If you were sitting at home and needed to buy something, what would you be more likely to do: go to the store, make a phone call, get your computer or grab your mobile device? For many of us, the first stop is to pick up the smartphone or tablet and use any number of apps to start price checking and find the best deal.

According to a recent comScore "State of the Retail Economy" report for the first quarter of 2013, the total amount of U.S. retailing spending growth through mobile devices grew nearly three times faster than retail eCommerce (31 percent versus 13 percent respectively). The overall retail industry only grew by 1 percent. For mobile commerce, it is a growth of $5.9 billion.

Mobile devices have more of an effect on retail than just giving customers a new way to shop. A global study by InMobi found that 75 percent of consumers learn new information via mobile applications and 45 percent had an in-store purchase influenced by that information.

"Many people think of mobile commerce as the actual, final transaction when money changes hands, whether physically or digitally," a Media Post article about the study reads. "But this misses the bigger picture of what's going on in world of mobile shopping."

The study found that 69 percent of consumers have used a mobile device to help them find a shopping location and 46 percent have actually made a purchase through their mobile device.

The mobile commerce revolution is about more than just making a payment. Smartphones and tablets have become a standard shopping tool.