Best Products to Sell Online in Kenya in 2026

If you are working out the best products to sell online in Kenya, the freshest signal is also the most useful: on 13 August 2026 Business Daily reported that Jumia Kenya's sales hit a record Sh6.4 billion in the three months to June 2026, up 84.1% from Sh3.5 billion a year earlier. Strong demand for fashion and beauty offset a slump in smartphone sales, which the paper tied to supply disruptions and rising prices. This guide builds on that and on other verified data to rank what to sell, how Kenyans pay, and where the traps are. No prices are quoted here: shilling prices move with the exchange rate and stock, so check live Comilmart listings as of October 2026.

What Kenyan online shoppers are buying in 2026

The record quarter is a Jumia number, not a market-wide census, but it is the best recent public indicator. Its message is that everyday categories are winning while big-ticket electronics wobble. Jumia's wider second quarter 2026 release said fashion, beauty and home and living drove growth and that phones and electronics were hit by chip shortages and air freight disruption. Older data adds depth. Jumia's 2021 Africa index, reported by Citizen Digital in October 2021, listed a 2kg pack of sugar, rice, cooking oil, soap and makeup as Kenya's top online sellers. That is five years old, so use it as evidence of a habit, buying household basics online, rather than a current ranking.

Beauty and personal care

This is the clearest winner. Beauty was named as a driver of Jumia Kenya's record quarter, makeup appeared in the 2021 top sellers, and a 2023 Jumia report quoted in Uganda's Daily Monitor said beauty was the top category in rural Kenya, at 16% of rural deliveries. Small, light parcels make delivery cheap, and shoppers reorder. The catch is compliance and fakes. Kenya's standards body, KEBS, has announced cosmetics standards aimed at keeping unsafe products off shelves (the report we read was undated), so confirm with KEBS what applies to your item before you stock it. Read our guide to sourcing beauty products from African manufacturers and compare makeup listings.

Fashion and mitumba

Fashion also drove the record quarter. In Kenya, the thrift trade, known as mitumba, has long moved onto social media. A Nation report in July 2021 counted a Facebook group, Mitumba Chap Chap, with over 364,000 subscribers, and about 43 mitumba groups with more than 1,000 subscribers each, adding up to over 1.1 million. Those are 2021 numbers, but they show how buyers find thrift sellers. The lesson for 2026: mitumba sells through trust, photos and live demonstration, so video and clear sizing matter. Margin depends on sorting well at the bale stage; the main risk is buying a bale and finding too little sellable stock. Search dress listings to see how others present clothing.

Household basics: sugar, rice, cooking oil and soap

Staples are the boring category with a verified record: they topped Jumia Kenya's list in 2021. They are heavy and low-margin per unit, so they work for sellers who buy in bulk and can bundle, for example a monthly provisions pack, or deliver within a neighbourhood. A wholesale supplier with tiered pricing matters here, so explore the B2B catalog and our guide to MOQ and price tiers. Soap and cleaning products overlap with home goods, which is a related category: the same 2023 report put phones and home items at 11% each of rural Kenyan deliveries.

Smartphones: a slump, not a collapse

Phones remain a huge category, but Business Daily's August 2026 report describes a slump in smartphone sales caused by supply disruptions and rising prices. Jumia's own release explained that memory chip and processor shortages and Middle East air freight problems constrained entry-level smartphones. If you sell phones, expect stock gaps and price changes. Safer additions are accessories and refurbished or lower-ticket items you can source reliably. Our smartphone price guide for Kenya and the phones and tablets listings show what is available now.

How Kenyans pay: M-Pesa and the till

For most Kenyan buyers, payment means M-Pesa. Safaricom describes Buy Goods, branded Lipa na M-Pesa, as the service that lets merchants accept M-Pesa payments through a till number. Its page says applications can be made online at m-pesaforbusiness.co.ke or at a Safaricom shop, are processed within 24 hours, and need to be activated and set up with a new PIN before any transactions. The page does not list fees, so ask Safaricom for the current charges before you set prices. For the wider picture see our article on mobile money and digital payments in African trade.

Delivery and selling channels in Kenya

The Communications Authority of Kenya's consumer survey, reported by Capital FM in January 2026, found that 71.3% of e-commerce users access platforms like Jumia and Jiji through mobile phones, and about 30% of respondents engaged in e-commerce. Among users, 44.8% transacted through mobile apps, 21.8% through social media and 16.9% through website portals. So a phone-friendly listing is non-negotiable, and social selling is a real channel, not a sideshow. Jumia's second quarter 2026 release also said 61% of its order volume came from upcountry rather than the biggest cities, and that 75% of shipped packages went through pickup stations. Both figures cover all Jumia markets, but they suggest buyers outside Nairobi are shopping and that collection points keep delivery costs down. Plan separate delivery pricing for Nairobi and the rest of the country.

Frequently asked questions

What sells best online in Kenya? Based on the 2026 signals, fashion and beauty lead, with household basics a proven habit from earlier data. Smartphones are volatile this year.

Is beauty a good category for beginners in Kenya? Small parcels and repeat buying make it attractive, but check regulatory requirements and avoid unverified imports.

Do Kenyan buyers shop on their phones? Yes. The Communications Authority survey found 71.3% of e-commerce users go through mobile phones.

How do I accept M-Pesa as a seller? Apply for a Buy Goods till through Safaricom, then confirm the fees and settlement terms with them.

Getting started

Open a free Comilmart seller account, then source stock from the B2B wholesale catalog or the verified supplier directory. For more on shortlisting suppliers see wholesale suppliers in Nairobi.