Yet, the total transactions reached 10.2 billion US dollars as cautious consumers favoured established brands. The contrast highlights a broader shift in e-commerce - away from discount wars towards quality and customer experience.
One local vendor selling pet supplies admits that online retail has entered a challenging new phase. Without meticulously calculating every cost category, maintaining profitability has become exceptionally difficult, with many sellers facing potential losses.
Ha Tuan Anh, E-Commerce Merchant said: "Selling a wide range of products has become extremely difficult. We are forced to identify our core items - those that truly align with our profit margins, financial structure, and business strategy - and focus completely on them'.
This shift is also reflected in platform growth rates. One major e-commerce platform that previously grew revenues by 148 percent saw that rate slow to 27 percent in 2026. While growth continues, the market has clearly moved past that phase of breakneck expansion.
Nguyen Phuong Lam, Head of Market Insights and Consulting, YouNet ECI said: "Constant promotional campaigns that were once effective no longer yield results. Allocating a fixed e-commerce budget and expecting automatic growth of 20 to 30 percent is no longer realistic".
"Several sectors will be severely impacted, including fashion, cosmetics, accessories, and household goods", said Thai Kim Phung, Head of Business Information Technology, University of Economics Ho Chi Minh City.
As the regulatory framework for e-commerce tightens, the scope for price discounting will narrow further.
Future market growth will depend less on driving sheer order volumes and more on generating higher-value, more sustainable sales.
