Checkout Abandonment vs Cart Abandonment: Why the Difference Matters for Your Klaviyo Flows
Checkout abandonment and cart abandonment are different events with different causes and different fixes. Learn how to set up separate Klaviyo flows for each.
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TL;DR
- Cart abandonment occurs when a shopper adds a product to their cart but never starts checkout. Checkout abandonment occurs when a shopper starts checkout — sometimes entering payment or shipping information — but does not complete the purchase.
- The two events have different intent levels, different common causes, and respond to different email content.
- Most Shopify stores route both into a single "abandoned cart" flow, which underperforms compared to handling them as two distinct triggers.
- Setting up separate flows for cart abandonment and checkout abandonment in Klaviyo typically takes under an hour and produces measurably different content for each audience.
Definitions
Cart abandonment is when a shopper adds one or more items to their Shopify cart and leaves the site without initiating the checkout process.
Checkout abandonment is when a shopper has already started the checkout flow — entering an email, shipping address, or payment information — but exits before completing the order.
The distinction matters because checkout abandonment represents a shopper who got further into the purchase decision. They had already committed enough to begin entering personal information. Cart abandonment represents an earlier-stage shopper who may still be comparing, browsing, or simply saving the item for later.
Why the difference matters
Different intent levels
| Stage | What the shopper did | Intent signal |
|---|---|---|
| Cart abandonment | Added product to cart | Moderate — could be comparison shopping or genuine interest |
| Checkout abandonment | Started entering checkout details | High — has moved past browsing into transaction intent |
A shopper who reached the payment step and stopped is statistically more likely to convert with a well-timed follow-up than a shopper who only viewed a product page and added it to cart. Treating them identically wastes the higher-intent signal that checkout abandonment represents.
Different common causes
| Cart abandonment causes | Checkout abandonment causes |
|---|---|
| Just browsing or comparing prices | Unexpected shipping cost revealed at final step |
| Saving item for later | Required account creation |
| Price sensitivity, waiting for a sale | Complicated or lengthy checkout form |
| Distraction, no urgency yet | Payment method not available |
| Uncertainty about size or fit | Site error or technical issue during checkout |
Notice that checkout abandonment causes are largely about friction in the process itself, while cart abandonment causes are more about purchase readiness. This means the fix for each is different: checkout abandonment often calls for process simplification, while cart abandonment calls for nurture and incentive.
How to set up separate Klaviyo flows
Step 1: Identify your trigger metrics in Klaviyo
Klaviyo tracks these as separate metrics by default if your Shopify integration is properly configured:
- Added to Cart — triggers cart abandonment flow
- Checkout Started — triggers checkout abandonment flow
- Order Completed — exclusion condition for both
Step 2: Build the cart abandonment flow
| Timing | Content focus | |
|---|---|---|
| Email 1 | 2-4 hours | Product reminder, no urgency |
| Email 2 | 24 hours | Social proof, reviews |
| Email 3 | 48-72 hours | Soft incentive if needed |
Step 3: Build the checkout abandonment flow (separately)
| Timing | Content focus | |
|---|---|---|
| Email 1 | 30-60 minutes | Direct "complete your order" with clear link back to checkout |
| Email 2 | 4-6 hours | Address friction points — show shipping cost, mention security/trust badges |
| Email 3 | 24 hours | Final reminder, consider time-sensitive incentive |
Key difference in timing: Checkout abandonment emails should send faster than cart abandonment emails. A shopper who reached payment and stopped has higher urgency and a shorter window of continued intent.
Step 4: Set exclusion logic between the two flows
A shopper who triggers checkout abandonment should be excluded from the cart abandonment flow for the same session, to avoid sending conflicting or duplicate messaging.
Comparison table
| Factor | Cart abandonment flow | Checkout abandonment flow |
|---|---|---|
| Trigger event | Added to Cart, no Checkout Started | Checkout Started, no Order Completed |
| Typical abandonment rate | 60-75% of cart adders | 15-25% of checkout starters |
| Intent level | Moderate | High |
| Recommended first email timing | 2-4 hours | 30-60 minutes |
| Best content focus | Product reminder, social proof | Friction removal, direct CTA |
| Typical conversion rate | 3-5% | 5-10% |
Why most stores get this wrong
The most common setup error is using Klaviyo's default "Abandoned Cart" flow template, which is typically configured to fire on Added to Cart only — meaning checkout abandoners are folded into the same flow as cart abandoners, or worse, excluded entirely once they reach checkout (since some default configurations exclude anyone with cart-related activity once a checkout event fires, without ever building a dedicated checkout abandonment flow to catch them).
This means many Shopify stores have zero dedicated recovery sequence for their highest-intent abandoners — the ones who got all the way to entering payment information and stopped.
The same data gap affects both flows
Whether you're building a cart abandonment flow or a checkout abandonment flow, both depend on Klaviyo actually receiving the trigger event. Browser privacy restrictions and tracking limitations can cause Klaviyo to miss Added to Cart and Checkout Started events for the same reasons described in our guide to why Klaviyo misses cart abandoners — including for shoppers who are already known subscribers.
Closing this data gap benefits both flows simultaneously, since it ensures more of both event types reach Klaviyo reliably. This is the layer Attribuly's recovery tools focus on, with a guaranteed return of at least $4 in recovered revenue for every $1 invested.
Common mistakes
Mistake 1: Using one flow for both abandonment types
This blends two different intent levels into one generic message, underperforming compared to two tailored flows.
Mistake 2: Sending checkout abandonment emails too slowly
A 4-hour delay on a checkout abandonment email is too slow — this shopper had high intent minutes ago. Speed matters more here than for cart abandonment.
Mistake 3: Not addressing the actual friction point in checkout abandonment emails
If checkout abandonment is caused by unexpected shipping costs, the recovery email should address shipping directly — not just remind the shopper their cart is waiting.
Mistake 4: Ignoring checkout abandonment entirely
Some stores have a cart abandonment flow but no dedicated checkout abandonment flow, missing their highest-intent abandoners completely.
Next step
Check whether you have a dedicated checkout abandonment flow separate from your cart abandonment flow. If not, this is one of the highest-intent audiences in your entire Klaviyo account currently receiving no targeted recovery email.
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