E-commerce Vocabulary: 173 Key English Terms

Buying and selling goods or services over the internet, including everything around it: online stores, payments, delivery and customer service.

A website or app where a business shows its products and customers can order and pay for them without visiting a physical shop.

A large website or app where many independent sellers list and sell their products, while the platform handles traffic, payments and often delivery rules.

Software used to build and run an online store, covering the product catalog, cart, checkout, payments, orders and integrations with other tools.

Short for business-to-consumer: a business selling directly to individual people who buy for their own use, as most online shops do.

Short for business-to-business: one company selling products or services to other companies, such as a wholesaler supplying shops.

Describes a brand that makes its own products and sells them straight to customers, mainly through its own online store, without wholesalers or retail chains.

The customer-facing part of an online store: the pages, design and navigation that shoppers see, as opposed to the admin panel behind it.

An independent business that sells its products on someone else's marketplace, as opposed to products sold by the marketplace company itself.

The fee a marketplace keeps from each sale, usually a percentage of the selling price that changes by product category.

Describes selling through several connected channels, such as an online store, app, marketplaces and physical shops, that share stock, customer data and one experience.

A way of building an online store in which the customer-facing front end is separate from the back-end commerce system, and the two communicate through APIs.

The featured purchase area on a marketplace product page that selects one seller's offer by default.

The organized resale of previously owned goods through stores, platforms or brand resale programs.

A retail service allowing shoppers in a physical store to order products beyond that store's local stock.

Checks used to confirm the identity and business details of a seller joining or operating on a marketplace.

Permission from a marketplace for a seller to offer products in a category that restricts seller access.

A recorded right allowing a customer to access or use a digital product obtained through a purchase or grant.

A restriction on the number of times a customer may download a purchased digital file.

The page of an online store that shows one product in detail, with its photos, price, description, options and an add-to-cart button.

The entry for a product on a marketplace or store, made up of its title, photos, price, description and details; also the work of creating these entries.

The text on a product page that explains what the item is, what it is made of, how it is used and why someone might want it.

One version of a product that differs from the others in a feature such as size, colour or capacity, usually with its own SKU and stock.

A page that shows a group of related products, such as 'women's shoes', usually as a grid that shoppers can sort and filter.

A file or data connection, often in XML or CSV, that sends a store's product details such as titles, prices, stock and images to marketplaces, ad platforms or comparison sites.

The full set of products a business sells, together with their information such as names, categories, prices, variants and images.

An option on a category or search page that lets shoppers narrow the products shown by features such as size, colour, brand or price.

The search box inside an online store that lets shoppers find products by typing words, and the system that decides which results to show.

The centralized management of product descriptions, attributes and other information for use across sales channels.

A manufacturer part number: a code assigned by a manufacturer to identify a particular product model or part.

The attribute or combination of attributes used to organize related versions within a product listing.

A named characteristic stored in a product record, such as its material, capacity or intended age group.

Adding missing details, images or improved descriptions to existing product records to make them more useful.

Matching product fields, values or categories in a source system to the corresponding structure of another catalog.

The online search results, listings and product presentations through which shoppers discover and assess a brand's goods.

A sales or advertising channel's rejection of submitted product data, preventing affected offers from being shown.

An interactive tool that lets shoppers assemble a product by choosing compatible features, options or components.

A structured system of categories and subcategories used to classify products in a catalog.

A display aligning the same features of several products side by side so shoppers can compare them.

The part of an online store that keeps the products a customer has chosen until they are ready to pay, showing quantities and the total price.

The final steps of buying online, where the customer enters an address, chooses delivery and payment, and places the order.

A customer's request to buy one or more products, created when they complete checkout; it then moves through payment, packing, shipping and delivery.

The situation in which a shopper adds products to the cart but leaves the site without completing the purchase.

A way of completing a purchase without creating an account or logging in; the customer only gives the details needed for the order.

The action of putting a product into the online shopping cart, and the name of the button on product pages that does it.

The message or page that tells a customer their order has been received, with the order number, items, total paid and delivery details.

An automatic email sent to a shopper who left items in the cart without buying, reminding them of the products and inviting them to finish the order.

A saved list of products a shopper is interested in but not ready to buy yet, often marked with a heart icon.

A fast way to buy in which the customer's saved address and payment details are used, so the order can be placed with a single click or tap.

A panel that slides into view to show cart contents while keeping the shopper on the current store page.

A shareable URL that opens a shopping cart containing specified products and quantities.

An order prepared by store staff that remains provisional until it is finalized through the store's order workflow.

Payment for a single purchase divided between two or more payment sources, such as a gift card and a bank card.

The lowest monetary value a basket must reach before a seller will accept the order.

Personal text entered by a buyer to accompany an order intended as a gift for someone else.

Omitting a scheduled subscription order while keeping the subscription active for later orders.

A shareable list of desired gifts that tracks purchases by other people to help coordinate gift giving.

A rule restricting the number of units a customer may buy within specified conditions or a defined period.

A deliberately created order used to check store behavior rather than fulfill normal customer demand.

