Want customers to spend more without increasing your advertising budget? WooCommerce cross selling helps you recommend complementary products at exactly the right moment, when shoppers are ready to buy.
Cross selling in WooCommerce is a sales technique that encourages customers to purchase complementary products alongside items already in their cart. Store owners manually assign these recommendations through WooCommerce’s Linked Products settings to increase average order value and improve the shopping experience.
After implementing WooCommerce cross sell strategies across multiple online stores, we’ve consistently seen accessory products contribute an additional 8–10% to average order value when merchants recommend highly relevant products and regularly optimize their pairings.
In this guide, you’ll learn exactly how WooCommerce cross selling works, how to set it up, and the best practices for maximizing results.
What Is Cross Selling in WooCommerce?
Cross selling in WooCommerce is the practice of manually linking complementary products to a primary product so they’re suggested to the customer once the primary product is in their cart. You define these links on a per-product basis in the Linked Products tab of the Product Data panel, under the Cross sells field.
This is distinct from two other WooCommerce features that often get confused with it:
- Upsells recommend a better version of the same product (a premium blender instead of the basic one). These display on the product page, not the cart.
- WooCommerce automatically generates related products based on shared categories or tags. You don’t pick these manually; WooCommerce does it for you, and you influence the results only by organizing your product taxonomy.
Cross sells are the only one of the three that’s both manually curated and shown at the cart stage, which is exactly why they’re the most direct lever for increasing average order value (AOV); the customer has already committed to buying something.
Cross Sells vs Upsells in WooCommerce
Many WooCommerce store owners confuse cross sells with upsells because both strategies aim to increase revenue. However, they serve different purposes and appear at different stages of the customer journey.
| Cross Sells | Upsells |
| Recommend complementary products | Recommend premium alternatives |
| Display on cart page | Display on product page |
| Increase item count | Increase product value |
| Example: Camera + Tripod | Example: Basic Camera → Professional Camera |
Benefits of WooCommerce Cross Sell Products
Cross selling in WooCommerce is an effective strategy for increasing sales while helping customers discover products that complement their purchases. By recommending relevant items at the right time, you can improve the shopping experience, boost your average order value, and encourage repeat business. Here are some key benefits of cross selling in WooCommerce.
1. Increase Average Order Value (AOV)
Cross selling encourages customers to add complementary products to their carts, increasing the value of each order. Even small add-on purchases can significantly boost your average order value over time, allowing you to generate more revenue from every transaction without acquiring new customers.
2. Improve Customer Experience
Relevant WooCommerce product recommendations make shopping more convenient by helping customers find products they genuinely need. Whether it’s suggesting batteries with electronics or a protective case with a phone, thoughtful recommendations create a smoother shopping experience and improve customer satisfaction.
3. Increase Revenue Without Spending More on Customer Acquisition
Cross selling helps you generate more revenue from existing website traffic by presenting relevant product recommendations at the moment customers are most likely to buy. Instead of spending more on marketing to attract new visitors, you can increase revenue by encouraging current customers to purchase related products during the same shopping session.
4. Help Customers Discover Relevant Products
Cross sells surface products that a customer might not have found through normal category browsing. This is particularly useful for accessory lines, add-ons, or lower-traffic SKUs that rarely get found organically but pair naturally with a bestseller.
How Cross Sells Work in WooCommerce
WooCommerce stores cross sell relationships inside the Linked Products settings. When you assign Product B as a cross sell of Product A, WooCommerce displays Product B as a recommended item when customers add Product A to their cart.
Where cross sells display depends on which cart experience your store uses:
- Classic cart (shortcode-based): Cross sells render below the cart items table using the legacy Cross sells template, theme-dependent in styling.
- Block-based cart (default for stores created after WooCommerce 8.3): The Product Collection block powers cross sells.
Starting with WooCommerce 10.2, new Cart blocks use the Product Collection block instead of the older Cart Cross Sells block. Existing stores can still use the old block.
The new block provides better customization, including multiple layouts, column controls, and stock and sale filters.
Either way, cross sells only display if: the linked product is in stock, the cart actually contains the parent product, and your theme/template hasn’t removed the cross sell section. If you’ve linked products and nothing shows up, those three checks resolve it 90% of the time.
