How to Increase AOV on Shopify: Bundles, Upsells, Cross‑Sells, and Free‑Shipping Thresholds with Step‑by‑Step Setup and Benchmarks

If you already convert visitors, the fastest way to grow revenue is to get each order to be worth a bit more. On Shopify, a higher average order value comes from a few reliable plays that do not add friction: smart free‑shipping thresholds, bundles that make sense, and well placed upsells and cross‑sells. This guide gives you current benchmarks, shows exactly how to set each tactic up in Shopify, and explains how to choose thresholds and offers that lift AOV without hurting margin.

If you are just getting started, you can launch or migrate with a free trial using Shopify’s platform at this Shopify trial link, then use the steps below to implement AOV boosters from day one. For a complete build checklist, the Ultimate Shopify Set‑Up Guide will help you go from zero to live store.

AOV benchmarks you should know before you optimize

Recent benchmark data provides a realistic reference point. The global average order value sits near the mid‑hundreds. The Dynamic Yield tracker reports the global AOV at about 147 dollars, and breaks out that Luxury and Jewelry leads near 315 dollars while Beauty and Personal Care averages around 67 dollars, with desktop transactions typically producing higher AOV than mobile according to Dynamic Yield’s live benchmarks.

Shipping policy shapes cart size and completion. The 2024 FedEx Ecommerce Merchant Report found that 81 percent of shoppers will add items to their cart to avoid delivery charges when a free‑shipping option is available, and that 57 percent prioritize free shipping even more than finding the best price as summarized in the FedEx report. Meanwhile, friction at checkout remains costly. The long‑running cart abandonment benchmark from the Baymard Institute pegs average abandonment around 70 percent in Baymard’s aggregation.

Translation for your roadmap: smart free‑shipping thresholds are a lever for bigger carts, and clean on‑site recommendations increase the chance the add‑on is relevant. Keep those realities in mind as you set thresholds and choose upsells.

Free‑shipping thresholds that lift AOV without crushing margin

Shoppers will often add a low‑priced item rather than pay a shipping fee. That is why conditional free shipping reliably nudges higher cart values. The key is to pick a threshold that is achievable for most buyers and still protects profit.

• How to choose a threshold: Use your median or modal order value rather than the mean so a few big orders do not skew your math. If most orders cluster at 35 dollars, set free shipping around 45 to 55 dollars to encourage a small add‑on. Shopify’s free‑shipping playbook walks through using shipping calculators and margin math to set realistic minimums in Shopify’s free shipping guide.

• How to set it up in Shopify with a shipping rate:

  1. In Shopify admin, go to Settings, then Shipping and delivery. 2) Open the shipping profile and click Add rate for the target zone. 3) Name the rate Free shipping, set the Price to 0, then add a condition such as Minimum order price at your chosen threshold. 4) Save. The shipping rate will appear automatically at checkout when the cart meets the condition as described in Shopify’s shipping rates documentation.

• How to set a threshold with an automatic discount instead:

  1. Go to Discounts. 2) Click Create discount, choose Free shipping, then select Automatic discount. 3) Set Minimum purchase amount or item quantity as the requirement, adjust eligibility and combinations, set dates, and save. This approach applies the free‑shipping discount automatically when conditions are met per Shopify’s free shipping discount steps.

• Where to communicate it: Add a site‑wide announcement bar and a cart progress message so shoppers know how close they are to unlocking free shipping. Shopify’s free‑shipping guide recommends using visible headers and checkout nudges so the threshold is obvious across the journey in the same Shopify article. If your theme does not include a progress bar, install a free shipping bar app from the Shopify App Store and set your threshold and messages accordingly.

Bundles that make buying easier and increase perceived value

Bundles raise AOV by packaging complementary products into a single, better‑value choice. The best bundles solve a complete use case, like a starter kit or care bundle, and are priced to feel like a deal compared to buying items separately. Shopify’s education on AOV emphasizes that personalized recommendations and bundles can significantly lift order size as discussed in Shopify’s AOV guide.

• How to create bundles with Shopify’s free first‑party app:

  1. From admin, go to Apps, then open Shopify Bundles. 2) Click Create bundle, add a title, and Select products to include. 3) Adjust quantities or limit variants as needed, then Save and continue. 4) Add product details and set Status to Active to publish to your Online Store. 5) Save. The bundle is managed like a product and supports discount codes and automatic discounts according to Shopify’s Bundles help.

• Pricing and promotion tips: Keep bundle savings clear on the product page. If the anchor product is 40 dollars, aim to add one or two logical accessories that bring the bundle to your free‑shipping threshold. Consider stacking a limited bundle discount, since bundles support standard discount combinations as explained in the Bundles documentation.

• Tracking performance: Use the Bundles app dashboard and Analytics reports to monitor bundle orders and total sales so you can prune bundles that do not move and expand the ones that do per Shopify’s tracking guidance.

Upsells and cross‑sells that feel helpful, not pushy

Relevant suggestions are proven revenue drivers. A 2023 Barilliance study attributed about 31 percent of ecommerce revenue to product recommendations, and McKinsey’s research famously estimated that Amazon drives roughly 35 percent of purchases through its recommendation engine as summarized on Shopify’s recommendations explainer. The key is context. Recommend items that complete the buyer’s job to be done and keep add‑ons at a lower or comparable price to the main item.

Cross‑sell on product pages and in search with Shopify Search & Discovery

Shopify’s free Search & Discovery app lets you curate both related products and complementary products, then surface them in compatible themes.

