Cart Rocket documentation

Overview#

Cart Rocket is a Shopify app that creates cart links, also called rocket links. A cart link is one URL that loads a cart with the products you chose and sends the shopper to the cart page, checkout or Shop Pay. Merchants use them in paid ads, email, SMS, creator bios and QR codes.

A cart link can:

• Add exact products, variants and quantities
• Apply line-item, cart-wide and shipping discounts, and auto-apply Shopify discount codes
• Combine several products into a bundle
• Send shoppers to the cart page, straight to checkout, or to Shop Pay
• Apply customer rules, purchase limits and active dates
• Pass UTM parameters and custom tracking parameters for attribution
• Add your tags to Shopify orders placed through the link, keeping the order's existing tags
• Open an options page in your theme where shoppers choose a size or colour, with an optional countdown to the end of the offer
• Add subscription products, rebuild a customer's last order, or fill in the shopper's checkout details from your email or SMS tool
• Give each creator their own link and show their opens, orders and revenue
• Produce a QR code you can download from the cart editor

You don't need to edit theme code. Cart Rocket works with Dawn and other Shopify themes.

Quickstart#

What is a cart link?

A cart link (the app calls it a cart, and these docs sometimes call it a preset) is a saved setup: products, quantities, discounts, discount codes, customer rules, purchase limits, active dates, where the shopper lands, and tracking. Each one has its own link to share.

Create your first cart link

1. InstallInstall Cart Rocket from the Shopify App Store and open it in your Shopify admin. Setup runs automatically when you install. The Quick start guide on Home lists the next steps.
2. Turn on the app embedClick Open theme editor, switch on Cart Rocket under App embeds, and click Save. Cart links need the embed to apply discounts and bundles.
3. Create a cartClick Create cart and pick a starter template or Start from scratch. You can also duplicate an existing cart and change it.
4. Name itIn General, give the cart a Title you'll recognise in Analytics, such as bfcm-bundle. Shoppers see the title when the link is shared.
5. Add products and discountsIn Products, add products and variants. Then set up Discounts. The sections below them are optional.
6. Choose where shoppers landShoppers go straight to checkout by default. To send them to the cart page or Shop Pay instead, open Advanced and then Checkout options.
7. Save and copy the linkSave the cart. The Cart link at the top of the right column has Copy link, QR code and Open buttons.
8. Share itPaste the link into ads, email, SMS, automations or creator bios.

# A cart link on your store
https://your-store.myshopify.com/apps/cart/bfcm-bundle?utm_source=instagram&utm_campaign=creator-drop

The cart editor#

The editor has a main column for what the link does and a right column for sharing and checking it. Each section starts with a one-line explanation, and most have an info button beside the heading that shows an example.

Most carts don't need the groups in Advanced, so they stay closed until you click Show. A group you've set up gets an In use badge, so you can see what's on without opening it.

The right column starts with the Cart link and its Copy link, QR code and Open buttons. Below it are Status (the Link active switch), Summary (what a shopper pays), Link preview (the image, title and description shown when the link is shared in messages and social apps; see Link preview) and Tracking, which is open by default.

Managing products#

Add products

In the cart editor, click Add product, select one or more products, choose variants and set quantities. When a shopper opens the link, these products are added to their cart.

The Products section also sets What this link adds to the cart. Leave it on Specific products for a link that always adds the items you pick, or choose Customer's last order for a reorder link.

Edit quantities

You can set a quantity for each product, for example three of the same item for a multipack, a larger quantity for a wholesale order, or one of each item in a gift set.

Remove products

Click the trash icon next to a product to remove it from the cart.

Discounts#

Cart Rocket applies its discounts when the link opens, using Shopify's discount engine. Line-item, cart-wide, shipping and Shopify code discounts can be combined on one link.

Line-item discounts

Take a percentage or a fixed amount off specific products. For example, 25% off the snowboard and full price on the wax. To limit how many units get the discount, set Max discounted quantity for this item.

