An effective abandoned cart email is short, shows the product the customer left behind and gives one reason to come back: a reminder in the first email, a new argument in the second (a review, a detail, real scarcity), a last chance in the third. A discount, if there is one, comes only at the end.
Below you'll find twelve annotated example emails, organized by position in the sequence and by type of abandonment (checkout, cart, browse), followed by twelve subject lines grouped by tactic, a template you can copy and the most common mistakes.
Email 1: the reminder that brings them back to the cart
The first email doesn't persuade. It reminds. The customer had already decided, and something interrupted them.
1. Checkout abandonment, jewelry store
Subject: Your order is almost complete
Hi Emily, your hoop earrings are still in your order summary, with your details saved. One click and you're done. Shipping is fully insured and they arrive in a gift box. [Complete my order]
Someone who abandoned at checkout was ready to pay. Give them the shortest path and one line about shipping.
2. Cart abandonment, clothing brand
Subject: Your wool jacket is still in your cart
Hi Ryan, the jacket you picked, size L, is waiting in your cart. If you're unsure about the fit, exchanges are free. [Back to my cart]
The product name in the subject beats "your cart." The free exchange answers the most typical objection before it's raised.
3. Cart abandonment late at night, supplements store (arrives at 8 a.m.)
Subject: Good morning, your magnesium is still in your cart
Hi Megan, last night you left magnesium and vitamin D in your cart. Order by 2 p.m. and your package ships today. [Back to my cart]
A cart abandoned at 11:40 p.m. gets recovered in the morning, and the copy knows it: "good morning," "last night."
4. Browse abandonment, jewelry store
Subject: A little more on the ring you were looking at
Hi Olivia, the ring you looked at pairs nicely with the choker from the same collection. If it's a gift, we'll include a handwritten card. [See the ring]
Someone who only looked hasn't forgotten anything. Use a recommendation tone and send it a few hours later.
Email 2: one more reason to come back
The reminder wasn't enough, so the second email brings a new argument. In AchillesAI these tactics are called communication angles and are tested customer by customer; by hand, the rule is one tactic per email.
5. Checkout abandonment, supplements: social proof
Subject: What customers who already use it say
Hi Ben, one customer wrote to us: "It dissolves easily and there's no aftertaste." That's the most common worry with collagen. Your order is ready and waiting. [Complete my order]
A review that settles one specific doubt is worth more than "our customers love us."
6. Cart abandonment, clothing brand: product detail
Subject: The detail you can't see in the photo
Hi Ryan, the jacket in your cart has a cotton lining, which is why it keeps you warm without weighing you down. Both inside pockets have zippers. [Back to my cart]
It adds something the product page didn't highlight.
7. Cart abandonment, home goods: real scarcity
Subject: Only a few brass lamps left
Hi Hannah, the lamp in your cart is made in small batches. Only a few are left, and the next batch won't arrive for weeks. [Complete my purchase]
Only if it's true. Invented scarcity, once discovered, burns the credibility of every email after it.
8. Browse abandonment, clothing brand: second and last email
Subject: 3 ways to wear the sweater you were eyeing
Hi Rachel, the ribbed sweater you looked at works over a button-down or under a long coat. It comes in four colors. [See the colors]
For browse abandonment this is also the final email: inspiration, not urgency.
Email 3: the last chance, without the drama
The third email is where an incentive can go, but often just saying it's the last one is enough. In the flows AchillesAI creates, a discount code never appears in the first email and is never offered to someone who can't use it.
9. Checkout abandonment, jewelry store: a real deadline
Subject: Giving it as a gift? Order today and it arrives in time
Hi Emily, your earrings are still in your order summary. Order today and they arrive by Friday, already gift-wrapped. This is our last message about this order. [Complete my order]
A real deadline, the delivery date, takes the place of a discount. Ideal before the holidays.
10. Cart abandonment, supplements: a code with conditions
Subject: A discount code for your first order
Hi Megan, this is our last message about your cart. For your first order, the code WELCOME gets you a discount through Sunday. It doesn't apply to items already on sale. [Use my code]
Now, and only for people who can use it, with clear conditions.
11. Cart abandonment, clothing brand: a gentle goodbye
Subject: Last reminder about your cart
Hi Ryan, we don't want to crowd your inbox, so this is our last message about the wool jacket. Your cart stays saved if you change your mind. [Back to my cart]
Saying it's the last email respects the customer and nudges people who were putting it off.
12. Checkout abandonment, sporting goods: a direct question
Subject: A quick question about your order
Hi Chris, you left your trekking tent order unfinished. Was it a question about size or delivery that stopped you? Just reply to this email: a real person from our store will answer. [Complete my order]
Best for expensive products. The replies become the objections you address in emails 1 and 2.
Subject lines that get opened: 12 examples by type
A subject line should say what the email is about, not tease at any cost. Cost objections deserve their own subject line: according to the Baymard Institute, extra costs (shipping, taxes, fees) are the most commonly cited reason for abandoning checkout.
| Type | Subject line | When |
|---|---|---|
| Reminder | Your order is almost complete | Email 1, checkout |
| Reminder | [Product] is still in your cart | Email 1, cart |
| Reminder | A little more on [product] | Browse abandonment |
| Objection | Shipping and returns: quick answers | Email 1 or 2 |
| Objection | How to find your size | Email 2, clothing |
| Social proof | What customers who already use it say | Email 2 |
| Social proof | Why customers keep reordering | Email 2, consumables |
| Real scarcity | Only a few [product] left | Email 2, only if true |
| Real scarcity | Order today, get it by [day] | Email 2 or 3 |
| Last chance | Last reminder about your cart | Email 3 |
| Last chance | A quick question about your order | Email 3, pricey products |
| Last chance | A discount code for your first order | Email 3, new customers |
The template to copy, and the summary table
All twelve emails share the same skeleton:
- Subject line: the product or the missing action.
- First line: the customer's name and what they left behind.
- Product block: image, name, variant, price.
- One tactic from the table above.
- One button to the pre-filled cart, not the homepage.
| Position | Event | Tactic | When |
|---|---|---|---|
| Email 1 | Checkout | Direct reminder | within 1 hour |
| Email 1 | Cart | Reminder + objection | 1-2 hours |
| Email 1 | Browse | Recommendation | 2-4 hours or next morning |
| Email 2 | Checkout and cart | Social proof, detail or real scarcity | 24 hours |
| Email 2 | Browse | Inspiration (last email) | day after the first |
| Email 3 | Checkout and cart | Last chance, incentive if you use one | 48-72 hours |
Four mistakes that cost you orders
A discount in the first email. An hour after abandonment the intent is still there: a discount gives away margin and teaches shoppers that abandoning pays off.
"Forget something?" to someone who only browsed. Someone who looked at a product page didn't forget anything, and they know it.
Subject lines full of emojis. Three emojis and two exclamation points look like a flyer. One at most.
Copy that doesn't know what time it is. "Good evening" read at 8 a.m., or "with today's sunshine" arriving three days later. AchillesAI writes each email knowing what part of the day it will land in, and mentions weather and time of day only in emails delivered within a few hours. By hand, keep emails 2 and 3 neutral.
Where to start
Reread your first email: if it contains a discount, move it to the third. If browsers and cart abandoners get the same message, split the flows and rewrite the browse one in a recommendation tone.
Timing is covered in the guide on when to send abandoned cart emails, setup in the one on the abandoned cart flow in Klaviyo, and how to dose the final incentive in discounts in abandoned cart emails.
