15 cart abandonment stats you need to know to boost conversions in 2026

Are you investing significant effort and budget into your SEO, ads, and overall marketing but seeing no increase in sales? If users fill their carts on your site only to abandon them, much of that investment goes to waste.

But you already know this—that’s why you’re looking for cart abandonment statistics: to benchmark your online store against and determine what you really need to change in your ecommerce buying experience.

The stats we tackle in this guide are about more than the average shopping cart abandonment rate: they’re about how this rate changes over the years and between different industries, countries, devices, and demographics. So you can learn why it happens, and the impact of recovering abandoned carts, and focus your efforts on making changes that drive conversions.

15 essential shopping cart abandonment statistics 

Cart abandonment statistics paint a clear picture of the reasons customers fail to complete their purchases—and help you make data-backed decisions to address these challenges.

These 15 cart abandonment statistics and benchmarks show the specific areas you need to focus on to reduce cart abandonments, create a frictionless customer experience, maximize conversions, increase profits, and build stronger brand loyalty.

1. The global average cart abandonment rate is 70.19% across all industries 

There’s a lot of data on shopping cart abandonment rates out there. A simple Google search will reveal data from many different studies, ranging from as low as 56% to as high as 81%. 

However, recent data from Baymard paints the most accurate picture across all industries. The institute calculated data from more than 48 different studies and found that the average shopping cart abandonment rate in 2025 is just over 70%—70.19% to be exact. That’s slightly up from 2022, when the average cart abandonment rate was 69.99%. 

That means a little over 7 out of every 10 shoppers won’t complete their transaction—and that’s a lot of lost ecommerce revenue.

If your cart abandonment rate is higher than that, look for potential issues in your shopping cart checkout flow, website functionality and layout, and any potentially contradictory messaging in your marketing materials.

2. Extra costs are the number one reason for abandoned carts

Every day, thousands of potential customers leave websites without purchasing. The real question is: why do customers abandon their shopping carts?

The Baymard Institute also conducted in-depth research to determine what triggers cart abandonment. 48% of US customers say unexpected costs are the main reason for abandoning shopping carts, citing this as the reason they leave.

Extra costs like shipping, taxes, and fees may not always be obvious to customers. As they head to the shopping cart and see those fees added on top of each product price, almost half of customers exit. 

Along with other reasons why customers abandon shopping carts—which we’ll get into later in the article—they might become your biggest deal-breaker.

3. Customers aged 25–34 are the worst offenders when it comes to giving up on a purchase

According to SellersCommerce, people aged 25 to 34 have the highest cart abandonment rate, at 21%, followed by 35–44-year-olds at 20%. This trend is further proof of why retailers have identified millennials as the most indecisive and frugal online shoppers.

Millennials have a unique predilection for abandoning their shopping cart on digital commerce sites. Their tactics include

• Openly placing products in digital shopping carts and abandoning them in the hope of receiving a promotional email or advertisement from the ecommerce site

• Intentionally faking their birthdate when disclosing it to a retailer in the hope of landing a better discount at checkout

• Offering up multiple email addresses to retailers, in the hope of being able to land additional deals

💡Pro tip: the best way to understand why millennials (or any shoppers) abandon their digital shopping carts—apart from wanting to get discounts—is to identify their exit point in the checkout process. 

Use Contentsquare’s Session Replay tool to watch how potential customers experience the checkout process on your website. Identify blockers that might get in the way of moving them further along the funnel, then prioritize resolving these issues to reduce cart abandonment.

Contentsquare’s Session Replay tool in action

4. Mobile devices have the highest average cart abandonment rate, at 80.2%

Customers are on their phones all the time—at home, during their commute to work, and even right before bedtime. So when they think of buying something, their phone is the most convenient device to do it from.

A study by Convert Cart revealed that the overwhelming majority of people worldwide access the internet using mobile devices—accounting for 58.33% of all traffic in ecommerce. 

However, data from Analyzify shows that while cart abandonment on desktop sessions is 70%, the rate is significantly higher on mobile devices, at 80.2%.

