When it comes to running a successful WooCommerce store, every detail counts—especially your shopping cart.
The average eCommerce cart abandonment rate is 70.19% (Baymard Institute, 2023). That means most people are probably clicking “exit” instead of finishing their transaction on your site.
So, if you want to increase your revenue and conversion rate, focus on your carts!
In this WooCommerce cart customization guide, our experienced developers will show you how to take your online store game to the next level with custom cart pages as versatile as your business needs.
Understanding the WooCommerce Cart System
The default WooCommerce cart page is designed to work universally across your store. By default, every product added to the cart by any user gets funneled into a single WooCommerce cart page.
While this setup works for basic eCommerce needs, it presents cart limitations, such as:
- Inability to differentiate between user roles like retail customers and wholesale buyers.
- Challenges in running promotional sales requiring isolated carts.
- Lack of customization for specific product categories like digital vs. physical goods.
Why One Cart Page May Not Be Enough
A single default WooCommerce cart page might not suffice for advanced setups. Here are a few scenarios where multiple cart pages can improve functionality:
- Segmented carts for wholesale and retail customers, offering tailored experiences.
- Separate carts for different product categories, such as apparel and subscription-based products.
- Dedicated carts for promotional sales or exclusive bundles, avoiding conflicts with standard carts.
The bottom line: if your site is simple, a simple one-page cart system might work. On the other hand, more complex product offerings tend to require a custom solution.
Why Create Multiple WooCommerce Cart Pages?
Creating multiple cart pages enables WooCommerce customization for various user roles. For example:
- Wholesale buyers may benefit from carts with bulk discounts.
- Guest users could have carts limited to promotional items.
- Retail customers might see curated carts with product recommendations.
- Separate cart pages for each language, ensuring localized content for users.
This approach can significantly improve the WooCommerce user experience and boost sales.
For stores selling diverse products, segmenting carts can simplify the shopping process—and customers love simplicity.
Reports indicate that a complicated checkout process deters 22% of shoppers, and that starts with your WooCommerce cart.
For instance, consider the benefit of…
- Separate carts for digital products (e.g., eBooks, subscriptions) and physical goods (e.g., apparel, electronics).
- Custom cart templates designed to enhance usability based on the product type.
Promotions and Special Offers
Segmented carts also work well for running promotions at your online store.
For example, you might want a dedicated cart for holiday bundles, a one-time coupon code, or discount-specific items.
Separate carts are also great for loyalty program members or repeat buyers with exclusive discounts.
Using Plugins to Create Multiple Shopping Cart Pages
The AOV Up Plugin for WooCommerce
The AOV Up plugin simplifies the process of creating multiple shopping cart pages in WooCommerce.
With this plugin, you can:
1. Save & Share Cart for WooCommerce
- Save & Share Cart for WooCommerce – WooCommerce
- This plugin provides unique functionality that allows customers to create multiple carts.
- Users can save or share their own carts as necessary and retrieve them later.
- You can find installation and setup steps in the documentation:
- Save & Share Cart for WooCommerce Documentation
2. Collab Cart for WooCommerce
- Collab Cart for WooCommerce – WooCommerce
- WooCommerce allows a single cart per user, but with this plugin, users can create a collaborative cart experience independent of the native WooCommerce Cart.
- Users can add products to the collaborative cart (called the Collab Cart) and invite other registered users to add their products.
- When invited users add items, the cart creator can purchase items for the whole group.
- Find more details in the documentation: Collab Cart for WooCommerce Documentation
These plugins enable the creation of multiple carts as per the user’s needs.
Creating Custom Cart Pages Without Plugins
Creating Custom Cart Templates
If you prefer manual WooCommerce customization options, you can create custom cart templates using WooCommerce’s flexible framework.
We could spend a whole blog post talking about that, but typically, steps to do this include:
- Copying the cart template file (cart.php) from WooCommerce’s core files to your theme folder.
- Modifying the file to meet specific needs, such as adding conditional logic for user roles or product categories.
Writing Custom Cart Logic with Code
Did you know you can use conditional statements to load different cart pages? For example, you can use a code like this:
add_filter(‘template_include’, ‘custom_cart_template’);
function custom_cart_template($template) {
if (is_user_logged_in() && current_user_can(‘wholesale_customer’)) {
return get_template_directory() . ‘/woocommerce/cart-wholesale.php’;
} elseif (is_product_category(‘digital’)) {
return get_template_directory() . ‘/woocommerce/cart-digital.php’;
}
return $template;
}
Designing Custom Cart Pages
Customizing your cart pages is an excellent way to create a visually appealing shopping experience.
You can use HTML, CSS, and JavaScript to ensure the cart design aligns perfectly with your brand’s identity and unique style.
Whether you match your store’s color palette, add engaging animations, or optimize the layout for mobile responsiveness, a well-designed cart page can elevate the user experience.
Additionally, consider integrating user-friendly features like progress indicators, collapsible sections, or personalized messaging to guide shoppers effortlessly through the checkout process.
A thoughtfully designed cart page not only reflects professionalism but also encourages conversions.
Handling Cart Data for Multiple Carts
Storing Cart Data Separately
When managing multiple carts in WooCommerce, storing each cart’s data separately is crucial to maintaining a smooth and error-free shopping experience.
