The free gift above a cart threshold is the easiest average-order-value mechanism for the customer to understand, and the easiest one for the merchant to miscalibrate. Set the threshold too low and you give gifts to people who were already above it. Too high and nobody aims for it.
Calculating the threshold, from the distribution
The reflex is to take the average order value and add 20%. It is a bad calculation, because the average is pulled upwards by a few large orders.
Look instead at the distribution of your carts in ten-euro brackets over the last six months. Two pieces of information come out of it.
The mode, that is, the most frequent bracket. It is the amount your customers reach naturally.
The density just above it. How many orders sit between the mode and the mode plus twenty euros? That is the population you can tip over.
The right threshold sits slightly above the mode, at a distance one additional item can bridge. If your carts cluster around 45 euros and your average item costs 18 euros, a threshold at 60 euros is reachable. A threshold at 90 would require two more items and will not be aimed for.
Choosing the gift
Three criteria, in this order.
Its real cost must stay below the expected additional margin. If crossing the threshold brings in fifteen euros of extra revenue at a 40% margin, your gift must not cost more than three to four euros at cost price.
It must relate to the purchase. An accessory, a consumable, a sample from the range. An unrelated promotional item is perceived as stock clearance and motivates no one.
Its perceived value must exceed its cost. That is the whole point of the mechanism. A sample of a product sold at 30 euros has a high perceived value for a low cost price.
Avoid the gift you cannot manage to sell. Customers spot it, and it devalues the offer instead of strengthening it.
Free Gift Above a Cart Threshold — PrestaShop 8 & 9Free gift at cart threshold — clean, measurable, no price hack.€59.00
The progress bar, the real engine
It is the element that makes the scheme work, more than the gift itself.
A bar showing “Only 12 euros to go to receive your gift” acts on a simple mechanism: the customer has already invested in their cart, and the remaining gap looks small compared with what they have already put in.
Four implementation points.
- Visible from the first add to cart, not only on the cart page. A banner or a display in the side drawer.
- The remaining amount, not the percentage. “Only 12 euros to go” is actionable, “80% reached” is not.
- A product suggestion in the missing price range. That is what turns the intention into an add.
- An explicit crossed state. When the threshold is reached, the message changes and the gift appears in the cart, otherwise the customer doubts.
The edge cases to settle
Five situations that will all occur, and that are better decided in advance.
- The customer removes an item and drops back below the threshold. The gift must disappear automatically, with an explicit message. Leaving it produces an order that does not comply with your rules.
- The gift is out of stock. Plan a replacement gift, or a clean removal of the offer. A cart showing an unavailable gift blocks the order.
- Combining with a promo code. Is the threshold calculated before or after the discount? The prudent rule is after the discount, otherwise a 20% discount makes you give a gift on a cart that no longer reaches the threshold.
- Shipping costs. They should not enter the threshold calculation, otherwise the amount to reach varies with the chosen delivery method, which is incomprehensible for the customer.
- The partial return. If the customer returns an item and drops back below the threshold, do you claim the gift back? In practice, no, but the rule must appear in your terms.
On the invoice
The gift must appear as a zero-euro line, with its designation. Two reasons: the traceability of your stock movements, and clarity in case of a return or a dispute.
Its cost price remains an expense for you, and the item leaves your stock like any sale. If you manage quantities, plan the decrement.
Measuring
Three figures, recorded before and after launch.
The average order value, obviously, but above all its distribution: you must see a peak appear just above the threshold. If that peak does not appear, the mechanism changed nothing and you are giving with nothing in return.
The share of orders that triggered the gift. Too high, your threshold is too low. Too low, it is unreachable. A range of 20 to 35% is a good benchmark.
The margin per order, gift cost deducted. It is the only figure that says whether the operation is profitable, and it is often forgotten in favour of the average order value, which necessarily goes up.
The Free Gift Above a Cart Threshold module handles this mechanism on PrestaShop 8 and 9: configurable threshold, progress bar with remaining amount, automatic removal below the threshold, gift stock management and combination rules with other promotions.