How to Cross Sell in WooCommerce (Step-by-Step)
WooCommerce includes a built-in cross sell feature that lets you recommend related products on the cart page. Setting it up only takes a few minutes. Follow the steps below to add WooCommerce cross sell products and encourage customers to increase their order value.
Step 1: Open the Product You Want to Edit
- Go to Products → All Products.
- Click Edit on the product you want to attach cross sells to. This is the primary product – the one the customer is already buying.
Step 2: Access the Linked Products Section
Scroll down to the Product Data panel and click the Linked Products tab in the left-hand menu of that panel.
If you’re using the block-based product editor, this same field appears in the editor sidebar under Linked Products instead of a tab.
Step 3: Add Cross Sell Products
In the Cross-sells field, start typing the name (or product ID) of the item you want to recommend – the search activates after about three characters. Select it from the dropdown.
Repeat for each additional cross sell; there’s no fixed limit on how many you can add (though see the Best Practices section below for why you shouldn’t max it out).
Step 4: Save and Update the Product
Click Update to save the changes.
The cross sell relationship is now live – it only applies to this one product unless you repeat the process on related items.
Step 5: Test Cross Sell Recommendations
Add the primary product to your cart on the storefront, then check the cart page. If the cross sell doesn’t appear:
- Confirm the linked product is in stock – out of stock cross sells are hidden automatically.
- Clear any page cache, since cart-page caching is a common culprit after editing Linked Products.
- Confirm that your theme actually renders the cross sell section (some custom cart templates remove it).
WooCommerce Cross Sells Not Showing?
If your WooCommerce cross sell products are not appearing on the cart page:
- Verify that the cross sell product is in stock.
- Confirm that customers added the parent product to the cart.
- Clear any page or server cache.
- Check whether your theme overrides WooCommerce cart templates.
- Make sure your cart block or shortcode still includes the cross sell section.
Most WooCommerce cross sell display issues stem from stock settings, caching, or theme customizations.
Cross Sell Product Ideas by Industry
Before choosing cross-sell products, think about what naturally complements your customer’s main purchase. The most effective cross sells solve a need, complete an outfit or setup, or make the original purchase more useful. Below are practical cross-sell ideas for different industries.
1. Fashion and Apparel Stores
Pair a top with a matching bottom, a dress with a belt, or shoes with care/cleaning products. “Complete the outfit” framing performs especially well here.
2. Electronics Stores
Cables, cases, screen protectors, memory cards, and extended-warranty add-ons are the standard set: low-cost, high-relevance, and rarely something the customer thinks to search for separately.
3. Beauty and Skincare Stores
Cross sell within a routine: a cleanser with a moisturizer, or a serum with the applicator tool designed for it. Skincare customers respond well to “this works better paired with” framing because routines are inherently multi-product.
4. Home and Furniture Stores
Assembly tools, protective pads, cushion covers, and matching accent pieces all cross sell naturally with furniture purchases, particularly anything the customer would otherwise need to make a second trip (or second order) to get.
5. Food and Beverage Stores
Pairing suggestions (a sauce with the pasta it’s made for, a mixer with the spirit it’s mixed with) work well, as do consumable add-ons like reusable packaging or gift sets around seasonal periods.
Best Practices for WooCommerce Cross Selling
Adding cross sell products is only the first step. Cross selling products doesn’t guarantee you sales. To get the best results, focus on showing relevant recommendations at the right stage of the shopping journey and avoid overwhelming customers with too many choices.
Here are a few best practices to follow accurately:
1. Recommend Complementary Products
The cross sell should solve a problem related to the primary purchase, not just be “another product in the same category.” A laptop sleeve next to a laptop works. A second, unrelated laptop next to a laptop doesn’t.
2. Keep Recommendations Relevant
If there’s no obvious reason the customer would want both products together, the recommendation reads as noise and erodes trust in your other suggestions. Relevance matters more than volume.
3. Limit the Number of Cross Sell Products
Three to six cross sells per product is the range that shows up consistently across WooCommerce merchandising guidance; fewer than three can look sparse, and more than six starts to create decision fatigue that drops engagement with all of them, not just the extras.
4. Use Customer Purchase Data
Look at your own order history for products that are frequently bought in the same transaction. These are stronger cross sell candidates than anything chosen on instinct alone, because they’re validated by actual buyer behavior rather than assumption.
