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 but still don’t buy.

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.
• Checkout abandonment happens after a shopper has entered the checkout process but leaves without paying.

Tracking both helps you understand exactly where people are dropping off, whether it’s the product page, cart page, or during payment entry.

What’s the average checkout abandonment rate?

The average checkout abandonment rate typically ranges from 20% to 40%, depending on the industry and checkout experience. Factors like forced account creation, unexpected fees, limited payment options, or slow loading pages can all contribute.

Why does checkout abandonment happen?

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

• Hidden shipping costs
• Long or complicated forms
• Lack of trust or security
• Limited payment methods
• Technical errors or mobile issues

Example of checkout abandonment in action

Jane selects a product, clicks ‘Checkout,’ enters her shipping info, but abandons the process when she sees a $15 shipping charge. This is a checkout abandonment event, not just cart abandonment.

Driftcharge Tip

Offer multiple payment options, avoid asking unnecessary details, maintain minimal steps through checkout and send recovery emails for dropped checkouts to improve conversions.

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.