Shopify checkout optimization: 15 tactics

Shopify checkout optimization comes down to three things: the payment methods your customer expects, no surprises in costs or delivery, and as little typing as possible. In Belgium and the Netherlands that means Bancontact and iDEAL | Wero, express checkouts such as Shop Pay and Apple Pay, guest checkout and clear shipping costs. Below are 15 tactics, each with why, how and how to measure.

This article is part of our guide to Shopify payments. The Shopify checkout is already highly optimized on its own. You mainly win by choosing the right settings and getting everything before and after it right.

Why checkout optimization pays off

According to Baymard Institute, on average 70.22% of online shoppers abandon their cart (average of 50 studies, updated September 2025). Some of them were just browsing. For the rest the reasons can be fixed: extra costs (40%), slow delivery (20%), not trusting the site with card details (19%), being forced to create an account (18%), a long or complicated checkout (17%), errors on the site (17%), an unclear returns policy (13%), not seeing the total price upfront (12%), a declined card (10%) and too few payment methods (9%). These figures come from a survey of US shoppers, but the reasons apply to every market.

Baymard also estimates that an average large online store can gain 35.26% in conversion rate by improving checkout usability. On Shopify, much of that usability is already built into the standard checkout. What you still control are the settings, the payment methods and everything around the checkout.

Payment methods and express checkout

1. Choose the right mix of payment methods

9% of abandoners miss their favourite payment method, and in the Benelux local methods weigh heavily. In Settings > Payments, turn on the methods your audience uses. With Shopify Payments you get cards, Bancontact, iDEAL | Wero, Klarna, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Shop Pay in one account. PayPal you connect separately. Which mix you need per country is in our article on payment methods for your online store.

Measure: the share of each method in your orders and the conversion per country. Keep an eye on cost too: via Shopify Payments, Bancontact costs EUR 0.39, iDEAL | Wero EUR 0.29 and Klarna 2.99% + EUR 0.35 per transaction. How payment fees fit in your total budget, you can read in our overview of what Shopify costs.

2. Put Bancontact and iDEAL | Wero first

In 2024 Bancontact processed 382 million online payments, 90% of them by smartphone. iDEAL accounts for about 70% of online payments in the Netherlands. A Belgian who first sees three card logos has to search. Bancontact only appears for customers in Belgium paying in euro, iDEAL | Wero only for customers in the Netherlands. You change the order with a payment customization app, which works on every plan. What changes with the move to Wero, you can read in iDEAL and Wero on Shopify.

Measure: the share of Bancontact or iDEAL | Wero in orders from that country, before and after.

3. Keep express checkouts on

A returning customer with Shop Pay, Apple Pay or Google Pay does not need to type an address or card. With Shopify Payments these buttons are on automatically in Belgium and the Netherlands. Shopify sorts them dynamically, so the fastest option for that customer comes first. Only Plus stores can hide them, and Shopify warns that this may lower your conversion.

Measure: the share of orders through express checkout and their conversion versus the regular checkout.

Less typing, fewer drop-offs

4. Offer guest checkout

18% of abandoners stop because an account is required. In the checkout settings for customer accounts, choose that login is optional. Required login only makes sense for B2B stores with their own prices. Anyone who wants an account can create one after the purchase.

Measure: the step from reached checkout to converted, before and after the change.

5. Choose consciously between one-page and three-page checkout

Fewer screens mean fewer moments to drop off, but some audiences prefer one step per screen. One-page checkout is the default; in the checkout editor you can switch to three pages. Shopify itself makes no conversion claim: both versions ask for the same information. If you switch, check your background image and custom translations.

Measure: Shopify cannot run checkout layouts against each other as an A/B test. Compare similar periods and look at the step from reached checkout to converted.

6. Use address autocomplete and drop unneeded fields

According to Baymard, an average checkout shows 14.88 form fields, while 7 to 8 can be enough. Address autocomplete is on by default and works for Belgium and the Netherlands. Check in the checkout settings whether company name, second address line and phone number are hidden, optional or required. Only require what you really need.

Measure: conversion on mobile, where typing weighs most.

No surprises in costs and delivery

7. Show shipping costs before checkout

Extra costs are the biggest reason to abandon at 40%, and 12% leave because the total price was not visible upfront. List your shipping rates on the product page, in the cart and in the footer. Keep your rates in Settings > Shipping and delivery simple, so you can explain them in one sentence.

