Checkout abandonment rate

What is the checkout abandonment rate?

Checkout abandonment rate measures the percentage of customers who start the checkout process but leave before completing their purchase. Unlike cart abandonment, which tracks people who add items to their cart and never start checkout, checkout abandonment tracks those who get further into the funnel but still don’t buy.
It’s also the inverse of your checkout conversion rate: when one improves, the other moves with it. Read together, they pinpoint exactly where the buying journey breaks down.

Cart abandonment vs. checkout abandonment: What’s the difference?

While both metrics reflect lost sales, they occur at different stages:

• Cart abandonment happens when someone adds items to their cart but doesn’t proceed to checkout.
• Cart abandonment happens when someone adds items to their cart but doesn’t proceed to checkout.

Tracking both your cart abandonment rate and your checkout abandonment rate helps you understand exactly where people are dropping off, whether that’s the product page, the cart page, or somewhere inside the payment and shipping flow.

What’s the average checkout abandonment rate?

Checkout abandonment rates are generally lower than cart abandonment rates, since shoppers who reach checkout have already shown stronger purchase intent. That said, rates vary widely by industry, device, and the quality of the checkout experience. Mobile abandonment is typically higher than desktop, and stores with longer or more restrictive checkout flows tend to see higher rates across the board.

Why does checkout abandonment happen?

Even after showing strong buying intent, customers can still abandon checkout due to:

• Hidden shipping costs or fees revealed late in the flow
• Long or complicated forms
• Mandatory account creation instead of guest checkout
• Lack of trust signals or visible security
• Limited payment methods
• Technical errors or mobile usability issues

Example of checkout abandonment in action

Jane selects a product, clicks “Checkout,” and enters her shipping info. When she reaches the payment step, she sees a $15 shipping charge that wasn’t shown on the product or cart page. She closes the tab without completing the order. That’s a checkout abandonment event, distinct from cart abandonment, since she actually entered the checkout flow before leaving.

Driftcharge Tip

Offer multiple payment options including digital wallets like Shop Pay and Apple Pay, enable guest checkout, avoid asking for unnecessary details, and send recovery emails for dropped checkouts. Even small reductions in checkout friction often produce measurable lifts in completed orders.

Ganesh Pawar

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Ganesh Pawar is the founder of Driftcharge, a subscription management app designed to help Shopify merchants streamline and scale their subscription businesses. With a deep focus on solving real-world pain points—like legacy account page support, flexible subscription options, and advanced analytics—Ganesh is passionate about building tools that drive growth and retention.