33 Essential Walmart Statistics & Facts for Ecommerce Sellers in 2022
As an experienced ecommerce seller, I‘m constantly analyzing trends and statistics related to major retail players like Walmart to inform my Amazon selling strategy. In 2022, Walmart remains a dominant force that sellers need to understand – whether you sell on Walmart Marketplace itself or compete with Walmart on other channels.
In this comprehensive article, I‘ll share 33 must-know Walmart statistics to help ecommerce sellers make smart business decisions. You‘ll learn key data on Walmart‘s financials, store count, ecommerce performance, sellers ecosystem, and more.
I‘ll also provide my expert seller insights on what these stats mean for your business. Let‘s dive in!
Walmart‘s Revenue and Growth Still Tower Over Most Retailers
In FY 2021, Walmart‘s total revenue grew 2.4% to reach $566.2 billion. That‘s larger than Target, Costco, Kroger, and Albertsons combined!
Walmart has delivered consistent 2-3% yearly revenue growth over the past decade. Their scale is practically unrivaled – for context, they generate more sales than Home Depot, CVS, and Best Buy put together.
With $133.7 billion in US ecommerce sales projected for 2022, Walmart is on track to control 7.9% of the total domestic ecommerce market. Impressive, but still just over half of Amazon‘s 15% share.
Key Takeaway: Walmart‘s continued revenue growth ensures they‘ll remain a dominant force that sellers must understand, even as Amazon leads in ecommerce market share.
Walmart Has More Physical Stores Than Anyone Globally
As of January 2022, Walmart operated 10,510 retail stores in 24 countries under 46 banners.
The supercenter format makes up 3,571 US stores – no other retailer comes close to that brick-and-mortar footprint for affordable one-stop shopping.
For comparison, Amazon has just 620 retail locations including Whole Foods. Walmart‘s physical advantage remains a key strategic asset.
Key Takeaway: Walmart‘s unmatched local store network drives omnichannel synergies like BOPIS (buy online, pickup in-store) that competitors can‘t easily replicate.
But Ecommerce is Walmart‘s Biggest Growth Driver
In FY 2021, Walmart‘s ecommerce sales grew 87% to reach $73.2 billion, accounting for 13% of total sales.
Online grocery remains a major focus – as of January 2022, Walmart offered grocery pickup from 3,600 stores and delivery from 3,000 stores. That‘s double Amazon‘s store count with Whole Foods.
Walmart‘s marketplace now features over 70,000 sellers, almost double from 40,000 in 2018. Marketplace fuels nearly half of Walmart‘s ecommerce volume.
Key Takeaway: Walmart is strategically growing ecommerce market share by leveraging physical assets while expanding its seller-powered marketplace – just like Amazon.
What About the Walmart Marketplace for Sellers?
Diving deeper into the Walmart Marketplace specifically:
Walmart Marketplace launched in 2009 and now represents around $20 billion in annual GMV or gross merchandise volume.
Top selling categories include home & garden, beauty, pet supplies, and fashion – similar to Amazon. Electronics are currently a lower share than Amazon.
Walmart charges referral fees of 3-20% on products sold through its marketplace, very comparable to Amazon.
However, Walmart has lower advertising fees for sponsored product listings, which can benefit sellers.
Key Takeaway: Walmart Marketplace offers sellers another major channel to reach over 100 million US households. The fees and category mix look broadly similar to Amazon.
Walmart vs. Amazon for Sellers – Strategic Differences
As a seller, it‘s useful to understand how Walmart Marketplace strategies differ from Amazon:
Premium focus – Walmart emphasizes curation and highlights premium brands more than Amazon. This creates unique positioning opportunities.
Local advantage – Walmart spotlights American-made products and small businesses. Made-in-USA is a huge search term.
In-store benefits – Walmart can drive web traffic from in-store displays and offers BOPIS consumer fulfillment.
Data limitations – Seller analytics and automation capabilities lag Amazon‘s robust tools.
Category variances – As noted above, electronics representation lags Amazon for now. More opportunity in household goods.
Key Takeaway: Walmart Marketplace offers sellers complementary strengths like physical store presence and American-made emphasis compared to the Amazon marketplace.
And for Your Overall Ecommerce Strategy?
