U.S. shoppers spent $11.8 billion online on Black Friday, up 9.1% from last year, according to new data from Adobe Analytics (ADBE). As a result, the jump put online demand at a new high for the day. In contrast, store traffic remained soft as many buyers held back due to high prices and tariff risk.
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Meanwhile, Mastercard SpendingPulse (MA) said online sales rose 10.4%, while in-store sales rose 1.7%. The gap showed how fast the shift to online channels grew in this cycle. In addition, global data from Salesforce (CRM) showed that AI agents helped guide $14.2 billion in online sales, with $3 billion from the U.S. alone.
AI Tools Shape How Buyers Shop
New AI tools from Walmart (WMT) and Amazon (AMZN) made it easy for buyers to scan for deals, leading to a sharp rise in site traffic. Adobe said AI-driven visits to retail sites rose 805% from last year. As a result, many buyers used chat tools to sort gift plans with less stress.
Hot items ranged from LEGO and Pokémon cards to Nintendo Switch (NTDOY) and PlayStation 5 units (SONY). Apple (AAPL) also saw strong demand for AirPods.
Even so, higher prices made the day feel tight for many buyers. Salesforce said order count fell 1% while the average selling price rose 7%. Units per order fell 2%, which showed the strain from tariff effects and slow wage growth. Price cuts also stayed flat due to higher product costs, which kept the final sale price high.
Cyber Monday Outlook
Looking ahead, Adobe expects Cyber Monday sales of $14.2 billion, making it the top online shopping day of the year. Electronics should see the top price cuts at close to 30%, while other strong areas include apparel and computers.
In the meantime, store traffic may remain slow as many buyers weigh cash needs against caution amid inflation and job stress. Even so, online demand shows real momentum as more buyers use AI tools to shape quick choices and find fair prices.
We used TipRanks’ Comparison Tool to align all the tickers appearing in the piece side by side. It’s a great tool for investors to gain an in-depth examination of each stock and the retail industry as a whole.
