Azizul Islam
Quick answer: to reduce abandoned carts on Shopify, show shipping costs early, allow guest checkout, turn on fast payment options like Shop Pay, and send a series of abandoned checkout emails. Most lost carts come from surprise costs, a slow checkout or simple distraction, and all three are fixable.
Baymard Institute’s long-running research puts the average online cart abandonment rate at around 70 percent. You will never recover every cart, but small fixes can win back a meaningful share of sales you are already paying to attract.
Why shoppers abandon their carts
- Extra costs (shipping, taxes, fees) appear late in checkout
- They are forced to create an account
- Checkout feels long or slow on mobile
- Their preferred payment method is missing
- They do not trust the store yet
- They were just browsing or comparing prices
1. Show shipping costs early
Surprise shipping costs are the top reason for abandonment. Show shipping prices or a free-shipping threshold on product pages and in the cart. A free-shipping progress bar in the cart (“You are $12 away from free shipping”) also raises order value.
2. Allow guest checkout
In Settings > Customer accounts, make sure customers are not required to log in before they pay. Offer account creation after the purchase instead.
3. Turn on fast checkout options
Shop Pay, Apple Pay, Google Pay and PayPal let returning shoppers pay in a few taps with saved details. Show the express buttons in the cart and on product pages where your theme supports it.
4. Send abandoned checkout emails
Shopify includes an abandoned checkout automation, and tools like Shopify Email or Klaviyo let you build a full sequence. A simple, effective flow:
- About 1 hour later: a friendly reminder with the product image and a link back to the cart.
- About 24 hours later: answer common objections: reviews, returns policy, delivery times.
- 48 to 72 hours later: a small incentive such as free shipping or a modest discount, if your margins allow.
Collecting the email early, for example with a popup, means you can recover carts even from visitors who never reached checkout.
5. Build trust at the moment of purchase
- Show payment icons and a short returns promise near the Add to Cart button.
- Display reviews on product pages.
- Keep contact options visible: live chat or WhatsApp.
6. Use a cart drawer instead of a separate cart page
A slide-out cart keeps shoppers on the page, shows the total immediately and makes checkout one tap away. It is also the perfect place for a free-shipping bar and a relevant upsell.
7. Retarget shoppers who left
Run retargeting ads on Meta and Google to people who added to cart but did not buy. Show the exact products they viewed. This only works if your tracking is set up correctly, so check that add-to-cart and purchase events are firing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good cart abandonment rate for Shopify?
Around 70 percent is typical across e-commerce. Rather than chasing a benchmark, track your own rate month by month and aim to bring it down.
Should every abandoned cart email include a discount?
No. Many shoppers return with just a reminder. Save discounts for the last email so you do not train customers to abandon carts on purpose.
Where do I see abandoned checkouts in Shopify?
In your Shopify admin under Orders > Abandoned checkouts, where you can also send a recovery email manually.
Recover more sales on autopilot
My Standard package includes a custom cart, Klaviyo setup and conversion-focused product pages, and Premium adds full automated email flows including abandoned cart. See packages or chat on WhatsApp.