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Survey: iOS dominates mobile commerce with 11.6M iPhone users making at least one purchase a month

Sixty-six percent of iPhone users are making purchases via mobile sites at least once a month, compared to only 47 percent of those with an Android smartphone. iPhone owners are also the most frequent shoppers, with 1 in 10 making a purchase using their mobile every single day.

July 18, 2014

Despite making up a smaller portion of the smartphone user base, iOS users constitute the majority of the mobile commerce market, according to new research from EPiServer into the mobile buying habits of smartphone and tablet owners in the U.K., across iOS, Android, Windows and Blackberry devices.

The survey of 1,000 U.K. adults who own smartphones and tablets reveals that 66 percent of iPhone users are making purchases via mobile sites at least once a month, compared to only 47 percent of those with an Android smartphone. iPhone owners are also the most frequent shoppers, with 1 in 10 making a purchase using their mobile every day.

Despite Android’s larger smartphone user base in the U.K., 44 percent compared to 38 percent for the iPhone, iOS is still the dominant platform for shopping. Apple device users make up 46 percent of the 25.5 million U.K. consumers who make mobile site purchases on a monthly-or-more basis, compared to 38 percent on Android.

More tablet owners make regular purchases than smartphone users and Apple’s domination is even greater here, with iPad owners representing a higher proportion of the user base and also being more likely to shop. More than three-quarters (76 percent) of iPad users make a purchase via a website on their device at least monthly, a number that drops to 54 percent for those using Android tablets. With iPads accounting for around 65 percent of the 18 million tablets in the U.K., this means 6.6 million iPad users are making regular purchases via their device.

Apple’s dominance is echoed in purchases made through apps, with 54 percent of iPhone users buying regularly this way, vs. 37 percent on Android. Windows users are also more regular shoppers than those on Android for both Surface tablet and Windows Phone.

The most likely mobile spenders are those 25 to 34 years old, with 78 percent in this age group making a purchase within the last six months, compared to 48 percent of mobile device owners 45 years of age or older.

The most common type of purchase is music, followed by books, travel, digital products (such as apps or e-books) and apparel. The variety of purchase choices in the top five suggests that it is convenience rather than price that drives mobile purchases, as users are opting for high-value items such as train tickets, hotels and clothing alongside less expensive items.

When it comes to location, mobile does not necessarily mean "out-and-about," as 64 percent of mobile device owners say their mobile website browsing takes place primarily at home. For tablet browsing, at-home use rises to 80 percent.