85% of mobile shoppers abandon their carts — leaving billions in lost revenue. But with the right strategies, your mobile app can turn drop-offs into conversions.

Mobile apps can convert 63% better than online stores — when done right. Yet, cart abandonment is still a massive challenge for mobile commerce. Even the most beautifully designed mobile apps aren’t immune to this drop-off.

The stakes are higher in mobile commerce. Shoppers expect an ultra-smooth, friction-free experience. If they hit a roadblock, whether unexpected costs, a clunky checkout, or too many steps, they won’t hesitate to abandon their cart and move on.

But mobile apps give brands more tools than ever to recover lost sales. From personalized push notifications to one-tap checkouts, you can optimize your mobile apps to improve cart abandonment recovery and reduce revenue loss.

Reducing cart abandonment in your mobile app starts with understanding what’s driving shoppers away and how to remove those friction points. Let’s dive into the top reasons customers abandon their carts in mobile apps and the best strategies to keep them engaged through checkout. 

1. Shipping costs were too high

Sticker shock is real. About half of US shoppers abandoned their carts because extra costs, like shipping, taxes, and fees, were too high, according to Statista. Our 2024 BFCM Consumer Trends report found an even higher percentage: 65% of shoppers cited shipping costs.

Shoppers expect full pricing transparency. If they get to checkout only to see unexpectedly high fees, they will likely leave their cart behind. And in mobile apps, where the checkout flow is meant to be seamless, this disruption is even more frustrating.

How to combat shipping cost-related cart abandonment in mobile apps

Unexpected costs can cause checkout friction — and be a dealbreaker. Still, mobile apps give you more ways to set clear expectations, create incentives, and turn shipping into a conversion tool rather than a conversion killer.

Use in-app messaging to promote free shipping

Instead of surprising customers at checkout, display estimated shipping costs and free shipping incentives earlier in the buyer’s journey. 

Lifestyle brand Naked Harvest has added a banner to their mobile app home page to notify shoppers of multiple pricing thresholds to reach free shipping.

Show a real-time cost breakdown

Free shipping thresholds are powerful incentives, but they only work if customers know about them. Use in-app banners and other messaging to remind shoppers how close they are to free shipping.

Princess Polly nails this strategy. The mobile app displays a progress bar whenever users add an item to their cart, showing exactly how close they are to earning free shipping. 

This real-time update removes any guesswork and creates momentum, encouraging customers to keep shopping to hit that threshold. 

Offer trust signals throughout the shopping experience

Sliding in fees or high shipping costs at the end of the checkout process is a quick way to lose your customers’ trust. Avoid triggering that hesitation by displaying trust signals along the buyer journey. 

Statements like these go a long way to reassure shoppers:

• No hidden fees
• Hassle-free returns
• Fast & reliable shipping

You can also highlight estimated delivery dates early in the cart to set clear expectations and prevent last-minute doubts that lead to abandonment.

2. Customers leave carts intending to come back later

Not every abandoned cart is a lost sale. According to our 2024 BFCM Consumer Trends report, 36% of shoppers say they leave items in their cart with plans to return later. 

And Baymard’s research found 48% of US online shoppers have abandoned a cart within the last 3 months because “I was just browsing/not ready to buy.” While this statistic isn’t exclusive to mobile, Baymard notes that mobile users often exhibit this behavior more frequently, using carts to compare items or hold them until they’re ready to buy.

Some shoppers treat their cart like a wish list, adding items they’re interested in but waiting for a discount, payday, or a final decision before checking out. Customers can get distracted and simply forget to return later. Without the right tactics, these carts may stay abandoned, leaving revenue on the table.

How to keep customers coming back

Shoppers may leave their carts with the best intentions of coming back, but without the right reminders and incentives, many never do. Make it easier to revisit saved items and strategically re-engage them at the right moments to turn a “maybe later” into a completed purchase.

Give shoppers a dedicated way to save items for later

Instead of forcing users to keep items in their cart, offer a “Save to Wishlist” feature that allows them to track their favorite products without triggering cart abandonment.

• Wishlists provide an alternative for shoppers who aren’t ready to buy but want to keep an item on their radar. Tapcart Mobile Wishlist makes it easy for brands to add this feature to their mobile apps, allowing users to create and organize their wishlists however they like.
• Saved items should sync across devices so customers can return them anytime.
• Promote the wishlist feature with in-app banners or a “move to wishlist” option in the cart.