Measure: the step from added to cart to reached checkout.

8. Use a free shipping threshold

A clear threshold removes the biggest reason to abandon and can raise your average order value. Create a free shipping rate with an order value condition, or a shipping discount. Show in the cart how much the customer still needs to add. Set the threshold based on your margin and your current average order value.

Measure: average order value and the share of orders just above the threshold.

9. Offer pickup points

20% of abandoners find delivery too slow or inconvenient. In the Benelux many customers choose a bpost, PostNL or DHL pickup point. You offer that through a shipping app that connects to the carriers. Pickup in your own store is built into Shopify.

Measure: the share of orders per shipping option and the step from reached checkout to converted.

Trust and error-free payment

10. Make your checkout look like your store

19% do not trust the site with their card details, and 13% abandon because of the returns policy. Set your logo, colors and font in the checkout editor, on every plan. Fill in your policies under Settings > Policies, so returns and privacy policies appear at the bottom of the checkout. Show a way to get in touch and don't use fake trust badges.

Measure: conversion of new versus returning customers.

11. Make error messages clear

17% abandon because of errors or crashes. The standard checkout already validates fields while the customer types. Custom rules, such as no delivery to a PO box, you build with a validation app or a Function with a clear message. How that works is explained in customizing the Shopify checkout. Adjust the wording of messages in your checkout language settings. Test every method for real: Bancontact, for example, does not work in test mode.

Measure: failed payments in your orders overview and customer questions about the checkout.

12. Understand the impact of 3D Secure

10% abandon because their card is declined. Under PSD2 the customer often has to confirm a card payment with 3D Secure, which adds a step. Shopify Payments requests it automatically when the customer's bank requires it; you don't need to set anything up. With a verified payment, liability for fraud chargebacks shifts to the bank. Bancontact and iDEAL | Wero already let the customer confirm in the banking app, so this matters less there.

Measure: the number of failed card payments versus successful ones.

13. Test everything on mobile

90% of online Bancontact payments happen on a smartphone, so the checkout must work smoothly with the switch to the banking app and back. Place an order yourself on iPhone and Android, with Bancontact or iDEAL | Wero, Apple Pay and a card. Check that the return to the thank you page works well.

Measure: conversion per device in Shopify Analytics.

After checkout

14. Add an upsell to the thank you page

The order is in, so an offer costs no conversion and can raise your order value. An upsell block on the thank you page is possible on every plan through an app. The separate post-purchase page only appears after a card payment, so not after Bancontact, iDEAL | Wero, Klarna or wallets. In the Benelux it only reaches part of your buyers.

Measure: the acceptance rate of the offer and the extra revenue per order.

15. Follow up on abandoned checkouts

A customer who entered their email address and then stopped is your warmest lead. Turn on the Abandoned checkout emails by Shopify automation in Apps > Messaging > Automations. It is free. To go further, build flows with Shopify Flow or Klaviyo.

Measure: the recovery status under Orders > Abandoned checkouts and the abandoned checkout email report.

How to measure checkout conversion in Shopify

Your basis is the conversion funnel in Shopify Analytics: sessions, added to cart, reached checkout and converted. Each tactic above affects one of those steps. Work like this:

Record a baseline over at least four weeks.

Make one change at a time, so you know what causes the effect.

Compare with a period of equal length, and watch out for seasons, promotions and campaigns.

Split by device and by country: Belgium and the Netherlands behave differently.

What we learned in the Shopify Community

More than 80% drop off in checkout. A merchant took over a store and saw that more than 80% of those who reach checkout do not buy. Replies pointed to required accounts, unexpected costs at the end and too many required fields: exactly tactics 4, 6 and 7. Source: Shopify Community, February 2025 to July 2026.

Shop Pay rejects the billing address. Shop Pay recognized a customer but kept rejecting the billing address. The merchant saw sales drop and turned Shop Pay off temporarily. No cause was found. The lesson: test express checkouts yourself regularly and involve Shopify Support before you turn a button off. Source: Shopify Community, February 2026.

How 6th Man helps

We go through your checkout with the 15 points from this article, look in your Shopify Analytics where customers drop off and rank the improvements by impact. Settings we change right away, bigger changes we test step by step. We do this as part of our conversion rate optimization (CRO) for Shopify.