Top 10 COD Ecommerce Countries Ranked for 2026

EasySell
2026-04-12T01:25:23+01:00

The top COD ecommerce countries range from 85% cash-on-delivery adoption (Pakistan) to 25% and falling (India) — and the gap between them is widening every quarter. In Southeast Asia, COD represented 52% of ecommerce payments in 2019 but dropped to 31% by Q1 2026. Across MENA, COD preference halved from 41% to 20% in just 48 months.

The global direction is clear, but the country-by-country picture is anything but uniform. Some COD ecommerce countries still run 70%+ cash. Others crossed the tipping point last year. If you're a Shopify merchant deciding where to sell next — or whether COD still makes sense in your current market — you need the ranked breakdown, not the averages.

How We Ranked These COD Ecommerce Countries

This isn't a list sorted by COD percentage alone. A country where 90% of orders are COD but the ecommerce market is $200 million isn't the same opportunity as one with 40% COD and a $50 billion market.

We weighted four factors:

COD adoption rate — what percentage of ecommerce orders are still cash on delivery

Ecommerce market size — total addressable opportunity

Logistics infrastructure — can couriers actually collect cash and deliver reliably

Shopify compatibility — payment gateways, shipping integrations, and app ecosystem availability

Countries where COD is declining fast got ranked lower, even if adoption is still high today. You're building for the next 2–3 years, not last quarter.

1. Pakistan — The World's Most COD-Dependent Major Market

Pakistan's ecommerce market is growing at 13.2% annually and is forecast to exceed $20 billion by 2029. COD dominates — roughly 85% of online orders are paid in cash at the door. Digital wallets like JazzCash and EasyPaisa are growing, but trust in online payments remains low outside Karachi and Lahore.

The opportunity is massive, but so are the operational challenges. Failed delivery rates run high in smaller cities, and courier cash remittance cycles can stretch to 15–20 days. Merchants entering Pakistan need a solid courier partner and strict order verification to keep return-to-origin rates manageable.

2. Nigeria — Africa's Largest Ecommerce Market, Built on Cash

Nigeria has over 220 million people and a $33 billion ecommerce market projection. COD remains the default for most online purchases outside Lagos and Abuja. The challenge isn't demand — it's delivery. No standardized street addresses means couriers navigate by landmarks and phone calls.

Merchants who crack the logistics (or partner with local 3PLs like GIG Logistics or Kwik) tap into a market where competition from international sellers is still thin. COD will stay dominant here for years — Nigeria's digital payment infrastructure is improving but nowhere near replacing cash.

3. Egypt — 115 Million People, Low Trust in Online Payments

Egypt's ecommerce market is growing fast, and COD accounts for the majority of transactions. Cairo and Alexandria drive most volume, but the real growth is coming from secondary cities where bank card penetration is minimal.

What makes Egypt attractive: the cost per acquisition is relatively low compared to Gulf markets, and the population is young and mobile-first. What makes it hard: courier infrastructure outside major cities is inconsistent, and cash collection reconciliation requires hands-on management.

4. Saudi Arabia — High Purchasing Power Meets High COD Preference

Saudi Arabia stands out because COD coexists with high incomes. According to Go-Globe, 72% of Saudi online shoppers still favor cash on delivery — not because they don't have cards, but because they don't trust returns and refund processes enough to prepay.

This is a trust problem, not a banking problem. Merchants who offer transparent return policies and partial payment options can convert a meaningful share of COD orders to prepaid. The Saudi ecommerce market is among the largest in MENA, and average order values are significantly higher than South Asian markets.

5. Bangladesh — bKash Built the Rails, but Cash Still Wins

Bangladesh has one of the world's most advanced mobile money systems. bKash alone processes billions in monthly transactions. Yet COD remains the dominant method for ecommerce orders. The disconnect is simple: people use bKash for peer-to-peer transfers but default to cash when buying physical products online.

The ecommerce market is smaller than Pakistan's but growing rapidly. Dhaka concentrates most volume. For merchants, the advantage is that courier networks (Pathao, Steadfast) are reliable in urban areas and COD collection infrastructure actually works. The window for COD-first entry is still wide open.