Taking a broader view, here are some tips on incorporating Walmart into your ecommerce plans:
Walmart‘s free two-day shipping for orders over $35 makes them a worthy shipping cost benchmark for all marketplaces.
Review their frequently purchased items in categories like kitchen, home, and electronics – if you can beat the price-value ratio, list them.
Pay attention to top Walmart searches like best-selling toys for business intelligence even if not selling there.
For low price commodities, monitor and match Walmart pricing through reseller tools – don‘t lose sales leaving room for undercutters.
Consider vendor supply opportunities for your manufacturing business – Walmart is expanding American-made product lines aggressively.
Key Takeaway: Regardless of whether you sell on Walmart Marketplace, this retail titan impacts pricing, shipping, and shopper behavior across all online channels. Track their moves closely.
Walmart Wants to Rule Global Ecommerce
Stepping back, it‘s clear Walmart desires to expand its global ecommerce empire:
Acquiring Flipkart gave Walmart the #1 position in India‘s rapidly growing ecommerce market.
Walmart has led over $3 billion in total funding for Chinese grocery app Dada Nexus to take on Alibaba in on-demand delivery.
After exiting markets like Germany and Korea, Walmart is focused on winning in India, China, Mexico, and Canada.
Key Takeaway: Walmart spent over $10 billion to acquire Flipkart and billions more investing in emerging market leaders – they are serious about dominating ecommerce globally.
But Some Initiatives Have Flopped
However, Walmart has stumbled in some international and category expansions:
Walmart sold ModCloth in 2020 after acquiring the digitally native fashion brand for $75 million in 2017 – big ecommerce bets don‘t always pay off.
Overall, Walmart International segment sales declined by over 20% in FY2021 as the company exited some markets like Argentina and the UK.
Walmart sold Vudu, their streaming media service, in 2020 after investing hundreds of millions in the platform that failed to gain traction.
Key Takeaway: Despite being a retail juggernaut, some of Walmart‘s efforts to compete in new product categories and markets have proven unsuccessful. Sellers should carefully test new channels.
Walmart Remains a Retail Job Giant
Walmart employing over 2 million associates worldwide remains staggering:
In FY 2021, Walmart added over 99,000 new jobs in stores and supply chain facilities.
Salaries for hourly associates start between $12 to $17 depending on position, with an average wage of $14.26 per hour.
Approximately 425,000 US hourly store employees now earn at least $15 per hour after recent wage hikes aimed at retention.
Key Takeaway: With over 1.6 million US workers, Walmart employs about 1 in 50 American retail workers. Store associate roles can provide accessible job opportunities.
And Walmart Invests Big in Training Initiatives
Walmart spends over $2.7 billion annually on training programs for associates.
By using virtual reality training simulations, Walmart reduced cashier training from 40 hours down to just 8 hours.
Walmart‘s Pathways training program helps associates gain skills to advance – over 75% of managers started as hourly store associates.
Key Takeaway: Walmart remains committed to frontline retail work as a path to upward mobility, investing heavily to train associates.
Local Manufacturing and Sustainability Now Priorities
Beyond retail, Walmart is now using its scale to impact manufacturing and sustainability:
Since 2013, Walmart‘s ‘Made in USA‘ initiative has generated $250 billion in additional US exports through commitments to source domestic products.
The company aims to achieve zero emissions across global operations by 2040. They already use 91% renewable energy in the US.
Over Thanksgiving 2021, Walmart donated $5 million worth of holiday meals to local food banks and pantries across America.
Key Takeaway: Walmart wields its influence to drive initiatives around domestic manufacturing, environmental issues, and hunger relief – winning over socially-conscious consumers.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line is Walmart remains a retail force every ecommerce seller must track in 2022. Their massive physical footprint drives omnichannel synergies Amazon can‘t match. Investments in emerging markets and ecommerce capabilities ensure they will continue to aggressively compete for online dollars.
While we can‘t ignore or avoid the Walmart juggernaut, their differences from Amazon present opportunities. Savvy sellers can choose to complement Walmart‘s strengths or exploit their weaknesses. I hope this compilation of key Walmart statistics provides helpful insights into this complex retail ecosystem. Let me know if you have any other questions!
