UK online shoppers held out for last-minute deals this year, pushing orders on Cyber Monday sharply ahead of Black Friday, according to newly released data from Scurri, the next generation delivery management and post-purchase experience platform.
2026 Black Friday/Cyber Monday UK Sales Growth
Scurri’s data covering the period 28 November-01 December 2025 shows overall online order volumes rose +15% year-on-year (YOY) during the Black Friday/Cyber Monday (BFCM) window. Every day of the period exceeded 2024’s daily volumes, with Saturday 29 November and Sunday 30 November delivering the biggest YOY increases at +19% each.
| Day | Date | YOY Order Growth |
| Black Friday | 28 Nov 2025 | +16% |
| Saturday | 29 Nov 2025 | +19% |
| Sunday | 30 Nov 2025 | +19% |
| Cyber Monday | 01 Dec 2025 | +11% |
2026 UK Cyber Monday 70% up on Black Friday
However, the real standout was Cyber Monday; online order volume that day outpaced Black Friday by approximately 70%, reflecting widespread consumer reluctance to commit until the final hours of promotional activity. The peak hour for conversions on both Black Friday and Cyber Monday was 5pm and a notable proportion of sales landed then.
Data from IMRG painted a picture of a sharper, smarter Black Friday. It said, “Early signs show that Black Friday 2025 wasn’t the chaotic, discount free for all of years past, instead reflecting a more selective, strategic UK market amidst the backdrop of cost of living fears and savvier shoppers.”
MRI Software reported that visitors to high street stores were down 2% on Friday and 7.2% compared with the equivalent days last year. This contrasts with early online spend and it paints a different picture. On the day, live Nationwide data showed a 10.36% increase in YoY transaction volume, further proving that the modern Black Friday is a digital-first peak.
Retailers will welcome the boost to sales across Black Friday, especially after what looked like a lull after the burst of activity in early November. Savvy shoppers played a waiting game, holding out until they were confident of securing the best deal. Now the challenge will be sustaining that performance through the rest of the peak season. That will hinge on capitalising on Christmas demand and, crucially, delivering excellent post-purchase experiences, the point at which customers are often most engaged.
– Rory O’Connor, Founder & CEO, Scurri
Looking at delivery preferences during BFCM 2025, standard delivery grew in popularity; 25% of all orders opted for standard delivery (up from 21% in 2024). Meanwhile 29% used express fulfilment (down from 36% in 2024) and 19% chose next day delivery (up from 16% in 2024).
This pattern underlines a key shift. Consumers are increasingly expecting standard delivery to be faster, often around two days instead of three, and appear less willing to pay extra for express. For retailers, that means delivery networks must remain agile and efficient. Fulfilment can make or break customer loyalty and long term success.
– Rory O’Connor, Founder & CEO, Scurri
Overall, 2025 has been a good year for retail, but with plenty of ups and downs. While some sectors like beauty and gifting performed strongly, others struggled to find real YOY growth. The muted demand early in the season, followed by surges during peak promotional days, signals a shift to extended build ups to deeper discounts, followed by concentrated bursts of buying.
For retailers, this presents more opportunities than ever, from social commerce to the reuse economy, provided they recognise that how people shop is changing. Delivery remains a key differentiator and the retailers that succeed will be those adapting quickly to evolving customer expectations across existing and emerging channels.
