Quick summary
This post provides a step-by-step guide to recovering abandoned checkouts on Shopify, covering the root causes of abandonment, how to reduce them before they happen, and how to set up email, SMS, and retargeting recovery sequences. It includes timing recommendations, message templates, and expected recovery benchmarks.
Seven out of every ten customers who start your checkout will leave without completing it. That is the reality of ecommerce. On a store doing £50,000 per month, abandoned checkouts represent roughly £116,000 in lost potential revenue. You will not recover all of it, but a well-built recovery system brings back 5 to 15 percent of those lost sales automatically.
Why do customers abandon Shopify checkouts?
Understanding why people leave helps you fix the root causes rather than just chasing them with emails.
According to the Baymard Institute's latest research, the top reasons for checkout abandonment are:
| Reason | Percentage of Shoppers |
|---|---|
| Extra costs too high (shipping, tax, fees) | 48% |
| Required to create an account | 26% |
| Delivery too slow | 23% |
| Did not trust the site with payment info | 25% |
| Checkout process too complicated | 22% |
| Could not see total order cost upfront | 21% |
| Returns policy not satisfactory | 18% |
Notice that the biggest issue is not indecision about the product. It is unexpected costs. If your checkout adds shipping fees, taxes, or surcharges that were not visible earlier in the journey, you are driving people away before they reach the payment step.
How do you reduce abandonment before it happens?
Recovery emails are important, but preventing abandonment in the first place is more effective. Fix these issues and your abandonment rate drops before a single email is sent.
Show shipping costs early
Display shipping information on product pages, not just at checkout. If you offer free shipping over a threshold, show a progress bar in the cart: "You are £12 away from free delivery."
Enable guest checkout
Shopify allows guest checkout by default, but some stores accidentally require account creation. Check Settings, then Checkout, then Customer accounts and ensure it is set to "Optional" or "Don't require."
Simplify the checkout
Shopify's checkout is already streamlined compared to custom platforms, but you can still optimise it.
- Enable Shop Pay for returning customers. It auto-fills their details, reducing checkout time by up to 40 percent.
- Offer multiple payment methods: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Klarna, and PayPal alongside card payments.
- Remove unnecessary form fields. If you do not need a phone number, do not ask for one.
Display trust signals at checkout
Add security badges, payment logos, and your returns policy summary near the payment section. Even a simple "Secure checkout, SSL encrypted" message reduces hesitation. Merchants on Shopify Plus can embed custom trust blocks and upsell components directly within the checkout using Checkout Extensibility.
How do you set up Shopify's built-in abandoned checkout emails?
Shopify includes a basic abandoned checkout recovery email on all plans. It is limited to a single email, but it is free and takes two minutes to enable.
Setup steps:
- Go to Settings, then Checkout.
- Scroll to Abandoned checkouts.
- Select "Automatically send abandoned checkout emails."
- Choose the timing: 1 hour, 6 hours, 10 hours, or 24 hours after abandonment.
- Customise the email subject line and content if desired.
Recommended timing: Send the first email 1 hour after abandonment. This catches customers while the purchase is still fresh. Shopify's data shows that emails sent within the first hour have the highest recovery rate.
The built-in email includes the customer's cart contents, a link back to their checkout, and your store branding. It works, but it is basic. For a proper multi-email recovery sequence, you need a dedicated email platform.
How do you build a multi-step abandoned checkout flow?
A single recovery email recovers some sales. A sequence of three emails recovers significantly more. Build this flow in Klaviyo, Omnisend, or your email platform of choice.
Email 1: The reminder (1 hour after abandonment)
Subject line: "You left something behind"
Content:
- Cart contents with product images and prices
- A direct link back to their checkout (most email platforms pull this from Shopify automatically)
- Brief, friendly tone. No pressure, no discount
- Shipping information and estimated delivery time
Goal: Catch impulse abandoners who got distracted. Many will complete the purchase with just a nudge.
Email 2: The objection handler (24 hours after abandonment)
Subject line: "Still thinking it over?"
Content:
- Cart contents (again, always include them)
- Address the most common objection for your store. If shipping cost is the issue, highlight your free shipping threshold. If trust is the issue, feature customer reviews
- Include a FAQ section covering returns, shipping times, and payment security
- Still no discount
Goal: Overcome the specific reason they did not buy. Social proof and policy clarity convert more hesitant buyers than discounts.
Email 3: The incentive (48 hours after abandonment)
Subject line: "Your cart is expiring, here is 10% off"
Content:
- Cart contents with the discount applied or a unique discount code
- A clear expiry on the offer (48 hours creates urgency)
- One final push with your strongest trust signal
Goal: Convert the holdouts who need an extra push. Only discount in this final email, not the first.
Important: Do not train your customers to expect discounts by always offering them. Some stores run A/B tests where half the audience gets email three with a discount and half gets it with free shipping or a gift instead. Test what works for your margins.
