How to Increase Average Order Value on Shopify
- 10 min read
- By SU Team
You’re already getting traffic. People are already buying. But what if every order was worth 20% more — without spending a single extra dollar on ads?
That’s the power of increasing your Average Order Value (AOV). It’s one of the most overlooked growth levers in ecommerce, and for Shopify merchants, it’s often the fastest path to meaningful revenue growth.
In this guide, you’ll learn exactly what AOV is, how to calculate it, and 6 strategies to increase it — including how to use volume discounts, free gifts, loyalty points, and upsells to get customers to spend more every time they check out.
What is Average Order Value (AOV)?
Average Order Value is the average amount a customer spends per transaction in your Shopify store. It’s a simple but powerful metric that tells you how much revenue each order generates on average.
If your store generated $10,000 in revenue from 200 orders last month:
AOV = $10,000 ÷ 200 = $50 per order
You can track your AOV directly in your Shopify admin under Analytics → Reports → Sales. The global average AOV across all ecommerce industries is approximately $85–$145, but what matters most is benchmarking against your own historical data and improving it consistently over time.
Why AOV is the Most Underrated Growth Lever
Most Shopify merchants focus on two things: getting more traffic and improving conversion rates. Both are important — but they’re also expensive and slow. AOV is different.
Here’s the key insight: Revenue = Traffic × Conversion Rate × AOV. While increasing traffic requires more ad spend and improving conversion rate requires months of A/B testing, most AOV tactics take less than an hour to set up and show measurable results within days.
The AOV Advantage: Increasing AOV from $50 to $60 across 200 monthly orders adds $2,000 per month — that's $24,000 per year in extra revenue from the same traffic you already have. No extra ad spend. No new customers needed.
How to Calculate Your AOV on Shopify
Before you start optimising, you need to know your numbers. Here’s how to find your AOV in Shopify:
- Go to your Shopify Admin
- Click Analytics → Reports
- Look for the “Average order value” metric
- Record your AOV for the past 30 days, 90 days, and 12 months
Tracking multiple time periods helps you spot trends and seasonality. For example, AOV during holiday periods like BFCM is typically 15–25% higher due to gift purchasing — so don’t compare those figures to your regular baseline.
Pro Tip: Also check your AOV by traffic source. AOV from email campaigns is usually significantly higher than from social media or paid search. This tells you which customer segments are most valuable and where to focus your AOV optimisation efforts.
6 Strategies to Increase Average Order Value on Shopify
Volume Discounts — "Buy More, Save More"
Volume discounts are one of the most effective AOV tactics for Shopify stores. The idea is simple: the more a customer buys, the bigger the discount they receive. This creates a strong incentive to add more items to the cart.
Common volume discount structures include:
- Quantity breaks: Buy 2 get 5% off, buy 3 get 10% off, buy 5 get 15% off
- Tiered pricing: Different price points based on quantity purchased
- Bundle pricing: Fixed price for a set of products bought together
Volume discounts work especially well for consumable products (supplements, skincare, coffee) and products that customers naturally buy in multiples (socks, candles, stationery).
Key Rule: Show the volume discount widget directly on the product page, not just at checkout. Customers need to see the savings opportunity before they decide how many to buy.
Free Gift with Purchase
Free gifts are a powerful AOV driver because they tap into a different psychology than discounts. Instead of reducing the price, you're adding value — which feels more rewarding to customers and protects your margins at the same time.
How it works: Set a spending threshold, and when a customer hits it, they automatically receive a free gift added to their cart.
Example: "Spend $80 and get a free travel pouch (worth $15)"
This pushes customers who would have spent $60–$70 to add one more item to qualify. The perceived value of the free gift often far exceeds the actual cost to you.
Effective free gift strategies include:
- Gifts that are relevant to what the customer is already buying
- Limited-time free gifts to create urgency
- Letting customers choose their gift from a selection (increases satisfaction)
- New product samples that introduce customers to items they might repurchase
Upsells and Cross-sells
Upselling is offering a premium or upgraded version of what a customer is already buying. Cross-selling is suggesting complementary products. Both are proven ways to increase AOV — upsells and cross-sells increase AOV by an average of 10–30%.
