How to Create & Use A Klaviyo Abandoned Cart Flow

Did you know that abandoned cart flows have the highest average revenue per recipient ($3.65) and the highest conversion rate (3.33%) compared to all other flows? This is according to Klaviyo’s 2024 benchmark report.

Given their impact, it’s clear that abandoned cart flows should be a strategic priority in your email marketing efforts. 

But then, the question is, How to implement them effectively? 

If you’re using Klaviyo as your platform, you’re already off to a great start. Klaviyo offers powerful tools to help you set up and automate these high-performing flows—but only if you know how to use them to their full potential. And if you’re feeling unsure about where to begin, don’t worry; you’re in the right place.

In today’s guide, we walk you through the key steps to building and optimizing a Klaviyo abandoned cart flow. 

At Mavlers, we’ve managed and executed over 1,000 successful campaigns and automations in Klaviyo, and we’re here to share that hands-on experience with you. Let’s get started!

1. Pre-built vs. custom flow

2. Set up the trigger and filters

3. Build the Flow structure

4. Customize your emails

5. Test and activate flow

6. Measure impact on revenue

Wrapping up

Frequently asked questions

1. Pre-built vs. custom flow

Your Klaviyo abandoned cart email strategy ought to begin from the beginning. Therefore, first decide which approach suits you. There are two kinds of abandoned cart flows in Klaviyo:

• Pre-built flows: After integrating your online store with Klaviyo, you’ll find best-practice flows, including abandoned cart flows, in the Flows Library. These are ready to use and can be customized to fit your brand.
  
• Custom flows: For more control, you can build your own flow from scratch. This allows you to tailor content, timing, and logic based on your specific needs.

If you need to get an abandoned cart flow up and running fast, then pre-built flows allow for rapid deployment. Simply customize the branding and basic messaging and set it live.

But on the other hand, if your strategy involves intricate branching based on factors like cart value, specific product categories, customer segments (e.g., VIP vs. new customers), or past purchase history, building from scratch gives you full control over these conditions. 

When deciding between the two, consider what aligns best with your Klaviyo cart abandonment best practices to ensure both speed and personalization.

2. Set up the trigger and filters

The most common trigger is the Started Checkout metric, which fires when a customer enters their information at checkout but doesn’t complete the purchase. Some integrations also support the Added to Cart metric, which triggers when an item is added to the cart but not purchased. 

To prevent customers who complete their purchase from receiving abandoned cart emails, add a flow filter:

• Person has Placed Order zero times since starting this flow
  
• Add a filter like Hasn’t been in flow in the last X days in order to avoid over-messaging repeat abandoners

Watch out for repeat abandoners. They might be holding out for a discount. By now, you’ve probably realized it’s best not to train your audience to expect one every time. The key is to avoid setting that expectation. At the same time, whether or not a user should exit the flow ultimately depends on how they behave.

Pro tip: Set a flow-level filter to exclude customers who’ve entered the abandoned cart flow in the past 15, 30, or more days. A longer gap helps prevent discount hunting, protects your margins, and also gives both customers and email algorithms time to reset.

3. Build the Flow structure

Alright, once you’ve set up the strategic foundation of your Klaviyo abandoned cart flow, build the flow structure as follows:

• Navigate to the Flows tab in your Klaviyo instance. 
• Click Create Flow (or Create from Scratch)
• Name your flow (e.g. Abandoned Cart)
• Select Metric as the trigger, then choose Checkout started.
• Drag and drop email (or SMS) actions into the flow.
• Set time delays between messages.

Adjust timing based on your product and customer behavior. 

Pro tip: As a Klaviyo abandoned cart email strategy best practice, ask yourself the following questions:

• Is it a product with a short purchase cycle or a long one? If long, longer delays might be more appropriate.
  
• Is it an impulse buy or a considered purchase? Impulse buys might benefit from immediate follow-ups.
  
• Is it a consumable product that needs to be reordered? You would time flows based on average consumption rates.
  
• Where are the customers based? Use Klaviyo’s “Smart Send Time” to optimize for individual time zones.

Use conditional splits after a time delay to segment your audience further based on their actions within that delay.

Also remember, it is absolutely critical to dip into Klaviyo analytics to set up informed delays and optimize your flows. Because data on open rates, CTR, conversion rates, and time-to-purchase gives you the insights you need to create smarter flows.

4. Customize your abandoned cart email in Klaviyo

Now you go a layer deeper into your Klaviyo abandoned cart flow.

Customizing your emails by using Klaviyo’s dynamic content blocks to automatically insert product images, names, prices, and a direct link back to the customer’s cart. Here are the steps: 

• Drag a table block into your email template and convert it to a dynamic block by selecting “Dynamic” in the settings.
• Set the Row Collection to the event data array containing cart items.
• Assign a Row Alias to reference each product in the array.
• Add columns for product details and set each cell to display dynamic variables.
• Customize the layout and styling of the block.
• Save the blocks for reuse and backup before further editing.

And yes, include a clear “Return to Cart” button for easy checkout. 

