Lazada didn’t start the year well. Month by month, the drop doesn’t look very dramatic, but when you compare year-on-year, it’s almost a 48% decline. That’s worrying, because it suggests the platform is struggling to maintain momentum.
Shopee, on the other hand, has been much more consistent. No major spike, no major crash just steady traffic. In the current market, that kind of stability already means a lot.
February is also bringing some important changes. Shopee is tightening delivery standards, requiring same-day shipping for orders placed before 2pm and indirectly increasing fees by imposing a mandatory % of ads fee on seller. Lazada on the other side has increased its commission fees, and TikTok Shop has introduced a RM0.50 platform support fee per order, similar to Shopee. Individually, these changes may not seem like a big deal, but together, they show that platforms are becoming more disciplined and cost-conscious.
On top of that, Chinese New Year and Raya are very close this year. This means the peak selling season is more compressed, and the slowdown may come earlier than usual. If sellers miss this window, it will be much harder to recover later in the year. In that sense, “winter” may really come earlier.
2026 feels like a filtering year. Platforms are tightening, costs are rising, and competition is getting smarter. If you’re still performing well in this environment, you’re probably doing something right. For everyone else, this may be the right time to pause, reflect, and adapt.
The market isn’t getting easier. We just have to get better.
This report is powered by website traffic analytics. Always remember that there may be slight variations from real-time statistics.
