20 Shopify Product Recommendation Strategies (With Real-Life Examples)

From USD $2.12 billion in 2020, the recommendation market is all set to become a whopping $15.13 billion in 2026. 

However, for recommendations to truly make sense in your Shopify store, you’ll have to make them stand out. 

So, we decided to study some of the best converting Shopify businesses to see what they do with their recommendations to sell more—here are 20 great examples from across the most high intent pages:

Homepage

Product Page

Cart Page

Grow Clicks by 2X with Outstanding Shopify Recommendations 

HOMEPAGE

86% of shoppers want product info and context as soon as they reach the homepage.

This is a good problem to leverage when you build context for your Shopify product recommendations on the homepage.

1. Feature “bestsellers” (Ugmonk)

Consider putting your bestsellers under the limelight when you’re trying to maximize your homepage Shopify recommendations. 

It’s simple: your bestsellers can help your business offset any conversion lows across other categories and products. 

Shopify brand Ugmonk takes this seriously and just one scroll into their homepage you can see this:

2. Show authority (Allbirds)

80% of shoppers will consistently buy from a brand that aligns with their beliefs and values. 

And you can turn this into a benefit while driving your brand through Shopify product recommendations. 

What you gotta remember: Shoppers are always subtly checking how much authority you bring in, especially on the homepage. 

This is why sustainable Shopify brand Allbirds highlights “Our Favorites”—this relays the brand’s own confidence in the recommendations they’re making:

3. Keep it fresh (Taylor Stitch)

Rapidly changing shopper preference. Peak season competition. And several other reasons make it necessary for you to draw attention to the “new.”

This is especially effective if you have a Shopify business in:

- Fashion / Apparel

- Makeup or skincare

- Pet care

- Beverages / snacks

Check out how Shopify brand Taylor Stitch takes this a step further and declares their “newest arrivals” on the homepage:

4. Introduce some fandom (Pipcorn)

Potential customers typically feel more at ease about converting when they know existing customers love your brand and products. 

That’s exactly what Shopify brand Pipcorn uses as a hook for their homepage recommendations: 

5. Make reviews a recommendation driver (Hydrant)

Since your Shopify homepage most likely caters to shoppers at the top of the conversion funnel, this is a great tactic. 

Make the reviews stand out loud, and state the products almost in a passing mention. 

This is exactly what Shopify brand Hydrant does to make their homepage product recommendations well worth a shopper’s consideration:

6. Showcase what’s complementary to the main product (Luxy Hair)

This preps the shopper’s mind for a fuller experience around what your brand has got to offer. 

Also, so many brands cross-sell on their product pages, that shoppers may actually not perceive your products differently—best to start on the homepage itself. 

Check out how eCommerce brand Luxy Hair uses their homepage Shopify recommendations to build a case for cross-selling: 

PRODUCT PAGE

Along with all the other Shopify product page optimization tactics you employ, make sure your recommendations stand out. 

After all, people who click on a recommendation are 2X more likely to return—so here are some amazing Shopify recommendation ideas for your product page.

7. Feature the “recommended” section within product info (Chubbies)

Because scrolling fatigue is real amongst eCommerce shoppers, you’ll have to be careful about where and how you place your Shopify recommendations. 

Shopify brand Chubbies makes their recommendations appear in a subsection within the main product info section—this makes them highly visible and prone to clicks:

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8. Put the focus on the most expensive item (Jungalow)

Hook them first with a “complete the look / complete the set” nudge and then take it to the next level—spotlight the most expensive recommendation. 

This is what Shopify brand Jungalow does here (by creating a mood through an in-context visual):

9. Use urgency to define importance (Bremont)

Make your Shopify product recommendations more powerful through urgency—talk about stock levels, mention how many times the product has been viewed or bought the past month etc. 

Shopify luxury watch brand does this by featuring the number of pieces they’ve manufactured of a recommended product:

10. Recommend what’s complementary through a CTA (Leesa)

There’s yet another way to recommend products on your Shopify product page:

Showcase an entire category of complementary products through a single CTA.

That’s exactly what Shopify mattress brand Leesa does— the fact that none of the products in the suggested category are actually immediately visible adds to the “need to click”:

11. Create distinction with your descriptors (Haus)

75% of online shoppers fall back on product images to make purchase decisions. 

But the thing is your images can’t convey everything crucial about your product. 

Hence, when you’re trying for your product page Shopify recommendations to fly, offer a brief product description that tells the shopper what they can expect. 

Check out how Shopify brand Haus leverages this as one of their Shopify recommendation ideas for the product page:

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12. Offer an unputdownable bundling prompt (Beardbrand)

More and more shoppers are now forever anticipating “you will love” recommendation prompts (& feeling jaded.)

For your Shopify recommendations to shine, you’d have to shift the narrative from cognitive load to curated choice. 

That’s exactly what Shopify brand Beadrbrand does—they feature a range of products and allows the shopper to “build a custom bundle & save”:

13. Feature product benefits as icons (Frank Body)

Let’s get this straight: shoppers will consider your Shopify recommendations only if they believe their inherent value. 

So just an interesting product name, review snapshot and great pictures will likely not cut it. 

