Repeat purchase rate: the formula and how to get customers to buy again
How to calculate repeat purchase rate, why returning customers matter for your cost per customer, and practical ways to get more second and third orders.
The cheapest customer is the one you already have. When a customer buys a second and third time, the cost of winning them is spread over several orders, and suddenly channels that looked too expensive start to pay off.
The formula
Repeat purchase rate = customers who ordered more than once ÷ all customers, in the same period.
Example: in the last 12 months, 1,000 customers ordered, and 250 of them ordered at least twice. Repeat purchase rate = 25 %.
Look at it over a period that fits your product: supplements and cosmetics repeat in weeks, furniture in years.
Why it changes everything
If a customer costs 40 € to win and brings 15 € of profit per order, one order loses 25 €. Three orders earn 5 €. The same ads, the same budget, a completely different business. That is why we look at unit economics before touching ad budgets.
Where repeat purchases come from
The product and the experience
- The product does what the ad promised.
- Delivery is on time and packaging is right.
- Problems are solved quickly and kindly. A well-handled complaint often creates a loyal customer.
Timing
- For consumables, remind customers when the product is likely to run out.
- Seasonal products: contact customers before the season, not during it.
Channels you do not pay for every time
- Email and SMS to people who agreed to hear from you: order follow-up, how-to content, replenishment reminders.
- A customer account or app, if customers buy often.
Remarketing to past buyers
- Show complementary products, not the one they just bought. See remarketing vs retargeting.
Offers that reward coming back
- Subscriptions, bundles, a small benefit on the second order. Test them; do not give margin away by default.
Measure it properly
- Mark first and repeat orders in your shop data.
- Track the share of revenue from returning customers month by month.
- Look at cohorts: of customers who first bought in January, how many bought again within 90 days?
A quick diagnosis
If repeat purchases are low, ask customers who did not come back. Often the reason is simple: delivery was slow, the product was not what they expected, or nobody reminded them. Fixing that can be worth more than any campaign.
Advice on the product and repeat purchases is part of our work with clients; see how we work.
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