South Africa E-commerce Database
Explore 86.3k e-commerce stores in the South Africa. Instant access to technologies, contacts, platforms, and market dynamics.
· · Next full refresh: December 2025
E-commerce Platforms Distribution
WooCommerce leads with 44.2% of stores with physical delivery (37,523 stores) , followed by Custom (25.3%) and Shopify (22.1%) .
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)
37,523 stores
21,435 stores
18,778 stores
3,672 stores
1,036 stores
603 stores
532 stores
448 stores
441 stores
384 stores
Visual Distribution
| Platform | Stores with Physical Delivery | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | 37523 | 44.22% |
| Custom | 21435 | 25.26% |
| Shopify | 18778 | 22.13% |
| Wix eCommerce | 3672 | 4.33% |
| Squarespace Commerce | 1036 | 1.22% |
| OpenCart | 603 | 0.71% |
| GoDaddy Online Store | 532 | 0.63% |
| PrestaShop | 448 | 0.53% |
| Magento | 441 | 0.52% |
| BigCommerce | 384 | 0.45% |
All Stores Distribution
WooCommerce holds 53.0% share of all South Africa e-commerce stores (73,620) , with Custom at 15.4% and Shopify at 17.2% (November 2025) .
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)
73,620 stores
21,435 stores
23,939 stores
12,205 stores
4,767 stores
875 stores
558 stores
515 stores
635 stores
470 stores
Visual Distribution
| Platform | Total Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| WooCommerce | 73620 | 52.96% |
| Custom | 21435 | 15.42% |
| Shopify | 23939 | 17.22% |
| Wix eCommerce | 12205 | 8.78% |
| Squarespace Commerce | 4767 | 3.43% |
| OpenCart | 875 | 0.63% |
| GoDaddy Online Store | 558 | 0.40% |
| PrestaShop | 515 | 0.37% |
| Magento | 635 | 0.46% |
| BigCommerce | 470 | 0.34% |
Categories Distribution
Clothing & Accessories leads with 19.4% of all stores (12,093 stores) , followed by Health & Beauty (17.4%) and Food & Beverages (10.3%) .
Top 10 Categories
12,093 stores
10,888 stores
6,422 stores
5,883 stores
4,326 stores
3,324 stores
3,080 stores
2,869 stores
2,637 stores
2,434 stores
Visual Distribution
| Category | Number of Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing & Accessories | 12093 | 19.35% |
| Health & Beauty | 10888 | 17.42% |
| Food & Beverages | 6422 | 10.28% |
| Electronics & Technology | 5883 | 9.41% |
| Vehicles & Parts | 4326 | 6.92% |
| Home & Garden | 3324 | 5.32% |
| Furniture & Home Decor | 3080 | 4.93% |
| Arts & Entertainment | 2869 | 4.59% |
| Sporting Goods & Outdoor Gear | 2637 | 4.22% |
| Jewelry & Watches | 2434 | 3.89% |
| Business & Industrial | 2113 | 3.38% |
| Tools & Hardware | 1753 | 2.81% |
| Gifts & Special Occasions | 1752 | 2.80% |
| Books & Media | 1474 | 2.36% |
| Pets & Pet Supplies | 1446 | 2.31% |
Payment Providers Distribution
MasterCard leads with 21.3% among AI-verified physical stores (3,341 stores) , followed by PayPal (18.5%) and American Express (13.5%) .
Base: 10,468 AI-verified physical stores with detectable payment providers (12.1% 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
3,341 stores
2,902 stores
2,115 stores
1,600 stores
1,342 stores
1,047 stores
678 stores
519 stores
478 stores
464 stores
Visual Distribution
| Payment Provider | Store Count | Market Share |
|---|---|---|
| MasterCard | 3341 | 21.35% |
| PayPal | 2902 | 18.54% |
| American Express | 2115 | 13.51% |
| Stripe Connect | 1600 | 10.22% |
| Bolt | 1342 | 8.58% |
| PayGate | 1047 | 6.69% |
| VISA | 678 | 4.33% |
| Apple Pay | 519 | 3.32% |
| Paddle | 478 | 3.05% |
| BitCoin | 464 | 2.96% |
| Klarna | 300 | 1.92% |
| Google Pay | 279 | 1.78% |
| JCB | 267 | 1.71% |
| PayU | 165 | 1.05% |
| iDEAL | 153 | 0.98% |
Shipping Carriers Distribution
The Courier Guy leads with 21.6% among AI-verified physical stores (2,761 stores) , followed by UPS (17.8%) and Pudo (10.2%) .