Tailor messaging based on customer status (e.g., new vs. returning customers) or cart value for higher relevance.

Pro tip: Beyond the technical setup, consider these expert tips for designing your abandoned cart email(s) in Klaviyo: 

• Create a standout subject line.
• Place the Return to Cart CTA above the scroll, preferably in the hero banner. Make sure it is prominent.
• Nail the hero copy. Make it short, but very compelling.
• Stick to minimalist design. Don’t confuse the buyer.
• Depending on the customer, consider adding some helpful content to encourage right purchase. 

Feetures, a company that sells performance socks, sticks to all the above, and the result is a perfect abandoned cart email. 

Source: Email Love

Finally, always use live text in your abandoned cart emails instead of embedding text within images. Live text is HTML-based and readable by users and email clients. It also gives you more control over styling and personalization. You can easily insert dynamic variables using Klaviyo’s templating language. 

For more insights into abandoned cart emails in Klaviyo, read this. 

5. Test and activate flow

You’ve successfully set up a Klaviyo abandoned cart flow. The next step is to test and activate it. 

Send test emails to yourself to ensure dynamic content and links work correctly. Keep in mind that Klaviyo’s default “Abandoned Cart” flow (triggered by “Started Checkout”) won’t send emails upon only adding items to the cart without proceeding to checkout.

So, how to get around this to ensure a foolproof pre-live test? Here are the steps:

• Implement the Added to Cart code: Paste this code into your theme. 

• Trigger the Added to Cart metric: After adding the code, Klaviyo needs to “see” the “Added to Cart” event happen at least once. Go to your store URL and append “utm_email=yourtestemail@example.com”. Add a product in your cart to trigger the Added to Cart event.
  
• Verify the metric: Go to Analytics > Metrics, and look for “Added to Cart.” (It might take 1-2 days for Klaviyo to fully recognize the metric after the code is added.)
  
• Create Added to Cart flow: So, once the “Added to Cart” metric is active, you can now create a new flow using this metric as the trigger.

And remember to turn off any default abandoned cart notifications from your e-commerce platform. 

6. Measure impact on revenue

Integrate post-live benchmark testing into your Klaviyo abandoned cart email strategy. If you want to measure how much your abandoned cart emails really impact conversions and revenue, run a holdout test using a random sample split in your Klaviyo flow.

How to run a holdout test in Klaviyo? Here’s how. (This is only with respect to email, not SMS in Klaviyo):

A. Set up a random sample split

At the very start of your Cart Abandonment flow, add a Random Sample split: send emails to 80% of users, and hold back emails from the remaining 20%. This creates a test group (who receive the email) and a control group (who don’t).

B. Create two segments to measure impact

For the test segment:

• Rule: Received email at least once in the last X days.
  
• Flow: [Your abandoned cart flow name]

For the holdout segment (people who didn’t get the email but may have converted anyway):

• Rule 1: Started Checkout at least once in the last [X] days.
  
• Rule 2: AND Placed Order zero times in the last [X] days where Attributed Flow = [Your Abandoned Cart Flow Name]
  
• Rule 3: AND Received Email zero times in the last [X] days where Flow = [Your Abandoned Cart Flow Name]

“Attributed Flow” ensures you’re only measuring conversions that happened without email, giving you a clean baseline. This is a key addition to your Klaviyo cart abandonment best practices. 

C. Compare results

Run engagement and conversion reports for both groups. Look at metrics like placed orders, revenue, and click rates. 

The difference between the two groups shows how effective your Klaviyo abandoned cart email strategy is. 

Wrapping up

With the right setup, you’re not just sending reminder emails; you’re staging a well-timed comeback story for lost revenue. 

Whether you start with a pre-built flow or with custom logic, the goal remains the same: bring the shopper back without sounding desperate, pushy, or predictable.

And if there’s one rule to remember, it’s this: treat your emails like a conversation, not a sales pitch. Because you’re not just recovering carts. You’re building trust, one nudge at a time.

Need help setting up the right Klaviyo abandoned cart flow? Book a 30-min call with our Klaviyo experts! 

Frequently asked questions

1. What is an abandoned cart in Klaviyo?

In Klaviyo, an abandoned cart refers to a situation where a potential customer adds one or more items to their online shopping cart but leaves your e-commerce store without buying them.

Klaviyo helps businesses identify these “abandoned carts” and then use automated email and SMS flows to re-engage those customers and encourage them to complete their purchase.

2. How to recover an abandoned cart?

There isn’t a specific cart recovery strategy in Klaviyo. But, generally speaking, to recover an abandoned cart, send automated, personalized email and/or SMS messages to customers who’ve left items in their cart. These messages should:

• Remind them of the items they left behind in their cart.
• Create urgency (e.g., “items selling out”).
• Provide social proof (e.g., customer reviews).
• Offer easy access to customer support for questions.
• Optimize for mobile and ensure a smooth checkout.

3. Are abandoned cart emails legal?

Oh yes, abandoned cart emails are generally legal, but their legality depends heavily on where your customers are located and the specific content of the emails. Different regions have different data privacy and anti-spam laws.