Decluttered cart page redesign: -11.1% conversion, +14.8% AOV
Test run byClean CommitCRO agency
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsA decluttered cart page redesign cut conversion rate 11.1% while average order value rose 14.8%.
Clean Commit ran this test for an anonymized Shopify store.
Several changes shipped together and the results point in opposite directions, so we treat it as inconclusive.
- Conversion rate fell 11.1%. This is negative and the opposite of the goal.
- Average order value rose 14.8%, so the shoppers who did buy spent more.
- Revenue per visitor rose 2.1%, as bigger orders roughly made up for fewer buyers.
- Bounce rate rose 11.2%, another negative sign. The page also lists a 3.64% revenue change with no sign or definition, so we leave it out.
The change
The variant cuts cart form fields; mobile layout and speed changes aren't shown.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The store's original cart page.
Variant
A decluttered cart with fewer form fields, a better mobile layout and faster page loading, all shipped as one version.
Why it likely came out this way
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- A big layout change can unsettle returning shoppers who knew where things were, even if the new page is simpler.
- Clean Commit's own reading was that the mobile changes still needed work, which fits the higher bounce rate.
- Because three changes shipped together, it is not possible to tell which one hurt conversion and which helped order value.
Caveats: Bundled test: fewer fields, mobile layout fixes and speed work shipped together, so no single change can take the credit or blame. Sample size, duration and confidence were not shared, and the source page is sparse.
Who ran it
Clean Commit ran this test for a Shopify store (anonymized) and published the results (Clean Commit A/B test library). The numbers are theirs; the summary and commentary on this page are ours.
Read the original case study on Clean Commit →
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we remove clutter and extra fields from the cart, then more shoppers will reach checkout because the next step is easier to see and finish.
- Primary metric
- Conversion rate
- Guardrails
- Bounce rate
- Average order value
- Revenue per visitor
- Who should test it
- Stores with a cluttered or slow cart page and enough traffic to test changes one at a time. If your cart is already simple, a redesign is unlikely to pay off, and testing all changes at once will hide what worked.
Questions
Does simplifying the cart page increase conversions?
Not here. Conversion fell 11.1% after the redesign, though order value rose 14.8%.
Should I test a full cart redesign or one change at a time?
One change at a time tells you what works.
This test bundled three changes, so the mixed result can't be traced to any of them.
Why would bounce rate go up after a cleaner cart?
A new layout can confuse shoppers who expect the old one, and mobile issues can push people away.
Watch bounce rate as a guardrail in any cart test.
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