Checkout5 min readUpdated October 15, 2026

What Is an Order Bump?

Order bump meaning, vs one-click upsell, cross-sell and cart drawer upsell, why a pre-checked box is not consent, and how to measure take rate.

Nick Bonnassies, CMO at Tagada · checked against 7 sources

Article summary

TL;DR

An order bump is an optional add-on offered on the checkout page, before the customer pays. The shopper ticks a box and the item joins the same order and the same charge, with no new page and no new card entry. It is meant to raise average order value, and the box should start unticked.

An order bump sits on the checkout page and joins the first payment. A one-click upsell comes after payment and creates a second charge.
A pre-checked bump is not consent. In the EU the shopper can claim the payment back, and the FTC lists pre-checked boxes as a sneak-into-basket dark pattern.
Under Visa's rules, a merchant that makes shoppers reject an extra offer during checkout is a negative option merchant, with click-to-accept, receipt and notice duties.
A subscription or trial bump needs its own consent: terms shown before the card details, express agreement and a simple way to cancel.
Order bump take rate = orders with the bump ÷ orders where it was shown. Published figures disagree widely, so measure your own against a holdout.

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On this page

An order bump is the small offer you see just above the Pay button: "Add a spare filter for $9". This page defines it, sets it apart from the offers it gets confused with, and covers the two questions merchants ask most: can the box be pre-checked, and what take rate to expect. For supplement and skincare brands: order bumps for supplement brands and order bumps for skincare brands.

What is an order bump?

An order bump is an optional add-on shown on the checkout page, before payment, that the shopper adds with one tick. The total updates on the spot and the add-on is paid in the same charge as the main order. There is no new page, no second cart and no new card entry. "Order bumping" is the practice of adding one to a checkout.

Fig. 1An order bump on the checkout page

Checkout · Water bottleOrder summary above the payment form

Main item: Filter water bottle · $48.00
Order bump: ☐ Add a spare filter · $9.00
Total if ticked: $57.00, one charge
Button: Pay now

Illustrative record.

unticked until the shopper chooses it

Illustrative example.

Good bumps are cheap next to the main item, obviously related to it, and explained in one line. Where a bump fits in the full funnel, and the math behind it, is in our guide to building a funnel.

Order bump vs one-click upsell vs cross-sell vs cart drawer upsell

What separates these four is when the offer appears and whether it creates a new charge.

	Where it appears	Before or after payment	Charge	Card network angle
Order bump	Checkout page, near Pay	Before	Part of the first charge	A pre-checked bump makes you a negative option merchant at Visa
One-click upsell	Page after payment, before thank-you	After	A second charge on the stored card	Visa requires express informed consent before a card is stored
Cross-sell	Product page, cart, email	Any time	A new purchase or part of the order	Ordinary sale
Cart drawer upsell	Slide-out cart after add to cart	Before checkout	Part of the first charge	Same consent questions as a bump

Sources: Visa Core Rules, April 2026, section 5.8.17.2 and Table 5-20.1 How the second charge of a one-click upsell works is in 1-click upsell; what to show in the cart is in upsell cart drawer.

Some checkouts tick the bump by default. Three sets of rules say why that is a bad idea.

EU law. Article 22 of the Consumer Rights Directive: "If the trader has not obtained the consumer's express consent but has inferred it by using default options which the consumer is required to reject in order to avoid the additional payment, the consumer shall be entitled to reimbursement of this payment."2

FTC. The FTC's 2022 staff report lists "Sneak-into-Basket" as a dark pattern: "Tricking a shopper into buying unwanted items by using a pre-checked box" (p. 22).3

Visa. Visa's definition of a negative option merchant covers exactly this case:

A Merchant that requires a Cardholder to expressly reject the Merchant's offer of additional goods and/or services during the Transaction process or expressly decline to participate in future Transactions.

