How the minimum purchase amount works for buy X, get Y discounts in Shopify
The minimum purchase amount on a buy X, get Y discount counts a narrower set of items than most merchants expect. This tutorial sets up BUNDLE50, a code that gives a free hat when the customer spends $50 on tees, then works through the carts that qualify and the ones that do not.
Written · Shopify admin, desktop steps · 5 minutes read
The worked example
| Code | BUNDLE50 |
| Offer | Buy $50 of tees, get a hat free |
| Minimum purchase | $50.00, Customer buys only |
| Rule | Hat does not count |
| Rule | Discounted buy item does not count |
| $55.00 of tees + hat | Hat free, pays $55.00 |
Download the planner: buy-x-get-y-minimum-test-carts.csv (236 bytes).
Three test carts for the $50 minimum on BUNDLE50: what counts toward it, whether the hat is free, and what the customer pays.
1Create the code with a $50 minimum
From your Shopify admin, go to Discounts, then click Create discount. In the Select discount type menu, click Buy X get Y from the list. Under Method, select Discount code and enter BUNDLE50. In the Customer buys section, select Minimum purchase amount, set the amount to 50, and add the Tees collection. In the Customer gets section, set the quantity to 1, add the Trail Hat, and select Free. Then click Save.
2Test a qualifying cart
Put $55 of tees and a $25 hat in the cart. Only the Customer buys products count toward the minimum, and the counted total is $55, which meets the $50 minimum. The hat is free, and the customer pays $55.
3Test a cart where the get item does not count
Put $45 of tees and a $25 hat in the cart. The cart total is $70, but the hat is a get item, so it does not count toward the minimum. The counted total is $45, which is below $50, so the code does not apply and the customer pays $70.
4Test a cart with a discounted buy item
Put a $40 tee at full price and a $20 tee that already carries a $10 product discount in the cart. Products are counted toward a minimum purchase amount at their full price, before any other discount is applied, but if another product discount has already been applied to an item, then that item does not count toward the minimum purchase amount at all. The counted total is $40, which is below $50, so the code does not apply. The customer pays $40 plus the discounted $10 tee, which is $50.
5Check gift cards
Gift cards that a customer buys count toward the Customer buys amount when they are included in the products or collections that you select for the discount. Gift cards and store credit used as payment do not affect the amount, because they apply to the order total after discounts are calculated.
The arithmetic
Only the Customer buys products count toward the minimum, at their full price.
| Cart | Buys total | Counts toward $50 | Hat free | Pays |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $55 tees + $25 hat | $55.00 | $55.00 | $25.00 | $55.00 |
| $45 tees + $25 hat | $45.00 | $45.00 | $0.00 | $70.00 |
| $40 tee + $20 tee ($10 off) | $60.00 | $40.00 | $0.00 | $50.00 |
Gift cards the customer buys count toward the Customer buys amount when they are in the selected products or collections. Gift cards and store credit used as payment never affect the amount.
Held at the counter
The get item never counts toward the minimum. Only the products in the Customer buys part count. A cart that reaches the threshold only because of the hat still fails.
A buy item with another product discount on it stops counting. If a product discount has already been applied to an item, that item does not count toward the minimum purchase amount at all. The $20 tee above adds $0 to the counted total.
The count is at full price. Products are counted toward a minimum purchase amount at their full price, before any other discount is applied. A $60 buy total does not mean $60 counted.
Sources
- Buy X get Y discounts — Shopify's help pages: the minimum purchase amount rules for Buy X get Y, including the full-price count, the discounted-item exclusion, and the gift card note.