How to Create WooCommerce Cart Discounts: A Complete Guide!

This article is your ultimate resource for understanding the process of How to Create WooCommerce Cart Discounts. Gain expert knowledge and actionable tips to seamlessly implement cart discounts in your online store.

WooCommerce is a powerful eCommerce solution for WordPress users. Among its many features, the ability to create discounts stands out as a crucial tool for improving sales, increasing customer retention, and standing out in a competitive market. Specifically, cart discounts—discounts applied based on conditions related to the contents of a user’s shopping cart—offer flexibility and a direct incentive for customers to make a purchase.

In this guide, we’ll explore how to create WooCommerce cart discounts, step by step, ensuring that you can leverage this feature effectively to boost your store’s performance.

Let’s begin our journey!

Table of Contents

What are WooCommerce Cart Discounts?

WooCommerce cart discounts are offers that lower the price of items in a customer’s cart. These discounts can apply based on conditions like the total amount spent, the number of items in the cart, specific product categories, or customer loyalty.

Simply put, you offer a discount when certain conditions are met. Here are some common types of WooCommerce cart discounts.

Here are some common types of WooCommerce cart discounts:

Percentage-based discounts
Fixed amount discounts
Category-specific discounts
Product-specific discounts
Bulk purchase discounts
Free shipping discounts
Buy one, get one (BOGO) discounts
Cart total discounts

So, let’s move on to how you can create such cart discounts for your store to skyrocket your sales.

How to Generate WooCommerce Cart Discounts?

There are several ways to create a WooCommerce cart discount, and you can choose the method that best fits your needs. You can use the built-in WooCommerce features, install a cart discount plugin, or even apply custom codes for more advanced discounts.

Here are the methods we’ll explore to create WooCommerce cart discounts:

Using a Cart Discount Rules Plugin (Free & requires no technical expertise)
Using the WooCommerce Coupon Tool (Free, but requires minimum WordPress function)
Using Custom Codes in WooCommerce (Free and requires enough coding skill)

Let’s begin with the plugin option first.

How to Create WooCommerce Cart Discounts Using a Plugin

Plugins are the ideal tools for setting up any type of discount that applies automatically to the cart. With plugins, you have flexibility and customization options to create advanced discount rules tailored to your customers’ needs and expectations.

WooCommerce stores have a wide range of discount plugins to choose from. We’ve reviewed several of these options; our top reviewed WooCommerce cart discount plugin is Disco.

This plugin is packed with many advanced features and is entirely free!

Whether you’re aiming to set up volume discounts, BOGO deals, bundle discounts, or more complex options like conditional, customer-specific, or tiered discounts, Disco makes the process simple.

Let’s begin with installing the plugin from the repository before exploring different WooCommerce cart discounts.

After installation, Disco adds its own menu to the left panel. Simply go to your dashboard and click on Disco to create a discount.

The discount window includes all the sections needed to customize a discount rule. These options adjust based on the discount type you select.

You can create different variable discounts in this. But, for now, I am showing you how to create cart discounts for your Woocommerce store.

Now, you can create 4 different types of cart discounts for your Woocommerce store:

Sitewide Cart Discount
Category-Specific Cart Discount
Product-Specific Cart Discount
WooCommerce Cart Conditional Discount
Cart Bulk Discount

Sitewide Cart Discount: “20% off on all products during this festival.”

First, in the Discount Intent section, simply select the Cart option.

Here I’ll apply this discount to all products. So, choose the “all products” option. Then, set the specific dates and the usage limit.

Choose the “Percentage” option under Discount Type and enter your desired value (for example, 20).

Simply hit Save & Exit and this 20% discount will apply to all products during your specified weekend.

Now, let’s move on to the next cart discount type.

Category-Specific Cart Discount: “15% off on t-shirts.”

Again, choose “Cart” again under Discount Intent. Similarly, select “All Products” and set the percentage value to (say, 15).

Here, you need to add a condition of this type.

With Disco, you can set different conditions to create discount strategies that fit your exact needs.

For this example, we’ll use the “Categories” condition.

Now, select the category you want to apply the cart discount to.

Just save your settings and add some products suppose from the T-shirt category, and you should see a 20% discount applied.

In addition to showing discounts in the WooCommerce cart, Disco also displays WooCommerce cart discounts on your Shop and category pages.

Product-Specific Cart Discount: “$20 off on a specific jacket.”

This time, to offer a fixed, flat $20 discount on a specific product, continue using the Cart intent. Again, go with the Few products option and select your specific ones.

Next, choose the “Fixed” option and set your discount value.

And, this is how it will show your discount.

WooCommerce Cart Conditional Discount: “15% off on $100 or more shopping”

First, in the Cart section, select percentage in the Product Rules section. Next, add a condition by selecting “Cart Subtotal.”

Important Note: Some condition filters only appear when a specific discount intent is selected in the Discount Intent box. For cart-related conditions, make sure “Cart” is selected at the top.

Since we’re offering a discount for cart subtotals of $100 or more, select the “Greater than or Equal” option.

This discount is right there in the cart section of your customer.

Cart Bulk Discount: “10% discount on 5 items”

In this example, we’re applying a discount to items in the cart. Here’s the discount strategy:

3-5 items: 10% discount
6-10 items: 15% discount
11+ items: 20% discount

For this, select the “Bulk Discount” option. This discount applies to all products.

Next, enter your values in the Bulk Rules box.

For the first rule, set the minimum quantity to 3, the maximum to 5, and the percentage to 10.

Click the “Add More” button and enter your second rule. Finally, add the third rule in the same way.

