eBay is boosting its investment in live shopping after posting better-than-expected results for the format last quarter, as it works to keep pace with competitors Whatnot and TikTok Shop.
At its Q2 2026 Earnings Conference Call on Wednesday, eBay announced that gross merchandise volume or GMV for eBay Live was up nearly eight times year-over-year across seven markets during the second quarter. In addition, the company has seen a rise in the number of views, watch time, and items sold on its livestream shopping service. eBay added that it is set to roll out the format to more international markets in the coming weeks and months.
What eBay’s Leadership Is Saying
When the company released the results and held the call with investors, its CEO, Jamie Iannone, stated that the results demonstrated the company’s confidence that live shopping could drive engagement, product discovery, and transaction velocity throughout the broader eBay marketplace. In other words, Live is considered a growth driver.
While the CEO proclaimed the impressive number, he did not report the actual gross merchandise volume (GMV) for the category. As such, it is unclear how valuable the category is to the company. An eight times rise is a significant jump, but it is essential to understand the baseline or the category’s market share for reference.
Strong Numbers From Sellers and Buyers
Despite the lack of context for the given statistic, eBay highlighted a number of facts that suggest the adoption of the format will benefit both parties. Over 90% of frequent sellers increased their GMV, and overall active sellers gained three times higher sales than those who did not go live.
Buyer behavior points the same way. According to eBay, first-time customers for collectible goods spent almost 70% more than those who were not engaged in the live selling format. Notably, collectible goods are one of the most popular categories on eBay, and the fact that the largest growth was driven by them implies that the interactive nature of live selling benefits from products that require a closer look and inspection.
How eBay Live Has Expanded Since Launch
eBay first trialed Live as an invite-only feature in the U.S. in 2022. The company then launched the service in the U.K. in 2024, following a beta period. Since then, the platform has expanded its live video selling feature to Germany, Australia, France, Italy, and Canada.
eBay has now moved past its invite-only model in the U.S., offering self-serve access for sellers to start streaming. The self-serve option is now available across more than 300 categories, ranging from electronics to clothing and collectibles. It makes it possible for eligible eBay sellers to stream without the permission of eBay.
Product Improvements Behind the Growth
eBay attributed some of the growth of Live to a number of product updates. The company has been rolling out functions that would help users discover events both on the website’s homepage and inside the mobile application to get more shoppers to actively engage in such content. This has been a significant problem for many other livestream shopping platforms.
Iannone explained that they had made the process of creating events and managing both inventory and items while on an on-air show simpler for the users. Additionally, to improve the overall functionality of the livestreaming shopping, eBay has optimized what it refers to as “bidding responsiveness.” The adjustment is supposed to make the bidding process run smoothly for those participating in an auction.
The changes might appear to be minor, but they have probably had a tremendous impact on Live’s performance. The entire process of livestream shopping can be overwhelming, and thus, these adjustments to make it as seamless as possible are likely to increase sales. Indeed, it would become much harder to lose a sale when a prospective buyer has a positive experience while trying to bid during the broadcast.
Live Shopping’s Growing Momentum in the U.S.
eBay’s entry into this space is particularly interesting given that live shopping in the U.S. is quickly transforming from a novelty to a serious growth category. The landscape has changed dramatically for the better since only a couple of years ago when such a format was met with skepticism both by American retailers and consumers.
The resale marketplace StockX has recently entered the fray, and it has joined a growing list of companies that have recognized the value in creating an interactive viewing experience. Whatnot, which provides a livestream shopping service, is currently dominating the market with a valuation of over $11 billion. Meanwhile, TikTok Shop is set to launch a paid subscription service that will provide its members with free delivery of eligible items, thus mimicking the Prime program offered by Amazon.
Overall, it is becoming evident that live shopping is quickly transforming from an experiment that only a few companies were willing to try to a must-have feature that is needed to attract Generation Z and retain younger customers who prefer to shop in real-time.
Why This Matters for eBay’s Broader Business
For a company that has struggled to keep pace with the evolution of the marketplace in recent years, eBay’s embrace of live shopping is smart. Viewers are far more accustomed to the live shopping experience, which provides a more modern feel to an otherwise dated platform.
The fixation on categories such as collectibles is also interesting, given that eBay has long catered to mainstream enthusiasts and provided a marketplace for those seeking to buy and sell collectibles and trading cards.
If eBay’s numbers for Live truly reflect broader trends, then the company has every reason to make the feature a bigger focal point going forward.
What Happens Next
With further international expansion anticipated in the coming months, eBay seems poised to make a commitment to a long-term future with this new tool.
For now, at least, the marketplace giant appears to believe the live video shopping format to be a keeper, an important way to further engage its community, and to serve as a growth engine for many months if not years to come; just how much it will be able to leverage this particular tool outside the current markets in which it has seen such extraordinary success remains to be seen now that it has entered more competitive terrain with the arrival of Whatnot, TikTok Shop, and StockX.
Meanwhile, eBay’s script for its investors for the moment is that live shopping works, engagement is up, and that the company intends to double down on the approach as a means of jumpstarting the engagement of its overall marketplace.
Bottom Line
eBay announced that eBay Live’s gross merchandise volume (GMV) is up roughly eight times year-over-year across seven markets during its second quarter of 2026. In addition, viewership, watch time, and items sold rose year-over-year. eBay is set to expand the offering to additional international markets following the feature’s availability in the UK, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, and Canada. The company is witnessing a rise in popularity in the US, as several competitors also embrace live shopping trends. Some of these competitors include Whatnot, TikTok Shop, and StockX.
FAQs
Q1: How much was the growth of eBay Live’s GMV in the 2nd quarter of 2026?
According to the source, the gross merchandise volume (GMV) of eBay Live rose 8 times year-over-year (YoY) in seven markets. However, the source does not indicate how much was generated on eBay Live in the 2nd quarter of 2026.
Q2: What did eBay’s CEO say about the results?
eBay’s CEO Jamie Iannone stated that the results demonstrate the company’s confidence that Live drives engagement, discovery, and velocity throughout the broader eBay marketplace.
Q3: How are sellers who use eBay Live performing?
The source states that over 90% of active sellers increased GMV when they went live. In addition, the buyers who actively engage with this specific product have seen their GMV grow three times compared to those not using the eBay Live product.
Q4: Are buyers spending more through Live shopping?
Yes, according to the source, first-time buyers spent approximately 70% more on average on collectibles on eBay Live than those who did not participate in the livestream shopping format.
Q5: When did eBay first launch its Live shopping feature?
eBay launched the given product as an invitation-only feature in the U.S. back in 2022. In addition, the source states that it became available to users in the U.K. in 2024.
Q6: Which countries has eBay Live expanded to?
The source states that it is currently available in Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Canada, the U.S., and the U.K.
Q7: Is eBay Live still invite-only?
According to the source, eBay Live is no longer invitation-only. In fact, the company announced the end of the invitation-only access last month. In addition, the source states that the company now enables eligible eBay sellers to self-serve across more than 300 categories.
Q8: What product improvements has eBay made to support Live shopping?
According to the source, the company has made several product improvements to improve the discoverability of the events on the overall marketplace. The source explains that the company has featured them on the homepage and the mobile app. Moreover, the source states that the company has enabled sellers to manage their inventory more simply and host events more effortlessly. The company has also improved the response to bids during the livestream itself.