Cart-wide discounts

Take a percentage or a fixed amount off the whole cart, for a sale, a flash offer or an ad campaign. You can require a minimum subtotal or a minimum number of items before it applies.

Shipping discounts

Offer free or reduced shipping to shoppers who use the link, with an optional minimum subtotal or minimum number of items.

Automatic discount codes

Add one or more Shopify discount codes to apply automatically, such as SAVE10 or WELCOME20. The shopper doesn't type anything.

Bundles#

A bundle sells several items as one cart line with one price. You don't need to change your theme.

In Products, select the items, choose Create bundle, name it and set its price. Shoppers then see one bundle in their cart instead of separate items. Use bundles for holiday kits, creator drops, product sets and add-on packs.

If the items should stay as separate lines, skip Create bundle and use a cart-wide discount instead.

Checkout options#

Choose where shoppers land after they open the link. By default they go straight to checkout.

Starter templates#

When you click Create cart, Cart Rocket asks How do you want to start? A template fills in suggested settings you can change, opens the product picker so you can add products, and shows a short tip at the top of the editor. Nothing is saved until you click Save.

For a blank cart with no suggested settings, choose Start from scratch.

Options page before checkout#

The options page is a page in your store's theme that shoppers see before checkout. It lists the products in the cart with their prices, and its button takes shoppers to checkout (or to the cart). Shoppers can choose a size or colour there. Your discounts and tracking still apply, and the discount follows the variant the shopper picks. You can also add a countdown to the end of the offer. This page was formerly called the picker page.

1. Turn it onIn the cart editor, go to Options page before checkout and tick Show the options page before checkout.
2. Write the pageFill in Heading, Description and Button label, or leave them blank to use the defaults.
3. Allow a choiceIn the Products list, tick Let shoppers choose size/colour on each product shoppers may change. The variant you picked is selected first.
4. Add a countdown (optional)Tick Show a countdown until this offer ends. See Countdown timer for the settings.
5. Save and shareThe link stays the same and now opens the options page first. In your list of carts, this cart shows an Options page badge.

Countdown timer#

The options page can show how long the offer has left. The timer counts down to a fixed deadline that is the same for every shopper, and it doesn't restart for a new visitor.

1. Turn it onIn Options page before checkout, tick Show a countdown until this offer ends.
2. Choose the deadlineUnder Count down to, pick When this cart link ends to use the end date in Active dates. Or pick A date and time I choose and fill in End date (UTC) and End time (UTC). If your store isn't on UTC, the time field also shows that moment in your store's time zone.
3. Set an end date if askedIf you count down to the link's end and the link has no end date, a warning says there's nothing to count down to. Click Set an end date. It turns on the end date (the start date at 23:59 UTC, unless you had already entered one) and opens Active dates so you can change it.
4. Write the labelLabel is the line above the timer. It defaults to Offer ends in and takes up to 40 characters.
5. SaveThe countdown appears on the options page as soon as you save.

Shoppers see your label and a timer above the cart summary, in days, hours, minutes and seconds, updated every second. Screen readers announce the time left at most once a minute. If a shopper's browser doesn't run JavaScript, the page shows the end date and time as text, in UTC.

When the timer reaches zero, the page says This offer has ended and the button stops working. If someone submits a page that was left open past the deadline, Cart Rocket refuses it and shows the same notice as for an expired link. If the time you chose has already passed, the editor tells you.

Subscriptions#

Products that sell on subscription can go into a cart link on a subscription plan.

1. Add the productAdd a product that has subscription plans in your store.
2. Pick the planUse the Purchase option menu under that product. Choose a subscription plan, or leave it on One-time purchase.
3. SaveShoppers who open the link get that product on the plan you chose.

Reorder links#

A reorder link adds a customer's most recent order back to their cart, so one link works for every customer in a "buy again" email.

