MENA Digital Commerce 2026: The New Era of AI in Payments.
A consumer study on how people across MENA shop and pay online. It finds that a secure, frictionless checkout is the main deciding factor and that half of shoppers are ready to let AI agents buy for them, though privacy remains the main concern.
By Checkout.com · May 13, 2026
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A consumer study on how people across MENA shop and pay online. It finds that a secure, frictionless checkout is the main deciding factor and that half of shoppers are ready to let AI agents buy for them, though privacy remains the main concern.
Key findings
- 97% want 'invisible', friction-free payments online; in Saudi Arabia, 98% prefer checkouts with no manual card entry or redirects.
- 62% abandon a purchase after a false card decline, and 35% switch straight to a competitor.
- 50% of MENA shoppers (56% in Saudi Arabia) are comfortable letting an AI assistant shop for them; privacy is the main barrier (55%).
- 45% shop online at least weekly and 63% plan to shop online more over the next year; 25% already buy through social platforms.
- Willingness to use AI shopping varies sharply by income: 67% of high earners compared with 38% of lower-income groups.
Why it matters
Agentic and social commerce are close, and in the region a smooth, trusted checkout matters as much to conversion as the ad that drives the click.
About this report
Published by Checkout.com, 2026-05-13. Free, with sign-up. Get the full report from Checkout.com