E-commerce, also known as electronic commerce or internet commerce, refers to the buying and selling of goods or services using the internet. It covers a range of different types of businesses from consumer based retail sites such as eBay and Amazon to business exchanges trading goods and services between corporations. E-commerce has grown rapidly over recent years with many retailers now having an online presence in addition to their physical stores. The key components that make up e-commerce are websites, payment systems, delivery services and shopping cart software. Websites are used to showcase products or services available for purchase while payments systems process orders securely via credit cards or other forms of payment methods like PayPal. Delivery services ensure that purchased items arrive safely at their destination while shopping cart software allows customers easily keep track of what they’re buying by adding items into a ‘cart’ before checkout. All these pieces combined create an efficient way for consumers to shop online without ever needing to leave their homes!