Americans set to spend $2.5billion on Cyber Monday - breaking the record for biggest online shopping day

• Research firm comScore predicting record-breaking day for online retail
• Sales during Black Friday were down 11 percent compared to last year
• Most retailers have pumped up deals across November, with Amazon and Wal-Mart offering discounts across their sites

By Pete D'amato for MailOnline

Published: 22:40 EST, 30 November 2014 | Updated: 00:10 EST, 1 December 2014

Americans will spend $2.5billion doing their holiday shopping online in what is expected to be the biggest Cyber Monday to date.

With this year's Black Friday bringing in lower sales than last year's, according to estimates, research firm comScore predicts Monday's online sales will break past records.

Black Friday, which falls the day after Thanksgiving, saw 5 percent fewer shoppers spending 11 percent less, according to the National Retail Federation.

Rush: Americans will spend $2.5billion doing their holiday shopping online in what is expected to be the biggest Cyber Monday to date, with Amazon accounting for a bulk of the sales (file photo)

So called Cyber Monday, which falls after Black Friday, became the biggest day for online shopping by sales volume in 2010.

This year, Amazon has had holiday deals on offer since November 21, with coveted Beats by Dre headphones, selling for $275.

PayPal said that global mobile payment volume increased 47 percent this Thanksgiving from last year.

Wal-Mart reported 500 million more page views. The retail giant said it had doubled its Cyber Week deals from 2013 to 50.

Figures from eBay say the online auction and retail site quickly went through 2,000 iPad Air 2 tablets selling at $399, at a rate of one per second.

Big deals on toys offered by Toys R Us, which has had online sales since November 26, include a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles electronic fighting game and dolls based on the characters from Disney's Frozen.

Delivery: Amazon workers in Phoenix worked hard to sort packages for delivery in this file photo from November 11, 2010, with holiday sales online building each consecutive year

'Online is nowhere near its maturity, so Cyber Monday should be big, with a lot of strength in the days leading up to it,' said Forester Research analyst Sucharita Mulpuru.

In addition to the Thanksgiving weekend, Mulpuru expected another spike in online retail in December, when shipping deadlines occur.

The research firm comScore, which tracks sales behavior in the US based on responses from a panel of 2 million users, expects holiday shopping to total $61billion over November and December.

While many began lining up after Thanksgiving to take advantage of deals happening in stores, others were less comfortable in the crowds.

Jennifer Donaldson, who dropped into Macy's Fulton Street store, told Reuters she usually shopped online and she found the live retail experience lacking.

'It's crowded, and people are rude,' she said.