performers and newest entrants in South Africa's e-commerce landscape.
Top Stores by GMV
Data will be available soon.
New Stores
Recently launched ecommerce sites detected by ShopRank in the last full month.
Shopify
Shopify
CubeCart - Gifts & Special Occasions
Shopify - Health & Beauty
Wix eCommerce - Health & Beauty
Dataset Coverage
| Field | Rows count | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Website | 80.7k | 100.00% |
| Emails | 48.9k | 60.57% |
| Phones | 19.6k | 24.34% |
| Ecommerce platform | 80.7k | 100.00% |
| Couriers | 10.0k | 12.41% |
| Payment Providers | 10.6k | 13.09% |
| Categories | 60.2k | 74.66% |
| Social Media | 50.2k | 62.22% |
Starter Package
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Maximize Your ROI
Use our detailed South Africa E-commerce Database to:
Gain actionable insights into 80.7k physical stores in South Africa.
- Identify High-Value Leads
-
Quickly find and contact the best decision-makers at South Africa online stores.
- Conduct Competitive Analysis
-
Analyze your competitors' market share, product categories, and technology stacks.
- Direct Outreach
-
Access verified business contacts to accelerate your sales and marketing outreach.
Data Format & Delivery
Available Formats
- CSV
- Excel (XLS/XLSX)
- Text (TXT)
Delivery Methods
- Direct download
- Email delivery
- API access
Use Cases
- Lead Generation
- B2B Marketing
- Direct Marketing
- Email Marketing
- B2B Retargeting
- Market Research
Frequently Asked Questions
- What data is included in the South Africa E-commerce Database?
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Our database covers over 80.7k South Africa physical stores, including website URLs, verified contacts (emails, phones), e-commerce platforms, product counts, categories, estimated monthly traffic, and more.
- How fresh is your data and how often is it updated?
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We update our database quarterly, using web crawling, AI analysis, and manual verification. This ensures you always receive the most accurate, relevant, and actionable data.
- Can I get a free sample before purchasing?
-
Absolutely! Contact us to request a free sample dataset customized to your needs. We're happy to provide demos and answer any questions.
- Can I buy only selected segments of data?
-
Yes, you can purchase targeted segments tailored specifically to your business needs-by industry, platform, store size, and more. Contact us for details.
- How quickly can I access the full dataset after purchase?
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You'll receive immediate access upon payment completion. Our data can be downloaded directly or delivered via email or API.
- What licensing options are available?
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We offer flexible licensing: one-time purchases, annual subscriptions, and customized enterprise plans. Reach out to discuss the best solution for your business.
Social Media Usage
Facebook leads with 32.8% among stores with at least one detectable social profile (41,778 stores) , followed by Instagram (31.0%) and YouTube (7.9%) .
Base: 50,212 stores with any detectable social profile (62.2% of all stores). Percentages show share of detected platform instances (stores may use multiple platforms).
Links and embeds detected on public pages; private/hidden profiles not counted.
Top 10 Social Platforms
41,778 stores
39,475 stores
10,056 stores
9,760 stores
8,787 stores
5,771 stores
5,357 stores
3,549 stores
2,792 stores
169 stores
Visual Distribution