Social commerce trends no longer revolve around native checkout. Social shopping in 2026 features more creator-driven commerce, with content creators driving discovery for both in-app and off-platform buying journeys.
The global social commerce market is predicted to reach nearly $102 billion in 2026, on the momentum of the 5.79 billion people who currently use social media. TikTok, Meta, YouTube, and Pinterest are all releasing new features built to capitalize on social shopping.
Here, you’ll learn the latest social commerce trends, statistics, and predictions for 2026, with top platform changes and how you can tap into the social-selling moment we’re experiencing today.
What is social commerce?
Social commerce is the use of social media platforms to promote and sell products or services. It lets businesses and customers interact directly, including completing transactions, either through native in-app checkout or by directing audiences to the retailer’s ecommerce website.
Examples of social commerce include:
- In-app purchases through TikTok Shop
- Livestreaming on YouTube with tagged products
- Buying through product tags on Pinterest
- Creators sharing an affiliate link in Instagram Stories
How social commerce differs from ecommerce
Ecommerce includes any shopping experience that takes place online. Consumers can access ecommerce sales channels on any internet-enabled device, including a desktop, tablet, or mobile device.
Social commerce is a subset of ecommerce in which brands using social media to market and sell their products. A retailer doesn’t necessarily need to have their own ecommerce site to use social platforms’ native selling tools, but online retailers that have an online store can direct users there to complete their purchase.
For retailers, the practical difference in 2026 is where the purchase is completed: social commerce can start and end on-platform, redirect to a direct-to-consumer (DTC) site, or do both depending on the channel. This changes how you set up tracking, attribution, and fulfillment.
Why social commerce still matters
Social media usage is on the rise. Research shows that the typical internet user now spends about 18 hours and 36 minutes on social media each week. And social commerce is growing with it: US social shoppers are projected to grow from roughly 108 million to just shy of 117 million between 2026 and 2028.
While those aged 18 to 34 lead adoption of social media shopping, with 23% discovering a brand on social media and buying through the brand’s website, research from Bazaarvoice shows the behavior spans all age groups.
Social commerce platform shifts in 2026
As social selling continues to grow, many social commerce platforms are introducing new features that make it easier for retailers to sell on their platforms.
Instagram and Facebook: Discovery remains strong, but in-platform checkout is no more
About half of US social buyers will shop on Instagram in 2026, while over 69 million already shop on Facebook.
Facebook and Instagram Shops are now functioning as enhanced product galleries with outbound links as the default. Discovery happens in the feed, but Meta phased out their native checkout experience in September 2025. Shoppers are now directed to a brand’s website to complete their purchase.
Meta is also experimenting with new social shopping features:
- AI summaries: When users click a link to a brand’s website, a pop-up appears with an AI-generated review summary. Summaries can also include potential discounts and recommended products.
- Product links in Instagram Reels: As of April 2026, eligible creators can integrate products from a brand’s catalog directly into their videos. Nicola Mendelsohn, head of global business group at Meta, said this feature means “the era of ‘link in bio’ is finally over.”
- AI shopping agents There are rumors of a forthcoming personalized AI assistant named Hatch, similar to the AI assistant OpenClaw.
TikTok Shop: Creator-led commerce keeps expanding
Some 23% of Gen Z audiences start their online product searches on TikTok. In 2026, eMarketer estimates over half of social buyers in the US will shop on TikTok.
TikTok’s official entrance into social commerce came when they partnered with Shopify to launch in-app social shopping in 2021. Businesses with a TikTok for Business account can add shopping tabs to their brand’s profile, showcasing a virtual storefront for users to browse without the friction of exiting the app.
Newer TikTok social commerce tools include:
- TikTok Shop affiliates: Offer commission to creators who sell your products through their own content. Creators posted over 10 million shoppable videos during last year’s holiday season alone.
- Live shopping: Host your own shopping event or invite creators to participate, linking products from your TikTok Shop so viewers can buy immediately. Brands who hosted live streams during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday (BFCM) weekend last year recorded 84% sales growth.
