Checkout UX checklist for online stores
A checkout UX checklist: cart, account, form fields, errors, delivery, payment, mobile and accessibility – each point backed by Baymard research.
In short
A good checkout is short, predictable and forgiving. Check that the cart shows the total including delivery, that guest checkout is possible, that the form asks only for what's needed, that errors appear next to the field and explain what to fix, that a delivery date is shown, that shoppers can switch method after a failed payment, and that all of it works on a phone. The full list, with explanations, is below.
Key takeaways
- In Baymard's 2025 benchmark, 64% of desktop and 63% of mobile sites have a “mediocre” or worse checkout experience – nearly everyone has something to improve.
- Most stores need 8 form fields; the average checkout has 11.3.
- Guest checkout should be the most prominent option – 62% of sites don't make it so, and 18% of shoppers leave because they're forced to register.
- Validate fields inline and name the specific problem: 31% of sites have no inline validation, and 94% don't adapt error messages to the specific error.
- The European Accessibility Act covers e-commerce services, so checkout must also work for people using a keyboard or a screen reader.
Why checkout deserves its own check
A shopper who reaches checkout has already decided to buy. If they leave here, it's rarely doubt about the product – it's friction: an unexpected total, registration, too many fields, an unclear error or a failed payment. That makes checkout the place where fixes pay off fastest.
- Checkout
- The sequence of steps in an online store from cart to order confirmation: contact details, delivery address and method, payment and confirmation. Checkout UX (user experience) is how easy and predictable those steps are to get through.
64% / 63%
Share of desktop and mobile sites in Baymard's 2025 benchmark with a “mediocre” or worse checkout experience.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20263
The list follows the checkout flow. Each group covers why it matters, the data and what to check; the full list is at the end. If you don't yet know whether the problem is in checkout at all, start with a purchase journey analysis – shoppers may be stopping on the product page.
Before checkout
The cart is where shoppers check the total and decide whether to carry on.
Cart: a total with no surprises
40% / 12%
Share of shoppers in Baymard's survey who abandoned a checkout because extra costs were too high (40%) or because they couldn't see or calculate the total order cost up front (12%).
Source: Baymard Institute, 20261
In the cart, check
- Is the delivery cost, or its range, visible before an address is entered?
- Is the total shown with all fees included?
- Is the free-delivery threshold shown with the amount still to go?
- Is the discount code field tucked behind a link rather than shown as a large empty box?
- Can quantities be changed with buttons and a product removed with one tap?
- Are the product photo, variant (size, colour) and estimated delivery time visible?
35%
Share of sites that, according to Baymard, show the discount code field by default, although Baymard recommends hiding it behind a link.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20262
Account, fields and errors
The fewer decisions and the clearer the errors, the fewer reasons to give up.
Account: guest checkout comes first
62%
Share of sites in Baymard's 2025 checkout benchmark that don't make guest checkout the most prominent option; 65% don't avoid overly complex password requirements.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20263
18%
Share of shoppers in Baymard's survey who abandoned a checkout because the site required them to create an account.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20261
Check
- Is “Checkout as guest” the most prominent option, not a link under the login form?
- Is account creation offered after payment, when only a password is needed?
- Can customers sign in without a complex password (with an email link, say)?
- Are password requirements shown up front, not only after an error?
Form fields: only what the order needs
11.3 → 8
The average checkout in 2024 had 11.3 form fields, though Baymard finds 8 would be enough for most sites; the average checkout has 5.1 steps.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20262
| Field | Common practice | Better |
|---|---|---|
| First and last name | Two separate fields (89% of sites) | One “Full name” field |
| Address line 2 | Shown by default (75%) | Hidden behind a link |
| Discount code | Shown by default (35%) | Hidden behind a link |
| Billing address | A separate form (24%) | Defaults to the delivery address |
| Account creation | Before payment (84% don't delay it) | On the confirmation page |
42%
Share of participants in Baymard's testing who, faced with separate first and last name fields, typed their full name into the “First name” field.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20262
61% / 49%
Share of sites in Baymard's 2025 benchmark that don't explicitly mark both required and optional fields (61%), and that don't explain why a phone number is needed (49%).
Source: Baymard Institute, 20263
Check
- Can you say of every field, “we can't fulfil the order without it”?
- Is the full name a single field?
- Are company details hidden behind a “Buying for a business” link?
- Are both required and optional fields marked?
- Does the phone field say why you need it (for the courier, say)?
- Do you accept postcodes and phone numbers in different formats – with or without spaces, with a country code?
Errors: next to the field, in plain words, with nothing lost
31%
Share of sites in Baymard's research with no inline validation at all – shoppers only learn about errors after submitting the form.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20264
94%
Share of sites in Baymard's 2025 benchmark that don't adapt error messages to the specific error – the same generic message appears whatever is wrong.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20263
Common mistake
- “Invalid data” at the top of the form
- Checked only when “Pay” is pressed
- Fields wiped after an error
- The error stays visible after it's fixed
Better
- “Postcode must be 5 digits, e.g. 44280” – next to the field
- Checked when the shopper leaves the field, not while still typing
- What was typed stays
- Once fixed the error disappears and the field is marked as correct
Delivery and payment
The last two decisions: how and when the product arrives, and how to pay for it.
Delivery: date, options and cost in one place
48% / 52%
Share of sites in Baymard's 2025 benchmark that show delivery speed instead of an actual date (48%), and that don't include all fulfilment options in one shipping selector (52%).
Source: Baymard Institute, 20263
20%
Share of shoppers in Baymard's survey who abandoned a checkout because “delivery was too slow”.
Source: Baymard Institute, 20261
Check
- Does each delivery option show its cost and an estimated date?
