Shopify Upsell at Checkout: How to Add Upsells at and After Checkout
Where you can add a Shopify upsell at checkout on every plan (cart, inside checkout, post-purchase, thank you page), how to set each one up, and what to offer.
A customer who has just typed in their card details is the warmest lead you'll ever get. They trust you, they've decided to buy, and their wallet is already out.
That's why a Shopify upsell at checkout works so well. It's also why so many merchants go looking for the setting and can't find it. Shopify doesn't have one button for this. Where you can add an upsell depends on your plan and on which part of checkout you mean.
This guide covers every spot you can use, what each one needs, and how to set them up.
What is a Shopify checkout upsell?
A Shopify checkout upsell is an extra product offer shown while a customer is checking out or right after they pay. It can sit in the cart, inside the checkout steps, on the post-purchase page between payment and the thank you page, or on the thank you page itself. The goal is a bigger order without a new visit.
In practice, "checkout upsell" means four different places. They don't all work on every plan.
Can you upsell at checkout on Shopify?
Yes, but how depends on your Shopify plan. Every plan can upsell in the cart, on the post-purchase page and on the thank you page. Adding offers inside the checkout steps (contact, shipping, payment) is only possible on Shopify Plus, through an app that uses a checkout UI extension.
| Where the offer shows | Shopify plan | What you need | One-click? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cart page or cart drawer | All plans | Theme section or an upsell app | Yes, adds to cart |
| Inside checkout (contact, shipping, payment steps) | Shopify Plus only | App with a checkout UI extension | Yes, adds to order before payment |
| Post-purchase page (after payment, before thank you) | All plans | App with a post-purchase extension | Yes, charges the same payment method |
| Thank you and order status pages | All plans | App with a thank you page extension | Usually a link or discount, not one-click |
Two things trip people up here. First, the old checkout.liquid file is gone, so any tutorial that tells you to paste code into it is out of date. Second, not every payment method shows the post-purchase page. Shopify lists the exceptions in its post-purchase page docs.
Where to add a Shopify upsell at checkout
Start with the spot you can use today, not the one you wish you had.
Not on Shopify Plus? Use a cart upsell plus a post-purchase upsell. Together they cover the moment before payment and the moment after, which is most of what an in-checkout offer would do.
On Shopify Plus? Add an offer block inside checkout too, but keep it to one product. Checkout is the worst place in your store for a distraction.
Selling one hero product? Go straight to post-purchase. The order is already safe, so the offer can't cost you the sale.
That last point is the big one. A cart or checkout offer can make someone hesitate. A post-purchase offer can't, because they've already paid.
How to add a post-purchase upsell on Shopify
The post-purchase page is the best checkout upsell spot on every plan. The customer accepts with one click, Shopify charges the card they just used, and the extra item ships with the same order.
Here's how to set it up with Essential Upsell & Cross Sell.
Install the app. Get Essential Upsell & Cross Sell from the Shopify App Store. There's a free plan.
Create a post-purchase offer. In the app, create a new offer and choose the post-purchase offer type.
Pick the trigger. Decide which orders see the offer: specific products, collections or a cart value. "Bought a camera" is a better trigger than "bought anything".
Pick the product and the deal. Choose one product that goes with what they bought, and set a discount if you want one.
Match the design. Edit the heading, button text and colors so the page looks like your store, not a pop-up from somewhere else.
Turn on the post-purchase page in Shopify. Go to Settings > Checkout, find the Post-purchase page section, and select Essential Upsell as the app that runs it. Without this step, nothing shows.
Place a test order. Use a test payment to check the offer appears, the one-click button works and the extra item lands on the same order.
Want more ideas for this page? Our post-purchase upsell guide covers offer types, discount levels and common mistakes.
How to upsell in the cart before checkout
If you're not on Shopify Plus, the cart is your "at checkout" upsell. It's the last screen before payment, and it's fully yours to customize.
What works in the cart:
One complementary product, not a carousel of twelve. Phone case with the phone. Batteries with the toy.
A free shipping goal. "You're $12 away from free shipping" plus a small product that closes the gap. A free shipping bar and a cart upsell work well as a pair.
An add-to-order button that doesn't leave the cart. Every extra page load is a chance to change their mind.
You can add these with a cart upsell in Essential Upsell & Cross Sell, in both the cart page and the cart drawer. For offers that appear earlier, on the product page, see how to add frequently bought together on Shopify.
How to add upsells inside Shopify checkout (Shopify Plus)
On Shopify Plus, you can place a product offer directly in the checkout steps, for example under the order summary or on the shipping step.
