Internet shopping 'more popular in UK than US'

Britain's love affair with internet shopping has grown to outstrip that of the home of consumerism, the US, it has been revealed.

According to price comparison site Shopzilla.co.uk, nine out of ten people in the UK shop online at least once a month, compared to seven in ten Americans, with clothes, books and CDs among the most popular items.

Meanwhile, a keen 1.3 million Brits are now surfing the net every day in order to purchase goods and services.

Being able to shop 24 hours a day, as well as prices and convenience, were found to be the biggest draws for the internet as opposed to the high street.

Not only this, but it was also found that people are using their wiles online in order to get the best deals, with 39 per cent regularly using price comparison sites and 53 per cent checking feedback from other consumers when considering a purchase.

Spokesperson for Shopzilla.co.uk Scott Macon, said: "This survey shows that Britons are among the world's keenest online shoppers and that they are becoming more and more sophisticated."

This corresponds with recent figures published by Hitwise, which showed that traffic to comparison and voucher sites increased by 20% in the year to July 2008.