Online shopping in Netherlands is safe and done by millions of Dutch consumers. Find more information below including the most popular product categories purchased online, the 10 biggest webshops, language barrier for expats and purchasing from a webshop outside the EU…

ONLINE SHOPPING IN NETHERLANDS

10 BIGGEST WEBSHOPS IN NETHERLANDS

The 10 biggest online shops in Netherlands in 2023 were:

#1 bol – sales €4.30B
This Dutch e-tailer, which recently dropped the “com” from its name, has been the biggest online retailer in Netherlands for many years. Several years ago it transitioned from an online department store selling its own inventory into an online marketplace with third-party goods also sold. The product range is huge and includes everything from beauty, toys and furniture to sporting goods, electronics, white goods and tools. bol is owned by Ahold Delhaize (which is also the parent company of Albert Heijn supermarkets, Etos drugstores and Gall&Gall liquor stores). 2023 sales were €4.30 billion, up from €4.02 billion the previous year.

#2 ALBERT HEIJN – sales €1.80B
Online shopping for groceries grew significantly during Covid-19. Surprisingly this major behavior change in how people buy food has not tapered off even with the pandemic passed. Albert Heijn continues to reap the benefit with 2023 sales increasing to €1.80 billion (from €1.70 billion a year earlier), making it the second largest webshop in Netherlands for the third year running.

#3 COOLBLUE – sales €1.55B
Coolblue is a Dutch online electronics and appliances shop known for its high level of customer service. Over the past few years they have added brick-and-mortar showrooms across the Netherlands including in Amsterdam, Arnhem, Eindhoven, Groningen, Haarlem, The Hague, Rotterdam, Tilburg and Utrecht. The Coolblue webshop has an English-language option. Their 2023 sales were up slightly on 2022.

#4 AMAZON NL – sales €1.20B
Amazon may be the dominant online retailer in many European countries but here in Holland it only ranked #4 in sales for 2023 (up from #5 in 2022). The Netherlands webshop (Amazon.nl) started offering a fuller range and allowed third-party retailers to sell items in 2019 (prior to that customers in Netherlands had to buy from Amazon Germany, France or UK). Dutch consumers are now offered Amazon Prime memberships (€4.99/month) which includes unlimited free shipping, access to Amazon Prime Video and other benefits. 2023 sales were around €1.20 billion which was up from €.90 billion in 2022.

#5 ZALANDO – sales €1.00B
The Dutch webshop of this German internet fashion retailer continues to be one of the biggest in the Netherlands. Zalando recently built a 140,000m² Dutch distribution facility near Rotterdam. The company sells clothing, shoes and accessories for men, women and children. 2024 sales were approximately €1.00 billion, up from €915 million in 2023. Zalando slips from 4th to 5th place among the Netherlands largest webshops.

#6 PICNIC – sales €800.0M
Many people first became aware of Picnic due to the company’s fleet of small, narrow electric delivery vans. The Dutch mobile-only grocery seller first appeared among the Netherlands Top 10 online retailers in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic. Not only has it remained a force, but this year sees it leapfrog from #8 to #6 with sales of €800 million (up from €610 million last year).

#7 JUMBO – sales €655.0M
Jumbo, the second largest Dutch supermarket chain, saw its online sales drop slightly this past year, from €670 million to €655 million. As a result, it falls to #7 (from #6 last year).

#8 WEHKAMP – sales €663.0M
Wehkamp is an online department store selling apparel, footwear, jewelry/watches, cosmetics/perfume, electronics/appliances, furniture/bedding, sporting goods and toys/games. It was founded in the 1950’s as a catalog business and made the transition to online retailer in the mid-90’s. Wehkamp was ranked as high as #2 but has slipped over the past few years. In 2023 sales fell to €552 million from €663 million in 2022, which drops it from #7 to #8.

#10 BELSIMPEL – sales €432.2M
The company was founded in 2006 by two students at the University of Groningen. Since that time it has grown significantly, both in Netherlands and throughout Europe. The company specializes in the online sale of mobile phones and service contracts, including SIM-only service and phone insurance. This is the first time Belsimpel has appeared among the 10 biggest webshops in Netherlands.

#10 APPLE – sales €430.0M
Apple’s online sales in Netherlands are significant, despite falling from €490 million in 2021 to €430 million in 2023. They drop from 9th to 10th place among the Netherlands largest online shops.

NOTE: Figures based on the Twinkle100 report.

BEST WEBSHOPS IN NETHERLANDS

Every year the ABN AMRO Webshop Awards are given out the best Netherlands online shops by category. The winners are chosen by the public with a sizeable amount of Dutch shoppers (over 150,000 on average) taking part in the vote each year.

For 2024-2025, the following were named best webshops in Netherlands…

BUYING FROM A NON-EU WEBSHOP

Shoppers in Netherlands can buy from a webshop based outside the European Union as long as the retailer ships to Holland AND the order does not contain any items banned from private import (such as prescription medicines, cigarettes or counterfeit merchandise).

There are fees charged to all shipments entering the Netherlands from outside the EU. Sales tax (VAT) is the most common as it applies to almost all shipments. VAT is assessed based on the total value of the shipment.

Total value = merchandise cost + shipping cost + insurance cost

Example: Item cost = €75, shipping cost = €10, insurance cost = €3. Total cost = €88. The sales tax (VAT) that will be charged by customs (which needs to be paid before the courier will give you the package) is 21% x €88 = €18.48.

Shipments with a total value greater than €150 are also subject to import duty fees. These fees vary in amount depending on the product category but are generally between 0-17%. If the shipment is subject to import duties (because it is over €150), the import duty is calculated first and then added to the value of the shipment before VAT is calculated.

Import Duty = Total value (merchandise cost + shipping cost + insurance cost) x import duty rate

VAT = Total value (merchandise cost + shipping cost + insurance cost + import duty) x VAT rate

Total additional fees to be paid = import duty + VAT

Find more information about calculating import fees here.

Buyers should be aware that products purchased from webshops outside the European Union frequently do not meet EU safety standards. Similarly, product warranties and other consumer protections may not be the same as those that are mandatory in the EU.

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