Vietnamese consumers spent an average of nearly VND36 trillion ($1.37 billion) per month shopping online last year, the report showed.

Transaction volumes also increased, though at a slower pace. A total of 3.94 billion products were sold on the four platforms in 2025, up 15.23% from a year earlier.

Despite strong growth in sales and volumes, the number of active online sellers declined by 7.43% to about 601,800, down nearly 48,000 from 2024.

Metric said the divergence reflects an ongoing market shakeout, as higher operating costs, intense competition, and rising consumer expectations forced smaller and less competitive sellers out of the market.

“The combination of rising GMV and a shrinking seller base indicates growing market concentration among vendors with stronger operational capabilities, better service quality, and clearer brand positioning,” Metric said.

The gap between GMV and volume growth also points to a shift in consumer behavior, with shoppers increasingly favoring higher-priced items rather than buying more products. As a result, sellers are being pushed to focus more on product value and quality than on sheer scale, the firm added.

Competition among platforms intensified during the year. Shopee remained the market leader, accounting for 56.04% of total GMV, though its share declined from about 64% in 2024, signalling a slowdown in its dominance.

TikTok Shop emerged as the fastest-growing player, increasing its market share to 41.31% in 2025 from 29% a year earlier. The surge underscored the rising appeal of its “shoppertainment” model, which combines short-form video content with online retail.

Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi continued to dominate domestic consumption. Metric estimates that sales on Shopee alone reached VND224.2 trillion ($8.53 billion) in 2025, equivalent to 92% of the platform’s total GMV. HCMC and Hanoi contributed roughly 42% and 41% of that figure, respectively.

However, industrial provinces surrounding the two major cities recorded much faster growth. The southern province of Binh Duong led with a 122.1% jump in sales to VND3.81 trillion ($145 million), followed by Long An province, up 63.41%, and the northern province of Hung Yen, up 39.41%.

Metric said the trend reflects companies' shift to move warehousing, packaging, and logistics operations to satellite localities to reduce rental and operating costs while shortening delivery times. The relocation is helping e-commerce growth spread more evenly beyond Vietnam’s two metropolises.

By category, beauty products topped online sales in 2025 with revenue of VND74.49 trillion ($2.84 billion), up 29.5%. Home and lifestyle goods followed at VND56.66 trillion ($2.16 billion), up 34.59%, while women’s fashion generated VND54.52 trillion ($2.07 billion), up 39.47%.

Mass-market products continued to dominate pricing segments. Items priced below VND100,000 ($3.81) accounted for 22.6% of total sales, while the VND100,000–200,000 range led with a 25.3% share.

Overall, Metric said Vietnam’s e-commerce sector is moving beyond a phase of volume-driven expansion toward a more mature stage focused on operational efficiency, product quality, and customer retention as the key to long-term competitiveness.