Cart abandonment is a persistent challenge in e-commerce, impacting businesses across all sectors. Understanding the key reasons behind abandonment and identifying trends can help retailers optimize the shopping experience and recover lost sales. Here are 10 essential statistics highlighting the causes, costs, and solutions for cart abandonment.
Cart Abandonment Rates by Sector
According to SaleCycle Client Data (2020), cart abandonment rates vary by sector:
Retail: 77.01%
Fashion: 84.43%
Travel: 87.08%
Utilities: 75.80%
All Sectors (Average): 81.08%
The travel sector experiences the highest abandonment rates, reflecting longer research phases and complex checkout processes, while utilities have the lowest rates. Retailers with streamlined, user-friendly checkout processes often see lower abandonment rates, emphasizing the importance of optimizing the user journey through conversion rate optimization services.
Reasons for Abandonment During Checkout
Cart abandonment refers to customers adding items to their cart but not completing the purchase, while checkout abandonment focuses on those who begin the checkout process but do not finish. A Baymard survey (2019) of 2,584 consumers identified the main reasons for checkout abandonment:
Extra costs too high: 55%
Had to create an account: 34%
Long or complex process: 26%
Can't see the total cost upfront: 21%
Didn't trust the site: 17%
Website errors or crashes: 17%
Delivery too slow: 16%
Returns policy issues: 11%
Lack of payment options: 6%
Card declined: 4%
These findings underscore the importance of transparent pricing, simplifying the checkout process, and ensuring a trustworthy and seamless user experience to reduce abandonment rates.
Why People Abandon Clothing Purchases
Consumers abandon online fashion purchases for various reasons, making it essential for retailers to identify areas for optimization. Concerns about product quality, fit, and appearance are among the top issues, highlighting the challenges fashion retailers face in replicating the tactile experience of in-store shopping. The inability to see products closely and determine the best fit poses a significant hurdle. Selling luxury fashion online presents additional challenges, as this market has a different customer base and unique buying habits. However, consumer fashion retailers can leverage promo codes to reduce abandonment, a tactic less applicable to luxury brands.
A Rakuten study (2017) identified the main reasons shoppers abandon clothing purchases online:
Impaired website functionality: 40%
Delivery too slow: 36%
Concerns about quality: 35%
Not sure about fit: 35%
Found a better price: 33%
Product appearance issues: 30%
Can’t find items: 30%
Security concerns: 30%
Returns policy dissatisfaction: 27%
These findings highlight the importance of improving website performance, providing accurate product descriptions, and addressing customer concerns around fit, delivery, and returns to create a better shopping experience.
The Cost of Cart Abandonment
A Barclaycard survey revealed that British shoppers abandon online baskets worth nearly £30 per month, equating to more than £18 billion in lost sales annually. 41% of shoppers reported abandoning a transaction during checkout in the past year, compared to 24% who walked away from a purchase in a physical store.
Most Commonly Abandoned Items
The Barclaycard survey also identified the most frequently abandoned items in online shopping:
Women’s knitwear
Leather goods
Women’s lingerie and hosiery
Headphones
Watches
Women’s sportswear
Women’s skirts
Books
Men’s trousers/jeans
Women’s tops and shirts
Why Do People Abandon Shopping Carts?
According to SaleCycle Abandonment Surveys, the main reasons for shopping cart abandonment include:
Just looking: 34%
Shipping costs and options: 23%
To compare prices: 18%
To buy in-store: 15%
Lack of payment options: 6%
Technical issues: 4%
It highlights the importance of addressing high shipping costs, offering flexible payment options, and ensuring a seamless user experience to reduce cart abandonment rates.
Why People Abandon Travel Bookings
Travel booking abandonment often stems from longer decision-making processes. Based on SaleCycle surveys of 1,000 consumers, the top reasons include:
Just looking / more research needed: 39%
To compare prices: 37%
To check with other travelers: 21%
Booking too long or complex: 13%
Technical issues: 9%
Lack of payment options: 7%
To reduce abandonment, travel sites should streamline booking processes, ensure competitive pricing, and offer robust payment options.
Online Finance Abandonment
A survey by Signicat found that 56% of respondents abandoned an online finance application, up from 40% two years earlier. The primary reasons include:
Too much personal information required: 40%
Length of time to fill forms: 34%
Need to provide information by post or in person: 28%
Confusing language: 18%
Other reasons: 6%
Simplifying forms, minimizing personal data requirements, and offering online-only options are key to reducing finance application abandonment rates.
Browse Abandonment Rates
Browse abandonment occurs when shoppers view category pages or products but leave without adding items to their cart. Data shows:
43.8% of visitors browse product pages but do not add items to their carts.
14.5% proceed to add items to their cart.
3.3% complete a transaction.
It highlights the need to optimize product pages and user journeys to improve engagement and conversions.
Cart Abandonment Emails
Cart abandonment emails remind shoppers of the items they left behind and encourage them to complete the purchase. SaleCycle 2021 data shows email open rates vary by sector:
Travel: 46.94%
Utilities: 44.92%
Retail: 39.07%
All sectors (average): 40.10%
Fashion: 29.48%
Abandonment emails achieve higher open and conversion rates compared to standard e-commerce emails, with conversion rates as follows:
Fashion: 28.89%
Retail: 28.88%
Travel: 22.80%
Utilities: 16.12%
All sectors (average): 24.18%
Personalized messaging and timely follow-ups can improve email performance and recovery rates across all sectors.
Cart abandonment remains a significant hurdle for e-commerce businesses, but it also presents opportunities for growth and optimization. By understanding the reasons behind abandonment – high shipping costs, complex checkouts, or unclear pricing – retailers can take targeted actions to improve the customer journey. Implementing streamlined processes, personalized cart abandonment emails and transparent policies can significantly reduce abandonment rates and recover lost revenue. The key is to focus on customer convenience and trust to turn abandoned carts into successful conversions.