Should you use SMS for abandoned checkout recovery?
SMS has significantly higher open rates than email (98 percent vs 20 to 30 percent), making it effective for time-sensitive recovery messages. However, SMS is more intrusive and expensive, so use it selectively.
When SMS works well:
- High-value carts (above your average order value)
- Customers who have opted into SMS marketing
- As a complement to email, not a replacement
SMS recovery sequence:
- SMS 1 (2 hours after abandonment): Short, direct message with a checkout link. "Hi [Name], you left items in your cart at [Store]. Complete your order here: [link]"
- SMS 2 (24 hours, if email 2 was not opened): Follow-up with a brief incentive if applicable.
| Channel | Open Rate | Cost per Message | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 to 30% | £0.001 to £0.01 | Primary recovery channel, multi-step sequences | |
| SMS | 95 to 98% | £0.03 to £0.07 | High-value carts, non-email-openers |
SMS apps for Shopify:
- Klaviyo SMS: Integrated with email flows, from $15/month for 1,250 SMS credits
- Postscript: Shopify-focused SMS, from $25/month plus per-message fees
- Attentive: Enterprise SMS, custom pricing
If you already use Klaviyo for email, adding SMS to the same flows is seamless and avoids over-messaging by checking whether the customer engaged with the email before sending the SMS.
How do you use retargeting ads for checkout recovery?
Retargeting ads on Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and Google reach abandoners across the web, not just in their inbox. They are particularly effective for customers who did not provide an email address.
Setting up retargeting for abandoned checkouts:
- Install the Meta Pixel and Google Ads tag on your Shopify store.
- Create a custom audience of visitors who reached the checkout page but did not complete a purchase (last 7 to 14 days).
- Run dynamic product ads showing the specific items they left behind.
- Set a frequency cap to avoid annoying potential customers (three to five impressions per day maximum).
Retargeting ads typically cost £0.50 to £2.00 per click, but the conversion rate is high because you are targeting people who already showed strong purchase intent.
What recovery rate should you aim for?
Benchmarks vary by industry, but realistic targets for a well-optimised recovery system are:
| Recovery Method | Expected Recovery Rate |
|---|---|
| Single Shopify email | 3 to 5% |
| Three-email sequence | 5 to 10% |
| Email plus SMS | 8 to 15% |
| Email, SMS, plus retargeting | 10 to 18% |
On a store with 1,000 abandoned checkouts per month at a £60 average order value, recovering 10 percent means £6,000 in recovered revenue monthly. At 15 percent, it is £9,000. The email platform costs and ad spend are a fraction of this.
Key actions to take now
- Enable Shopify's built-in abandoned checkout email immediately if it is not already active. Set timing to one hour.
- Fix root causes: ensure shipping costs are visible early, guest checkout is enabled, and multiple payment methods are available.
- Set up a three-email abandoned checkout flow in Klaviyo or your email platform, spaced at 1 hour, 24 hours, and 48 hours.
- Only offer a discount in the final email, and consider A/B testing discounts against free shipping.
- Add SMS recovery for high-value carts if you have SMS opt-ins.
- Install retargeting pixels and create abandoned checkout audiences for Meta and Google ads.
- Review recovery rates monthly and A/B test subject lines and timing.
Setting up abandoned checkout recovery is straightforward using Klaviyo or Omnisend's pre-built templates. No developer is needed for the email and SMS flows. Where developer help is valuable is in customising the checkout experience itself to reduce abandonment, adding dynamic shipping calculators to product pages, and integrating retargeting pixels correctly across your store.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a realistic abandoned checkout recovery rate for a Shopify store?
A single recovery email typically recovers 3 to 5% of abandoned checkouts. A three-email sequence improves this to 5 to 10%, and combining email, SMS, and retargeting ads can push recovery to 10 to 18%. On a store processing 1,000 abandoned checkouts per month at a £60 average order value, the difference between 5% and 15% recovery is £6,000 in additional monthly revenue.
When should the first abandoned checkout email be sent?
Send the first email within one hour of abandonment. Purchase intent is at its highest in this window and open rates are significantly better than emails sent six or 24 hours later. Shopify's built-in recovery tool lets you set this timing directly under Settings, then Checkout, then Abandoned checkouts.
Should I offer a discount in every abandoned checkout email?
No. Reserve discounts for the third and final email in your sequence. Offering a discount in the first email trains customers to abandon checkout deliberately to wait for an offer, which damages your margins over time. Use the first email as a simple reminder and the second to address objections with social proof and policy clarity.
Do I need a paid app for Shopify abandoned checkout recovery?
Shopify's built-in abandoned checkout email is free and requires no additional app. It covers a single automated email and is a reasonable starting point. For a multi-step sequence with SMS, advanced segmentation, and A/B testing, Klaviyo or Omnisend are the most widely used options, with paid plans starting from around $20 per month depending on your contact list size.