This can be achieved by leveraging cookies or session variables to distinguish between the different carts.
By isolating cart data, you can prevent conflicts such as overwriting items or merging unrelated carts, which could lead to customer confusion or frustration.
For example, you might use session handling to assign unique identifiers to each cart based on the user’s role, product category, or promotion.
These identifiers ensure that each cart operates independently, storing only the relevant items and user preferences.
This approach is particularly helpful when managing segmented carts for wholesale versus retail customers or separating physical and digital product purchases.
Add to Physical Cart Button Example:
<button class=”add-to-physical-cart” data-product-id=”‘ . $product->get_id() . ‘”>Add to Physical Cart</button>’;
Add the different products to a specific cart: Use the following code:
function add_product_to_specific_cart($product_id, $quantity = 1, $cart_type = ‘physical’) {
// Write Session code here
}
Using WooCommerce Session API
The WooCommerce Session API is a powerful tool for dynamically managing cart data, especially when working with multiple carts.
By using this API, you can store and retrieve custom cart data for specific users or scenarios.
For instance, the following code snippets demonstrate how to set and retrieve custom cart data:
// Set custom cart data
WC()->session->set(‘custom_cart_key’, $custom_cart_data);
// Retrieve custom cart data
$custom_cart_data = WC()->session->get(‘custom_cart_key’);
Additionally, WooCommerce Session API supports robust error handling, making it easier to debug and resolve potential issues.
Proper use of this API ensures that your segmented carts work as intended, delivering a seamless experience for your users.
Customizing Cart Behavior for Each Cart Page
Setting Cart Rules for Specific Pages
Create cart rules that apply only to specific pages on your WordPress site. For example:
- Enable free shipping for carts over $100.
- Only allow certain payment methods for wholesale carts.
Promotions and Discounts for Specific Carts
Use your custom carts for promotions to encourage customers to hit that checkout button.
For example, create discounts that apply only to carts containing specific promotional items, or tailor a custom message for certain purchases.
Restricting Products in Certain Carts
Limit what can be added to a cart. Restricting specific products is a key strategy for maintaining organization and improving user experience when managing multiple shopping cart pages.
When you set rules for which products can be added to each cart, you ensure that customers have a seamless shopping experience tailored to their needs.
This is especially useful for stores that sell a combination of downloadable products, subscription services, and physical items.
Similarly, you can create separate carts for wholesale and retail customers, limiting access to certain items based on the user’s role or account type.
Testing and Optimizing Your Multiple Cart System
Thorough Testing of Multiple Carts
When implementing multiple cart pages, thoroughly test each one for functionality.
Ensure the product addition and removal processes are smooth and allow customers to easily add or remove items from the cart.
Verify that session data is stored correctly when switching between carts, so users don’t lose their selections.
It’s also important to test the compatibility of each cart with the checkout process to ensure a seamless transition from cart to payment.
Finally, confirm your cart pages are mobile-responsive and load quickly, as slow or unoptimized pages can lead to a poor user experience and abandoned purchases.
Thorough testing across all these areas ensures your cart system works perfectly for customers, reducing the risk of frustration and cart abandonment.
Optimizing Cart Flow for Better User Experience
To optimize the cart flow and enhance user experience, start by facilitating clear navigation between carts.
Users should be able to easily switch between different cart types, whether they’re shopping for digital goods, physical products, or accessing promotional carts.
Prominent calls to action (CTAs), like “Proceed to Checkout,” should be clearly visible to guide customers through the buying process.
Offering special incentives, like coupon codes or exclusive discounts at checkout, can also increase conversion rates.
After all, more than 90% of U.S. shoppers typically look for deals and discounts before making an online purchase (Statista, 2020).
By making the cart process as smooth and incentivizing as possible, you reduce friction and increase the likelihood that customers will complete their purchases.
Troubleshooting Common WooCommerce Cart Issues
Common issues with multiple cart systems can often include session conflicts, where cart data is mixed between different user sessions, and broken cart rules, where discounts or product restrictions aren’t applied correctly.
To avoid these problems, make sure each cart has a unique session, preventing data conflicts.
Test your cart rules thoroughly to confirm that discounts or product exclusions are functioning as intended.
If issues persist, utilizing WordPress’s debug mode can help pinpoint the source of problems, such as incorrect logic or broken payment integrations.
Generally, regular troubleshooting is the best way to maintain a smooth and efficient shopping experience for every visitor, from your cart to your WooCommerce checkout page.
The Value of Multiple Shopping Cart Pages
Implementing multiple shopping carts in WooCommerce offers significant benefits, from better segmentation to improved user experience and overall eCommerce optimization.
Creating customized cart pages tailored to specific user roles, product categories, or promotions provides a more personalized shopping experience that encourages conversions and boosts customer satisfaction.
As an online store owner, we highly encourage you to explore the value of segmentation and optimizing cart functionality so your customers enjoy a seamless and efficient shopping journey.
Ready to Build Your Custom WooCommerce Cart?
If you’re ready to implement a custom WooCommerce cart solution for your store, the pros at CoSpark are here to help.
Whether you need assistance with designing custom cart pages, optimizing cart flow, or managing cart data, we have the tools and expertise to help your eCommerce site operate at its best.
Reach out to us today for personalized support and guidance in creating the perfect shopping cart and WooCommerce checkout system for your store.