Let’s check out how one 3-5 items on cart discount looks like:

How to Create WooCommerce Cart Discounts Using the Coupon Tool

The core WooCommerce platform includes a coupon tool for discounts. This tool allows you to create different types of coupon codes and set some basic conditions for your discounts.

Customers will need to manually enter the codes on the cart page to receive the discounts. Let’s create some WooCommerce cart promotion coupons.

We’ll start with a simple example: use code ‘SUMMER20’ for 15% off.

For this, go to Market >> Coupons and click the Add coupon button to start creating a coupon.

Enter your coupon code, then choose “Percentage” from the Discount Type field.

In the Coupon Amount box, enter the discount percentage.

That’s it! To use the coupon, manually enter the code by clicking “Add a Coupon,” then apply it to get 15% off the cart subtotal.

And, your customer will get the discount just under the subtotal purchase amount.

Now, let’s create a discount based on the cart subtotal. For example, a 15% discount when the subtotal reaches $100 or more.

The previous settings will stay the same. This time, add the condition in the Usage Restrictions tab.

In this example, use the Minimum Spend field and enter 100.

Save your coupon, then go to the front end. If you refresh your cart, the discount won’t apply yet because you’ve added a condition.

Add products or increase quantities to reach $100 or more, then apply the code again.

Besides setting minimum amounts, you can add other conditions to your WooCommerce cart discounts, like applying discounts to specific categories or products. You can select these from the available settings.

Coupons are great for promoting products and boosting conversions.

However, since customers must apply them manually and WooCommerce’s built-in tool has limited features, consider using free coupon plugins like Disco to create more advanced discount strategies.

How to Create WooCommerce Cart Discounts using Custom Codes

If you’re comfortable adding custom code to your theme file, you can set up nearly any type of WooCommerce cart discount this way. However, we don’t recommend this method for beginners, as it can risk breaking your entire WooCommerce store.

Now, let’s create a combination bundle cart discount.

For example, let’s offer a 10% discount when a customer buys a T-shirt, a cap, and sunglasses together.

For this, go to your WordPress Dashboard. Then navigate to Appearance >> Theme Editor or Tools >> Theme Editor.

Now, open the functions.php file of your active theme. Scroll to the bottom and press Enter to create some space for the new code.

Then, add this custom code in the section.

add_action(‘woocommerce_cart_calculate_fees’, ‘custom_discount_for_bundle’, 10, 1);
function custom_discount_for_bundle($cart) {
   if (is_admin() && !defined(‘DOING_AJAX’)) return;
   $tshirt_id = 123; // Replace with actual product ID
   $cap_id = 456; // Replace with actual product ID
   $sunglass_id = 789; // Replace with actual product ID
   $has_tshirt = $has_cap = $has_sunglass = false;
   foreach ($cart->get_cart() as $cart_item) {
   if ($cart_item[‘product_id’] == $tshirt_id || $cart_item[‘variation_id’] == $tshirt_id) $has_tshirt = true;
   if ($cart_item[‘product_id’] == $cap_id || $cart_item[‘variation_id’] == $cap_id) $has_cap = true;
   if ($cart_item[‘product_id’] == $sunglass_id || $cart_item[‘variation_id’] == $sunglass_id) $has_sunglass = true;
   }
   if ($has_tshirt && $has_cap && $has_sunglass) {
   $discount = $cart->subtotal * 0.10; // 10% discount based on original subtotal
   $cart->add_fee(__(‘Bundle Discount’, ‘woocommerce’), -$discount);
   }
}

Next, go to Products >> All Products. Search for the product, then hover your mouse over it to view the product ID.

Similarly, collect the other product IDs and replace them in your code.

Once you’ve done that, click “Update File” to save the changes to functions.php. This code will apply a 10% discount when all the specified products are in the cart.

Best Practices for Creating WooCommerce Cart Discounts

Define Your Goals: First, think about what you want to achieve with your discounts. Are you trying to boost sales, get rid of old stock, or attract new customers? Whatever it is, make sure your discount strategy supports your overall business goals.
Understand Your Target Audience: Get to know your customers and what they like. Do they care about saving money, or do they prefer fast shipping? Once you understand what motivates them, you can create discounts that match their needs. For example, a percentage off might appeal to bargain hunters, while free shipping could attract those who value convenience.
Choose the Right Discount Type: Pick a discount that fits your goals and speaks to your audience. Try different types, like percentage discounts or fixed amounts, and see which ones work best for your store. Again, make sure the terms of your discount are easy to understand.
Create a Sense of Urgency: To get customers to act fast, and offer time-limited discounts or flash sales. A countdown timer can add to the urgency to make your customers feel like they need to grab the deal before it’s gone.
Promote Your Discounts Effectively: Don’t let your discounts go unnoticed. Share them on your website, through email, and on social media. Use bright, eye-catching images to make your offer stand out and get people excited.
Consider Customer Segmentation: Remember, not all customers are the same. Offer discounts based on their past shopping habits or preferences. Personalizing the discount experience will make your customers feel special and more likely to buy.

Conclusion:)

Cart discounts in WooCommerce are a great way to boost sales and engage your customers. Whether you use built-in coupons, plugins like Disco, or custom code, there are plenty of options to fit your needs.

Again, always make sure to set clear conditions and test your discounts to see what works best. Keep an eye on performance to ensure you’re driving sales without hurting your profits. With the right strategy, cart discounts can help grow your store and build customer loyalty.

Read also:)

Have questions or additional tips to share? We’d love to hear from you! Leave a comment below with your thoughts or experiences, and let’s keep the conversation going.