LSKD does this well with its wishlist app feature. Users can tap on the heart to add items to their wishlist, categorize them, and easily move items from their wishlist to their cart and vice versa. The wishlist also appears on the main menu, so shoppers always know where to find it.

Use in-app popups to re-engage returning shoppers

Shoppers often intend to come back to their carts, but distractions and decision fatigue get in the way. Remind them of their intent and make it easy to complete their purchase with a well-timed in-app popup.

• Use an in-app popup to re-engage returning shoppers with messages. Pixi Beauty shows users a popup with their cart items. This removes friction and reminds them of their intent without feeling intrusive.

For example, Pixi Beauty’s app displays this popup to returning users who’ve left an item in their cart.

• If their items are running low in stock, include a low-inventory warning to create urgency.
• If they’ve been inactive for a while, send push notifications to re-engage users. 

Incentivize purchases with loyalty perks

Shoppers are more likely to complete their purchases if they feel they’re getting extra value, which is key for customer retention in mobile commerce. Rewarding app users with loyalty points or exclusive discounts can tip the scales in your favor.

• Offer double loyalty points for in-app purchases to encourage faster checkouts.
• Send a limited-time discount push notification to create urgency,
• Use personalized loyalty rewards based on purchase history to make offers feel more relevant.

Tapcart partners LoyaltyLion and Yotpo help you create customized loyalty programs to engage customers and increase retention. By integrating these tools into your mobile app, you can reward shoppers for their engagement and keep them coming back.

3. Complicated or lengthy checkout process

Checkout should be the easiest part of the shopping experience — yet, it’s one of the most common abandonment points. If the process is too long, requires too many steps, or forces users to enter unnecessary details, they’re likely to drop off before completing their purchase.

Statista’s top 10 reasons for mobile cart abandonment in 2024 had 5 related to the checkout process:

• #2 The site wanted me to create an account: 26%
• #3 I didn’t trust the site with my credit card information: 25%
• #5 Too long/complicated checkout process: 22%
• #6 I couldn’t calculate/see total cost upfront: 21%
• #9 There weren’t enough payment methods: 13%

Features like one-click payment, stored credentials, and multiple payment options can remove checkout friction and make it effortless for shoppers to complete their purchases.

How to combat cumbersome checkouts in a mobile app

Shoppers expect mobile checkout to be fast, simple, and frustration-free — and when it isn’t, they’ll abandon their carts without hesitation. Make it that much harder for your customers to say no by offering a seamless checkout experience.

Offer multiple payment options 

Shoppers expect flexibility in how they pay, and limiting their choices can drive them away. Offer a variety of options to make checkout fast and frictionless:

• Digital wallets: Apple Pay, Google Pay, Shop Pay, and more for one-tap purchases
• Credit & debit cards: Ensure major providers are accepted
• Buy now, pay later (BNPL) options: Give shoppers more flexibility with installment plans

The more ways you let customers pay, the fewer reasons they have to abandon their cart. 

Bombshell Sportswear gets this right by offering a wide range of payment options, helping to reduce mobile drop-off at checkout. This makes creating an account with them an option, not a requirement. 

Enable one-tap checkout for faster conversions

One of the biggest checkout killers? Forcing users to manually enter their payment and shippign details every time they shop. Mobile apps eliminate this issue by storing customer information securely and enabling one-tap checkout so users can complete their purchase in seconds.

CISE takes full advantage of one-tap purchases by adding an Apple Pay option on the product page. This makes it easy for their shoppers to place their orders with one tap.

Make checkout effortless

The more effort required to complete checkout, the greater the chance shoppers will abandon their cart. Mobile apps can help you streamline the process by:

• Using autofill for address, payment details, and contact information so customers don’t have to type out everything manually.
• Minimizing required fields to keep the process quick and focused.
• Removing distractions by offering a clean, dedicated checkout flow without pop-ups, unrelated offers, or unnecessary navigation.

By making checkout fast, frictionless, and free of distractions, mobile apps provide a superior experience that keeps customers engaged through purchase.

4. Shoppers get distracted or interrupted

Distractions are everywhere, no matter how you conduct commerce. Even with strong purchase intent, they may never return if you don’t re-engage them at the right time.

Mobile apps have an advantage here. With personalized push notifications and superior customer experiences, you can bring shoppers back before their intent fades.

How to keep shoppers engaged

When shoppers are pulled away mid-purchase, the key is to keep them engaged—both in the moment and after they leave the app. With the right mix of in-app experiences, push notifications, and automated follow-ups, you can bring them back before their intent fades.