Visa Core Rules and Visa Product and Service Rules, April 18, 2026, section 5.8.17.2

Such a merchant must show the required terms on the checkout screen, get consent "via a 'click-to-accept' button on the checkout screen", send a receipt right after, and give notice at least 7 days before a trial or introductory period ends (section 5.8.17.2 and Table 5-31, p. 479 to 480).1

One-time item, box untickedA plain add-on, chosen by the shopperKeep it: price and total visible
Paid item, box pre-tickedEU refund right, FTC dark pattern, Visa negative option merchantLeave the box empty
Subscription or trial as the bumpROSCA in the US; Visa recurring rulesSeparate terms and an explicit consent tick
A partner's product, not yoursVisa up-selling rules (section 5.8.17.1)Name the partner, click-to-accept, own receipt

Subscription bumps. ROSCA requires the seller to disclose "all material terms" before taking billing information, obtain "express informed consent" before charging and provide "simple mechanisms" to stop recurring charges.4 The FTC's 2021 policy statement, quoted in its 2022 report, asks sellers to get acceptance of the negative option "separately from any other portion of the entire transaction".3 The FTC's 2024 click-to-cancel rule is not in force; the agency reopened consultation on March 13, 2026.5 On Visa cards, a recurring charge needs a simple cancellation procedure, online if the order was online, and a notice at least 7 days before a trial or introductory offer ends (Table 5-21, p. 461).1

Partner offers. Visa's "up-selling" rule covers "the sale of goods and services different from, and not affiliated with or a subsidiary of, the initial Merchant". The checkout must name that merchant so it is clearly told apart from you, and consent must come through a click-to-accept button (section 5.8.17.1 and Table 5-30, p. 477 to 478).1 Your own product sold as a bump is not up-selling in this sense.

Order bump conversion rate: how to measure it

The order bump conversion rate, or take rate, is the share of orders that include the bump:

Formula

Take rate = orders that include the bump ÷ orders where the bump was shown

Count orders where the bump was shown. 1,000 paid orders in a month.
Count orders with the bump. 120 include the $9 spare filter.
Divide. 120 ÷ 1,000 = 12% take rate, and $1,080 in added sales.
Check the cost. Compare checkout completion with a holdout that never saw the bump. A bump that costs 15 main orders loses money.

Illustrative example. Numbers are invented to show the method.

Published figures disagree. Growth Suite's own data, from 250 stores between January and June 2026, shows in-checkout offers accepted 9% of the time, from 28 Shopify Plus stores, and not all of them order bumps.6 A Focus Digital report dated August 21, 2026 gives 37.8% for order bumps, without saying how bumps were measured.7 Neither is a benchmark for your store. Count refunded bumps too, and judge the result on revenue per visitor and average order value.

How Tagada helps

Order bumps in the checkout

Tagada follows Visa and Mastercard rules and the laws that apply to payments. Tagada's checkout includes one-click upsells, order bumps, A/B tests, Apple Pay and Google Pay. It runs standalone, on Shopify, on WooCommerce or headless.

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Updated on October 15, 2026

Nick Bonnassies

CMO at Tagada

CMO at Tagada. Before Tagada, Nick built direct-to-consumer brands that generated over $115M in sales, raised over $25M in crowdfunding and sold two of them. He also works as a fractional CMO on marketing operations and AI systems.

Frequently asked questions

What is order bumping?

Order bumping is the practice of offering a small, related add-on on the checkout page, just above the Pay button. The shopper ticks a box, the total updates, and the add-on is paid in the same charge as the main order. A refill, an accessory or faster shipping are typical bumps.

What is the difference between an order bump and an upsell?

Timing and charge. An order bump is offered before payment and joins the first charge. A one-click upsell is offered after payment and charges the stored card a second time, which needs the shopper's consent to store the card. A classic upsell offers a bigger or better version of the item rather than an extra.

What is a good order bump conversion rate?

There is no official benchmark. Published figures range from 9% (Growth Suite's own data on in-checkout offers, January to June 2026) to 37.8% (a Focus Digital report, August 2026), with different definitions and methods. Measure your take rate as orders with the bump divided by orders where it was shown, and compare it with a holdout.

Can an order bump be pre-checked?

Not for a paid add-on sold to EU consumers: Article 22 of the Consumer Rights Directive entitles them to a refund of any extra payment taken through a default option. The FTC lists pre-checked boxes as a dark pattern, and Visa treats a merchant that makes shoppers reject an extra offer as a negative option merchant. Leave the box unticked.

Can an order bump be a subscription?

Yes, but it is then a recurring agreement, not a simple add-on. In the US, ROSCA requires all material terms before billing details, express informed consent and a simple way to cancel. Visa requires the terms at the time of consent and, for a trial or introductory price, a notice at least 7 days before it ends.

Does an order bump create a second charge?

No. The bump is added to the order before payment, so the shopper sees one total and one charge on the statement. That is the main difference with a post-purchase upsell, which charges the stored card again after the first payment.

Sources

Checked October 15, 2026

Tagada

Order bumps and one-click upsells in one checkout

Funnels, one-click upsells, subscription billing and payment routing, on one customer record.

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