For its 9.9 shopping festival last year, leading ecommerce platform Shopee Thailand generated sales of one billion baht in just 18 minutes, a clear indication of ecommerce’s popularity in the country. Thailand is now the second-largest ecommerce market in ASEAN, trailing only Indonesia despite having the fourth-largest population in the region.
Growth has primarily been driven by Thai consumers’ strong engagement with online shopping platforms, alongside brands’ strategic shift towards digital marketplaces. Among these platforms, Shopee leads with a 75% usage rate among Thai consumers, followed by Lazada at 67% and TikTok at 51%, according to the latest report from Priceza.com.
A combination of social, infrastructural, and cultural changes has fuelled this rapid ecommerce expansion. Thailand’s high internet penetration rate, standing at approximately 91.2% in early 2025, equivalent to 65.4 million users out of around 71.6 million people, has been crucial to this growth. But ecommerce has also grown because it tapped into and reshaped the cultural DNA of Thai consumption.
“Thai malls have always been more than shops because they’re destinations, social theatres and cool escapism,” says Andrea Ng, insights director at Canvas8. “Ecommerce mimics that communal energy in digital form. Live streams are the new atriums. The difference is you no longer need to travel across Bangkok traffic to be part of the scene. To buy during a live stream is to belong because it is as much a performance as it is a transaction. That cultural translation gave ecommerce a social legitimacy that pushed it mainstream.”
Fierce competition between key players such as Shopee and Lazada, who vie for market share with aggressive discounts and flash sales, has further stimulated demand. “This not only attracts consumers but also encourages repeat visits, keeping traffic high,” says Wilasinee (Kaimook) Siriboonpipattana, consultant at Mintel Consulting.
Payments have also become more frictionless. Once dominated by cash and cash-on-delivery, PromptPay QR and mobile wallets are now mainstream. PromptPay reports regularly hitting 2.1 billion transactions and 4.43 trillion baht in value. “The growing trust with digital payments unlocked millions of new shoppers, which also normalises instant pay for street vendors and marketplaces alike,” adds Ng.
Ecommerce platforms also capitalise on Thailand’s festival culture by orchestrating peak ‘shopping holidays’ on double-date events like 9.9 and 11.11, alongside traditional festivals such as Songkran. “This creates collective shopping moments that have become part of social rituals,” Ng explains. “That collective energy mirrors cultural patterns, transforming ecommerce peaks into these similar moments.”
Innovation driven by AI
AI-driven innovation is pushing Thailand’s ecommerce boundaries. “AI isn’t just a tool but it’s a way to make product listings smarter and more effective, improving titles, descriptions, images, and pricing so items are easier to find and more appealing,” says Siriboonpipattana. For shoppers, “AI is creating truly personalised experiences, recommending products based on browsing habits, sending tailored promotions, and anticipating what they want before they even know it.”
Mintel research shows 78% of Thai consumers agree AI makes online shopping easier, boosting engagement and loyalty amid rising expectations for personalisation.
Thailand’s AI live commerce is still in its early stages. AnyMind Thailand’s 2024 launch of an AI avatar partnership with Evian cut livestreaming costs by 90%, but critics highlight limitations. “AI avatar hosts for live commerce don’t work. At least not if your goal is genuine engagement and commercial success,” says Dominic Powers, CEO APAC & LATAM and director at Stickler. “AI hosts are literally tone-deaf. They are monologues, and in many cases on loop, and not in conversation. They mimic presence but can’t replicate connection.”
Local adaptation remains crucial. Much innovation focuses on hyperlocalising platforms to fit naturally within Thai lifestyles. Line Gift is a good example, integrating social behaviours with ecommerce. Installed on at least 4,745 ecommerce stores in Thailand, Line enables “users to send products and vouchers from leading retailers and F&B brands directly in Line, transforming everyday conversation into a purchase moment,” says Ng. “This embedded commerce shows Thailand is not about reinventing the wheel, but making ecommerce indistinguishable from the ways people already connect.”
Thailand also leads in live-stream commerce, adapting it to Thai sensibilities. In 2024, Tripcom Group opened its first live-streaming centre in Bangkok. “Live-stream and short-video commerce have become mainstream, supported by consistent daily video content posts and multi-hour live streams that drive engagement and sales,” says Peem Benjasiriwan, Manager, Strategy & Insights at Cube Asia. Platforms are improving customer experience with faster fulfilment—Shopee’s SPX same-day delivery and Shopee x YouTube Shopping integration are notable examples.