The trend is obvious: the smaller the screen, the more likely a customer is to not purchase. This is a direct result of ecommerce shops not being optimized for mobile—slow load times, unresponsive pages, and clunky navigation. Plus, every inconvenience driving cart abandonment on desktop—like mandatory accounts and long checkout processes—is intensified on smartphones.

💡Pro tip: use Contentsquare Heatmaps to learn what users focus on, ignore, and accidentally miss on desktop, mobile, and tablet.

It’s possible you’re giving your visitors all the information they need to complete their purchase, but they aren’t reaching it. Maybe it’s below the fold—the part of the page not visible without users scrolling down the page—or maybe you think it’s visible on the mobile screen just because it’s well placed on desktop.

Heatmaps help you find these points of friction, show you where people click or tap, and how far they scroll by aggregating this data in a simple, color-coded image.

5. Cart abandonment is at its highest during the month of December

Customers shop more during the holiday season, making December the time with the highest level of shopping cart abandonment rate. This is followed by November and January. During these three months, shoppers browse Christmas present ideas due to Black Friday and January sales. 

The cart abandonment rate also fluctuates greatly during this period. According to Ninetailed, Black Friday saw global cart abandonment rates between 73% and 78% in 2024. And recent data from Charge After shows that just a few days later, on Cyber Monday, the cart abandonment rate increased to 80.25%. 

6. The average checkout flow today is 5.1 steps long and has 11.3 form fields

The requirement to create an online account, a complicated checkout process, and slow delivery—these are the top reasons most customers abandon carts, according to Baymard’s 2024 study. What do they all have in common? The lack of convenience. 

Today’s average checkout flow is 5.1 steps long and contains 11.3 form elements by default, including popular ones like name, address, and birthday. This data helps online retailers better understand their customer base.

Long and complicated checkout processes cause over 22% of shoppers to abandon their purchases. When shopping online, customers prioritize convenience. It’s become one of the critical factors that determine the likelihood of someone completing a purchase.

💡Pro tip: one way to make sure your customers have a hassle-free shopping experience is to ask why they are abandoning their carts. Capture feedback as shoppers leave your website with Contentsquare’s Surveys tool. Add an exit-intent survey when visitors navigate away from the cart, including a simple question like, "Did you face any issues while making a purchase?" or “What could we do to improve?”

Also, use Contentsquare’s survey reports to analyze and plan the changes you need to make to reduce cart abandonment.

An example of a Contentsquare exit-intent survey

7. 13% of customers will abandon a transaction if their preferred payment method is not available

Customers know what they want, and they’ll leave if it’s not available to them. When it comes to payment options, a lack of variety can lead to higher cart abandonment rates. According to the same Baymard study, 13% of customers will abandon their cart if the ecommerce website doesn’t offer their preferred payment method. 

Historically, the most popular payment gateways have been PayPal, authorize.net, and USA ePay. However, in recent years, especially post-COVID, this list has expanded to include more options for shoppers, including Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) and digital wallets.

Additionally, adding a PayPal trust badge to your ecommerce site might help reassure them that the site is secure and trustworthy. 

8. 30% of shoppers will leave if they have to re-enter their credit card information

Time is a precious commodity for today’s customers. So precious that, according to ConvertCart, 30% of them may abandon their carts when asked to re-enter credit card information, and 25% will leave if they have to re-enter shipping information. Recent data from Wiser Notify revealed that if the checkout is longer than 30 seconds, that number skyrockets to over 50% of customers.

This statistic shows that any major redundancy in the checkout process negatively impacts conversions. Remember, it’s all about convenience and creating a delightful customer experience.

9. The average click-through rate for cart abandonment emails is 23.33%

Retargeting—recognizing when a customer is interested in your product, and drawing them back in with a specific ad or campaign—is a great tactic for ecommerce sites. And there is no better way to do this than with cart abandonment emails.

Cart abandonment email open rates are incredibly high. In 2024, a study by Analyzify showed that open rates stood at around 39.07%, while the average click-through rate for cart abandonment emails was 23.33%. With an average conversion rate for shopping cart abandonment emails of 10.7%, this shows that incorporating personalization into your email strategies can have real results.

