Ecommerce Return Rate by Product Category
Last updated September 25, 2026
A sourced reference of online return rates across 7 ecommerce product categories. Roughly one in five online sales comes back, but the spread by category is wide, from single digits in beauty to 30% and more in apparel. Every figure below links to where it came from.
Methodology
Few retailers disclose return rates by category, so this page works in two layers. The first is a small set of measured anchor figures from named primary sources: the NRF and Happy Returns annual returns survey, Coresight Research's apparel study, and Zalando's own disclosure. The second is the category ranges published by two ecommerce operations companies, Richpanel and ShipNetwork, shown side by side so you can see where they agree and where they don't. Treat the ranges as benchmarks, not precise measurements.
Anchor Figures from Primary Sources
| Figure | What it measures | Period | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15.8% | All U.S. retail sales returned | 2025 (forecast) | National Retail Federation & Happy Returns |
| 19.3% | U.S. online sales returned | 2025 (forecast) | National Retail Federation & Happy Returns |
| 24.4% | U.S. online apparel return rate | 12 months to March 2023 | Coresight Research |
| ~50% | Items ordered that are returned, Zalando (fashion marketplace, Europe) | Current, all markets | Zalando SE |
Return Rate by Category
Typical share of online orders returned, as published by each source (2026 editions).
| Category | Richpanel | ShipNetwork |
|---|---|---|
| Apparel | 20–40% | 30–40% |
| Footwear | 17–30% | 25–35% |
| Home & furniture | 15–23% | 15–20% (home goods), 15–25% (furniture) |
| Auto parts | ~19% | Not reported |
| Accessories & jewelry | 12–15% | Grouped with apparel |
| Electronics | 8–15% | 8–10% |
| Beauty & personal care | 4–12% | 4–10% |
Apparel: Coresight's measured 24.4% sits at the low end of both ranges; Zalando's ~50% item-level rate shows how high fashion-marketplace bracketing can push it.
Sources: Ecommerce Return Rates in 2026: Benchmarks by Category, Richpanel; How Return Rates Vary by Industry, ShipNetwork.
Limitations
The category ranges are compilations. Neither publisher states a single underlying sample, so they're useful for seeing roughly where a category sits, not for measuring your store to the decimal point. The anchor figures measure different things: NRF and Coresight report a share of sales value, while Zalando reports a share of items ordered, which runs higher when shoppers order several sizes. Return rates also depend heavily on your own policy. Free returns and long return windows push the rate up.
What This Means for Your Own Store
Returns come straight out of margin. Say you sell a $60 jacket with a 50% gross margin and a 30% return rate. If each return costs you $8 in shipping and handling, then out of every 10 sales, 3 come back. That leaves 7 × $30 = $210 in gross profit, minus 3 × $8 = $24 in return costs, or $186. That's $18.60 per sale sent, not the $30 on the sticker. That lower number is the margin a discount actually has to fit inside. The gross margins by category page gives the other half of this calculation, and how much you can discount without killing your margin walks through sizing a discount against it. Zorin reads your own sales history to show how each product responds to a price change, so you can price against your real margin rather than a category average.
Find the price your products can actually hold, after returns.
Start free trialFrequently Asked Questions
What is the average ecommerce return rate?
The National Retail Federation and Happy Returns estimate that 19.3% of U.S. online sales will be returned in 2025, compared with 15.8% of all retail sales.
Which product category has the highest return rate?
Apparel. Published benchmarks put it at 20-40%, Coresight Research measured 24.4% for U.S. online apparel, and fashion marketplace Zalando reports that around 50% of items ordered are returned. Footwear is close behind at roughly 17-35%.
Which product category has the lowest return rate?
Beauty and personal care, at roughly 4-12% in published benchmarks, partly because opened products usually can't be resold and many stores restrict those returns. Electronics is also low at roughly 8-15%.
Why do apparel and footwear have such high return rates?
Fit. Shoppers often order several sizes and send back the ones that don't fit (known as bracketing). In Coresight Research's U.S. apparel survey, size and fit was the top reason for online apparel returns.
How do returns affect pricing?
A returned sale earns no revenue but still costs shipping and handling, so your effective margin is lower than your sticker margin. A category with a 30% return rate needs more headroom in its price than one with a 5% rate before a discount becomes safe.
How to Cite This Page
Zorin. “Ecommerce Return Rate by Product Category.” Updated September 25, 2026. https://www.tryzorin.com/research/return-rate-by-product-category