European shoppers have voted with their wallets — and the ballot was almost entirely marked for three Chinese platforms.
A new report from e-commerce data firm ECDB reveals that in 2025, Temu, Shein, and AliExpress captured 90.2% of all online spending that left the European Union. That’s not a typo. Nine out of every ten euros Europeans spent abroad online ended up on one of those three platforms.
The numbers, broken down:
- EU consumers spent €421 billion online on physical goods in 2025
- 13.1% (€55.1 billion) of that crossed into non-EU territory
- Of that cross-border spend, €49.7 billion went to Chinese platforms
- The US and UK trailed far behind, picking up just 4.8% and 4.6% respectively
- Meanwhile, EU stores only sold €3.9 billion to non-EU shoppers — half of that to Switzerland
A five-year sprint
The speed of this shift is what makes the numbers striking. In 2020, only 2.3% of EU online spending left the bloc. By 2025 that figure had grown to 13.1% — and ECDB forecasts it will reach 15.2% in 2026. That’s not gradual drift; it’s a structural realignment of where European consumers shop.
The rise tracks closely with Temu’s European expansion — a platform that, as of last month, has already broken into the top 10 online retailers in almost every EU country.
Looking ahead… European regulators have been circling these platforms for some time, citing concerns around product safety, customs compliance, and the Digital Services Act. With cross-border spend accelerating and domestic retailers watching market share evaporate, expect pressure on policymakers to move from warnings to action.