Across published studies, roughly seven in ten online carts are abandoned (see the Baymard Institute's running meta-analysis), so most stores send some form of reminder. Below are five plain templates you can adapt. They're starting points, not magic — test them against your own audience.
Replace the bracketed placeholders with your tool's merge fields. Keep subject lines short and factual; every email needs a working unsubscribe.
1. The simple reminder (first touch)
Subject: You left something in your cart Hi [First name], You left these in your cart at [Store name]: [Cart items] Your cart is saved — you can pick up right where you left off: [Recovery link] If you've already ordered, please ignore this email. [Store name] [Unsubscribe link] · [Business address]
2. The gentle follow-up
Subject: Still thinking it over? Hi [First name], Your cart at [Store name] is still saved: [Cart items] If anything held you back — sizing, shipping, questions — just reply to this email and we'll help. [Recovery link] [Store name] [Unsubscribe link] · [Business address]
3. The question (reply-bait, service-first)
Subject: Did something go wrong? Hi [First name], I noticed you didn't finish checking out. If something didn't work — payment, shipping options, an error — I'd genuinely like to know so we can fix it. And if you simply changed your mind, no problem at all. Your cart: [Recovery link] [Founder name], [Store name] [Unsubscribe link] · [Business address]
4. The incentive (use sparingly)
Note: sending a discount to every abandoner can train shoppers to abandon on purpose — many stores reserve it for the final touch.
Subject: [X]% off the items in your cart Hi [First name], Your cart is still saved — and to make the decision easier, here's [X]% off if you complete your order: Code: [Discount code] [Recovery link] The code is single-use and expires on [date]. [Store name] [Unsubscribe link] · [Business address]
5. The last touch
Subject: Last reminder about your cart Hi [First name], This is the last email about the items in your cart: [Cart items] [Recovery link] We won't send further reminders about this order. Thanks for considering [Store name]. [Unsubscribe link] · [Business address]
Compliance basics (not legal advice)
- In the US, the FTC's CAN-SPAM compliance guide requires (among other things) a valid physical postal address and a clear opt-out that is honored promptly.
- Google's email sender guidelines require bulk senders to authenticate mail (SPF, DKIM, DMARC), offer one-click unsubscribe, and keep spam-report rates low.
- Consent rules differ by region, and on Shopify specifically, the checkout's marketing checkbox is only recorded at certain steps — we've written up why abandoned checkouts often carry no recorded consent.
Curious what abandoned carts add up to for your store? Try our cart revenue calculator — it's a plain arithmetic estimate from your own numbers.