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How to reduce shopping cart abandonment
Published 14 April 2026
Getting people to visit your website is just the start. Turning that interest into an actual purchase is a whole different challenge.
All too often, customers add things to their online cart but leave before finishing the checkout, meaning the sale isn’t completed at the final step. Abandoned shopping carts are one of the most common issues in e-commerce, and they can hold back your revenue even when demand is high.
In this article, we’ll break down what leads to cart abandonment and how you can reduce it so more customers finish their purchase.
Common reasons for cart abandonment
Research from the Baymard Institute shows that over 70% of online carts are abandoned, meaning most customers who start a checkout don’t finish it.
According to their findings, the most common reasons for cart abandonment are:
- Customers still browsing or not ready to buy
- Unexpected costs like shipping or fees
- Delivery taking too long
- Lack of trust in payment security
- Being asked to create an account
- A checkout process that feels too long or complicated
For businesses, cart abandonment can mean lost revenue, lower return on marketing spend, and fewer repeat customers. But the good news is that most abandonment doesn’t come from lost interest. It comes from friction in the checkout process—and that’s something you can fix.
How to improve checkout conversion
Keen to cut down on cart abandonment? Here are 8 ways to turn more intent into completed orders:
Be upfront about pricing early
Unexpected costs are one of the main reasons customers bail. If shipping, taxes, or fees only show up at checkout, customers might decide it’s not worth going ahead. Showing estimated costs earlier, making delivery fees clear, and highlighting free shipping thresholds can help avoid nasty surprises.
Offer more delivery options
Delivery expectations can make or break a purchase decision. Some customers want speed, while others care more about value. Either way, they expect flexibility in how they get their orders. That’s why offering options like standard, same-day, and express delivery can make a real difference in whether someone finishes their purchase. Express delivery is now a key expectation, with Uber research showing that 75% of consumers expect it to be available as an option.
Make payment easy
Checkout should be a breeze. If customers have to stop and grab their credit cards or re-enter details, they’re more likely to give up. Adding digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal, plus saved payment methods for returning customers, helps streamline things—and research from Stripe suggests it can also boost conversion rates and revenue.
Simplify checkout
Every extra step ups the chance of abandonment. Cutting down form fields, allowing guest checkout, and using autofill for addresses can make things quick and easy. A clear progress indicator also helps customers see how close they are to finishing.
Improve the mobile experience
A lot of purchases now happen on mobile devices, so the experience needs to work well on a smaller screen. Bigger buttons, easy-to-read text, clean layouts, and fewer distractions help make it quicker and easier to finish checkout.
See where people drop off
Analytics can show where customers leave the checkout process. If dropoff happens when shipping costs appear, pricing might need a tweak. If it’s at payment, trust or payment options could be the issue. If it’s higher on mobile, the mobile experience might need work.
Make returns easy to understand
Uncertainty can stop a purchase. Clear return policies help customers feel more confident about completing an order. Make it easy to find and understand return windows, refund options, and exchange policies.
Re-engage shoppers who leave
Not every abandoned cart is gone for good. Reminder emails, retargeted ads, or small incentives can bring customers back and help recover sales.
Boosting conversions with Uber
Cart abandonment often comes down to one thing: the experience doesn’t match customer expectations at the moment of purchase.
Uber helps businesses close that gap by making checkout and delivery simpler.
- Uber Eats helps you reach customers where they already shop, with a quick, familiar checkout experience and saved payment and delivery details
- Uber Direct lets you offer fast delivery from your own website or app while Uber takes care of fulfilment behind the scenes
- Webshop gives you an easy way to offer delivery checkout on your own site, with flexible delivery options and access to customer insights
Ready to turn more browsers into buyers? Get started with Uber.
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