Social Commerce Platforms [Updated 2025]

Social Commerce is the buying and selling of goods and services via creators or user-generated content (UGC). 

Over the last few years, several categories of social commerce platforms have emerged. It’s not just shopping on TikTok and Instagram anymore.  In this article, we’ll dive into several social commerce platforms you should be aware of.

Social Media Platforms

This is the largest category of social commerce, with the leaders being TikTok Shops, Instagram Shopping, YouTube shopping, and Pinterest. To give you an idea of the scale of these platforms, 1 in 5 shoppers made a purchase directly through social channels during Black Friday 2024.

1. Instagram

With over 2 billion monthly users on Instagram, the majority of which are Gen Z and Millenials, Instagram Shopping has become a powerful tool for brands to convert social engagement into direct sales.  

Instagram Shopping allows consumers to shop your brand’s content all across Instagram — without ever leaving the platform. When a customer is scrolling through their Instagram feed and comes across your post, they can seamlessly buy the product(s) in your post by clicking on the Shop icon to purchase. The customer can also continue to shop your brand site, and add products to their cart that were not featured in the post.

2. TikTok

TikTok is one of the fastest-growing platforms in the world. Their social commerce channel, TikTok Shop, has quickly become a game changer for brands to turn viral video content into direct sales, without ever needing to leave the app. 

When customers come across a TikTok video or livestream showcasing a brand’s products, they can make an instant purchase by simply clicking on the shopping icon. They can also explore your brand’s TikTok shop for more products by clicking the “Shop” button in your profile biography or the “Visit Shop” button on individual product pages.

3. YouTube

Over 90% of people say they discover new brands or products on YouTube, making YouTube shopping an important tool to utilize for social commerce. YouTube Shopping allows creators and brands to sell products directly through their YouTube videos, livestreams, and the YouTube platform. 

You can tag products directly in your videos, letting your customers see information, like pricing, while they keep watching your content—and even checkout on the retailer’s site to make their purchase, all without leaving the YouTube video.

4. Pinterest

Pinterest, the inspiration and discovery platform, has shoppable Pins, which allow customers to easily shop for the product(s) featured in the pin —  all without leaving the Pinterest website or app. This social commerce feature is allowing brands to see lower cost per action costs, optimize their return on ad spend, and see an increase in foot traffic.

Third-Party Social Shopping Platforms

Third-party shopping tools allow creators to sell their product curations via their social content. While the experience of third-party creator shopping platforms is similar to social platforms, the consumer experience and transactions ultimately happen on a third-party site.

1. LTK

LTK is a social shopping app that empowers creators to sell products directly to their audience through shoppable content on social media. It offers consumers the ability to “shop the look” by purchasing products featured by their favorite creators, all happening directly on the LTK app.

2. ShopMy

ShopMy is a platform that allows creators to curate and share personalized storefronts featuring their favorite products from various brands. Consumers can then explore these curated collections and shop from numerous brands, making it simple to discover and purchase products recommended by the creators they trust. 

3. Flagship

Flagship gives creators full control over their personal storefront pages’ branding, allowing them to create a unique shopping experience for their customers with products from various brands. Consumers can explore personalized storefronts, shopping curated collections that reflect the creator’s unique style and personality.

eCommerce Platforms for Social Commerce

This is social commerce that can be injected directly into a brand’s eCommerce. Using shoppable social content on the site, and building shopping experiences around creators, have both proven to be valuable for creators trying to drive more commerce from social media and brands monetizing their existing traffic on the eCommerce. 

1. LoudCrowd

LoudCrowd empowers brands to turn their most loyal customers and influencers into high-performing creator-affiliates by providing them with personalized storefront pages hosted directly on the brand’s eCommerce site. These storefronts allow creators to curate collections and tag products featured in their social content, enabling them to share their favorite items while seamlessly driving traffic and revenue back to the brand’s website.

For a more in-depth look at LoudCrowd’s storefronts, check out how fashion brand, boohoo, has 1000s of creator storefronts on their eCommerce site.

2. Tolstoy

Tolstoy enables brands to create interactive, shoppable video experiences that live directly on their eCommerce site. Customers can engage with video content, ask questions, and shop products seamlessly on the brand’s site. 

3. Bazaarvoice

Bazaarvoice helps brands leverage authentic user-generated content, such as reviews, ratings, and photos, to build trust and drive sales for brands. Showcasing real customer experiences across the brands’ eCommerce sites and social channels is turning real feedback into sales.

Conclusion

Social commerce is a critical component of the consumer experience.  Brands need to use user-generated content (UGC) to help them sell their products.  Shoppable content can be implemented at several levels:

1. On the social platform (IG, TikTok, etc)
2. On a third-party shopping platform (LTK, ShopMy, etc) 
3. On the eCommerce (LoudCrowd, Bazaarvoice, etc) 

Brands should experiment with all three channels to determine which channels work best for their consumers.  For many brands, that might be all three channels, since shoppable content is so important. 

For brands looking to maximize LTV and build a premium experience, building social commerce into the eCommerce platform is the most important.  If a brand is looking to drive the most transactions (but is less concerned with repeat purchases), social platforms like TikTok Shops should be a top priority.  And third party platforms can easily be added to both as an additional channel.