Keep shoppers in your app longer with an engaging experience

The longer the customers stay in your app, the more likely they will complete their purchase. Interactive, immersive, and informative app features help reduce hesitation and turn casual browsing into confident buying.

• Use custom features that help customers shop smarter and reduce purchase anxiety.
• Highlight engaging content like shoppable videos or user-generated reviews to keep them scrolling.
• Show dynamic product recommendations based on their browsing behavior to keep them exploring.

Adventure lifestyle brand and Tappy award-winner Groove Life set a new standard for app engagement by using Tapacart’s Custom Blocks to create a ring sizer in their app for their silicone rings. Instead of leaving the app to look up sizing guides, customers can confidently find their perfect fit in-app, reducing friction and increasing conversions. Eliminating this uncertainty ensures fewer shoppers hesitate at checkout, resulting in more completed purchases.

Use abandon cart messaging campaigns to recover lost checkouts

Abandoned cart email and SMS flows perform extremely well compared to other campaign flows, according to Klaviyo, with higher average revenue. This is followed closely by abandoned browsing flow (another way to bring back distracted shoppers).

But unlike emails that can sit unopened, push notifications land directly on the shopper’s phone, making them one of the most effective ways to bring customers back.

• Send a gentle reminder: “Forgot something? Your cart is waiting for you!”
• Create urgency with an expiring cart: “Hurry! Your cart expires in 2 hours — check out before it’s too late!”
• Highlight incentives to drive action: “Complete your purchase now and enjoy free shipping!”

Fashion brand Oh Polly does this exceptionally well. Their team sends a push notification reflecting their friendly voice while still creating urgency and driving conversions.

Leverage automated email and SMS integrations

For shoppers who don’t return right away, automated follow-ups via email and SMS can help recover abandoned carts. Start with a push notification within an hour to re-engage those who got distracted, then follow up 24 hours later to capture shoppers still weighing their decision.

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• Send a friendly email reminder with a deep link to your app’s checkout screen.
• Use SMS for a quick, high-converting nudge — short simple, and designed to be read instantly.
• Personalize outreach based on behavior (e.g., a discount for first-time customers, a low-stock alert for high-intent shoppers, etc.).

Tapcart’s Klaviyo integration makes it easy to automate abandoned cart emails and SMS reminders, ensuring customers get timely nudges to complete their purchases.

5. Use data to find the reasons your customers abandon their carts

Every store sees cart abandonment, but not all happen for the same reason. While these industry trends can help guide you, take a deeper dive into understanding why your customers leave. 

By diving into real customer data, you can pinpoint the exact friction points causing shoppers to leave. 

How to use data to reduce cart abandonment

Data takes the guesswork out of improving your mobile shopping experience. Here’s how you can make informed changes.

Send a cart abandonment survey to gather direct feedback

The easiest way to understand why customers aren’t checking out is simply to ask them. A quick, one-tap survey inside your app or via email can provide valuable insights you can’t get anywhere else.

• Use a simple multiple-choice format.
• Offer options like “Shipping costs too high,” or “Not ready to buy.”
• Keep it frictionless — use just one or two taps so users respond.

Leverage in-app analytics to spot drop-off points

Tracking where users abandon their carts in your app experience can help pinpoint the biggest barriers to checkout.

• Are users exiting before adding payment details? It might be a trust issue or a lack of preferred payment options.
• Are they dropping off after seeing shipping costs? Free shipping thresholds or clearer pricing might help.
• Are they abandoning carts after adding multiple items? Consider testing personalized offers to drive conversions.

Firebase Analytics, a Tapcart integration, helps brands track and analyze user behavior inside their mobile apps with uniquely defined events so you can capture any important data.

AB test your checkout process to optimize conversions

A/B test different checkout layouts to find what works best for your customers. Include things like CTA placement and payment options to reveal what actually drives more completed purchases.

A better in-app experience wins every time

Every touchpoint in your mobile app is an opportunity to create an experience so seamless that shoppers stay engaged from start to finish.

The brands seeing the best conversion rates focus on both recovering abandoned carts and making each step of the journey easier, more intuitive, and more rewarding.  With the right checkout flow, payment options, and re-engagement strategies, your mobile app can become a place where shopping feels effortless.

Take the first step in creating a seamless shopping experience with Tapcart’s mobile app solutions — complete with one-click checkout, real-time engagement, and push notifications that keep customers coming back.