A service that securely sends a customer's card or other payment details from the online store to the banks and returns whether the payment is approved.

A way a customer can pay for an order, such as a credit or debit card, bank transfer, digital wallet or cash on delivery.

A payment method in which the customer pays the courier in cash, or sometimes by card, when the parcel is delivered, instead of paying online.

One of several smaller payments that together make up the full price, so the customer pays over a number of weeks or months instead of all at once.

The reversal of a card payment after the cardholder disputes it with their bank, for example claiming the item never arrived or the payment was fraudulent.

An extra security step for online card payments in which the card's bank asks the customer to confirm the purchase, for example with an SMS code or a banking app.

A payment option offered by a financing provider that lets customers receive an order now and pay for it later or in a few smaller parts, often without interest if paid on time.

Checking orders and payments for signs of fraud, such as stolen cards or fake accounts, often with software that gives each order a risk score.

Short for Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard: the security rules that any business that stores, processes or sends card data must follow.

An app or service that stores a customer's card or account details securely, so they can pay online or in shops without typing their card number.

Collecting an authorized payment through a separate action after the initial payment approval.

Collecting less than the full amount previously authorized for a payment.

Fraudulent attempts to determine whether stolen or guessed payment card details can be used successfully.

An unjustified payment dispute over a genuine purchase, caused by customer confusion or deliberate misuse of the dispute process.

A fraud screening check that measures how frequently related payment activities occur within a defined time interval.

A card payment service that compares submitted billing address details with information held by the card issuer.

The text identifying a payment or merchant on the customer's bank or card statement.

A payment service that refreshes saved card details when participating card issuers renew or replace cards.

A payment started by a merchant without the customer's active participation, under an earlier agreement permitting that use.

A payment arrangement that withholds portions of incoming merchant proceeds and releases them after specified holding periods.

Sending orders to customers by a delivery company, and also the fee or service option for doing so, such as standard or express shipping.

All the work needed to get an order to the customer after it is placed: storing stock, picking and packing the items and handing the parcel to a carrier.

A unique code a carrier gives to a parcel so that the seller and the customer can follow where it is until delivery.

A company that picks up parcels from sellers and delivers them to customers, such as a national post service or a private courier company.

The day or date range on which a customer can expect an order to arrive, shown before purchase and in shipping messages.

A way of selling online without holding stock: when a customer orders, the store passes the order to a supplier, who ships the product directly to the customer.

Short for third-party logistics: an outside company that stores a seller's stock and picks, packs and ships its orders for a fee.

The final stage of delivery, from a local hub to the customer's door or pickup point; often the most expensive and difficult part of shipping.

The warehouse process of collecting the ordered items from the shelves and packing them into a box with the right label and documents.

A printed sticker on a parcel showing the sender, the delivery address, a barcode and the tracking number the carrier needs.

A service in which customers order online and pick up their items from a physical store or collection point instead of having them delivered.

Assigning an order or its items to an appropriate location for fulfillment according to operational rules.

Fulfilling online delivery orders using stock and staff at a physical retail store rather than only a warehouse.

A temporary pause that prevents an order from moving forward through a specified processing or fulfillment step.

A configured set of shipping rules applied to selected products and fulfillment locations in a store platform.

Checking delivery address details against supported address information to detect missing, inconsistent or invalid elements.

A customer sending a purchased product back to the seller, for example because it does not fit, is faulty or is not what they expected.

Money paid back to a customer, usually to the original payment method, after a return, a cancelled order or a problem with an item.

A store's published rules on how, when and under which conditions customers can send items back, and how they get their money or a replacement.

Sending back a product and getting a different size, colour or a new item in its place, instead of receiving the money back.

The team and the work of helping customers before and after a purchase, by answering questions and solving problems with orders, deliveries and returns.

A charge some sellers take from a refund when an item is returned, to cover the cost of checking, repacking and putting it back into stock.

The current stage of an order, such as pending, processing, shipped, delivered, cancelled or returned, shown to the customer and the store team.

Describes a product that does not work properly or has a fault from manufacturing, so that it cannot be used as intended.

A refund given without requiring the customer to send the purchased item back to the seller.

An exchange arrangement in which a replacement is arranged before the original item reaches the seller.

An online interface through which customers request returns and follow the steps needed to send products back.

The decision about what should happen to a returned item, such as resale, repair, recycling or disposal.

Ordering several versions of a product to compare at home, with the intention of returning some of them.

Buying a product to use temporarily and then returning it as though it had not been used.

An approval or reference issued by a seller to authorize and track the return of specified goods.

Short for stock keeping unit: a unique code a seller gives to each product and each version of it, such as a size or colour, to track stock and orders.

All the products a business has available to sell, and the records that show how many of each item are in stock and where.

Not available to buy at the moment because the seller has no units left; the opposite is in stock.

The number of units of a product that a seller currently has available, usually tracked per SKU and per warehouse.

An order for a product that is temporarily out of stock, accepted by the store and shipped when new stock arrives.

