We all know that during the pandemic online sales skyrocketed, especially in places where 10 years ago were not that important because of social aspects or were not even existing. But did you know that almost 95% of residents in the UAE and KSA – 2 biggest GCC economies –are shopping online? It is expected that this trend will only accelerate in the month of Ramadan. According to a new survey by payments process Checkout.com, nearly 30% of consumers in the UAE and KSA said they make online purchases either daily or at least weekly, the survey, which polled 1,000 people in the UAE and the KSA in the last week of March, said. Meanwhile, 76% of respondents plan to buy online more frequently this Ramadan, while 26% of those surveyed said they will be shopping in-person less frequently. The findings are consistent with last year report by London-based Checkout.com indicating that consumers’ adoption of online shopping is a long-term behavioral change rather than a temporary shift resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.“ Many traditionally cash-centric countries in the Middle East are now converting to higher rates of digital payments … the pandemic has spurred a payments revolution of sorts,” Mohammed Ali Yusuf, regional manager for the Middle East North Africa and Pakistan at Checkout.com, said. “This is particularly important during a period like Ramadan when competition among merchants is high & businesses need to provide the online shopping experience that consumers are looking for,” he added.

The most popular category of products purchased online during this Ramadan is groceries (60%), followed by food deliveries (50%), clothing (44%) and household products (39%).The most common form of payment for the majority of consumers (67%) is card payments and digital wallets, the survey found. Nearly 37% of those polled expect to use cash-on-delivery less this Ramadan compared to last year. Consumer preference for digital payments is higher during Ramadan than at other times of the year (59%), the company said.