Upsell example: A customer adding a basic phone case → suggest the premium leather version at $15 more.
Cross-sell example: A customer buying a camera → suggest a compatible tripod, memory card, or cleaning kit.
The best moments to show upsells and cross-sells:
- Product page: "Frequently bought together" section
- Cart page / drawer: Before checkout
Important: Don't over-upsell. Recommend like a friend would — one or two highly relevant suggestions, not a wall of products. Too many recommendations create decision fatigue and actually reduce conversions.
Loyalty Points and Bonus Points
Loyalty programs don't just drive repeat purchases — they actively increase AOV. When customers know they earn points on every purchase, they're incentivised to spend more to reach the next reward tier or earn a meaningful amount of points.
Strategies that specifically boost AOV through loyalty:
- Bonus points on orders over a threshold: "Earn 3x points on orders over $100" — this pushes customers to cross the $100 mark
- Tiered membership: Higher membership tiers unlock better earning rates, motivating customers to spend more to reach Silver, Gold, or Platinum status
- Points expiry: When customers see their points are about to expire, they're motivated to make a purchase to use them — and often add more items to make the trip worthwhile
The key insight is that loyalty points create a reason to spend more that feels positive and rewarding, rather than promotional or pushy.
Free Shipping Threshold
Free shipping is consistently one of the top reasons customers shop online — and a well-set free shipping threshold is one of the fastest ways to increase AOV.
The psychology behind it is called the goal gradient effect: people work harder to achieve a goal as they get closer to it. A message saying "Add $12 more for free shipping" is far more motivating than a static "Free shipping on orders over $50."
How to set the right threshold:
- Calculate your current AOV
- Set your free shipping threshold at 20–30% above your AOV
- If your AOV is $60, set the threshold at $72–$78
- This ensures most customers can realistically reach it with one extra item
Use a progress bar in the cart to show customers exactly how close they are. This visual element alone can lift AOV by 12–18%.
Watch Out: Setting the threshold too high can backfire. If customers feel the goal is unreachable, they'll abandon the cart instead of adding items. Always test and monitor your conversion rate alongside AOV.
Product Bundles
Bundling changes the buying decision from "should I buy this?" to "which combination gives me the best deal?"
When you bundle products at a slight discount, customers often buy more than they would have individually, increasing your AOV even as you offer a small price reduction.
Effective bundle types for Shopify stores:
- Fixed bundles: Pre-set combinations at a package price (e.g. "Starter Kit")
- Mix and match: Customers choose from a selection of products to create their own bundle
- BOGO (Buy One Get One): Buy one, get one free or at a discount
- Build-a-box: Customers curate their own subscription or gift box
Quick Summary: Which Strategy to Start With
Not all AOV strategies are created equal. Here’s a prioritisation guide based on ease of setup and typical impact:
| Strategy | Impact | Setup Time | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free Shipping Threshold | High | Hours | All store types |
| Volume Discounts | High | Hours | Consumables, multi-buy products |
| Upsells / Cross-sells | High | 1 Day | Stores with complementary products |
| Free Gift with Purchase | Medium | Hours | Fashion, beauty, lifestyle |
| Loyalty Points / Bonus Points | Medium | 1–2 Days | Stores with repeat customers |
| Product Bundles | High | 1–2 Days | Gift-oriented, subscription stores |
Our recommendation: Start with a free shipping threshold and volume discounts. Both can be set up in under a day and typically show measurable results within the first week. Once those are running, layer in upsells and loyalty points for compounding effect.
Important caveat: Always track Revenue Per Visitor (RPV) alongside AOV. RPV = AOV × Conversion Rate. If your AOV goes up but your conversion rate drops significantly, your overall revenue may actually decrease. The goal is to increase both together.
Ready to Increase Your AOV?
SU Sales gives you volume discounts, free gifts, loyalty points, upsells, and bonus points — all in one app. No juggling multiple tools. No app bloat.