Investing in Top E-Commerce Companies

Less than a generation ago, e-commerce was only in its infancy, born on the World Wide Web as a vision of entrepreneurs like Jeff Bezos.

Today, e-commerce accounts for almost $1.2 trillion in annual retail sales in the U.S., or 16% of the total retail industry. Globally, e-commerce sales total more than $5 trillion, led by companies such as Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) and China’s Alibaba Group (NYSE:BABA), plus brick-and-mortar retailers such as Home Depot (NYSE:HD).

The tremendous growth in e-commerce has propelled a number of big winners on the stock market, but there's still plenty of opportunity left in online retail. Annual e-commerce sales grew about 15% in the 2010s, and the adoption of online shopping accelerated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

After the pandemic surge, e-commerce's share of total retail sales actually fell through the beginning of 2022. Growth has slowed as spending patterns normalize following a shift back to brick-and-mortar stores and services such as travel and restaurants, settling at around 7%. Still, there's plenty of long-term growth left in e-commerce. If you're looking for a list of the top e-commerce companies in the world, keep reading below.

Top e-commerce stocks to buy right now

1. Amazon

• Amazon launched in 1995 and today sells more than 350 million stock-keeping units (SKUs) through its marketplace.
• Amazon has not had a true direct competitor in the U.S. and has grown through its third-party marketplace and Amazon Prime. It now has more than 100 fulfillment centers in the U.S.
• The company is set to top Walmart as the biggest company in the world by revenue this year.
• The stock is up more than 100,000% from its IPO.

2. Shopify

• Shopify has emerged as Amazon's closest competitor, with over 2 million merchants around the world, ranging from mom-and-pop businesses to global brand giants like Kraft Heinz.
• Shopify provides an end-to-end platform for any business to sell online, handling web design, marketing, payment processing, financial tracking, and even loans.
• The company has reached a detente with Amazon, agreeing to integrate its Buy with Prime feature, allowing Amazon Prime members to get free delivery on items labeled "Buy with Prime."
• Shopify's revenue has grown from $389 million in 2016 to $8.9 billion in 2024, and it continues to deliver strong growth as it expands its merchant base, adds new AI features, and flexes its pricing power.

3. Coupang

• Coupang is headquartered in Seattle, but operates primarily in South Korea.
• South Korea is one of the most densely populated countries in the developed world, creating efficiencies in delivery distances and internet speeds.
• Coupang has followed a similar strategy to Amazon with a first-party e-commerce business and a third-party marketplace.
• It's also launched a Prime-like membership platform, Rocket WOW.
• It's also launched smaller businesses like food delivery, video streaming, mobile games, and digital games, and it also acquired, and it acquired Farfetch, the online fashion luxury platform.
• Coupang reported 24% revenue growth in 2024 to $30.3 billion with $1.4 billion in adjusted EBITDA.

4. MercadoLibre

• Another international e-commerce company, MercadoLibre, has delivered standout growth throughout its history.
• MercadoLibre operates across Latin America, but gets half of its revenue from Brazil.
• Its primary business is e-commerce, which includes first-party and third-party sales, though its MercadoPago fintech platform has also become a sizable business and includes mobile point-of-sale systems.
• Most of MercadoPago's payments now come from sources other than the MercadoLibre platform.
• The company finished 2024 with 100 million unique buyers and more than 60 million fintech monthly active users. Revenue reached $20.8 billion, and its margins are expanding.

5. Walmart

• Walmart is best known for its brick-and-mortar business, but over the last decade, it's built a formidable e-commerce business.
• Walmart has opened thousands of grocery pickup stations, leveraging its physical footprint to drive online sales.
• Like Amazon, Walmart has also built an advertising business around its e-commerce platform, and it's added an e-commerce marketplace.
• The company has been gaining market share on Amazon in e-commerce, consistently delivering growth of around 20%.

How to invest in e-commerce stocks

If you're considering investing in e-commerce stocks, it's not hard to do. Just follow the steps below.

1. Open your brokerage app: Log in to your brokerage account where you handle your investments.
2. Search for the stock: Enter the ticker or company name into the search bar to bring up the stock's trading page.
3. Decide how many shares to buy: Consider your investment goals and how much of your portfolio you want to allocate to this stock.
4. Select order type: Choose between a market order to buy at the current price or a limit order to specify the maximum price you're willing to pay.
5. Submit your order: Confirm the details and submit your buy order.
6. Review your purchase: Check your portfolio to ensure your order was filled as expected and adjust your investment strategy accordingly.

Related investing topics

Are e-commerce stocks right for you?

E-commerce stocks offer a lot of upside potential for investors, but they come with risks. Many e-commerce companies aren’t profitable, and even the ones that are profitable generally have only minimal profits. The hangover in the sector from the pandemic recovery has abated, but the sector is unlikely to return to its pre-pandemic growth rate as a whole.

Investors should be aware that e-commerce is riskier than most stock market sectors, but the track record of these stocks shows that just one successful e-commerce stock can deliver life-changing returns.

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