1. Choose the link typeIn the Products section, set What this link adds to the cart to Customer's last order. Or start from the Reorder template.
2. Add extrasDiscounts, order tags and tracking on the cart still apply.
3. Share itPut the link in your emails. Shoppers who aren't logged in are asked to log in first, then their last order is added to the cart. Items that are no longer available are skipped and the rest of the order is still added.

Checkout details#

The Checkout details section fills in the shopper's email, name, address or phone at checkout, so they only need to pay. It has two parts: details that come from your email or SMS tool, and details you fill in once for everyone.

Fill in from your email or SMS tool

Your email or SMS tool puts each person's details into the link when it sends the message, so each shopper sees their own details at checkout. Cart Rocket doesn't store these details.

1. Choose the detailsTick the ones you want to fill in: Email, Name, Shipping address, Phone. A link accepts only the details you turn on for it.
2. Copy the link formatThe section shows the link format to use.
3. Swap in your tool's tagsReplace each part in curly brackets with your email or SMS tool's personalisation tag for it.

# Link format (Email and Name turned on)
https://your-store.com/apps/cart/spring-kit?email={email}&first_name={first_name}&last_name={last_name}

If a tag doesn't fill in (for example, the link still contains {email} when it's opened), Cart Rocket ignores it and the shopper enters that detail at checkout.

Fill in the same details for everyone

This part stays closed until you click Show. It sets one email and shipping address for every shopper who opens the link, so use it only for a link you send to one customer. Choose Existing customer to find a customer by email address, or Enter details to type the email, name and address yourself. Once it's set, the part shows an In use badge.

When you use both

A detail in the link replaces the same detail filled in for everyone. Anything the link leaves out keeps what you filled in. For example, if you filled in a shipping address for everyone and the link carries an email, checkout gets the email from the link and the address you filled in.

Creator links#

Give each creator their own version of one cart link. Orders from a creator's link are tagged for that creator, and Analytics shows opens, orders and revenue per creator.

1. Add a creatorIn the Creators section of the cart editor, click Add creator and enter a Name (only you see it) and a Code (lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens, up to 40 characters).
2. Pick an order tagOrder tag (optional) defaults to creator-<code>. Enter your own tag to use that instead.
3. Send them their linkSave the cart, then copy the creator's link or QR code from the Their link column.

# A creator link is your cart link plus ?ref=
https://your-store.com/apps/cart/summer-kit?ref=mia
# Orders are tagged creator-mia (or the tag you chose)

To gift products to a creator, put the gift in a cart link, give each gift product a 100% item discount, and send them the link so they can enter a shipping address at checkout.

Empty the cart first#

Under Advanced and then Checkout options, Empty the shopper's cart before adding these items decides what happens to items the shopper already has in their cart.

• On: the cart is emptied first, so it holds only this link's items.
• Off: this link's items are added to what's already in the cart. Those other items count as extra items, so a discount that doesn't allow extra items won't apply.

Lock offer cart#

A locked cart link can only be paid for with exactly the products and quantities you built. Use it for fixed-price offers, where a changed cart shouldn't get the offer price.

1. Turn it onIn the cart editor, open Advanced and then Lock offer cart, and tick Lock this cart.
2. SaveSaving turns on a checkout rule called Cart Rocket: locked offer carts in Shopify under Settings > Checkout > Checkout rules. If Cart Rocket asks you to approve a new permission, approve it, then save the cart again.
3. Share the linkThe link address doesn't change.

What shoppers can and can't do

• They can pay for the cart exactly as you built it.
• If they add a product, remove one, swap one for another variant or change a quantity, checkout shows a message and they can't pay. To check out, they undo the change or open the link again.
• Shopify runs this check on its own servers during checkout, including express checkouts such as Shop Pay, PayPal, Google Pay and Apple Pay.
• Items already in the shopper's cart aren't included in the offer checkout.
• The cart page itself isn't locked, so shoppers can still edit it. A changed cart just can't be paid for.
• If they remove every product from the offer, the cart counts as a normal cart again and they can shop as usual.