Instead, do a round-up of the benefits as graphic icons that become quick takeaways—here’s what Shopify brand Frank Body does:

CART PAGE

Research has revealed that cart abandonment goes up when shoppers have to debate over their purchase decision for a longer time. 

So while for essentials like pharma and groceries, this delay in decision-making is less, for non-essentials like furniture and makeup, it’s a big problem. This is why how you feature your Shopify recommendation ideas for the cart page is significant for the checkout flow. 

14. Go the mystery route (Pura Vida)

Like mystery gifts and offers, mystery recommendations trigger the side of us that’s always been in awe of mystery shopping in the real world. 

When you feature some mystery Shopify product recommendations in the cart, it can spark curiosity-based conversions. 

Check out how Shopify bracelet brand Pura Vida brings in three options, all priced differently:

15. Use strong user intent to attract (Wandering Bear Coffee)

Your Shopify cart page / drawer is a good opportunity to make shoppers think about more than just the product. 

Whether it’s about recommending a flavor that’ll be a great foil to the main product, nudging towards a higher priced bundle or hinting towards an exclusive membership purchase. 

This is exactly what Shopify brand Wandering Bear Coffee does, to great effect:

16. Position right beneath the free shipping threshold (Bison Coolers)

Gamification in eCommerce can lead to a spike of 15-50% in conversions and over 30% in engagement. 

And this is why when you apply this rule in making in-cart Shopify recommendations, it works well. 

Since free shipping can feel like a run to the finish line, recommending products just beneath the threshold marker can be effective—Shopify brand Bison Coolers show how:

17. Highlight star ratings to draw attention (Sephora)

Remember we were earlier talking about how shoppers debate their purchase decision at the Shopify cart stage? 

Put their mind to rest by showing off social proof that can then create customer trust. 

Shopify giant Sephora not only features the star ratings precisely but also show the number of people that has rated that product recommendation:

18. Feature products that’ll help “complete the routine” (100% Pure)

In our A/B tests for Shopify clients across the world, we’ve noticed customers love recommendation variants that further the experience. 

Shopify brand 100% Pure, for example, features recommendations that acknowledges the main product pick and nudges towards completing the experience:

19. Use a strong “free” nudge (Bombas)

In a world of free shipping thresholds, you’ve got to do more in your Shopify cart page product recommendations. 

Declare if you have free 2-day shipping or a free guide for product use or even what Shopify brand Bombas does:

20. Show them as “cart specials” (ColourPop)

Shoppers love exclusivity and would let this rare feeling guide them towards a purchase—something you can use to feature Shopify recommendation ideas on the cart page.

Check out how Shopify brand ColourPop does this through “cart specials” or discounts that a shopper can access only when they add the recommendations from the cart:

FAQ - Shopify recommendations:

1. Which metrics are most important to track Shopify product recommendations?

If you have to get a clearer picture on how your Shopify recommendations are working, track the following metrics:

- Average Order Value (AOV): This is a great metric to track how your personalized product recommendations are doing—a consistently higher AOV could indicate your cross-sells and upsells are performing well along with your bundle suggestions. 

- Customer Lifetime Value: The customer lifetime value on your store will reveal the frequency of purchase, spend value and spend frequency when you choose Shopify product recommendations as a criteria. 

- Conversion Rate: If you find out your conversion rate improves when you showcase product recommendations versus when you don’t, this would indicate the success of your recommender system. 

- Click-through Rate:Your on-site click-through rate can reveal how frequently shoppers are clicking through the recommendations you show them. 

- Return on Investment (ROI): This will help you assess the gap between what you has to spend to put the recommender system in place and how much the latter has helped you earn. 

Don't forget to read: How To Improve Average Order Value On Shopify: 22 Brilliant Ideas

2. How do Shopify product recommendations work?

Here are a few basics on how product recommendations work on Shopify: 

- Only some themes have space for product recommendation sections—business owners can modify these sections using the Shopify Search & Discovery app

- Shopify suggests a max of 4 product recommendations at a given time

- Without an established order history, Shopify is able to mostly generate generic suggestions

- Shopify product recommendations are typically more seamless if you have a Shopify Plus account because it doesn’t need you to spend more on integrations or third party apps

3. How to add product recommendations to your Shopify store?

Use the following steps to start creating/ adding product recommendations to your Shopify store:

- Go to the “Online Store” section after you log in

- Choose a theme that supports product recommendations (paid ones like Kalles & Ella are ideal)

- Click on “Customize” to edit the appearance & positioning of your recommendations

- Use the theme editor option to see how a particular theme names the recommendation section—some call it “you may like” while others say “recommended for you”

- Save the changes you’ve made to the theme editor and click on “Publish”

Related reading:

How to Increase AOV on Shopify: 27 Upselling Ideas

Optimize your Shopify Store for Mobile: Proven ideas + Examples

How to Increase Average Session Time on Your Shopify Store

Lead your recommendations with great UX

98% of visitors who visit an eCommerce site—drop off without buying anything.

Even if they're able to view some great product recommendations.

Why: user experience issues that cause friction for visitors.

And this is the problem Convertcart solves.

We've helped 500+ eCommerce stores (in the US) improve user experience—and 2X their conversions.

How we can help you:

Our conversion experts can audit your site—identify UX issues, and suggest changes to improve conversions.