Base: 9,578 AI-verified physical stores with detectable shipping carriers (11.1% 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 | 2761 | 21.60% |
| UPS | 2271 | 17.77% |
| Pudo | 1304 | 10.20% |
| DHL | 1263 | 9.88% |
| FedEx | 1046 | 8.18% |
| USPS | 1042 | 8.15% |
| Aramex | 765 | 5.99% |
| Fastway | 670 | 5.24% |
| Speedy | 371 | 2.90% |
| 4PX | 272 | 2.13% |
| PostNL | 224 | 1.75% |
| GLS | 220 | 1.72% |
| Royal Mail | 203 | 1.59% |
| Hermes | 192 | 1.50% |
| Dawn Wing | 176 | 1.38% |
Store Launch Timeline
Over the past 12 months, 17,849 new stores were launched in South Africa , with the highest activity in 2025-10 (2,365 stores) , demonstrating ongoing growth in the e-commerce market.
Last 12 Months
2,365 stores launched
2,025 stores launched
2,093 stores launched
1,899 stores launched
1,642 stores launched
1,575 stores launched
1,264 stores launched
1,357 stores launched
1,176 stores launched
1,124 stores launched
844 stores launched
485 stores launched
Monthly Trend
| Month | Stores Launched | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 2025-10 | 2365 | 13.25% |
| 2025-09 | 2025 | 11.35% |
| 2025-08 | 2093 | 11.73% |
| 2025-07 | 1899 | 10.64% |
| 2025-06 | 1642 | 9.20% |
| 2025-05 | 1575 | 8.82% |
| 2025-04 | 1264 | 7.08% |
| 2025-03 | 1357 | 7.60% |
| 2025-02 | 1176 | 6.59% |
| 2025-01 | 1124 | 6.30% |
| 2024-12 | 844 | 4.73% |
| 2024-11 | 485 | 2.72% |
Active Stores by Launch Year
Currently, 83,812 active stores in South Africa are tracked in our database , with the most stores launched in 2025 (16,573 stores still active) . This shows the distribution of currently active stores by their original launch year.
Active Stores by Launch Year
16,573 active stores
9,368 active stores
6,733 active stores
6,081 active stores
6,651 active stores
6,579 active stores
4,503 active stores
4,247 active stores
4,247 active stores
1,890 active stores
1,576 active stores
1,505 active stores
2,220 active stores
1,388 active stores
1,419 active stores
Distribution by Launch Year
| Launch Year | Active Stores | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 16573 | 19.77% |
| 2024 | 9368 | 11.18% |
| 2023 | 6733 | 8.03% |
| 2022 | 6081 | 7.26% |
| 2021 | 6651 | 7.94% |
| 2020 | 6579 | 7.85% |
| 2019 | 4503 | 5.37% |
| 2018 | 4247 | 5.07% |
| 2017 | 4247 | 5.07% |
| 2016 | 1890 | 2.26% |
| 2015 | 1576 | 1.88% |
| 2014 | 1505 | 1.80% |
| 2013 | 2220 | 2.65% |
| 2012 | 1388 | 1.66% |
| 2011 | 1419 | 1.69% |
| 2010 | 1196 | 1.43% |
| 2009 | 1110 | 1.32% |
| 2008 | 919 | 1.10% |
| 2007 | 861 | 1.03% |
| 2006 | 798 | 0.95% |
| 2005 | 499 | 0.60% |
| 2004 | 605 | 0.72% |
| 2003 | 587 | 0.70% |
| 2002 | 494 | 0.59% |
| 2001 | 623 | 0.74% |
| 2000 | 456 | 0.54% |
| 1999 | 300 | 0.36% |
| 1998 | 221 | 0.26% |
| 1997 | 94 | 0.11% |
| 1996 | 57 | 0.07% |
| 1995 | 12 | 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.
Custom — Vehicles & Parts
Shopify
Shopify
Shopify — Clothing & Accessories
Shopify
Dataset Coverage
| Field | Rows count | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| Website | 86.3k | 100.00% |
| Emails | 52.5k | 60.81% |
| Phones | 21.5k | 24.93% |
| Ecommerce platform | 86.3k | 100.00% |
| Couriers | 9.6k | 11.10% |
| Payment Providers | 10.5k | 12.13% |
| Categories | 65.4k | 75.87% |
| Social Media | 51.6k | 59.84% |
Starter Package
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Maximize Your ROI
Use our detailed South Africa E-commerce Database to:
Gain actionable insights into 86.3k 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 86.3k 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?
-
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 33.3% among stores with at least one detectable social profile (43,093 stores) , followed by Instagram (30.0%) and YouTube (8.3%) .
Base: 51,623 stores with any detectable social profile (59.8% 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
43,093 stores
38,899 stores
10,771 stores
9,695 stores
8,401 stores
6,375 stores
5,557 stores
3,704 stores
2,901 stores
200 stores
Visual Distribution