Calculate Average Order Value: Data-Driven Insights for Success
Understand how to calculate average order value and leverage this powerful metric to improve pricing, promotions, and customer engagement strategies for your store.
Published May 2, 2025
Tracking key metrics is essential for making informed decisions in any e-commerce business. One such metric that often gets overlooked is average order value (AOV), a figure that offers a deeper look into customer purchasing behavior. With the right approach, AOV can be a powerful tool for guiding growth strategies and improving overall performance.
But how do you calculate it, and are there any nuances when working across different channels? In this blog, we will look at how to calculate AOV across various channels and best practices to ensure you’re getting the most out of your data.
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What Is Average Order Value (AOV)?
AOV is the average amount a customer spends each time they complete a purchase on your online store. While a straightforward metric, it offers powerful insights into customer spending habits and revenue potential.
Benefits of Calculating AOV
Understanding and improving your AOV can lead to smarter marketing decisions and better profit margins. Here’s how:
- More value per visitor: When your AOV increases, each visit to your site becomes more valuable. Rather than increasing your ad spend, you’re simply making each customer count more. Stores that use cross-sells and upsells effectively see noticeable increases in AOV—leading to higher revenue without raising advertising costs.
- Better return on ad spend (ROAS): If your customer acquisition cost is €20 and your AOV is €30, your profit margin is slim. But increase your AOV to €50, and your ROAS improves significantly. Doing a proper AOV calculation helps you get the most out of your marketing budget.
- Improved customer retention: Shoppers who spend more on a single order are more likely to return. Bain & Company reports that a 5% boost in customer retention can increase profits by 25% to 95%. While that stat focuses on retention, AOV and customer lifetime value (CLV) are connected. Offering more value per order creates stronger customer experiences—encouraging repeat visits.
- Smart pricing strategies: Once you know your AOV, you can use it to shape incentives. For instance, if your average order is €48, try offering “Free Shipping on orders over €55.” This aligns with findings from Baymard Institute, which shows that 48% of cart abandonments are due to unexpected extra costs like shipping.
» Learn how to master customer-specific pricing in Shopify to increase CLV
How AOV Compares to Other Key E-Commerce Metrics
AOV vs. CLV
AOV focuses on how much a customer spends in a single transaction. CLV considers the total spend over the entire customer relationship. While AOV helps you improve short-term order size, CLV guides long-term growth strategies like retention and loyalty. Together, they help you make smarter decisions about where to invest in customer relationships.
AOV vs. Conversion Rate
AOV tells you the average amount spent per order, while conversion rate shows how many visitors actually make a purchase. It’s possible to have a high conversion rate but low AOV if most customers buy inexpensive products. Ideally, you want both: steady conversions and meaningful order values to increase your overall revenue.
AOV vs. Revenue per Visitor
Revenue per visitor (RPV) combines your conversion rate with AOV. It shows how much you earn from each site visitor, not just buyers. AOV is just one piece of that formula. A high average order value calculation doesn’t mean much if few visitors are converting—so RPV helps you assess overall site performance more effectively.
AOV vs. Click-Through Rate
AOV measures purchase value; click-through rate (CTR) measures engagement with links—like how many people click through an ad or email. A high CTR might bring more traffic, but if those visitors don’t buy or spend much, it won’t help your revenue. CTR drives traffic, while AOV ensures that traffic is financially meaningful.
» Want to boost your Shopify traffic? Learn how in our blog on Shopify sessions vs. visitors
Average Order Value Formula
To calculate the AOV, just divide your total revenue by the number of orders:
AOV = Total Revenue ÷ Number of Orders
Example: If your total revenue is €5,000 and you had 100 orders, then:
AOV = €5,000 ÷ 100 = €50
How to Calculate AOV Across Different Channels
1. Shopify
Example: In the last 7 days, your store made €12,600 in total revenue. You had 180 orders in total with 3 cancelled orders and 2 test orders.
- Go to your Shopify admin dashboard.
- Click on Analytics > Reports > Average Order Value Report.
- Choose your date range to the last 7 days.
- Adjust filters to exclude test and cancelled orders.
- You’ll notice that with total sales of €12,600 and 175 valid orders (after removing 5 invalid ones), the AOV calculation is: AOV = €12,600 ÷ 175 = €72
Pro Tip: Make sure you’re filtering out test orders or cancelled/refunded orders to get a real picture. Shopify also includes taxes and shipping in gross sales by default, so if you want a more product-focused AOV calculation, you can adjust the filters or export the data and recalculate.
