Wider desktop PDP with grouped buy box: -6.0% conversion
Test run byClean CommitCRO agency
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsA wider desktop product page with all purchase details grouped in one right-hand section cut conversion rate 6.0% and revenue per visitor 19.8%.
Clean Commit ran this test for an anonymized Shopify store and published it in its A/B test library.
Every key metric moved the wrong way, though the result did not reach significance.
- Conversion rate: -6.0%. Not significant: the original had a 70.3% probability of performing better.
- Revenue per visitor: -19.8%. Negative.
- Add-to-cart rate: -11.6%, so the drop started on the product page itself.
- Orders fell 13.1% and average order value fell 9.3%.
The change
The variant widens the page and groups all purchase details above the fold.
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The store's original desktop product page layout.
Variant
The page container was widened. The title, price, selectors, add-to-cart button and shipping and returns notes were grouped into one right-hand section kept above the fold.
Why it likely lost
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- Packing everything into one section may have made the buy box feel dense and harder to read.
- A wider page puts more distance between the images and the purchase details, so the eye has more ground to cover.
- Shoppers who knew the old layout may have had to search for familiar elements.
Caveats: The test ran for 19 days on 8,404 desktop visitors and did not reach significance. Mobile and tablet were unchanged, so it applies to desktop only.
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 widen the product page and group the key purchase details around the add-to-cart button, then more shoppers will buy because it's clearer how to purchase.
- Primary metric
- Desktop add-to-cart rate
- Guardrails
- Desktop conversion rate
- Revenue per visitor
- Average order value
- Who should test it
- Stores whose desktop purchase details are scattered down the page. If your title, price and button already sit together above the fold, this result suggests little to gain.
Questions
Should all purchase details be above the fold on desktop?
It sounds sensible, but in this test grouping them into one section lowered add-to-cart rate by 11.6%.
Do wider product pages convert better?
Not here. Wider layouts can spread content out and make the page harder to scan.
Why test layout changes on desktop separately?
Desktop and mobile layouts behave differently. This test only touched desktop, so its result says nothing about mobile.
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