Upsell & Cross-sell Tests on the Cart: 21 Examples, 4 Results

Why upsells matter in the cart

The cart is the last point where a shopper is still browsing before they commit to paying. An add-on there can lift order value with little effort. It can also distract a shopper who was ready to check out, so the offer has to feel like part of the purchase.

Measured results

Making upsells easier to notice

Oliver Kenyon changed two things in the cart: small arrows pointing to the upsells and a one-line delivery window. The result was +$127,867/month, forecast at +$1.53M/year, at $8.56 revenue per session. Both changes shipped together, so the arrows' share is unknown.

Oliver Kenyon also added a "Buying for someone else?" gift wrapping prompt inside the cart for +$58,860/month. Survey data showed customers wanted gift wrap but could not find it. An earlier version of this cart test had lost before Oliver Kenyon revisited it.

Choosing the upsell product

Milos tested a leather strap against a mystery box as the cart drawer upsell for a watch brand. The winning variant gained +15.26% revenue per visitor, +18.19% conversion rate and +15.87% profit per visitor (+$28,912/month), while AOV fell 2.48%.

Removing an upsell

Oliver Kenyon redesigned the slide cart, removed the $25 pre-checkout upsell and added trust elements such as security badges and a clear item summary. It won +$31,000/month. Oliver Kenyon judged the $25 offer out of proportion to the store's $300 AOV.

A

→

B

+$127,867 per month

Added arrows to cart upsells and a delivery window line in the cart

CartShipping & delivery messaging@oliverkenyon

A

→

B

+$58,860 per month

Gift wrapping upsell prompt inside the cart

CartUpsells & cross-sells@oliverkenyon

A

→

B

+$31,000 per month

Redesigned slide cart, removed $25 pre-checkout upsell, added trust elements

CartTrust badges & security seals@oliverkenyon

A

→

B

+15.26% revenue per visitor

Tested a leather strap vs a mystery box as the cart drawer upsell

CartUpsells & cross-sells@CROguy_

Reported without figures

Milos reports a positive lift from changing the order of cart upsells, with no number given. Oliver Kenyon unticked a pre-ticked accidental damage cover and sold it explicitly instead: fewer cover purchases, but more camera purchases.

Losing or flat tests

No measured loss is listed. The closest things are the removed $25 upsell, the pre-ticked cover that sold fewer add-ons once unticked but more main products, and the earlier losing version of the gift wrap test. Each points the same way: an add-on that gets in the way of the main purchase costs more than it earns.

Untested ideas

• Upsell a cheap, easy-to-add item that supports the main product (Kasper Dolk).
• Show upsells when shoppers are close to the free shipping threshold (Dave Diederen).
• One-click cart upsells with inline color and size selectors, so shoppers don't go back to product pages (Kasper Dolk).
• An "82% of customers also choose" upsell carousel (Kasper Dolk).
• A tiered discount progress bar with a per-item subscription toggle (Dave Diederen).
• A post-add-to-cart popup that says "Great choice!" and offers items to complete the set (Kasper Dolk).

Josh Thompson claims +$37K/month from one-click pre-purchase upsells, but no test data is shown.

Placement and design patterns that won

• Guide the eye to upsells with light cues, such as arrows.
• Offer add-ons customers already want, like gift wrap at gifting time.
• Keep the upsell price small next to the order.
• Don't pre-tick add-ons.
• Test which product to offer, not just how to show it.

Related tests elsewhere on the store

See the full upsell collection, product page upsell tests, checkout upsell tests and cart drawer tests.