Install an upsell app that includes a checkout UI extension (the App Store listing says whether it does).
Go to Settings > Checkout and click Customize to open the checkout editor.
Pick the step where the offer should appear, click Add app block, and choose the upsell block.
Set which product the block offers, save, and test the full checkout on mobile.
Keep in-checkout offers small and quiet. One product, one line of copy, one button. If the block is bigger than the order summary, it's too big.
Thank you page upsells
The thank you page and the order status page can show an offer on every plan through an app extension. The customer usually can't add the item to the order they just paid for, so these offers work best as:
a discount code for the next order ("15% off your refill, valid for 30 days")
a link to a related product or collection
a sign-up for your loyalty program or restock alerts
The order status page gets visited again every time a customer checks their delivery. That makes it a quiet second chance for the same offer.
What to offer at checkout: 6 ideas with copy you can use
The offer matters more than the placement. Here are six that suit checkout, with copy you can adapt.
1. The consumable refill
Works for coffee, skincare, pet food, filters.
Running low already? Add a second bag for 20% off. It ships with this order.
2. The obvious accessory
The thing they'll need in a week.
Your new camera, meet its memory card. Add a 128GB card for $19.
3. The upgrade
Bigger size, better version. Only works if the price gap is small.
Make it the large for $8 more. Most customers do.
Only use "most customers do" if it's true. Check your order data first.
4. The gift add-on
Strong around holidays.
Sending it as a gift? Add gift wrap and a handwritten note for $4.
5. The free shipping closer
Cart only, before payment.
Add these socks ($9) and your shipping is free.
6. The "one more for later" discount
Post-purchase or thank you page.
Thanks for your order! Want another one at 25% off? One click and it's added, no new checkout.
Common checkout upsell mistakes
Offering something unrelated. A phone case with a pair of jeans looks like a random ad, not a recommendation.
Pricing the upsell higher than the order. A $60 add-on on a $25 order feels like a trap. Keep add-ons well under the order value.
Stacking offers. Cart upsell, checkout block, post-purchase offer and thank you discount, all for the same order? That's not upselling. That's a gauntlet.
Skipping mobile testing. Most checkouts happen on a phone. If the offer pushes the pay button below the fold, move it.
Never checking the numbers. An offer nobody takes is just clutter. Swap it.
How to measure your checkout upsells
Track three numbers for each offer, monthly:
Take rate: what share of customers who saw the offer accepted it.
Average order value (AOV): compare orders with an accepted offer to orders without.
Revenue after discount: extra revenue minus the discount you gave. If the discount eats the margin, lower it and see if the take rate holds.
If an offer's take rate stays very low after a few hundred views, change the product before you change the design.
Frequently asked questions
- Yes, but not inside the checkout steps. Without Shopify Plus, you can upsell in the cart or cart drawer, on the post-purchase page after payment, and on the thank you page. Offers inside the contact, shipping and payment steps need Shopify Plus and an app with a checkout UI extension.
- A post-purchase upsell is an offer shown after the customer pays but before the thank you page. The customer can accept it with one click, Shopify charges the same payment method, and the extra item is added to the same order. It's available on all Shopify plans through an app such as Essential Upsell & Cross Sell.
- A post-purchase upsell can't, because the order is already paid. Cart and in-checkout offers can distract some customers, so keep them to one relevant product, place them below the main order details, and compare conversion rate before and after you add them.
- Go to Settings > Checkout in your Shopify admin and find the Post-purchase page section. Select the upsell app that should run the page. You need an app with a post-purchase extension installed first, otherwise there's nothing to select.
- No. Shopify has replaced checkout.liquid with Checkout Extensibility, so code-based checkout edits no longer work. Use an app that supports checkout UI extensions (Shopify Plus) or post-purchase and thank you page extensions (all plans) instead.
- Yes, Essential Upsell & Cross Sell has a free plan, with paid plans for higher volumes and extra features. You can install it from the Shopify App Store and set up your first cart or post-purchase offer without code.
Wrap-up
You don't need Shopify Plus to upsell at checkout. You need the right spot for your plan and one good offer.
Start with a post-purchase upsell: it can't cost you the sale, and it's the one spot that works the same on every plan. Add a cart offer next, then check your take rate after a month and swap anything nobody clicks.
Written by
Content and SEO specialist at Essential Apps. 8+ years in digital marketing, with the last 3 spent deep in the Shopify space, understanding how merchants grow and what gets in the way.