- Fulfilled by TikTok (FBT): Ship products to TikTok’s distribution centers and have their team fulfill orders placed through TikTok Shop. The platform says products with this three-day delivery tag see 15% to 20% higher conversion rates and 30% more daily product views.
YouTube Shopping: An underappreciated player in social commerce
Almost two-thirds of 14- to 24-year-olds say YouTube has helped them discover brands and products they didn’t already know about.
YouTube is launching new creator-led commerce features that tie into Shopping, including:
- Creator partnerships hub: Eligible brands can discover creators to partner with inside the Google Ads dashboard. YouTube tracks the sponsored content performance.
- Dynamic product tags: Sponsored YouTube content no longer has to be tied to a brand indefinitely. YouTube is testing new dynamic sponsorships that allow creators to swap out brand sponsorships and replace them with new segments. This opens the door to businesses advertising on a video that’s already proven popular.
- AI product tags: YouTube is using AI to automatically display a product tag at the optimal time, a move it says will help viewers discover and purchase the products featured in a video.
Pinterest: Stronger for discovery than closed-loop checkout
More than 631 million people use Pinterest every month to find ideas and research products. Ninety-six percent of Pinterest searches are unbranded, and 80% of weekly Pinners say they’ve been inspired by the platform’s shopping experience.
As a combined search engine and social media platform for images, Pinterest supports social commerce with:
- Top of Search ads: These appear before organic Pins in a user’s search. This new format boasts a 29% higher click-through rate compared to standard campaigns, and a 32% higher likelihood of attracting new clickers.
- Local inventory ads: These display to customers within a specified radius of your retail store, with real-time prices for in-stock inventory.
- Personalized boards: Pinterest is testing a new “built for you” feature that uses AI to pin items to a board.
Social commerce trends for 2026
- Social commerce is becoming part of unified commerce measurement
- Trust, privacy, and returns policies are conversion levers
- Short-form video still drives product discovery
- Creator content, UGC, and reviews work together—not separately
- Conversational commerce and AI-assisted engagement are rising
Here are the biggest emerging social commerce trends for 2026:
Social commerce is becoming part of unified commerce measurement
Connecting what you know about customers from social channels with their onsite behavior unlocks personalization that converts: per Attentive's 2026 report, three-quarters of shoppers are more likely to purchase when a brand helps them pick up where they left off.
With Shopify’s unified commerce platform:
- Inventory data feeds from one source of truth into offline and online sales channels.
- Order data flows into a single unified order management system (OMS), regardless of where it originated.
- Customer data from a Shopify feature like Shopify Messaging or an integrated app like Smile or Klaviyo is unified inside a unique profile, which powers dynamic segmentation and retargeting campaigns.
Apparel brand Salt Boutique, for example, was active on Facebook and Instagram but had to manually integrate their product catalog with each platform. They migrated to Shopify’s unified commerce platform to bring six sales channels that span online, in-store, and across social media into one infrastructure.
“Before the migration, our inventory wasn't unified, which undermined the value of store pickup,” says owner Jennifer Devlin. “We were so grateful that Shopify solved that for us.
“Now, the product availability shoppers see online and on social media is always accurate. We're maximizing exposure for our bestselling items, and can sell inventory from every location, which is huge.”
Trust, privacy, and returns policies are conversion levers
Edelman’s 2025 "Trust Barometer" found 88% of customers think trust is just as important as price and quality.
Kirsty Godso, founder of protein supplement brand Made Of, described in a Shopify Masters interview how she works with credible experts to build trust on social media: “It doesn't matter if it's someone with millions and millions of followers for our product.”
“What translates and spikes the most sales always [is me] because I guess people trust me, but it's also experts,” Kirsty says. “It's fertility experts, digestion specialists, experts, nutritionists—it's all people speaking about it organically and that's been really amazing.”
