How Many Abandonment Emails Are Too Many?
Every ecommerce founder I know has two fears that live side-by-side:
- “Don’t annoy my audience.”
- “Don’t leave money on the table.”
Abandonment email flows hit both fears at the exact same time. They’re the tightrope walk of ecommerce marketing. Too few emails, and you’re leaving potential revenue to rot in the cart graveyard. Too many, and you’re the clingy ex who can’t take a hint.
So today, we’re diving into the art and science of abandonment flows. How many nudges are too many? Why do the old rules exist? And why does the “right answer” depend on what you sell and who you’re selling to?
The Existential Crisis of Abandonment Emails
If you’ve ever built or tweaked a cart or checkout flow, you know the feeling. You’re staring at the sequence, trying to channel your inner Goldilocks:
- “Okay… message one makes sense.”
- “Message two, sure.”
- “Message three… still reasonable.”
And then you get to message four, and suddenly it’s existential. Are we being strategic… or are we being clingy?
The annoying part? There’s no universal answer. No magic number. No one-size-fits-all rulebook. Which is why this topic is perfect for today. We can be honest, we can be nuanced, and we can still give you practical advice so you’re not just guessing.
What I Mean by “Abandonment”
Quick level-set for anyone newer to automations: when I say “abandonment flows,” I’m talking about the emails you send when someone shows buying intent… and then ghosts. Specifically:
- Browse Abandon: They looked. They viewed a product or collection but didn’t add anything to their cart. Interest is there, but it’s early and lightweight.
- Cart Abandon: They considered. They added to cart, which signals stronger intent, but they haven’t committed to the checkout steps.
- Checkout Abandon: They were this close. They started checkout, entered info, maybe even got to shipping or payment… and then bailed. This is usually your highest-intent abandoner.
When someone asks, “How many nudges is too many?” my first thought is always: which abandon flow are we talking about? Because what’s appropriate for browse abandon can be wildly inappropriate for checkout abandon, and vice versa.
My Actual Recommendation (And Why It’s Boring on Purpose)
Here’s my honest take: for most brands, I don’t recommend more than three touches in any one abandonment flow. And in many cases, two is enough because we tend to see diminishing returns after that.
But here’s the part that makes this fun: it’s not universally true.
I’ve absolutely seen brands run four or five emails and still perform well. So here’s the strategy I like best because it’s calm, logical, and keeps you out of “we’re doing the most” territory:
- Start with two.
- Watch performance.
- Then iterate.
Not “start with five and pray.” Start with two, validate that the messaging is doing its job, and then earn the right to add more.
The Benchmark That Keeps You Sane
Let’s put one number on the table to help you sanity-check your expectations:
Klaviyo’s benchmarks (from their abandoned cart flow reporting) show an average placed order rate of 3.33% for abandoned cart flows.
So if your cart abandonment flow is already beating that average? Great; you can experiment with a third email and see if you recover incremental revenue without increasing unsubscribes or complaints.
If you’re below that average? The answer usually isn’t “add more emails.” It’s: fix the basics first. Timing, offer clarity, friction, trust, and what each message is actually doing.
Why Cart Flows Tend to Be the Longest
When people say “abandonment flow,” they usually mean abandoned cart. Why? Because it’s where you tend to have the biggest recovery opportunity—and it’s the one most brands build out the most.
Here’s a useful distinction:
- Cart abandoners are often still evaluating. They might be researching, comparing, or waiting to see if you’ll sweeten the deal. That’s why longer cart sequences sometimes work.
- Checkout abandoners are different. They were close. Something specific made them stop, so a more direct, shorter approach often makes sense here.
The Real Goal: Recover Without Over-Contacting
This is the part too many brands miss: the goal isn’t “send the maximum number of reminders you can get away with.”
The goal is to recover as many potential purchasers as possible without over-contacting people. Because if your abandonment series pushes someone to unsubscribe, you didn’t just lose one sale, you lost your ability to market to that person at all going forward.
And that’s why I’m extra conservative about browse abandon. Browse is low intent. It’s not worth risking subscriber goodwill there. (Cart and checkout are where you have more room to be persuasive.)
When More Emails Can Make Sense
If you’re selling higher-priced items, or anything that requires trust, reassurance, or explanation, you may need more touchpoints. But here’s the key:
It’s not just more emails.
It’s more thoughtful emails.
- More specific.
- More objection-handling.
- More proof.
- More “this was made for you” energy, not “just circling back” energy.
If message three, four, and five all sound like the same reminder rewritten, that’s not optimization. That’s repetition.
How to Test This Without Guessing
If you want the “grown-up” way to approach this, here’s your simple testing path:
- Start with two emails.
- Track: placed order rate, revenue per recipient, unsubscribes/spam complaints.
- If performance is strong and signals are clean, add a third message.
- Re-evaluate.
Only consider four or more emails if you can clearly justify what each additional message contributes—and really only consider it for cart abandon.
And I would always rather you make email #2 better than add email #4.
So… How Many Abandonment Nudges Are Too Many?
For most brands: more than three is unnecessary.
For some brands: four or five can work, but only when each message earns its place, and you’re watching the trade-offs.
Because your job isn’t to chase the sale. It’s to recover intent without creating regret.