The Short Answer
Across 160 of the most successful DTC Shopify stores, 23% of products are currently marked down from their original price. That means roughly 1 in 4 items you see on these sites is "on sale" at any given time.
But that headline number hides a more interesting story. Some brands almost never discount. Others have more products on sale than at full price. And the categories with the highest discount rates might surprise you.
Key Findings (High-Level)
- 23% of products in our dataset are currently on sale
- When brands do discount, they go deep — average discount is 31%
- Sale frequency varies dramatically by category — from under 10% to over 60%
- Brand behavior clusters into three distinct groups: Never-Discounters, Strategic Sellers, and Perpetual Promoters
Sale Frequency Varies Dramatically by Category
Not all categories discount equally. Our data reveals significant variance in how often products are marked down:
Higher-priced categories like Luxury (avg $245.00) tend to have different discount patterns than value-oriented categories like Accessories (avg $32.00). Browse all tracked categories to explore the data.
Brand Behavior Clusters into Three Groups
When we segment brands by their discount behavior, three distinct strategies emerge:
Never-Discounters (<5% on sale)
Premium brands that protect their pricing integrity. They rarely mark down products, relying on brand value and product quality to justify full prices. When they do discount, it's usually end-of-season or limited-time events.
Strategic Sellers (15-35% on sale)
The middle ground. These brands use discounting as a deliberate tool — clearing inventory, rewarding loyal customers, or driving seasonal traffic. The average DTC brand falls here.
Perpetual Promoters (>50% on sale)
High-volume fast-fashion and value brands where sales are the norm, not the exception. "Compare at" pricing creates perpetual urgency, and full price is more of a reference point than a real expectation.
Why This Matters (Beyond Curiosity)
Understanding discount patterns matters for several audiences:
- Shoppers: Know whether that "sale" is actually a deal or just the normal price in disguise
- Founders: Benchmark your pricing strategy against competitors in your category
- Investors: Discount frequency can signal brand health, inventory management, and pricing power
- Researchers: Track how ecommerce pricing evolves over time
About the Data
This analysis is based on Project Blueprint's Shopify product intelligence dataset. We track 154,000+ products across 160 top DTC Shopify stores, including brands like Fashion Nova, Gymshark, Allbirds, SKIMS, and Alo Yoga.
Product data is collected weekly via Shopify's public product APIs. Prices reflect USD values at time of collection. "On sale" is defined as products where compare-at price exceeds current price. Explore all tracked stores.
Want the Full Picture?
Want to run your own analysis? The complete dataset is available for download at projectblueprint.io/dataset. You can slice by category, brand, price range, or discount status to find exactly what you're looking for.
Coming Next
This is the first in a series of deep-dives into DTC pricing patterns. Coming soon:
- Price elasticity: How do sales affect conversion?
- Seasonal patterns: When do DTC brands discount most?
- Category-specific pricing guides