What is Cart Abandonment? The Complete Definition & Types Guide

Someone visits your store. They find a product they like. They add it to their cart. Then... they leave. No purchase. No checkout. Just gone. This is cart abandonment, and it happens to about 70% of shopping carts on Shopify stores.

But here's what most people get wrong: they mix up cart abandonment with checkout abandonment. These are two different problems. And if you don't understand the difference, your recovery strategy won't work.

In this guide, we'll explain exactly what cart abandonment meaning is, the different types, and why this matters for your Shopify store. Simple words. No jargon. Just the stuff you need to know.

Cart Abandonment: The Simple Definition

Let's start with the basics. What is cart abandonment?

It's simple: A customer adds something to their cart. Then they leave your store without buying it. They never started the checkout process. They just... left.

Think of it like this: Someone walks into a physical store, puts items in their basket, then sets the basket down and walks out. That's cart abandonment.

Why does this matter? Because at this stage, you usually don't have their email address. Shopify only captures their email when they start checkout. So if they never reach checkout, you have no way to contact them.

The average cart abandonment rate is around 70%. That means 7 out of 10 people who add something to their cart will leave without buying. For most Shopify stores, that's a lot of lost sales.

The Three Types of Abandonment (And Why It Matters)

Not all abandonment is the same. There are actually three types. Understanding them helps you pick the right solution.

1. Browse Abandonment

The customer looks at your products but never adds anything to the cart. They browse, they scroll, they look... then they leave.

2. Cart Abandonment

The customer adds items to the cart but never starts checkout. They showed interest (they added to cart!), but something stopped them.

3. Checkout Abandonment

The customer starts checkout but doesn't finish. Maybe they got to the shipping page. Maybe they saw the total price. But they didn't complete the purchase.

Cart Abandonment vs Checkout Abandonment: The Critical Difference

Most articles use these terms like they mean the same thing. They don't.

Abandoned cart vs abandoned checkout is a crucial distinction. Let's break it down:

Cart Abandonment

• Customer adds to cart
• Customer leaves WITHOUT starting checkout
• You don't have their email
• You can't send them a recovery email

Checkout Abandonment

• Customer adds to cart
• Customer STARTS checkout (enters email)
• Customer leaves before paying
• You have their email
• You CAN send them a recovery email

Here's the journey:

When Does Shopify Capture Customer Information?

This is the technical part that changes everything. When exactly does Shopify know who your visitor is?

The short answer: When they enter their email at checkout.

Before that? The visitor is mostly anonymous. You can see what they did (which pages they visited, what they added to cart), but you don't know WHO they are.

There are some exceptions:

• Returning customers who are logged in
• Newsletter subscribers you've already captured
• Shop Pay users who are signed in

But for most new visitors? They're completely anonymous until they hit checkout.

Why Cart Abandonment is the Bigger Problem

Here's something most store owners miss: Cart abandonment is actually a bigger problem than checkout abandonment.

Why? Two reasons:

1. More people abandon at the cart stage. The drop from cart to checkout is the biggest leak in most funnels.
2. You can't reach them. No email means no recovery emails, no SMS, nothing.

Let's look at a typical store's funnel:

• 100 visitors browse your store
• 30 add something to cart
• 10 start checkout
• 3 complete purchase

Where's the biggest leak? Cart to Checkout. 20 people lost. And you have no way to contact them.

At What Point is a Cart Considered Abandoned?

Good question. When exactly does a cart become "abandoned"?

The industry standard is usually 1-24 hours of inactivity. But different tools define it differently:

But here's the thing: by the time a cart is officially "abandoned," the customer is already gone. They've moved on. They might not even remember your store.

What This Means for Your Strategy

Now you understand the difference between cart abandonment and checkout abandonment. So what do you do about it?

Different problems need different solutions:

The Best Approach: Prevention First

Here's what we recommend:

1. Start with prevention. Catch hesitant visitors while they're still on your site.
2. Add email recovery. For those who reach checkout but don't finish.
3. Layer in SMS and retargeting. For additional touchpoints.

Prevention comes first because it reaches 100% of visitors. Email recovery only reaches the 20-30% who made it to checkout.

How Growth Suite Helps with Cart Abandonment

Growth Suite focuses on prevention—catching cart abandoners before they become a statistic.

Here's how it works:

• Behavioral detection: The app watches how visitors behave on your site. It identifies signs of hesitation.
• Intent-based offers: When someone seems ready to leave, Growth Suite can show them a personalized, time-limited offer.
• Works on anonymous visitors: No email required. It works while they're still browsing.
• Protects your margins: Offers only show to hesitant visitors—not to people who were going to buy anyway.

The key difference? Growth Suite acts BEFORE the customer leaves. Most other tools only work after they're gone.

It also works great with email tools like Klaviyo. Growth Suite handles prevention. Klaviyo handles recovery. Together, they cover both types of abandonment.