Only Tesco and Argos making the list of top 10 most visited retail sites as the majority of high street retailers struggle with the transition online.

Tesco overtook Argos to take second position on the Hot Shops list - led by book giant Amazon - which measures the level of traffic to web sales sites, according to researcher Hitwise and online retail body IMRG.

Exactly half the retailers on the list are high street names, only two more than this time last year. The remainder of the top 10 is made up of online specialists such as  Amazon, Play.com, Expedia, EasyJet and Ryanair.

Tesco’s rise to second place, from fifth, is because it has focused on innovation, says IMRG chief executive James Roper.

‘To succeed online you cannot take your foot off the gas because by the time you realise you are falling behind, it is too late,’ said Roper.

The fastest risers were B&Q (up from 35th to 23rd), Tesco Direct (25th to 16th) and Ticketmaster UK (28th to 19th). Newcomers to the list included Boots and TopShop, while Littlewoods and Seetickets made returns.

The relative stability of the list indicates that most market leaders are performing well, maintaining customer loyalty and acquiring their share of the growing customer base, says Roper.

‘The list shows very clearly that the leading e-retailers are doing a great job in attracting and satisfying their share of customers,’ he said. ‘Having secured their positions so effectively, they are in great shape to continue to take the lion's share of the online shopping trade.’