Increase in internet users boosts online shopping business
The number of Thais accessing the internet has increased by 13.7 million people in 5 years, reaching a total of 61.2 million users, according to data released by Krungthai Bank
The use of social media has surged to 52.3 million people, with Facebook and Line dominating popular usage. It is projected that online shopping will soar this year and next, with an estimated value of 634-694 billion baht, growing at an average rate of 6% per year.
According to Krungthai Bank's analyst, the growth in internet use can be attributed to private sector service providers expanding their coverage nationwide, coupled with the government's policies to improve internet accessibility since 2019.
In comparison to other countries worldwide, Thailand ranks fourth for fixed broadband internet speed, trailing only Chile, China, and Singapore. For mobile internet, Thailand ranks 15th. Although it falls behind countries like Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Norway, which have download speeds ranging from 140-180 Mbps, it still surpasses the global average.
Nearly 70% of Thais use mobile phones for web browsing, and this too has steadily increased from 48% in 2019 to around 55% in 2020-2021, and to 68% by the end of 2022.
The top three most visited sites in Thailand are Google, with nearly 900 million visits per month, averaging about 11 minutes per visit and 8.4 pages per visit. YouTube and Facebook follow closely behind, with monthly visits ranging from 400 to 500 million.
Social media platforms such as YouTube have longer average visit durations, exceeding 24 minutes per session, with an average of 13.5 pages viewed per visit.
Although Facebook and Line continue to be the preferred social media platforms among Thais, TikTok has gained momentum in the past 1-2 years. Furthermore, social media users in the age groups of 34-44, 45-54, and 55 and above have shown significant increases.
Various businesses have increasingly prioritised online channels, evident from the average 12.4% yearly expansion of online advertising expenditure over the past five years, while offline advertising has experienced a 3% decline annually. However, some industries have the potential to further increase their online advertising spending, such as real estate, restaurants, and cosmetics.
Thai consumers continue to favour online purchasing of goods and services. The e-commerce market is estimated to have a value of 6.34-6.94 trillion baht in 2023-2024, growing at an average rate of 6% per year. Product categories that Thais like to purchase through e-commerce platforms include personal and household care products, beverages, and food.
