The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Personalizing Online Apparel Retail: A Systematic Literature Review

Abstract

Artificial intelligence is transforming online apparel retail through personalized recommendations, visual search, augmented reality, virtual try-on, and intelligent garment customization. Nonetheless, the degree to which such technologies support accessibility, disability inclusion, and inclusive digital participation remain insufficiently investigated. This systematic literature review examines the role of Artificial Intelligence in online apparel personalization that discussed the implications of the concept on user experience, accessibility, adaptive apparel, and disability-sensitive design. The review synthesized 17 studies published between 2020 and 2026 that used a PRISMA-guided approach. It was determined that there were five key themes, including intelligent recommendation systems, immersive personalization through augmented reality and virtual try-on, computer vision and deep learning applications, accessibility and adaptive apparel and consumer experience outcomes. The synthesis reveals that Artificial Intelligence personalization has the potential to enhance product discovery, decrease the level of decision-making uncertainty, enhance engagement, and facilitate individualized shopping experiences. Nonetheless, the majority of the currently available research is focused on commercial performance, such as the recommendation accuracy, customer engagement, purchase intention, and performance of the system, whereas accessibility and disability-inclusive personalization are relatively undeveloped. The results show that adaptive apparel data, accessible product descriptions, compatibility with assistive technologies, body representation, transparency, privacy policies, and algorithmic fairness should be incorporated in Artificial Intelligence powered fashion applications. The review summarizes that Artificial Intelligence has the potential to change online clothing retail where personalization is modelled as an inclusive, ethical, and disability-sensitive online activity that facilitates self-determination, independent living, and inclusive participation for persons with disabilities.