Amazon is far and away the most popular channel for online shopping in Canada, according to the latest shopper study from Vividata, though consumers are taking a closer look at what they are buying.

Online shopping has increased 18% since 2019, with 26 million Canadians shopping online in an average year and spending a total of $5.5 million in an average month.

Two in three Canadian adults have made a purchase from Amazon in the past year. Amazon has been the top online shopping venue for Canadians since 2019 when 47% of adults made a purchase from the site in the past 12 months. That number jumped to 56% in 2020, to 69% in 2021, 71% in 2022 and up to 67% this year. The next three most popular shopping sites are Walmart (19% making a purchase in the last year), Canadian Tire (13%) and Costco at (12%).

Now that Canadians are back shopping in-person, 12 million adults visited a shopping centre in the previous week, with 68% saying they shopped in-store more than once in an average month.

Younger Canadians are leading this post-COVID rebound. Those aged 18 to 29 are 85% more likely to shop in-store for entertainment products such as video games, movies and concert tickets. Adults 50-plus are 27% more likely to make home purchases such as gardening supplies and home improvement items and tools.

Canadians with children are twice as likely than average to shop in-store for apparel and entertainment items. They are also most likely to shop during holiday sale events and the back to school season.

Given the inflationary environment, it is no surprise that weekly grocery spend has increased 35% from 2019 to 2023 with 28% more Canadians spending in excess of $150 on groceries in an average week. Those spending $150-plus a week are 59% more likely to shop at Costco or IGA while adults spending less are most likely to shop at FreshCo or Food Basics.

More than half of Canadian adults (54%) want to reduce their spending on groceries. Older Canadians, those in smaller households or with lower incomes are the most likely to want to reduce grocery spend.

But food isn’t the only area where Canadians are trying to reduce spending. Looking at other product categories, 47% of Canadians want to reduce clothing and footwear spending, 38% on travel spending, 33% on personal care and cosmetics, 32% on utilities and 31% on electronics and technology.