» Do you have more than one Shopify store? Here are best practices for managing multiple Shopify stores
2. WooCommerce
Example: Your WooCommerce store made €5,600 in net sales over the last 7 days, with 90 completed orders. You want to find your AOV to understand how much each shopper is spending per transaction.
- Go to your WordPress dashboard.
- Click > Analytics > Orders.
- Select the last 7 days as your date range.
- Filter by product using WooCommerce Analytics to see the numbers for a specific product.
- AOV = €5,600 ÷ 90 = €62.22
Take Note: WooCommerce sometimes includes refunds in “Total Sales,” depending on the plugin setup or extensions. If you're using third-party tools like Metorik or WooCommerce Analytics, you can access cleaner, filtered revenue numbers without refunds or shipping charges.
3. Google Analytics
Example: Your GA4 setup tracks online purchases using the purchase event. Over the last 30 days, your GA4 report shows €15,000 in total revenue and 250 purchase events.
- Go to Reports > Monetization > E-commerce Purchases.
- In the GA4 interface, go to the date range selector, located at the top right corner of the report. Click on it and choose the desired date range for your analysis, such as "Last 7 days" or "Last 30 days".
- Look at the revenue and total purchase numbers. Make sure you’re looking at purchase events, not product views or add-to-carts.
- Find the AOV using the formula: AOV = €15,000 ÷ 250 = €60
Take Note: GA4 may track events differently than your e-commerce platform. Ensure you're using the same event definitions, such as excluding "Add to Cart" or "View Product" unless they result in a purchase. Additionally, keep in mind that GA4 doesn’t always include taxes or shipping unless specifically configured in your tag.
» Learning how to calculate AOV is just one of the steps, here are more ways to make your e-commerce store a better one
Average Order Value Benchmarks by Industry
- Fashion, accessories & apparel: The average AOV is around $121, often boosted by customers buying multiple items during promotions or to qualify for free shipping.
- Beauty & personal care: AOV sits at about $74 since products tend to be lower priced—though bundling can help increase the average order value calculation.
- Electronics: With big-ticket items like laptops and phones, this category has one of the highest AOVs at $349.
- Home & furniture: Topping the list at $373, this space benefits from larger purchases, such as full-room setups or statement pieces.
Remember: If you're targeting younger shoppers or selling lower-cost items like skincare or accessories, it's completely normal for your AOV to be on the lower end. What matters more is whether your AOV is improving over time and how it compares within your specific niche—not just the overall industry. Always ask: Am I getting the most value out of each order?
» Do you want to start a fashion store? Learn how to utilize Shopify to set up your store
Best Practices After the Average Order Value Calculation
- Use AOV to shape smarter promotions: Let’s say your AOV calculation shows $48. You could set your free shipping threshold at $55. That slight increase nudges customers to add just one more item to their cart. It feels like a bonus to them—and it lifts your revenue without increasing traffic. These micro-adjustments, backed by data, can lead to steady growth.
- Bundle products that naturally go together: Look at your most common purchases and create bundles based on those habits. If someone buys a shampoo, offer a shampoo + conditioner + styling spray set at a discounted rate. It raises AOV and simplifies the shopping experience. Based on your average order value calculation, you can identify which bundles make the most sense and generate real results.
- Rethink your pricing tiers to guide upsells: If you offer basic and premium product options, AOV can help you fine-tune your pricing strategy. For example, if most customers spend $70, position a $90 version as the obvious next step. The key is to make that jump feel like added value, not a sales push. Let your pricing structure guide shoppers to higher-value choices naturally.
» Ready to enhance your marketing strategies? Explore these marketing incentives to engage your audience
How Egnition Can Help You Optimize Your AOV Strategy
Once you’ve nailed your AOV calculation, the next step is using that insight to influence how people shop. Egnition helps you understand and improve your AOV by giving you total control over how your products appear and perform in your store. With Bestsellers reSort, you can automatically sort products by revenue, margins, or trending sales to highlight what sells best and encourage higher-value purchases.
Tools like StockIQ ensure that only in-stock products are visible, so customers never reach a product page that leads to a dead end. When you know how to calculate average order value and have the tools to act on it, boosting AOV becomes a lot more achievable.
» Learn more about our automated Shopify apps that can help to improve your business strategies
