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Abandoned cart — A cart a shopper fills but leaves without completing the purchase.
What Is an Abandoned Cart?
According to Baymard Institute research, roughly seven out of every ten online shopping carts are abandoned before checkout. It’s one of the most consistent numbers in ecommerce — the rate has stayed close to that mark for years, across almost every industry.
Why Shoppers Abandon Carts
- Unexpected costs at checkout, like shipping fees or taxes
- Shipping times that feel too slow
- Being forced to create an account before buying
- Checkout forms that ask for too much information
- Not trusting the site enough to enter payment details
Why Abandoned Carts Matter for Dropshippers
If a store gets 1,000 checkout starts and 700 don’t finish, that’s a 70% abandonment rate — right at the industry average. Because dropshipping margins are often thin, recovering even a small slice of that 70% through follow-up emails or retargeting can meaningfully change a store’s overall profit.
FAQ
Why do people abandon their carts?
Extra costs at checkout, slow shipping estimates, and complicated checkout forms are the most common reasons shoppers cite in industry research.
What's a normal abandoned cart rate?
Industry benchmarks put the average around 70%, so a rate near that isn’t a red flag on its own — it’s worth tracking the trend more than the raw number.
How do stores recover abandoned carts?
The most common methods are automated recovery emails, SMS reminders, and retargeting ads that bring the shopper back to their cart.