10. The cruise and ferry industry has the world’s highest cart abandonment rates

A ‘good’ cart abandonment rate changes dramatically depending on what industry your store is, and cart abandonment rates vary drastically from industry to industry. In fact, recent data from Growth The Devil showed that the cruise and ferry industry has the highest cart abandonment rates, at nearly 98%. 

This averages approximately 28% more than the global average shopping cart abandonment rate. One reason may be that the industry requires more extensive decision-making from customers, such as evaluating multiple options, considering travel dates, and factoring in additional costs like excursions and onboard services. These complex choices can lead to hesitation and, ultimately, abandonment.

11. 17% of customers cite website errors or crashes as a reason for abandonment

Website errors, crashes, and load times are major deterrents to completing purchases for at least 17% of customers. 

These issues contribute to a sense of insecurity on the site, adding to the 25% of customers who already don’t trust sites with their credit card information.

💡Pro tip: leverage Contentsquare’s Error Analysis tool to identify the hidden issues behind cart abandonment.

From broken links to API errors, this tool highlights exactly where users encounter errors, helping you fix trust-damaging glitches before they drive customers away. 

Pair it with session replay insights to see the story behind each error—because every crash or bug you resolve brings you one step closer to a seamless, secure checkout experience.

12. 57% of online consumers will abandon their carts if they have to wait too long for a page to load

According to a recent study by Result First, 57% of shoppers will abandon a page that takes more than three seconds to load. Let that sink in.

This statistic shows how long you have before most potential customers leave your ecommerce site. Use digital experience monitoring tools to test your website’s page-load times both on desktop and mobile, helping you improve the user experience (UX) and boost sales.

Remember: every fraction of a second counts—a mere 0.1s improvement in load time can lead to an 8.4% increase in conversions in ecommerce.

💡 Pro tip: use Contentsquare’s Speed Analysis tool to uncover the culprits slowing down your site.

Are bloated product images or JavaScript parsing causing users to abandon their carts mid-checkout as they wait for their pages to load? 

Dive deep, prioritize fixes that have the biggest impact, and watch how shaving seconds off your load times translates into salvaged carts and increased sales. When every millisecond matters, don’t let your hard-earned traffic go to waste.

Contentsquare’s Speed Analysis tool tells you which images, elements or scripts are dragging your pages down

13. After abandoning, 40% of shoppers switch to a competitor

Most online shoppers have little patience and high expectations. Once they know your site is sluggish, hard to navigate, or contains hidden extra costs, most will abandon and avoid it. So, what happens after customers leave your site? 

Research cited by Outer Box Design shows that 40% of shoppers will go to a competitor if even the slightest headache arises, such as a bad mobile experience.

14. Better checkout design can lead to a 35.26% increase in conversion rate for ecommerce sites

At the end of the day, no matter how much you optimize your checkout page and process, some cart abandonment is inevitable. How much, exactly, is up to you.

According to the Baymard Institute, the average large-sized ecommerce site can increase its conversion rate by 35.26% through better checkout design. This translates to $260 billion worth of lost orders, which are recoverable solely through a better checkout flow and design.

15. 38% of consumers appreciate being reminded of products they browsed

Basic retargeting—which is sending ads based on a consumer’s previous actions—helps bring qualified leads back to your ecommerce site. And as it turns out, some customers actually enjoy it.

According to Finance Online, over 1 in 3 consumers say they actually like seeing retargeted ads, especially if they get a better deal. And brands that segment out different retargeting audience lists for people who behave differently have seen ROIs of more than 1,300%. 

Cart abandonment stats only tell half the story

Cart abandonment continues to be a major challenge for ecommerce businesses, but every abandoned cart holds an opportunity to learn. The stats only tell half the story—pair them with user and product insights to uncover what’s holding customers back. Whether it’s unexpected costs, a lack of trust, or friction in the checkout flow, the solutions are within your reach. You just have to put your customers at the heart of your business and conversions will soon follow!

FAQs about cart abandonment stats