• Setup steps for recommendations:

  1. In admin, go to Apps, then Search & Discovery. 2) Open Product recommendations and Add recommendations. 3) Select a product, then choose up to 10 Complementary products and up to 10 Related products. You can show only manual picks, or combine with Shopify’s automatic recommendations that adjust based on purchase history and catalog changes. 4) Save. 5) In your Theme editor, add the Complementary products block to the product information section if it is not already present, then configure display settings and Save following Shopify’s Search & Discovery guide.

• Best practices from Shopify’s help: Pick add‑ons you are confident customers will find useful, keep complementary products lower or equivalent in cost to the original product, and allow auto‑generated recommendations to backfill when your manual picks are out of stock or unpublished as the documentation outlines.

Post‑purchase upsells that do not interfere with checkout

If you are cautious about changing the add to cart flow, test upsells on the post‑purchase page. Offers shown immediately after payment capture add revenue without risking the original conversion.

• How this works on Shopify: Shopify provides a post‑purchase checkout extension that apps use to render an offer between payment and the thank you page. The extension supports calculating shipping and taxes, applying changes to the order, and returning buyers to order status once they accept or decline as described in Shopify’s developer guide. Shopify notes that any merchant can install App Store apps that use this extension, while custom apps using it are limited to Plus for installation.

• Practical path for merchants: Install a reputable post‑purchase upsell app from the Shopify App Store. Start with one targeted offer per top product, discount lightly, keep the offer under the price of the main item, and measure acceptance and take‑rate by product.

Pick thresholds and offers with simple margin math

The right threshold should push carts up, not profits down. The free‑shipping guide from Shopify recommends calculating an initial threshold using your AOV or median order value, your average shipping cost, and gross margin, then testing a few dollars above and below to find a sweet spot as outlined in Shopify’s free shipping article.

A quick approach:

• Start with your modal order value. If modal is 40 dollars and average ship cost is 8 dollars with a 40 percent gross margin, test a threshold near 55 dollars. The extra 15 dollars at 40 percent margin yields 6 dollars gross profit, which nearly offsets that 8 dollar ship cost. If you are still short, move the threshold up in small increments and retest.

• Price bundles to land at or slightly above the same threshold. For a 40 dollar anchor, try a 49 or 55 dollar bundle that includes an accessory customers often buy later. If you routinely see carts stall several dollars below the threshold, add a very low‑priced accessory to your catalog to help shoppers clear the bar.

• Keep upsell offers under the anchor item’s price. This aligns with Shopify’s recommendation wording for complementary items and typically raises take‑rates in the Search & Discovery best practices.

Step‑by‑step 30‑day launch plan to raise AOV on Shopify

Week 1: Baseline and plan

• Pull AOV, median and modal order value by device and channel. Use Shopify Analytics to benchmark, and review global context from Dynamic Yield so you know where you sit by category and device based on Dynamic Yield’s tracker.

• Choose a free‑shipping threshold using the margin method from Shopify’s free‑shipping guide, then draft announcement bar and cart messages guided by Shopify’s article.

Week 2: Implement free shipping and bundles

• Add a free shipping rate with a minimum order price condition, or create an automatic free‑shipping discount at your threshold using Shopify’s shipping rates and discount steps.

• Publish 2 to 5 bundles in the Shopify Bundles app that solve complete use cases, price them to reach your threshold, and track uptake in the Bundles dashboard per Shopify’s Bundles guide.

Week 3: Add cross‑sells and one post‑purchase upsell

• Configure Complementary and Related products for your top 10 SKUs in the Search & Discovery app, then add the block in your theme on those product templates using Shopify’s instructions.

• Install a post‑purchase upsell app and launch one low‑risk offer for your best‑selling product following Shopify’s extension guidelines for placement and flow as explained in the developer documentation.

Week 4: Measure, tune, and automate

• Compare AOV, units per transaction, and free‑shipping attainment rate before and after. Expect to iterate thresholds by a few dollars to find the highest take rate with healthy margins.

• Move winning bundles to featured placements. Replace slow bundles with new combinations suggested by your Search & Discovery performance and post‑purchase add‑on data.

• Use simple automations to accelerate testing and follow‑ups. Our guide on streamlining workflows can help you scale these changes efficiently in Shopify see Automate to Dominate. Reinforce with an email cross‑sell flow for recent buyers using targeted product blocks using this email campaign guide.

Additional resources to round out your AOV strategy

• Optimize creative so the right shoppers hit your product pages. Our walkthrough on creating high‑converting social media ads pairs well with on‑site upsells.

• Keep search traffic steady and high intent. The SEO basics for ecommerce guide shows how to improve rankings for your bundle and accessory pages.

• Control shipping costs so free shipping stays profitable. See the criteria for picking a 3PL in choosing the right fulfillment partner.

• If you are validating a dropshipping model, calibrate suppliers and shipping promises before you publish thresholds using our pieces on dropshipping pitfalls and the beginner’s guide to dropshipping.

When you connect the dots, the picture is simple. Shoppers want free shipping, helpful suggestions, and easy ways to get everything they need in one cart. According to Shopify’s own coverage of recommendations, personalized suggestions can drive a meaningful share of revenue, and the FedEx report shows shoppers will stretch their cart to avoid shipping fees. Use these truths to set a data‑grounded threshold, launch a handful of bundles, and place friendly add‑ons right where buying intent is highest. Then let the numbers steer your next round of tweaks.

For ongoing tactics across acquisition, conversion and operations, explore more playbooks on eComAmplify.