Even after people discover your products on social media, some 19% of carts are abandoned because the shopper didn’t trust the site with their credit card details.
Tie trust to visible expectations:
- Returns: Route’s 2026 data shows 93% of customers read a retailer’s review policy before buying. Consider the benefits customers want most: free return shipping, instant refunds, and multiple return options.
- Privacy: Some 71% of shoppers actively protect their privacy, with 46% concerned about data privacy. Address those concerns by clearly communicating how you collect, store, and use customer data.
Short-form video still drives product discovery
Buffer’s 2026 research found video is the best content format for engagement on TikTok, while it was a runner-up on Facebook.
Off the back of these changes, consumers are becoming increasingly reliant on video throughout the customer journey. Wyzowl’s 2026 report shows 85% of people have been convinced to buy a product or service by watching a brand’s video.
When posting shoppable video content, make it obvious that viewers can buy products directly through a post, with captions and frequent reminders. Stick to one or two products per video and show them in action. Film with interactivity in mind, providing clickable calls to action (CTAs) throughout the video that direct your followers to your social storefront.
This Instagram Reel by Bushbalm, for example, diverts followers to their online store locator through the post caption:
Creator content, UGC, and reviews work together, not separately
Nearly 56% of Gen Z and Millennials have purchased a product based on a creator’s recommendation, per BazaarVoice’s 2025 report.
“We find different corners of the internet; different people who have big followings or small followings in their own individual talented areas and we reach out to them and see if they want product,” says Kara Brothers, president of Starface, in a ShopifyMasters interview.
“From there, we leave it completely up to them on what they do with the product. A lot of them, of course, wear it incorporated into their lives and post pictures. For us, that's free marketing—[user-generated content] UGC, if you will.”
Creators drive discovery, but reviews, photos/videos, and social proof from other buyers validate the purchase. After viewing creator content:
- 37% will search for more reviews elsewhere
- 33% will read comments from their followers
- 28% will compare with opinions from other creators
Conversational commerce and AI-assisted engagement are rising
Adobe’s 2026 report found traditional search engines are still the top source for research, but AI isn’t far behind. Platforms like ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, and Google Gemini are used by 25% of shoppers when they research.
Shopify’s Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP), co-developed with Google, helps retailers manage how they show up in these conversations. Agents use the data to let customers handle the following tasks mid-conversation:
- Redeem discount codes
- Add loyalty credentials
- Process payments
“At Monos, we’re excited about agentic shopping because it enables us to meet customers where they already are,” said Victor Tam, CEO and cofounder of Monos.
“It’s a new way for our story and product details to show up at the exact moment someone is asking real questions with real intent, in a format that feels helpful, not intrusive. For a brand built on thoughtful design, it’s a natural next channel for discovery and trust.”
How to build a social commerce strategy
There are a few best practices to sell through social commerce platforms:
Pick one priority platform based on audience and product fit
To find the right social commerce platform for your business, look at who your customers are and pick the platform they use most. Do they watch live streams? Follow creators on TikTok? Pin products on Pinterest?
Consider the Shop network in your channel mix, as Shop reaches over 250 million verified shoppers worldwide, including 48% of first-time brand shoppers. It works with Shop Pay, which remembers a customer’s payment and shipping details to checkout in two taps and convert up to 50% more shoppers.
Everlane saw that recognition convert quickly. “Our customers are using Shop Pay, and it resonates well with them,” says Anna M. Peterson, product lead at Everlane, who found 15% of transactions happened through Shop Pay in the first 30 days. “They recognize the Shop Pay button on our site from other places they’ve shopped before.”
Track sales by channel, not just clicks and engagement
Virality and big audiences don’t always lead to sales. Back in 2019, one Instagram influencer struggled to sell 36 t-shirts to her 2.6 million followers.
Go beyond clicks and engagement to track sales by channel. Shopify Analytics unifies sales data from every integrated sales channel to see the full-funnel impact of social campaigns.
