What is the difference between purchase frequency and repeat purchase rate?

Repeat purchase rate is the share of customers who ordered at least twice. Purchase frequency is the average number of orders per customer. A store can have a modest repeat rate but high frequency if a small group of loyal customers orders very often, so it is worth tracking both.

What time period should I use for purchase frequency?

Twelve months suits most stores, because it smooths out seasonal peaks and gives customers enough time to return. Stores selling fast-moving consumables may also find a 90-day view useful. Whatever you choose, use the same window for orders and customers.

How does purchase frequency relate to customer lifetime value?

It is one of the three parts of the simple formula: CLV = AOV × purchase frequency × customer lifespan. Raising frequency increases lifetime value proportionally, as long as order value holds steady.

Why did my purchase frequency drop after a big promotion?

Promotions often bring in many first-time buyers, each with a single order so far. That adds lots of customers to the denominator without many extra orders, so frequency dips. Look at frequency by cohort to see whether existing customers actually ordered less.

What Is Purchase Frequency? Formula, Benchmarks and How to Track It

Purchase frequency is the number of orders divided by the number of unique customers over the same period, usually a year. It tells you how often customers come back, which matters as much as how much they spend each time.

Purchase frequency is the number of orders the average customer places over a period, usually a year. It answers a simple question that matters as much as how much customers spend: how often do they come back?

Together with average order value, it is the backbone of customer lifetime value. A store can grow revenue by getting bigger baskets, or by getting the same customers to order more often - and the second is usually cheaper than finding new ones.

What Is Purchase Frequency?

Purchase frequency (also called orders per customer) tells you how many times, on average, each customer bought from you in a given window. A frequency of 1.0 means every customer ordered exactly once. Anything above that means at least some customers came back.

Unlike repeat purchase rate, which counts how many customers returned at all, purchase frequency rewards the regulars who order again and again.

🧒 Explained simply Your corner shop had 50 customers last year, and between them they made 150 visits. Some came once, a few came every week. On average, each customer visited 3 times - that is your purchase frequency.

How to Calculate Purchase Frequency

Purchase Frequency = Orders ÷ Unique customers

Both numbers must come from the same period. Say a store received 6,000 orders over the last 12 months from 4,000 unique customers.

6,000 ÷ 4,000 = 1.5 orders per customer per year

Things to decide before you trust the number:

The window. Use 12 months for most stores so seasonal peaks average out. A monthly purchase frequency is close to 1.0 for nearly everyone and tells you little.
Unique customers, not accounts. Guest checkouts can split one person into several "customers". Match on email so the denominator is not inflated.
Which orders count. Exclude cancelled, unpaid and test orders. Decide whether fully refunded orders count, and stay consistent.
The median view. A small group of very frequent buyers can pull the average up. Looking at how many customers placed 1, 2, 3 or more orders shows whether frequency is broad or concentrated.

Why Purchase Frequency Matters

It feeds lifetime value directly. The simple version of customer lifetime value is AOV × purchase frequency × lifespan. Raising frequency from 1.5 to 1.8 orders a year lifts lifetime value by a fifth, with no change to prices or basket size.

It makes marketing spend go further. Every extra order from an existing customer is revenue you did not have to pay to acquire. That gives you more room to spend on winning the first order.

It shows whether the product fits. When new cohorts order more often than older ones, customers are finding a reason to come back. When frequency falls, something in the product, the price or the experience has stopped pulling them back.

What Is a Good Purchase Frequency?

It depends on how often your products are needed. Coffee, pet food and skincare run out and get reordered; a winter coat or a desk chair might be bought once every few years. Comparing a consumables store with a furniture store tells you nothing useful.

Track it by cohort and by segment instead. Compare customers acquired this year with those acquired last year, and compare channels and first-purchase categories against each other. A rising frequency among new cohorts is a strong sign of product-market fit.

How to Improve Purchase Frequency

1. Time reminders to the real repurchase cycle

Work out the usual gap between orders for each product or category, and send a reminder just before it ends. A reminder that lands when the customer is about to run out feels helpful, not pushy.

2. Make reordering effortless

Saved details and a "buy again" option in order history or emails remove friction from every repeat order.

3. Extend the range customers already trust

If customers return only for one product, add complementary items they would otherwise buy elsewhere. Look at what your most frequent buyers purchase alongside their usual order for ideas.

4. Reward frequency, not just spend

Loyalty perks tied to the number of orders - early access, free shipping after a certain number of orders - encourage return visits. Keep rewards modest so they do not simply give margin away.

5. Give people a reason to come back

New products, restocks and seasonal collections create natural moments to return. Announce them to past buyers first.

6. Spot customers slowing down

A regular who has gone well past their usual gap is a better target than a cold prospect. Reach out while the relationship is still warm.

How to Track Purchase Frequency

Chartsy for Ecommerce connects to your BigCommerce store with read-only access and syncs orders, products and customers every hour. It calculates purchase frequency from your synced store orders automatically, and you can break it down by month, product, category or customer segment.

Orders, customers and repeat customers all come from the same order history, so the numerator and denominator always cover the same period. Monthly customer segments - Loyalists, Promising, At-Risk and Lost - show which customers drive your frequency and which are drifting away.

"What is our purchase frequency over the last 12 months?"
"Compare orders per customer for customers acquired this year and last year"
"Which category do our most frequent buyers start with?"

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What is Purchase Frequency?

Key takeaways