Countdown Timers

How to add a countdown timer to abandoned cart emails

Last updated October 30, 2026

Abandoned cart emails go out at different times for every shopper, so a fixed end date doesn't work. Use a timer that's personal to each shopper instead. There are two good approaches.

Option 1: A fixed-length offer from when they open

"Complete your order in the next 2 hours for an extra 5% off." Every shopper gets the same amount of time, starting when they open the email.

• Timer type: Start on Email Open with Unique User Timer on (Micro and above).
• Set up: see how to set up a Start on Email Open timer.

Option 2: A deadline based on the cart

"Your items are reserved for 1 hour." The countdown ends at a set time after the shopper added items or left checkout, whenever they open the email.

• Timer type: Dynamic Timer (Power and above).
• Set up: in the code, set ?to= to your platform's merge tag for the cart or checkout time, plus the hold time in seconds. For example, ?to={{ checkout_time }}+3600 for one hour (use the exact tag name your platform gives you).
• Or use Start on Email Send to count down from when the reminder was sent.
• Details: see how to set up a Dynamic or Start on Email Send timer.

Make it work harder

• Add Dynamic Links so the button goes to the cart while the timer runs and to a "your items are no longer reserved" page or your store afterwards. See how to make a timer clickable with Dynamic Links.
• Choose what shows at zero, like "This offer has ended". See how to choose what shows when a timer ends.
• Keep it honest. Only promise a deadline you'll keep, and say what it's for.

Add it to your flow

1. Create and save the timer in Sendtric.
2. Copy its code and paste it into the abandoned cart email in your platform's automation (flow).
3. Check the merge tag in the code is right, and trigger a test cart to see the timer in a real email.

Using Klaviyo? Push the timer straight into a Klaviyo content block. See how to push a widget to Klaviyo, Mailchimp or HubSpot. Our blog post on recovering abandoned carts with dynamic and perpetual timers has more ideas.

To learn more about email countdown timers, see our Email Countdown Timer page.

Related

• Which countdown timer type should I use?
• How to use merge tags in Sendtric widgets
• My countdown timer is not showing correctly on Apple Mail

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