U.S. malls: sales per square foot 2017 | Statista (2024)

In 2017, Woodbury Common Premium Outlets in Central Valley, New York was the leading shopping mall in the United States, with sales per square foot of 1,624 U.S. dollars. A shopping mall or center is typically a covered area which contains shops and restaurants, as well as other retail establishments which people can walk between. The leading shopping malls in the United States have significantly higher sales per square foot than those of the average department store retailer.

Retail in the U.S.

Total retail sales in the United States were projected to be around 6.03 trillion U.S. dollars in 2022, up from 5.4 trillion U.S. dollars in 2018. Retail establishments come in many forms such as grocery stores, restaurants, bookstores, and shopping malls. There are around four million retail establishments in the United States. In 2017, there were approximately 116,000 shopping malls spread across the United States, whereas back in 1970, there were only 37,000.

Do American consumers still shop at malls?

While the United States is not home to the largest shopping mall in the world, it was the leading country for per capita shopping center retail sales. Americans continue to shop at malls, instead of switching to online shopping, as malls are seen as a one-stop shopping experience where one can visit multiple retailers and make several purchases at one location. Another attraction of malls for U.S. shoppers is that a trip to the mall often takes the form of an outing with friends and family.