6. Mexico — Latin America's Biggest COD Opportunity

Mexico's ecommerce market is approaching $40 billion, and "contraentrega" (the local term for COD) remains deeply embedded in shopping behavior. Over half of transactions in Latin America still involve cash-based payment methods, and Mexico leads that trend.

OXXO convenience store payments (where buyers pay cash at a store counter) blur the line between COD and cash payments, but the merchant dynamics are similar — you ship before you're certain the money arrives. Hot Sale Mexico (May 25) drives a massive annual spike. Merchants who set up COD operations before peak events capture demand that prepaid-only stores miss entirely.

7. Colombia — The Highest COD Adoption on Shopify in Latin America

Colombia's "contraentrega" culture is even stickier than Mexico's outside major cities. Bogotá, Medellín, and Cali have growing digital payment adoption, but secondary cities like Barranquilla and Bucaramanga still run heavily on cash.

What makes Colombia interesting for Shopify merchants: the logistics networks (Servientrega, Coordinadora) are COD-capable, and the ecommerce growth rate is outpacing most of the region. Failed delivery rates are manageable in urban areas. The market is smaller than Mexico's but less competitive for independent sellers.

8. Philippines — 7,000 Islands, 42% COD, and a Closing Window

The Philippines still runs at roughly 42% COD for ecommerce transactions, but that number is dropping fast. GCash and Maya are converting millions of users to digital payments monthly. Failed COD deliveries hit 15% in the Philippines — compared to 3–5% for prepaid orders — and that cost gap is accelerating the shift.

For COD merchants, the Philippines is still viable today but the window is narrowing. The 7,000-island geography makes last-mile delivery expensive regardless of payment method. Merchants already operating here should actively push customers toward partial prepayment to reduce failed delivery losses.

9. Vietnam — 35% COD and Falling Fast

Vietnam's COD rate sits around 35% and is projected to keep declining. VietQR and domestic e-wallets are rapidly becoming the default, especially among younger shoppers. The ecommerce market itself is large — Vietnam has 100 million people and strong smartphone penetration.

This ranking is a "get in now or wait for prepaid" market. Merchants entering Vietnam purely for COD volume will find the economics getting worse each quarter as failed delivery costs eat into margins. Those who use COD as a trust-building entry point and transition buyers to prepaid will do better long-term.

10. India — COD Is Dying in Metros, Thriving in Tier 2

India's COD story is two stories. In metro cities, UPI processes over 13 billion transactions monthly and handles 84% of digital payments. COD has dropped to 20–25% of orders in Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore. But in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities — Patna, Surat, Coimbatore, Indore — COD preference still runs 50–60%.

Here's what matters: 60% of new online shoppers being added to the Indian market come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. These are the growth customers, and they're COD-first. India's overall COD rate (25–30%) masks the fact that the fastest-growing segment of buyers still prefers cash. For merchants targeting these cities, COD isn't optional — it's the price of entry.

Which COD Markets Are Closing Fastest?

Across all 10 countries, the same transition plays out at different speeds. Digital wallets gain adoption for peer-to-peer transfers first. Then bill payments. Then small online purchases. Physical product ecommerce is always the last category to flip — because the risk of paying upfront for something you can't inspect feels highest there.

Markets like Vietnam and the Philippines are 2–3 years from COD becoming a minority payment method. Pakistan and Nigeria are 5–7 years out. The smart play isn't betting on one side — it's offering both COD and prepaid with incentives that gradually shift the mix.

If you're running a Shopify store in any of these markets, the operational tooling matters as much as the market selection. EasySell handles COD-specific workflows — order verification, partial payments, phone validation — so you can operate in high-COD markets without the fraud and failed delivery costs eating your margins.

Pick the market that matches your logistics capacity, not just the one with the highest COD rate. A country with 85% COD and no reliable courier partner is worse than one with 40% COD and next-day delivery. The numbers in this ranking tell you where to look. Your courier contracts and order verification setup determine whether you actually make money there.