> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://help.retainful.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Abandoned cart recovery
> Win back the ~70% of shoppers who start checkout and leave — the highest-ROI automation in ecommerce.
Roughly seven out of ten online checkouts are abandoned. Cart recovery emails are how you win a meaningful share of them back — they reach someone who already chose your products, minutes after they almost bought. No other email you send will have a higher conversion rate.
## How Retainful recovers carts
Your store tells Retainful the moment a shopper begins checkout — including their email (when entered) and the cart contents.
If no order follows, the shopper enters your recovery flow after the first delay you set.
Each email includes a **recovery link** that restores the cart exactly as the shopper left it — one click and they're back at checkout. Optionally, a [unique coupon](/automations/coupons) sweetens the deal.
When the shopper completes their order, the exit rule you configured drops them out — so nobody gets a reminder about a cart they already bought. This does not happen on its own: you have to set the rule up. See [Required rule settings](#required-rule-settings).
Completed orders from recovery links and coupons are credited to the automation, so you see exactly what it earns.
## Set it up
1. Make sure your store is connected ([Shopify](/integrations/shopify) or [WooCommerce](/integrations/woocommerce)).
2. Go to **Automations → Templates** and choose **Abandoned Cart Recovery**.
3. Review the pre-built emails — add your logo, adjust the wording, decide where (or whether) to offer a discount.
4. Set the [rule settings below](#required-rule-settings) — the flow is not safe to publish without them.
5. Click **Publish**.
## Required rule settings
Two settings decide whether this flow makes you money or embarrasses you. Neither is configured for you. Set both before you publish.
With no exit rule, the flow keeps emailing shoppers who have already paid. "You forgot something!" landing an hour after someone bought is the fastest unsubscribe you will ever earn.
### Exit rule
Set the exit condition to match **any** of the following — an **OR** rule. The contact leaves the flow the moment either becomes true:
| Condition | Window |
| --------------------------------- | --------------------------- |
| **Order paid** at least once | Since the start of the flow |
| **Order fulfilled** at least once | Since the start of the flow |
Match on either event rather than just one. Depending on the store and payment method, an order may register as fulfilled without a distinct paid event, or the reverse — an OR rule catches the shopper who bought either way.
Scope both conditions to **since the start of the flow**. An unscoped "has ever paid" condition exits every returning customer the instant they enter — which is precisely the audience worth recovering.
### Re-entry
Set [re-entry](/automations/triggers#re-entry-rules) to a **1 day cooldown**, measured from when the contact last entered the flow.
Cart abandonment repeats: the same shopper may abandon several carts in a week and each one is worth recovering, so **No re-entry** leaves money on the table. But someone who abandons three carts in an afternoon should not receive three overlapping recovery sequences. A 1-day cooldown keeps the flow earning without turning it into a nuisance.
## The proven 3-email sequence
| Email | When | Angle |
| ------------------------- | ------------------------------- | -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| **1. Reminder** | 30–60 minutes after abandonment | "You left something behind" — show the cart, one button back to checkout. No discount yet. |
| **2. Objection handling** | \~24 hours | Answer the hesitation: shipping policy, returns, reviews, guarantees. Still no discount for most stores. |
| **3. Incentive** | 48–72 hours | A unique coupon with a real expiry — "10% off, valid 48 hours." The last word in the conversation. |
Don't lead with the discount. A meaningful share of shoppers come back from email 1 at full price — leading with a coupon trains customers to abandon carts on purpose.
## Make the emails work harder
* Use the **abandoned checkout merge tags** so every email shows the actual cart and a working recovery link — see [Personalization](/campaigns/personalization).
* Keep the subject lines human: "Forgot something, Jane?" outperforms "COMPLETE YOUR PURCHASE NOW".
* Send from a recognizable [sender address](/email-setup/sender-addresses) on your own domain.
## Why a cart might not be captured
Recovery email requires an email address. Shoppers who bounce before the contact step of checkout can't be emailed — this is normal and affects every platform. The Shopify web pixel and signup forms increase the share of identified shoppers.
Retainful never sends marketing to [suppressed contacts](/audience/suppressed-contacts), including recovery emails.
Check **Integrations** — if your store shows disconnected, checkout events aren't arriving. Reconnect and test with a fresh checkout.
## Measure it
Open the automation's [analytics](/automations/analytics) to see entries, email engagement, and — the number that matters — **recovered revenue**. A typical store recovers 5–15% of abandoned checkouts with a well-tuned flow.