AI search is a prime example of how some channels naturally drive customers with higher purchase intent. Shopify’s study found over half of AI-referred sessions start on product pages, versus just 20% for organic search. As a result, shoppers referred by AI convert nearly 50% higher and spend 14% more.
Enhance ad performance with targeted audiences
Shopify Audiences creates platform-specific buyer lists to target on TikTok, Instagram, and Pinterest. It specifically finds people who are ready to buy what you sell by looking at shopping patterns across millions of Shopify stores.
Shopify Audiences supports the full acquisition funnel:
- Find your ideal customers: Create lists of people who are likely to buy your products based on their shopping behavior.
- Spend money smarter: Benchmark ad performance against similar stores in your industry and exclude 40% more existing customers on average, for more efficient marketing spend.
- Improve your retargeting: Reach out to people who showed interest but didn't buy yet. This can drive twice as many orders for every dollar you spend on ads.
- Cut costs: Spend up to 50% less to acquire new customers when you use these targeted lists with social apps like Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest.
Luxury apparel brand SIMKHAI used Shopify Audiences to reach new customer segments. The brand lowered their cost per acquisition by 54%, increased conversion rate by 84%, and found that 89% of new customers came through Shopify Audiences.
According to Brooke Stein, SIMKHAI's head of digital, "Shopify's unique position allows us to find valuable new customers through Audiences which has been very effective in helping us grow the SIMKHAI brand.”
Social commerce statistics to know for 2026
Here are statistics that show where the social commerce industry is and where it’s heading:
Audience scale
- Roughly 68.7% of the total global population are social media users.
- Social commerce is projected to account for 7.6% of total retail ecommerce sales in 2026.
- Total retail social commerce sales are projected to surpass $100 billion for the first time this year.
- Social media creator revenue is forecast to reach $20.6 billion in 2026.
- There will be an estimated 1.77 billion social commerce users by 2029.
Buyer behavior
- Social ads are the top source of brand discovery for people aged 16 to 34.
- Customers prioritize budget-friendly deals when making purchases on social media.
- Online adults use 6.75 different social media platforms each month, on average.
Content formats
- Customer reviews and ratings are the most trusted sources on social media.
- One in three shoppers have purchased something based on a creator’s recommendation.
- Some 46% of shoppers say short-form videos like Reels, TikTok videos, and YouTube Shorts are influential.
Platform monetization signals
- TikTok is predicted to claim 22.8% of all retail ecommerce sales in 2026 with 57.7 million social buyers.
- Facebook is the most popular social commerce platform overall.
- Instagram and TikTok are most popular amongst those aged 18 to 34.
Read more
- Social Commerce Examples, Features, and Platforms to Uplevel Your Business
- How to Create A Social Selling Strategy
- 10 Best Social Commerce Platforms and Apps in 2025
- Social Commerce Strategy: Improve Your Social Selling With These 9 Best Practices
- Instagram Ecommerce: Strategies & Examples (2025)
- Global Ecommerce Statistics: Trends to Guide Your Store in 2025
- The State of the Ecommerce Fashion Industry: Statistics, Trends, and Strategies to Use in 2025
- Live Shopping: A Complete Guide to Livestream Selling
- Ecommerce Influencer Marketing: A Complete Guide (2025)
- How to Increase Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) in 2025
Social commerce FAQ
Is social commerce only about in-app checkout?
While social commerce does cover in-app checkout through features like TikTok Shop, it isn’t the only way to sell through social media. Meta, for example, removed native checkout in 2025 and encourages brands to divert audiences to their website to complete a purchase instead.
Which platforms matter most for Shopify merchants?
The social commerce platforms that matter most to your business depend on which social media channels your target audience uses and the resources you have available. This might include TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, or YouTube.
How should brands measure social commerce performance?
Brands can measure social performance by tracking:
- Website traffic from each social channel
- Conversion rate from social sessions
- Revenue and sales from each platform-referred segment
- Post-purchase survey responses that ask how customers first discovered the brand
