6pm is UK's busiest hour for online shopping deals

Hotukdeals has published data showing that online shopping activity in the UK peaks in the evening, with 6pm the busiest hour for browsing deals.

The findings are based on analysis of millions of anonymised UK user sessions, covering more than 300 million pageviews and over 30 million clickouts.

The data shows a pronounced late-day surge in consumer activity, with browsing strongest between 5pm and 10pm. Activity at 6pm was more than eight times higher than at 4am, the quietest hour recorded.

Evening users also appeared more likely to act on what they saw. Between 6pm and 11pm, shoppers were 27% more likely to click out to a deal than between 12pm and 3pm, according to the figures.

That distinction matters for retailers trying to understand when browsing turns into purchase intent. While office-hour traffic remains significant, the data suggests shoppers are more decisive later in the day.

Ben Smye, Consumer Expert at Hotukdeals, said: "The data shows that 6pm is the single busiest moment for online shopping activity in the UK, with more than eight times the activity seen at 4am, the nation's quietest online hour. What's also notable is that activity stays strong right through to 11pm, and this is also the time when shoppers appear most decisive. Between 6-11pm, they are 27% more likely to click out to a deal than between 12-3pm."

Mobile shift

The figures also underline how strongly mobile devices now dominate online shopping behaviour. Eight in 10 pageviews came from phones, while mobile accounted for more than two-thirds of clickouts from 8pm onwards.

That evening mobile share compares with around 55% during office hours, suggesting a clear shift away from desktops and laptops once the working day ends. The pattern points to consumers moving shopping activity to smartphones as they return home and browse from sofas or beds.

Most mobile pageviews came through the Hotukdeals app. The ratio of clickouts to visits also rose in the evening, reinforcing the view that later browsing sessions are more likely to result in action.

Smye said: "80% of pageviews are from mobile devices, with the majority of those via the Hotukdeals app. What's also revealing is that people seem to have higher intent in the evenings; the ratio of clickouts on deals to overall visits increases. Millions of people are now nocturnal binge browsers, shopping from their beds, phones in hand, with one eye on a deal and the other on their pillow."

Changing habits

Durga Gandhi, a Consumer Behaviour Expert with experience in product development and merchandising roles at Laura Ashley, Next, John Lewis and Tails.com, said the pattern may reflect changes in home and work routines, as well as the way shopping now overlaps with leisure screen time.

The evening spike, she said, is consistent with household routines that leave many consumers free to browse only after work, childcare and domestic tasks are complete. It also reflects the role of social media and mobile-led shopping journeys, where inspiration and transaction can happen in the same session.

"9pm is one of the daily online shopping peaks in the UK. The kids are in bed, dinner is done, washing up and chores are mostly sorted for the day, and most people settle on the sofa before bed. What we are seeing is people scrolling on their phones as part of their downtime. This scroll time has become shopping time. Consumers are either being inspired to purchase items through social media, or they are making their planned purchases as part of their evening admin, like placing an online food delivery. After a long day, we feel less resistance to the 'treat yourself' mentality, which means popular self-gifts, such as candles and skincare, often make it into the basket. Retailers have adapted to this; for example, ASOS pushed its order cut-off for next-day delivery to 10pm. What is also interesting is that deal checking is increasingly part of the evening shopping process, and with browser add-ons, it's even easier to make sure you don't pay more than you need to," Gandhi said.

Weekly pattern

The weekly breakdown also challenges assumptions about when online shopping is busiest. Monday generated the highest overall pageviews in the period examined, while Friday recorded the strongest buying intent.

Friday had both the highest number of clickouts on deals and the strongest ratio of pageviews leading to clickouts. That suggests consumers may begin the week with browsing and research, then move closer to purchase by the end of the working week.

By contrast, Sunday appeared to be the least decisive day for shoppers, with the lowest clickout-to-pageview ratio of any day, indicating a more casual or inspiration-led pattern of browsing.

Smye said: "The data reveals a pretty consistent pattern: Monday is the biggest browsing day; that's the day that received the most overall pageviews during the period assessed. But Friday is when shoppers show the most buying intent, as that's the day that recorded the most number of clickouts on deals as well as the highest proportion of pageviews that lead to a clickout."