B
Evidence Grade B
Graded
accuracy verified by the review judge
Safe to Cite
Aging
16.9%
16.9% -- ecommerce return rate for eCommerce sector (average across retailers) (2024)
The average eCommerce return rate reached 16.9% in 2024 according to the National Retail Federation and Happy Returns.
- Some retailers see return rates as high as 30%
Attribution:
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Lighthouse Research Team
Last verified:
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Source verified
Evidence graded
Value
16.9%
Unit
Percentage
Data Vintage
2024
Entity
Evidence Quality
B
Strong, reliable evidence
Sourced from a well-regarded research firm or industry leader with transparent methodology and a reasonably large sample.
Score breakdown
Extraction
50
Source Trust
60
Citation Chain
60
Independence
30
Methodology
45
Freshness
95
Sources (2)
National Retail Federation and Happy Returns
Primary
Tier C
https://www.dawleys.com/news/transforming-returns-into-a-competitive-advantage/ ↗
Source Article
Transforming Returns into a Competitive Advantage | Dawleys
In eCommerce, returns aren’t just inevitable-they’re a defining part of the customer experience. Done right, they’re not a problem-they’re an opportunity.
A smart, seamless returns process can build trust, boost loyalty, and even drive profitability. In fact, how you handle returns, before and after…
Also cited by
2026-09-20
Original Research
National Retail Federation and Happy Returns
· Original study ↗
Methodology
Attributed in article to the National Retail Federation and Happy Returns; article also notes some retailers seeing returns as high as 30%.
Methodology documented
Segmentation
Industrymarketing
Cite this stat
Plain Text
eCommerce sector (average across retailers): 16.9% ecommerce return rate. Source: National Retail Federation and Happy Returns (2024). Via Lighthouse Intelligence -- https://lighthousedata.io/data/avg-ecommerce-return-rate-2024
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<blockquote cite="https://lighthousedata.io/data/avg-ecommerce-return-rate-2024" style="border-left:3px solid #2563eb;padding:12px 16px;margin:16px 0;font-family:system-ui,sans-serif;background:#f0f4ff;"><strong>16.9%</strong> -- ecommerce return rate for eCommerce sector (average across retailers)<br><small>Source: National Retail Federation and Happy Returns (2024) · <a href="https://lighthousedata.io/data/avg-ecommerce-return-rate-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lighthouse Intelligence</a></small></blockquote>
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