Free shipping threshold from $49 to $59: +6.5% profit per visitor
Test run byConvertiblesCRO agency
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsRaising the free shipping threshold from $49 to $59 lifted profit per visitor from $4.09 to $4.36, a 6.5% gain.
Convertibles ran this A/B/n test for an 8-figure adult wellness brand and published it as a Convertibles case study.
A $75 threshold went too far and fell below the original.
- Profit per visitor at $59: $4.36, up 6.5% from $4.09 at $49.
- Profit per visitor at $75: $3.97, below the control, so the higher threshold lost.
- Estimated monthly profit gain at $59: about $28,939, an estimate rather than a measured figure.
- Conversion rate and order value changes were not shared.
Control
Free shipping applied sitewide to orders of $49 or more. Profit per visitor was $4.09.
Variant
The free shipping threshold rose to $59. A third version set it at $75.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- At $49, most orders likely qualified without any extra spend, so the brand paid shipping on nearly everything.
- A $10 stretch to $59 was small enough that many shoppers added an item or accepted a shipping fee.
- At $75, the gap was large enough that some shoppers likely gave up rather than add more.
- Profit per visitor captures conversion, order value and shipping cost together, which is why it suits this kind of test.
Caveats: The monthly profit figure is an estimate. Sample size, duration and confidence were not shared.
Who ran it
Convertibles ran this test for an 8-figure adult wellness brand and published the results (Convertibles case study). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Convertibles →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we raise our free shipping threshold modestly above where it is now, then profit per visitor will rise because more shoppers add an item or pay shipping, without many abandoning.
- Primary metric
- Profit per visitor
- Guardrails
- Conversion rate
- Average order value
- Cart abandonment rate
- Who should test it
- Stores that offer free shipping above a set spend and know their shipping costs and margins. If you cannot measure profit per visitor, or your threshold already sits well above typical orders, results will be hard to read.
Questions
How do I choose which free shipping thresholds to test?
Start from your average order value. Test one level just above it and one well above it to find where profit peaks.
Why measure profit per visitor instead of conversion rate?
A threshold change moves conversion, order value and shipping cost at once.
Profit per visitor combines all three into one number.
Will raising the free shipping threshold hurt conversion?
It can. Here a $10 increase paid off, but a $26 increase to $75 lowered profit per visitor below the original.
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