A large building where a business stores its products and where orders are picked, packed and prepared for shipping.

Extra units kept on top of expected demand to avoid running out if sales are higher than forecast or a delivery from a supplier is late.

The stock level at which a new purchase order should be placed, so that new stock arrives before the current stock runs out.

A measure of how many times a business sells and replaces its stock in a period, usually cost of goods sold divided by average inventory value.

Products that have not sold for a long time and are unlikely to sell at their normal price, taking up warehouse space and money.

Temporarily setting aside stock for a particular order or shopper so that it is not offered to someone else.

The available quantity of a product bundle as determined by the stock needed for its individual components.

Managing stock from several locations or channels as a shared supply that can serve combined demand.

Stock held by a marketplace fulfillment service that cannot be sold because it lacks an associated active offer.

A written opinion, often with a star rating, that a buyer posts about a product or seller to share their experience with other shoppers.

A score, usually from one to five stars, that customers give a product or seller; the average is shown on listings and product pages.

A label on a review showing that the person who wrote it actually bought the product from that store or marketplace.

Photos, videos, reviews and posts about a product created by customers rather than by the brand, often shown on product pages or social media.

A score that shows how a marketplace seller performs, based on buyer feedback and things like on-time shipping, cancellations and returns.

A small logo or icon on a website, such as a secure payment symbol, card logos or a review score, meant to show shoppers that the store is safe.

A review that does not describe a real customer's honest experience, for example one written by the seller, paid for, or posted to harm a competitor.

Filtering which customers are invited to publish a review according to their expected positive or negative opinion.

How useful readers judge a customer review to be when deciding whether a product suits their needs.

A review written in connection with a benefit such as a free sample, reward or discount.

A short code a customer types at checkout to get a lower price, a fixed amount off or free shipping.

A delivery option for which the customer pays no shipping fee, often offered only on orders above a certain amount.

To encourage a customer to buy a more expensive version of what they are looking at, or to add an upgrade, such as more storage or a longer warranty.

To offer a customer products that go with what they are buying, such as a case with a phone or socks with shoes.

A short sale, often lasting only hours or a day, with big discounts on selected products and usually limited stock.

Two or more products sold together as one offer, usually at a lower price than buying each of them separately.

A permanent or long-term cut in a product's selling price, usually to clear slow-selling or end-of-season stock.

The Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States, now an international shopping day in late November with big online and in-store discounts.

Applying more than one coupon or discount code to the same purchase under the store's combination rules.

A reduction applied by the store when specified conditions are met, without the shopper entering a code.

An extra item supplied free when a customer makes a purchase that meets the offer's conditions.

An offer in which customers combine different eligible products to qualify for a promotional price or benefit.

Dividing a discount amount among the items in an order for pricing, refunds or reporting.

The percentage of visitors or sessions that end with a purchase; for example, 2 orders from 100 visits is a 2% conversion rate.

The average amount a customer spends in one order, found by dividing total revenue by the number of orders in the same period.

The series of steps shoppers go through before buying, such as visiting, viewing a product, adding to cart and checking out, with fewer people at each step.

An experiment that shows two versions of a page or element to different groups of visitors at the same time to see which one leads to more sales.

An estimate of the total revenue, or profit, a business can expect from one customer over the whole time they keep buying from it.

Short for gross merchandise value: the total value of goods sold through a store or marketplace in a period, before fees, discounts and returns are taken off.

A customer who buys from the same store more than once; the share of such customers is a key sign of loyalty and long-term growth.

Revenue divided by the number of measured visitors over the same reporting period.

The proportion of searches within a store that return no matching products during the measured period.

The share of measured eligible opportunities in which a seller's offer occupies a marketplace's featured purchase position.

The proportion of assessed orders that meet a marketplace's defined criteria for order-related problems.

The share of assessed orders dispatched or confirmed as shipped after the applicable shipment deadline.

The proportion of submitted payment authorization requests that are approved during a measured period.

The extent to which required product information fields are populated across the product records being assessed.

Selling products online to customers in other countries, which brings extra work such as customs, international shipping, currencies and local languages.

A tax charged by a country on goods brought in from abroad, calculated from the product type, its value and sometimes where it was made.

A number from the international Harmonized System that classifies a product for customs and decides which duty rate applies to it.

Adapting a store for a particular country, including language, currency, sizes, units, payment methods, legal texts and cultural details, not only translating the words.

The full cost of getting a product to its destination: the product price plus shipping, insurance, customs duty, taxes and other fees.

Describes a store or system that shows prices and accepts payments in several currencies, so customers can shop in their own money.

The value below which imported goods are free of customs duty or taxes, or go through simpler customs procedures; each country sets its own limit.

Short for delivered duty paid: a shipping term under which the seller pays all delivery costs, including import duties and taxes, so the buyer pays nothing on arrival.

The currency in which a purchase amount is presented and charged to the customer.

The currency in which a merchant receives funds when a payment is settled.

A selection of products made available specifically to shoppers in a particular geographic sales market.

A configured group of destinations that share shipping rates, services or delivery rules.