In 2024, Tripcom Group opened its first live-streaming centre in Bangkok.
Mobile wallets have shortened the gap between browsing and buying. “A product spotted in a livestream on TikTok, for example, can be bought instantly,” Ng notes. “That immediacy means brands are converting within the same cultural moment of discovery, not just advertising. For brands, it’s about rethinking the funnel and how to reach consumers in different moments.”
With deeper internet penetration and digital wallet growth unlocking ecommerce beyond metropolitan areas, brands must design propositions that resonate beyond Bangkok or first-tier cities, where aspirations and shopping motivations differ. “It’s a levelling effect creating new growth frontiers,” Ng adds.
Content and offers that align naturally with how people converse and share open new creative avenues. The growth of Line Gift allows shared coupons or small gifts to become part of social rituals, strengthening brand presence over time.
Ecommerce is a new cultural touchpoint
For effectiveness, campaigns must align with how Thais actually shop, not just invest in media buys. “Ecommerce isn’t just another channel, it’s how brands embed themselves culturally and meaningfully,” Ng stresses. "Don’t think of shopping as just a funnel or an activity, it's a new cultural touchpoint. Peak sales days like 9.9, 11.11 and Songkran aren’t simply spikes, they are collective rituals. Brands that plan multi-phase storytelling, from teasing to celebrating to post-festival, are woven into Thai consumers’ new ecommerce cultural calendars.”
Online shopping is a new cultural touchpoint. Peak sales days like 9.9, 11.11 and Songkran aren’t simply spikes, they are collective rituals.
Affiliate-driven commerce is surging, with 83% of Thai consumers in 2024 reporting purchases based on influencer recommendations. Effective campaigns pair creator-led discovery on TikTok or Instagram with retail media inside Lazada or Shopee to capture high-intent searches. “This isn’t short-term arbitrage but consistent presence across the journey, from entertainment to checkout, to build brand equity as well as drive sales,” Ng explains.
“Thai consumers don’t see online and offline as separate worlds, they flow between malls, convenience stores, social platforms and marketplaces seamlessly. For advertisers, campaigns shouldn’t be confined just to digital feeds.”
Multi-channel strategies employing out-of-home (OOH), retail partnerships, and QR codes in physical spaces also encourage consumers online. “Ecommerce is not a silo. Don’t treat it as one. Treat it as a spine connecting every consumer touchpoint, physical and digital, into a single narrative,” Ng advises.
Saturation and challenges in the market
Nevertheless, the market faces challenges. Saturation with global incumbents and local/regional challengers such as Dr. Pong, Her Hyness and Skintific intensifies price competition, while rising take-rates from commissions and advertising increase costs, pressuring margins.
“To navigate this, brands need a balanced approach—rapid new product development, often a strength for local brands, delivering specialised, high-value, affordable options, alongside strategic use of creators and affiliates and careful investment across on-and-off-platform channels,” says Benjasiriwan. “Brands must choose between prioritising top-line growth and market share versus protecting margins to remain competitive.”
Saturation with global incumbents and local/regional challengers such as Dr. Pong, Her Hyness and Skintific intensifies price competition.
Consumer concerns about counterfeit goods (62%), poor product quality (50%) and fake reviews (41%) limit purchase frequency (Mintel 2023). “To stand out, brands must foster genuine engagement, encouraging real consumers to share honest experiences and create user-generated content (UGC),” says Siriboonpipattana. Forty per cent of shoppers regard UGC as ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ important when deciding to purchase. Hassle-free, preferably free, returns reduce perceived risk, boosting shopper confidence.
With Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop and Line all competing aggressively, consumers have many choices. Brands should shift focus from price to brand play for differentiation. “Emotional resonance—through immersive live commerce experiences, cultural festival alignment, or owning cultural moments—builds long-term equity,” Ng explains. “Relying solely on discounts risks short-term spikes without lasting value.”
Ng warns that over-reliance on one or two marketplaces leaves brands vulnerable as the landscape evolves. “Investing in multi-channel ecosystems, pairing retail media with owned channels like LINE official accounts, is key to maintaining direct consumer connections.”
Finally, brands must recognise fragmented consumer behaviour and expectations across metropolitan and secondary cities. “Don’t segment solely by demographics but by behaviour, cultural context and motivations,” Ng advises. “Tailor campaigns to match hyperlocal habits to stay relevant across regions and audiences.”
