Bundles or upsells: which one should you set up first?
Bundles and upsells answer the same question — how do I get customers to buy more than one thing? — in opposite ways. A bundle decides in advance what goes together and sells it as one product. An upsell waits until the customer has chosen, then suggests what goes with that choice. Each has its place, and picking the wrong one costs you either margin or sales.
What a bundle is good at
- Products that are almost always bought together: a starter kit, a set of three, a routine.
- Gifts, where the customer wants a ready-made answer.
- Moving a slower product by pairing it with a popular one — carefully, since it can drag the popular one down.
A bundle makes the decision easy: one price, one click. It works best when your catalog has natural groups that customers would otherwise have to put together themselves.
What a bundle costs you
- Each bundle is one more product to manage: price, photos, description. Shopify’s own Bundles app keeps the stock in sync with the components, but the rest is on you.
- It only reaches the customers who find it. It sits in your catalog like any other product.
- It usually carries a discount, given to everyone who buys it, including those who would have bought both items anyway.
What an upsell is good at
- Catalogs where the right add-on depends on what was chosen: a size, a colour, a model.
- Reaching every customer at the moment they buy, not only those who browse your bundles.
- Keeping the main product at full price. The discount, if any, applies to the add-on only, and only when it is accepted.
What an upsell costs you
- It interrupts, once. An offer that is hard to close, or that comes back, costs more than it earns.
- It needs a sensible pairing for each main product, and a little testing to find the right one.
How to choose
| If… | Start with |
|---|---|
| Customers already buy the same products together | A bundle |
| Your catalog has many variants and the right add-on depends on them | An upsell |
| You mostly sell gifts | A bundle, then an upsell for the wrapping or the card |
| Your margin is thin | An upsell: the discount only costs you when it works |
| Most customers buy a single item | An upsell: it is the only one of the two they will actually see |
Doing both
They combine well: a bundle on the product page for customers who want a ready-made set, and an upsell at checkout for those who picked their own items. The only rule is not to offer the same thing twice. If someone bought the kit, don’t upsell them one of its pieces.
Where FlatUpsell fits
FlatUpsell sits on the upsell side: an offer when the customer clicks checkout on the cart page, and another right after payment. It doesn’t build bundles. If your catalog calls for them, Shopify’s Bundles app does that job, and the two live side by side without getting in each other’s way.