China’s Double 11 2025 results have landed. Now the shopping season has wrapped we have a clearer picture of where consumption is heading: less frenzy, more value, and a broadening battlefield across platforms. Third-party data provider Syntun estimates total gross merchandise value (GMV) at RMB 1.695 trillion (about US$ 238 billion), up 14.2% year-on-year, marking a second consecutive year of rational but still solid expansion.
On Alibaba’s Tmall, performance skewed sharply towards the top and the long tail. Nearly 600 brands surpassed RMB 100 million (about US$ 14.08 million) in GMV, while tens of thousands logged year-on-year surges of 2x to over 5x.
Promo windows also moved forward across the ecosystem: some platforms, including Kuaishou, kicked off campaigns as early as 7 October, while Tmall opened its presale window in mid-October. The effect was a longer, more fragmented promotional season that pushed consumers into earlier decision cycles.
Other platforms expanded their cycles too, turning the event into a weeks-long value hunt. JD.com posted its highest Double 11 sales on record, driven by a 40% increase in customers participating in the event.
In beauty, FMCG and home appliances, Douyin and Kuaishou accelerated growth, leaning on their livestream ecosystems and strong lower-funnel conversion. One of the most watched moments came from Apple, as CEO Tim Cook appeared on a Douyin livestream in mid-October to promote the iPhone Air.
Cross-border activity also picked up. Tmall Global reported more than 1,700 overseas brands from 43 countries and regions entering ahead of the festival, led by newcomers from the US, South Korea, Australia, Japan and New Zealand. Among domestic leaders.
As the festival was kicking off, we wrote that Double 11 seems to be maturing. No longer is it the mad dash for deals that it used to be. Instead, consumers are looking for experience as well as value. Another element of the shopping festival’s maturation is clearly engagement by foreign brands. Gone are the days when this festival was Chinese only. Double 11 2025 results tracking the way they are, foreign brands looking to make big bucks in China can’t deny the importance of the nation’s biggest shopping festival.