Choices

To let shoppers pick a size or colour, use the options page before checkout and tick Let shoppers choose size/colour on those products. The cart then locks to what the shopper picked. Shoppers can choose between variants of the same product, not between different products.

Share cart block#

The Share cart theme block adds a button that lets shoppers share their own cart. Whoever opens the link gets a copy of that cart.

1. Add the blockIn the theme editor, open your cart page and add the Share cart block from Cart Rocket.
2. Style itSet the Button label and Button style (Solid, Outline or Text link), then click Save.

Shared links last 30 days and include items only, with no discounts and no personal details. Analytics shows how many shared carts were created this month.

Customer rules#

Customer rules control who can use a cart link. They're in Advanced, under Customer rules.

All customers

Anyone with the link can use it. Use this for public campaigns, ads and email marketing.

Specific customer segments

Limit the link to Shopify customer segments, such as VIP customers, loyalty tiers or wholesale buyers.

Specific customers

Pick individual customers for private drops, early access or one-off offers.

Purchase limits#

Purchase limits cap how many times a cart link can be used. They're in Advanced, under Purchase limits.

Max purchases overall

Cap total purchases across all customers, for example 100 in total. Use this for limited drops and limited stock.

Max purchases per customer

Limit how many times each customer can buy through the link, for example once per customer.

Reset usage

You can reset the purchase counters from the cart editor at any time.

When a link reaches its limit, shoppers are sent to the product or home page with a short notice.

Active dates#

Active dates set when a cart link works. They're in Advanced, under Active dates.

• Start date and time: when the link starts working. Before then, shoppers are sent to the product or home page with a notice that the offer hasn't started yet
• End date (optional): after it passes, the link stops working and shoppers get a short notice

Use them for midnight launches, flash sales, or a link that should go live at the same time as an email or ad. If your store isn't on UTC, each time field also shows that moment in your store's time zone. The end date here is also what the countdown uses when you choose When this cart link ends.

Tracking & attribution#

Every cart link supports UTM tracking. Set it up in the Tracking section of the editor.

Supported UTM parameters are utm_source, utm_medium, utm_campaign, utm_term and utm_content. You can also add your own query parameters.

# One cart link with different UTMs per channel
https://your-store.com/apps/cart/summer-kit?utm_source=tiktok&utm_campaign=creator-mia
https://your-store.com/apps/cart/summer-kit?utm_source=instagram&utm_campaign=creator-jules

For creators, creator links (?ref=code) are simpler: one cart, one code per creator, and orders are tagged for you.

Use UTMs to compare revenue from Facebook ads, Google ads, email, influencers and SMS. Results appear in Analytics.

Tag orders#

Turn on Tag orders in the editor's Tracking section to add your own tags to Shopify orders placed through that cart link. The tags go on the order, not on the customer profile.

Cart Rocket adds your tags to the order after checkout and keeps the order's existing tags.

Name tags after the campaign or channel so you can filter orders in your Shopify admin:

• bfcm-bundle for Black Friday or offer-specific reporting
• sms-launch for SMS or email launch traffic
• meta-retarget for paid ads and retargeting

A link can add up to 20 tags, each up to 40 characters.

You can also add an Order note, a short note that appears in the order details, for example a fulfilment or campaign note.

Orders are tagged only when the cart came from a Cart Rocket link. Tags that are copied or faked by hand are ignored.

Analytics#

Analytics shows how your cart links perform, with date filters. Counts are totals per day, cart, campaign and creator. No shopper-level history is kept.

Sharing & QR codes#

Each cart link is a short link on your store's own domain. You can use it in:

• Meta and Google ads
• Email campaigns and SMS messages
• Creator links and bios
• Reorder links in "buy again" emails
• Recovery and retention automations

QR codes

In the cart editor, click QR code to preview a code for the link and download it as a high-resolution PNG. Use it on packaging, in-store signs, inserts or event print. Scanning it opens the same cart as the link.

