Men spent $6,500 online, which was 2.7 times as much as women who spent $2,400 on average last year, according to the ‘2015 Sensis e-Business Report’.
“You might not expect to see men spending more than women online, but when you look at what they are purchasing it starts to makes sense,” Sensis Commercial Director Rob Tolliday said. “Twice as many men as women purchased computer hardware last year, for example.”
The survey, which measures the online experiences of 1,000 Australian small and medium businesses and 800 Australian consumers, found 61 per cent of males and 62 per cent of females made online purchases, with the average Australian spending $4,400 for the year. The report found men are more likely to buy electronic equipment (39 per cent versus 21 per cent), videos, DVDs or games (28 per cent versus 21 per cent) and computer hardware (23 per cent versus 11 per cent).
Women were more likely to purchase cosmetics (21 per cent versus six per cent), groceries (22 per cent versus 13 per cent), books (46 per cent versus 32 per cent) and clothing, accessories or shoes (54 per cent versus 47 per cent).
“It’s interesting to see traditional stereotypes playing out in online purchases. Men are buying more video games and takeaway food while women are buying more groceries and cosmetics,” Mr Tolliday said.