Concerned about tariff-driven price increases, consumers avoided crowded stores and went to chatbots to check prices and secure discounts, which contributed to a spike in U.S. online spending on Black Friday.
Adobe Analytics, which monitors 1 trillion visits to online retail websites, reports that U.S. consumers spent a record $11.8 billion online on the largest shopping day of the year, up 9.1% from 2024.
According to Adobe, compared to the previous year, when artificial intelligence products like Amazon's Rufus and Walmart's Sparky had not yet been introduced, the AI-driven traffic to U.S. retail sites increased by 805%.
"Consumers are using new tools to get to what they need faster," eMarketer analyst Suzy Davidkhanian stated. "Gift giving can be stressful, and LLMs (large language models) make the discovery process feel quicker and more guided."
In an Adobe survey, nearly half of participants reported using or intending to utilize AI for online shopping this season. LEGO sets, Pokemon cards, gaming systems like the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5, and items like Apple AirPods and KitchenAid mixers were among the best-selling items on Black Friday.
According to software company Salesforce, AI and agents affected $14.2 billion in online transactions worldwide on Black Friday, with $3 billion coming from the United States alone.
U.S. shoppers spent $18 billion online on Black Friday purchases, up 3% from a year ago, according to Salesforce, whose data includes non-discretionary products like groceries. The most popular categories were luxury clothing and accessories.
Salesforce reports that while U.S. consumers spent more on Black Friday than they did the previous year, price rises hindered online demand, with customers buying fewer items at checkout.
While average selling prices increased by 7%, order volumes decreased by 1%. Additionally, consumers made fewer purchases at the register; according to Salesforce, the number of units per transaction decreased by 2% annually.
"The average selling price in the United States is being driven up by two factors," stated Caila Schwartz, Salesforce's director of consumer research.
"The first is unquestionably the effect of tariffs, particularly on those discretionary categories where selling prices have increased significantly.
The other is that, as shown by the strength in the luxury category, we are witnessing a much stronger higher-income earner than average-income earner," she continued.
The increase in spending paves the way for an even greater Cyber Monday, which is expected to generate $14.2 billion in sales, up 6.3% from the previous year and the biggest online shopping day of the year, according to Adobe.
According to Adobe, there will be significant reductions on laptops and clothing as well as the biggest savings on electronics, which are predicted to exceed 30% off list prices on Cyber Monday.
However, Black Friday bargain-hunting at physical stores was comparatively muted, with some consumers claiming they were afraid to overspend in the face of ongoing inflation, trade-related uncertainty, and a weak work market.
Lesliee Antonette, a consultant from Los Angeles, was waiting in line at a Best Buy store on Black Friday to purchase an ice cream maker for her mother.
"I got a good deal on the ice cream maker, but I was very aware of prices on everything in the store," she stated. "Given the expenses, I anticipate that this year's holiday shopping will be extremely careful. I'm sure mine will.