Link address#

The link address is the last part of your cart link, the summer-kit in your-store.com/apps/cart/summer-kit. Cart Rocket makes it from the cart's title until you change it. To change it, open Advanced, then Link address, and edit the URL handle. It can use lowercase letters, numbers, hyphens and underscores, and no other cart can already use it.

Link preview#

In the right column, Link preview sets what people see when the link is pasted into a message or social app: an image (from your Shopify Files or a URL), a title and a description.

Automations#

The Automations page in Cart Rocket has 14 ready-made recipes for Shopify Flow, Shopify's free automation app. Each recipe sends shoppers one of your cart links by email. You build the workflow in Shopify Flow from the recipe's steps and paste your cart link into the email action.

The recipes are grouped into three categories:

Example links in the recipes use your cart link's address on your store, such as https://your-store.com/apps/cart/recover-10. Swap in your own cart's handle. The saved-product alerts need a wishlist app (or wishlist metafields), and the cancelled-subscriber recipe needs Shopify Subscriptions or another subscription app with Flow triggers. Each recipe lists what it needs under Requirements.

How to use a recipe

1. Create the cart linkBuild the link in Cart Rocket (products, discount, checkout option, UTMs, order tags). For "buy again" emails, use a reorder link.
2. Read the stepsOn the Automations page, click View steps. Under Steps to build in Shopify Flow you'll see the trigger, conditions, waits and actions, followed by Values to fill in and Requirements. Copy steps copies the checklist so you can keep it beside the Flow editor.
3. Build it in Shopify FlowClick Open Shopify Flow, create a workflow, and add the same trigger, conditions, waits and actions.
4. Paste the link and testPut your Cart Rocket link in the email action, add checkout details if you want checkout filled in, then test before you turn the workflow on.

Start your own workflows from Cart Rocket's tags

Orders from a cart link carry the tags you set in Tag orders, and orders from a creator link carry the creator's tag (for example creator-mia). You can use these tags in your own Shopify Flow workflows, for example to alert your team about creator sales. Cart Rocket adds the tags shortly after the order is created, so start these workflows from the Order tags added trigger.

Sidekick#

Cart Rocket works with Shopify Sidekick, the assistant in your Shopify admin. You can ask Sidekick to:

• Search for existing cart links by name or handle
• Create a cart link, with products and discounts filled in when Sidekick knows them
• Edit products, the title, UTM source and campaign, cart-level discounts, shipping discounts and order tags on a saved link
• Turn on the options page before checkout, add creators, make a reorder link, or set whether the shopper's cart is emptied first

Try requests such as "create a Black Friday link with 20% off" or "find my creator-mia checkout link." Discounts can go directly on the link as a percentage, a fixed amount or a shipping discount, so you only need a Shopify discount code if you want one.

Line-item discounts, discount codes, customer rules, purchase limits, active dates, the link address, the countdown, subscriptions and the other UTM fields are set in the cart editor, not through Sidekick.

Best practices#

Paid ads

• Send shoppers straight to checkout, or to Shop Pay on mobile
• Put the discount on the link so shoppers don't need a code
• Use different UTMs for each ad set
• Create a separate cart link for each campaign

Influencers

• Start from the Influencer template and add each creator in Creators, so everyone shares one cart with their own ?ref= code
• Compare creators in Analytics under Creators
• Add an order tag that matches the drop so you can filter those orders in your admin
• Auto-apply a discount code or a Cart Rocket cart discount

Flash sales

• Set active dates in UTC
• Cap total and per-customer purchases
• Add a countdown to the options page that ends with the link
• Mention the end time in the ad or SMS

Bundles

• Set quantities and variants in advance
• Use a line-item discount on the main product
• Turn on the options page before checkout when shoppers need to pick a size or colour

