Purchase Frequency: Average Orders per Customer

The average number of orders placed per unique customer in the selected period.

Formula

Purchase Frequency = Total Orders ÷ Unique Customers

Formula Components

Metric	Definition
Total Orders	Number of orders placed in the period
Unique Customers	Distinct customers who placed at least one order

Metadata
Type	Number
Data Source	Shopify
Aggregation	Ratio

Example

Your store had 2,847 orders from 1,890 unique customers this month:

Metric	Value
Total Orders	2,847
Unique Customers	1,890
Purchase Frequency	1.51

On average, each customer placed 1.51 orders during the month, indicating healthy repeat purchasing behavior.

How It Works

Purchase Frequency divides total orders by the count of unique customers who placed those orders. A frequency of 1.0 means every customer ordered exactly once. Higher values indicate stronger repeat purchase behavior and customer loyalty.

When to Use

Scenario	Action
Measuring customer loyalty	Higher frequency signals stronger retention and repeat buyers
Evaluating retention programs	Track if loyalty initiatives increase repeat purchases
Comparing customer segments	New vs. returning customers often show different frequencies
Forecasting revenue	Combine with AOV to project customer lifetime value

Metric	Relationship
Average Order Value	Revenue per order; multiply by frequency for customer value
Total Orders	Numerator in the frequency calculation
Unique Customers	Denominator in the frequency calculation

See all Performance metrics →

NC Revenue Ratio Repeat Rate

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​Formula

​Formula Components

​Example

​How It Works

​When to Use

​Related Metrics

Formula

Formula Components

Example

How It Works

When to Use

Related Metrics