- Are courier, parcel lockers and in-store pickup offered in one selector?
- Can shoppers find a parcel locker by address or town, not only from a long list?
- Does it say by what time an order must be placed to ship the same day?
Payment: familiar methods and a second attempt
19% / 10% / 9%
Share of shoppers in Baymard's survey who abandoned a checkout because they didn't trust the site with card details (19%), their card was declined (10%) or there weren't enough payment methods (9%).
Source: Baymard Institute, 20261
Check
- Do you offer the methods your shoppers are used to – bank links, cards and, where it fits, pay-in-instalments?
- After a failed payment, can shoppers pick another method straight away without losing the cart or what they typed?
- Does a shopper returning from the bank's page always land on a clear confirmation or error page?
- Does the payment step look consistent with the rest of the site and clearly name the payment provider?
When we build an online store, we integrate the most popular payment and delivery providers to suit the business – and agree the specific ones before work starts.
Mobile and accessibility
The same checkout has to work on a small screen, with a keyboard and with a screen reader.
Mobile: keyboards, autofill and buttons
On a phone, every field costs more: a small screen, a keyboard covering half the form, a finger missing a small button. So test the same checkout on a phone from start to finish – with a real address and payment method.
24 × 24
The minimum target size in CSS pixels under WCAG 2.2 success criterion 2.5.8 (level AA), with listed exceptions such as when there is enough spacing around the target.
Check
- Does the phone field open a numeric keypad, and the email field a keyboard with “@”?
- Do fields carry autocomplete attributes so the browser can suggest name, address and phone?
- Is the main button visible without scrolling and not hidden by the keyboard?
- Are shoppers spared from re-entering information they've already given (WCAG 2.2 criterion 3.3.7)?
Accessibility: not just good practice
The European Accessibility Act (EAA) lists e-commerce among the services that must be accessible to people with disabilities. In practice, checkout has to be usable with a keyboard and with a screen reader. Whether and how the Act applies to your business specifically is worth confirming with a lawyer.
Check
- Can the whole checkout be completed with a keyboard alone, with focus always visible?
- Does every field have a visible label, not just grey placeholder text inside it?
- Are errors announced to screen readers, not signalled by red colour alone?
- Can shoppers sign in without solving a puzzle or remembering a password with no alternative (WCAG 2.2 criterion 3.3.8)?
After payment: a confirmation that reassures
The confirmation page isn't the end – it's the first impression after the purchase. Shoppers want to know the order went through, when it will arrive and what to do if something is wrong.
Check
- Are the order number, total, delivery method and estimated date visible?
- Does the confirmation email arrive straight away, with the same details?
- Is account creation offered here with a single field – a password?
- Does it say how to get in touch if the order needs changing?
What you can change in Shopify and WooCommerce
Most points on this list can be implemented on any platform, but not equally easily. Shopify's checkout is tested and maintained by the platform, but extensions for the information, shipping and payment steps are only available on Shopify Plus. WooCommerce checkout is part of your own site, so fields and steps can be adapted – but every change needs testing after updates.
More on that difference in our Shopify vs WooCommerce comparison.
Where to start
If you'd like someone from outside to review your checkout, start with a free purchase journey assessment – that is how our conversion optimisation begins. We'll show you the biggest blockers, and if we carry on, the price of the fixes is based on scope and confirmed in writing before work starts. Request the assessment – we reply within 1 business day. The most common reasons shoppers stop before they even reach checkout are covered in why visitors don't buy.
About the data in this article
Methodology
- Date
- Sample
- Baymard Institute's survey and benchmarks (form fields 2024, checkout UX 2025, inline validation 2024), W3C WCAG 2.2, the European Commission's EAA page, Shopify documentation
- Criteria
- Figures only from primary sources, reproduced as published, with a link
- Checklist points are based on the sources' recommendations; the table's “Better” column reflects Baymard's recommendations
- Prioritisation and insights reflect how Oxtren Labs works and are marked separately
- Limitations
- Baymard's surveys are run in the US, and its benchmarks cover large US and European sites. This article does not explain the EAA's legal requirements.
Frequently asked questions
How many steps should a checkout have?
The number of fields and decisions matters more than the number of steps. According to Baymard, the average checkout has 5.1 steps and 11.3 form fields, while most stores would need only 8 fields. A one-page checkout with a long form isn't necessarily better than several short steps.
Do I have to allow checkout without registration?
Yes, unless you're happy to lose shoppers who don't want an account. In Baymard's survey, 18% of those who abandoned a checkout left precisely because they had to create one. Offer the account on the confirmation page – then a password is all it takes.
Do I need a one-page checkout?
Not necessarily. One page helps when there are few fields, but a long single-page form on a phone can be harder than a few short steps. What decides it is the number of fields, the error messages and whether shoppers always know where they are.
Does this checklist work for a Shopify store?
Yes, though Shopify handles some points itself and checkout step extensions are only available on Shopify Plus. The cart, product page, delivery information and confirmation email can be improved on any plan.
Sources and methodology
- Baymard InstituteCart & Checkout Abandonment Rate Statisticsaccessed
- Baymard InstituteCheckout Optimization: Reduce the Number of Form Fieldsaccessed
- Baymard InstituteCheckout UX Best Practices (Current State of Checkout UX)accessed
- Baymard InstituteUsability Testing of Inline Form Validation: 31% Don't Have It, 4% Get It Wrongaccessed
- W3C Web Accessibility InitiativeWhat's New in WCAG 2.2accessed
- European CommissionEuropean Accessibility Act (EAA)accessed
- Shopify.devCheckout UI extensionsaccessed