Free shipping shown as a cart line item: +1.60% revenue per visitor
Test run byDave DiederenSyntra Labs
Commentary byLiftArchiveOur analysis, not theirsShowing free shipping as its own line in the cart summary lifted revenue per visitor by 1.60% and conversion rate by 2.96%. Dave Diederen ran the test and estimates it at about 478 more orders and $15,242 more revenue a month.
- Revenue per visitor: +1.60% ($1.79 to $1.82), estimated at about $15,242 more per month.
- Conversion rate: +2.96% (3.03% to 3.12%), an estimated 478 more orders a month.
- AOV and sample size were not shared.
The change
Variant lists free shipping as a line in the cart summary
Simplified mockup drawn by LiftArchive from the shared screenshots.
Control
The cart summary showed the subtotal with a crossed-out original price, the Checkout button and a money-back guarantee line. Shipping wasn't listed.
Variant
A "Shipping: FREE" line was added above the subtotal, so the free shipping reads like a saving in the order breakdown.
Why it likely won
Our reading of the result, not the practitioner's claim.
- listing shipping as a line item makes the saving concrete, instead of a vague promise elsewhere on the site.
- seeing the shipping cost settled in the cart removes a common reason shoppers abandon at checkout.
- the change was small and passive, which fits the modest size of the lift.
Caveats: The ranges crossed zero (-6% to +10% on revenue per visitor), so this small lift isn't certain. The post talks about showing shipping next to a crossed-out price, but the mockup shows a plain FREE line. Duration and sample size were not shared.
Who ran it
Dave Diederen (@DaveDiederen) shared this test on X. The numbers and screenshots are theirs.
View the original post on X
How to run this test on your store
- Hypothesis
- If we list free shipping as its own line in the cart summary, then more shoppers will check out, because they can see the saving and know shipping won't be added later.
- Primary metric
- Revenue per visitor
- Guardrails
- Average order value
- Checkout completion rate
- Who should test it
- Stores that offer free shipping on all or most orders but only mention it in banners. It won't apply if free shipping depends on a threshold most carts don't reach.
Questions
How should I display free shipping in the cart?
In this test, adding a "Shipping: FREE" line to the cart summary beat leaving shipping out, lifting revenue per visitor by 1.60%.
Does showing shipping costs in the cart reduce abandonment?
Conversion rate rose 2.96% here when shipping was shown as free in the cart. The lift was small and not certain.
Is a small lift like this worth testing?
It was a quick copy change. At this store's volume, Dave Diederen estimated it at about $15,242 a month.
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