Ecommerce return rates affect shoppers, retailers, and the broader supply chain—especially as online grows as a share of U.S. retail sales. Shoppers increasingly expect easy returns, and some even purchase with the intent to send items back if they don’t meet expectations. This page explains how often returns occur, what drives them (like inaccurate size/fit info), and where costs show up, including margin loss and reverse-logistics expenses.
Key Takeaways
- 37% of online consumers say they have returned an item at least once in the past three months
- 6% of consumers report making returns often (every month)
- 17% of retailers said returns have increased significantly over the past year (U.S. retail survey)
- Returns reduce gross margin by 10% in the U.S. ecommerce market (share of margin lost due to returns)
- Return fraud can account for a measurable portion of return volume, with some reports estimating 5%–10% of returned merchandise is fraudulent (range cited in report)
- A 2020–2021 reverse logistics benchmark report estimated the cost per return shipment is in the tens of dollars range (benchmark with numeric cost range)
- 82% of shoppers expect retailers to offer easy return processes
- 30%–40% of online shoppers say they buy with the intent to return an item if it doesn't meet expectations
- In a study of online apparel returns, rates increased by about 4 percentage points when fit information was incomplete (reported sensitivity to product information completeness)
- Adidas reported returns rates of about 20% for some ecommerce categories in investor materials (company-reported range)
- A 2020 study found that inaccurate product information (size/fit) was a leading cause of returns in ecommerce, cited in a statistical results table (quantified share)
- In apparel, return rates are commonly reported in the range of 20%–30% for online orders
- In 2021, ecommerce generated 27% of total retail sales in the U.S., providing the base over which returns apply (ecommerce share of retail sales)
- In 2023, U.S. ecommerce sales reached $1.12 trillion (annual sales, base for return-rate effects)
- In the U.S., the U.S. Postal Service reported that package returns constitute a measurable share of parcel volume in seasonal periods (notably holiday), with return shipments concentrated in Q4
Nearly 40% of retailers and most shoppers report rising ecommerce returns, hurting margins significantly.
Related reading
01 · Category
Industry Trends9 stats
01
37% of online consumers say they have returned an item at least once in the past three months
02
6% of consumers report making returns often (every month)
03
17% of retailers said returns have increased significantly over the past year (U.S. retail survey)
04
39% of retailers report that return rates are higher in ecommerce than in stores (survey share)
05
The Center for Sustainable Systems reported that product returns increase life-cycle environmental impacts for many shipped goods (environmental impact finding)
06
Peer-reviewed research in the International Journal of Production Economics found that higher return rates increase operational and emissions impacts in reverse supply chains (quantified sensitivity result)
07
1.4% of product sales are estimated to be lost to return fraud in e-commerce
08
In a survey of U.S. retailers, 65% said they have adopted return policy/experience changes (e.g., longer return windows, in-store drop-off, or digital RMAs) to reduce operational burden
09
In a consumer policy context, EU law provides a 14-day right of withdrawal for distance selling, which is a key statutory driver of returns in e-commerce
Interpretation
Industry Trends Interpretation
Industry Trends show that returns are becoming a growing and more ecommerce-specific issue, with 37% of consumers returning at least once in the past three months and 39% of retailers reporting higher return rates online than in stores, while 17% of retailers say returns have risen significantly over the past year.
02 · Category
Cost Analysis4 stats
01
Returns reduce gross margin by 10% in the U.S. ecommerce market (share of margin lost due to returns)
02
Return fraud can account for a measurable portion of return volume, with some reports estimating 5%–10% of returned merchandise is fraudulent (range cited in report)
03
A 2020–2021 reverse logistics benchmark report estimated the cost per return shipment is in the tens of dollars range (benchmark with numeric cost range)
04
Reverse logistics can represent 5%–15% of total logistics costs for retailers with high return volumes (industry benchmark range)
Interpretation
Cost Analysis Interpretation
From a cost analysis perspective, ecommerce returns are eroding US gross margin by 10% and can make up 5% to 15% of total logistics costs, with reverse logistics return shipments often costing tens of dollars and fraud potentially inflating return volume by 5% to 10%.
03 · Category
User Adoption3 stats
01
82% of shoppers expect retailers to offer easy return processes
02
30%–40% of online shoppers say they buy with the intent to return an item if it doesn't meet expectations
03
In a study of online apparel returns, rates increased by about 4 percentage points when fit information was incomplete (reported sensitivity to product information completeness)
Interpretation
User Adoption Interpretation
For user adoption, the data suggests that return readiness is a major buying driver since 82% of shoppers expect easy return processes and 30% to 40% shop with the intent to return if expectations are not met, with apparel returns rising about 4 percentage points when fit information is incomplete.
More related reading
04 · Category
Performance Metrics5 stats
01
Adidas reported returns rates of about 20% for some ecommerce categories in investor materials (company-reported range)
02
A 2020 study found that inaccurate product information (size/fit) was a leading cause of returns in ecommerce, cited in a statistical results table (quantified share)
03
In apparel, return rates are commonly reported in the range of 20%–30% for online orders
04
In 2019, the share of e-commerce orders returned in the U.S. was estimated at around 16% in a reverse logistics industry analysis
05
In a peer-reviewed operations paper, higher product variety and mismatch risk contribute to increased return probability for online purchases (modeled effect size reported in the study)
Interpretation
Performance Metrics Interpretation
Performance metrics in ecommerce returns show a clear pattern, with multiple sources clustering return rates around 16% to 30% and apparel and category reporting often landing near 20%, suggesting that even small sizing or fit issues and product mismatch risk can materially drive return performance across online orders.
05 · Category
Market Size3 stats
01
In 2021, ecommerce generated 27% of total retail sales in the U.S., providing the base over which returns apply (ecommerce share of retail sales)
02
In 2023, U.S. ecommerce sales reached $1.12 trillion (annual sales, base for return-rate effects)
03
In the U.S., the U.S. Postal Service reported that package returns constitute a measurable share of parcel volume in seasonal periods (notably holiday), with return shipments concentrated in Q4
Interpretation
Market Size Interpretation
In 2023, US ecommerce hit $1.12 trillion, up from ecommerce’s 27% share of total US retail in 2021, which signals that the larger the ecommerce market base, the bigger the volume of parcel returns that will show up in seasonal periods where USPS reports measurable share.
Reference
Cite This Report
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APA
Marie Larsen. (2026, February 13). Ecommerce Return Rate Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/ecommerce-return-rate-statistics
MLA
Marie Larsen. "Ecommerce Return Rate Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/ecommerce-return-rate-statistics.
Chicago
Marie Larsen. 2026. "Ecommerce Return Rate Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/ecommerce-return-rate-statistics.
Sources & references
24 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+4 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)