Automations

• Follow an Automations recipe in Shopify Flow, then paste the cart link into the email action
• Keep a recovery link with a smaller discount and a separate link with a larger discount for high-value carts
• Use a reorder link for "buy again" emails and Checkout details to fill in checkout
• Add UTMs so automated traffic shows up in Analytics under Campaigns

QR codes and retail

• Download the PNG from the cart editor
• Send scanners to Shop Pay for quick mobile checkout
• Use one QR code per offer, so a BFCM link isn't reused in January

Campaign playbooks

• The Black Friday checkout playbook: email, SMS and ad clicks to a loaded cart
• What's new in October 2026: options pages, creator links, subscriptions and reorder links
• All posts on the blog

Troubleshooting#

Discount not applying

For auto-applied Shopify discount codes, check that the code exists in Shopify, is active, and that its conditions are met. For Cart Rocket cart, line-item and shipping discounts, check that they're saved on the cart link, and copy the link again after editing so you share the current version. Also check that the Cart Rocket app embed is on in the theme editor.

Shoppers see a notice instead of the cart

When a link is turned off, expired, at its purchase limit, or limited to certain customers, shoppers are sent to the product or home page with a short notice instead of an error page. Restricted links ask logged-out shoppers to log in first. Check that Link active is on, the active dates are right (in UTC), and the purchase limit hasn't been reached.

Per-customer limit not enforced

Check that a per-customer limit is set on the cart link and that the customer is logged in.

Automated email opens but the cart is empty

Check that you pasted the full Cart Rocket link (including the handle), the link is still active, and any discount codes on it are still valid. For reorder links, the shopper must log in and have at least one past order.

Checkout details don't show at checkout

Check that the detail is ticked under Checkout details, in Fill in from your email or SMS tool, and that your email or SMS tool replaced the curly-bracket part with its own tag. Parts that weren't filled in are ignored. If you also filled in details for everyone, the link's details replace those one detail at a time.

The countdown doesn't show

The countdown appears only on the options page, so Show the options page before checkout must be on. With When this cart link ends, the link needs an end date in Active dates. With A date and time I choose, fill in both the date and the time.

A locked cart link doesn't block changes

Check that Lock this cart is ticked and saved, that the cart has no bundles, and that Cart Rocket: locked offer carts is on in Shopify under Settings > Checkout > Checkout rules. Then open the link again: carts created before you saved aren't locked. For links that open the cart page, the Cart Rocket app embed must be on in the theme editor.

Discounts don't apply when the cart has other items

If Empty the shopper's cart before adding these items is off, items already in the cart count as extra items. Turn the setting on, or allow extra items on the discount.

Security & compatibility#

• Uses Shopify's native checkout
• Works with Shop Pay
• Doesn't modify your theme, and works with Dawn and other Shopify themes
• Applies discounts through Shopify's discount engine
• Builds the cart on the server and applies discounts from data only the app can write, so editing a link's URL can't change its items or discounts
• Tags orders only when the cart came from a Cart Rocket link
• Locked offer carts are checked by Shopify on its servers during checkout, including express checkouts, using data only the app can write
• The storefront embed appears as Cart Rocket under App embeds in the theme editor

Why Cart Rocket#

Cart Rocket shortens the path from a campaign click to Shopify checkout. One link loads the products, applies the discounts and sends shoppers to the cart, checkout or Shop Pay, without theme edits.

Merchants use it to raise conversion and average order value on bundled offers, reduce drop-off after ads, email and SMS, see which UTMs drive revenue, and control VIP drops and flash sales.

Basic is $9/month for one cart link with every feature. Pro is $15/month for unlimited cart links. Both plans start with a 7-day free trial. Billing goes through Shopify, and you can cancel anytime. Development stores can create unlimited cart links for free while you build and test.

Comparing options? See Shopify cart link apps compared, Cart Rocket vs Checkout Links and Shopify cart permalinks vs Cart Rocket.

On Basic, only one cart link works at a time: your oldest active cart. If you move from Pro to Basic, your other links stop working until you upgrade again or turn the older one off.