Many Shopify store owners make the mistake of showing discount pop-ups immediately when a visitor lands. The intention is good — grabbing attention to boost conversions — but in reality, too-early Shopify pop-ups often backfire. Visitors feel interrupted and click away before seeing your products, sometimes leaving the store entirely.Timing matters more than the offer itself. From my experience optimizing Shopify pop-ups, here’s what works.

Best Timing for Shopify Pop-ups That Increase Conversions

Give Visitors Time to Explore

Instead of triggering a pop-up instantly, wait 20–30 seconds or until visitors scroll down. This way, they’re already engaged and more likely to respond positively to your offer.

Trigger Pop-ups Based on Behavior

Behavior-based triggers outperform page-load pop-ups. Consider:

  • Scroll-triggered pop-ups: Show after 50–70% of the page is scrolled.
  • Time-based pop-ups: Show after 30–60 seconds of browsing.
  • Exit-intent pop-ups: Show when users move their mouse toward leaving the page.

Using these triggers for Shopify cart abandonment pop-ups has improved conversion in my tests.

Show Pop-ups on High-Intent Pages

Avoid interrupting first-time visitors on landing pages. Focus on:

  • Product pages
  • Category pages
  • Cart or checkout pages

These Shopify pop-up best practices ensure users see your offer at the right moment.

Limit Pop-up Frequency

Overdoing it leads to “popup fatigue.” Limit each visitor to seeing a pop-up once per session or once every few days.

Why Early Pop-ups Hurt Your Shopify Conversions

Showing pop-ups too soon can:

  • Annoy visitors and increase bounce rate
  • Make your store feel pushy
  • Waste the discount, as users may ignore it

On mobile, full-screen pop-ups are particularly intrusive, reducing usability and harming conversions.

Key Takeaways for Shopify Stores

  • Delay pop-ups until visitors show interest
  • Use behavior-based triggers like scroll depth or exit-intent
  • Target high-intent pages
  • Limit frequency to avoid annoying users
  • Test different designs and timings (slide-ins are often friendlier than full-screen)

By using the right timing and triggers, your Shopify discount pop-ups can increase conversions without annoying visitors.