5. Highlight Value and Convenience
Framing matters. A label like “Frequently bought together” or “Complete the set” gives the customer a reason to trust the suggestion is curated rather than random; this alone tends to lift attachment rates even without a discount attached.
Common Cross Selling Mistakes to Avoid
Cross selling works best when recommendations are relevant and well-timed. Avoiding common mistakes can help you improve conversions, enhance the customer experience, and maximize the effectiveness of your strategy.
- Recommending Too Many Products: Display three to six highly relevant cross sell products. Showing too many options can overwhelm shoppers and reduce engagement.
- Suggesting Irrelevant Products: Only recommend products that naturally complement the customer’s purchase to maintain trust and increase engagement.
- Ignoring Mobile Users: Make sure your cross-sell section is easy to find and use on mobile devices, where most customers shop.
- Not Measuring Performance: Track cross-sell clicks and purchases to identify which recommendations perform well and optimize your strategy.
How to Measure the Success of Your Cross Sell Strategy
Tracking the right metrics helps you understand whether your cross sell strategy is delivering results. Monitor key performance indicators to identify what’s working and make data-driven improvements over time.
- Track Average Order Value
This is the headline metric. Compare AOV for orders that included a cross sell against orders that didn’t, over the same time period, to isolate the actual lift rather than attributing general AOV growth to cross selling alone.
- Monitor Conversion Rates
Watch for any drop in overall cart-to-checkout conversion after adding cross sells; a cluttered or slow-loading cart page can hurt conversion even while AOV ticks up, which is a net loss worth catching early.
- Analyze Product Pairing Performance
Not every cross sell pairing performs the same. Reviewing which specific pairs are added most often lets you double down on what’s working and drop or replace pairings that are never clicked.
- Run A/B Tests
Test placement, labeling (“You may also like” vs. “Frequently bought together”), and the number of products shown. Small wording and layout changes often move the attach rate more than the underlying product selection does.
Start Cross Selling Smarter and Grow Your WooCommerce Revenue
As we know by now, cross selling is one of the simplest ways to increase your WooCommerce store’s revenue without spending more on customer acquisition. By recommending products that naturally complement what shoppers are already buying, you can increase your average order value, improve the customer experience, and drive more sales from every transaction.
The best part is that WooCommerce makes it easy to get started with its built-in cross-sell feature. Simply add relevant products to the Linked Products → Cross sells section, and your recommendations will appear on the cart page.
Successful WooCommerce cross selling depends on showing highly relevant products at the right stage of the customer journey.
Keep your recommendations relevant, monitor key metrics like average order value and cross-sell conversions, and regularly optimize your strategy to improve performance.
NOTE: If you sell both online and in-store through Square, keeping inventory and product information synchronized is equally important. Accurate stock levels help prevent customers from seeing cross sell recommendations for products that are unavailable. WC Shop Sync can help synchronize inventory between WooCommerce and Square POS to maintain a consistent shopping experience across sales channels.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
What is the difference between upselling and cross selling in WooCommerce?
Upselling recommends a higher-tier version of the same product (typically shown on the product page). Cross selling recommends a different, complementary product (typically shown on the cart page). Upsells increase the value of a single item; cross sells increase the number of items in the order.
Where do cross sell products appear in WooCommerce?
By default, WooCommerce displays cross sell products on the cart page. Customers see these recommendations below their cart items before they proceed to checkout. They don’t appear on the product page or checkout unless you add that placement through a plugin.
How many cross sell products should I display?
Three to six per product is the range that balances visibility against decision fatigue for most stores. Fewer can look thin; more tends to dilute attention across all the options shown.
Can I show cross sell products on product pages?
Not with WooCommerce core alone – native cross sells are cart-page only. A plugin (such as a Frequently Bought Together extension) is required to surface cross sell-style recommendations on the product page itself.
Do I need a plugin for WooCommerce cross selling?
No, not to get started; the Linked Products tab handles basic manual cross-selling for free. A plugin becomes worth it once you want product-page or checkout placement, combined-price bundles, automatic/rule-based suggestions, or attach-rate analytics.
What are WooCommerce linked products?
WooCommerce linked products allow you to connect products for upsells, cross sells, and grouped recommendations. You can manage linked products from the Product Data → Linked Products section when editing a product.