You've decided to add cross-sell recommendations to your Shopify store. Now the question is: where do you put them? On the product page? Inside the cart drawer? Both? The answer matters because the two placements serve fundamentally different shoppers at different moments in the buying journey.
The product page placement: reaching cold shoppers
When a shopper lands on your product page, they haven't decided to buy yet. They're evaluating. They're reading the description, looking at photos, checking reviews. This is what marketers call the "consideration" stage.
A cross-sell widget here — typically placed between the product description and the reviews, or directly below the Add to Cart button — catches shoppers while they're already engaged with one product. It says: "While you're looking at this, you might also want this."
Typical click-through rate on product page cross-sells: 4–9%
That means roughly 1 in 15 product page visitors will click a cross-sell recommendation. Some of those will add both products. The conversion to purchase from a click is lower here than in the cart, because the shopper may click, evaluate the second product, and decide not to buy either.
The cart drawer placement: catching warm shoppers
When a shopper adds something to their cart, they've made a decision. The mental barrier has been crossed. They've said yes to buying from your store, yes to this product, yes to this price. The cart drawer sliding open is a moment of high intent.
A cross-sell inside the cart drawer has a dramatically different audience: someone who's already buying. Showing one relevant product here feels less like an ad and more like a helpful reminder — "don't forget the matching item."
Typical click-through rate in the cart drawer: 8–15%
Typical add-to-cart rate from cart cross-sell click: 25–40%
Those numbers are substantially higher than product page placements. A shopper who clicks a recommendation in the cart drawer and adds it to their cart is already in "buying mode" — their cognitive resistance to adding another item is at its lowest point.
Head-to-head comparison
| Factor | Product Page | Cart Drawer |
|---|---|---|
| Shopper intent | Medium (browsing) | High (committed buyer) |
| Volume of impressions | Higher (all visitors) | Lower (buyers only) |
| Click-through rate | 4–9% | 8–15% |
| Add-to-cart rate from click | 15–25% | 25–40% |
| Risk of interrupting purchase | Low | Very low |
| Best product type | Complementary browsing items | Essential add-ons, consumables |
Why the numbers don't tell the whole story
The cart drawer has higher conversion rates per impression, but fewer impressions. Only shoppers who add to cart see it. The product page reaches everyone who visits a product — including the 60–70% who never add to cart.
This means:
- Product page cross-sells generate more total recommendations seen. More eyes on your widget, more total clicks, even at a lower rate.
- Cart drawer cross-sells generate more revenue per impression. Fewer people see it, but a much higher percentage of those who do end up buying.
The two placements don't compete — they're complementary. The product page catches everyone. The cart drawer maximizes value from the people who buy.
The recommendation: use both
The stores that see the biggest AOV improvements use both placements with intentionally different products. On the product page, they show a discovery item — something the shopper might not have thought about. In the cart drawer, they show a consumable, an accessory, or an essential that pairs with what's already in the cart.
Dropr enables both placements simultaneously. You configure each independently — different products can appear in each location based on what makes sense for your catalog. Setup for both takes about 3 minutes.
Related reading
- How to Add Product Recommendations to the Shopify Cart Drawer
- Shopify Bundles vs Cross-Sell: Which Makes You More Money?
- Does Cross-Selling Increase Cart Abandonment on Shopify?
- Post-Purchase Upsell vs Cross-Sell: When to Use Each on Shopify
- The Shopify Cart Drawer Explained: What It Is, Which Themes Have It, and How to Add Cross-Sells
FAQ
Should I show the same product in both placements?
Generally no. Showing the same recommendation twice can feel repetitive. Use the product page to introduce complementary options, and the cart drawer to remind shoppers of essential add-ons they might have missed.
Does the cart drawer work if my theme doesn't have one?
Some older or heavily customized Shopify themes don't include a cart drawer. In that case, the cart page becomes your primary cross-sell moment. Dropr supports both cart drawer and cart page placements, so it adapts to whatever your theme uses.
What if a shopper adds the recommended product — do I show them another one?
Refreshing the recommendation when a product is added can work, but keep it subtle. Dropr updates the cart recommendation dynamically based on what's in the cart, so the suggestion stays relevant as the cart grows.