Why people fill a cart and never finish the purchase
Seven real reasons carts get abandoned and what each one costs you, with the fixes in the order worth doing them.
In short
- Abandoned carts are normal. Around seventy percent is an ordinary rate.
- An unexpected shipping cost at the final step is the single most common reason.
- Forced sign up costs you sales. Always offer checkout without an account.
- Show the total price as early as you possibly can.
- One email reminder a few hours later recovers a real share of them.
About seventy out of every hundred carts in an online store are abandoned. That is the average and it is not a sign that you are doing something wrong. What separates a good store from a bad one is what happens to those seventy.
The reasons, in the order they actually occur
- An unexpected shipping cost at the last step. This is by far the most common reason and it is also the easiest to fix.
- Being forced to create an account before you can buy.
- Too many steps or too many fields.
- The payment method the person wanted is not offered.
- Uncertainty about when the order will arrive.
- Distrust: no reviews, no contact details, no return policy.
- The person was simply browsing and comparing, which is perfectly normal.
Fixes in priority order
1. Show the total price early
The shipping cost belongs in the cart, not in the last step. If you can offer free shipping above a set amount, say so on the product page itself.
2. Allow checkout without an account
Offer the account after the purchase, not before. You get the email address during checkout anyway.
3. Shorten the process
Count the fields in your checkout. Every field that is not needed to fulfil the order should go. Address autocomplete saves an entire step.
4. Say when the product arrives
Not "usually 2 to 5 working days" but a date if you can give one. Uncertainty is a reason to wait, and someone who waits buys less often.
The reminder
One email reminder a few hours after a cart is abandoned recovers a measurable share of them. Two is fine. Three is annoying.
The content matters: remind them of the product, show the photo, make it easy to finish. You do not need a discount in the first email. If you always hand out a discount in the reminder, you are teaching people to abandon the cart.
Measure the right numbers
| Metric | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| Share that starts checkout | Whether the product and the price work |
| Share that completes | Whether the checkout itself works |
| The step where most people stop | Exactly where the problem is |
| Recovery from reminders | Whether the follow up pays for itself |
The third line is the important one and it is within reach in most ecommerce platforms. It tells you where to start instead of guessing.
Frequently asked questions
What is a good rate?
Thirty percent completing is good, twenty is normal. Compare yourself with yourself last month, though, not with averages from other countries.
Should I send a reminder with a discount?
Not in the first email. If you want to offer something, offer free shipping rather than a percentage, because it does not lower the perceived value of the product.
Are popups acceptable?
In moderation. A popup that appears before someone has seen the product increases bounce. One that appears as they are leaving the window can work.
Related service
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ReadAbout the author
Kristján Gilbert is co-founder of galdrasmiðjan. He builds websites and online stores for Icelandic companies and writes here about what actually works: speed, search, visibility in AI answers and automation.
Questions about this article go to hallo@galdrasmidjan.is.
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