Repeat purchase rate
Also known as: repeat customer rate, returning customer rate, repeat visit rate
Repeat purchase rate is the share of customers who bought at least twice within a defined period, out of all customers who bought at least once in that period.
Repeat purchase rate = customers with 2+ purchases in period / customers with 1+ purchase in period × 100%Repeat purchase rate shows whether the first sale turns into a relationship. It fits businesses without subscriptions, where retention rate is hard to define because nobody formally cancels. For a clinic the same idea is the share of patients who come back for a second visit within a set period.
Example
An online pharmacy takes the 800 customers who first ordered in January. By 30 June, 240 of them have placed a second order. Repeat purchase rate over 6 months: 240 / 800 = 30%.
A physiotherapy clinic sees 600 new patients in Q1, and 330 book a second session within 60 days. Repeat visit rate: 330 / 600 = 55%. The figures are illustrative.
How to use it
Match the window to the natural buying cycle: groceries repeat within 1 to 2 weeks, dental check-ups every 6 months, furniture after 5 years or more. Track first-time buyers as monthly cohorts, so a spike in acquisition during a promotion does not dilute the rate.
Read it next to average order value. Together they explain most of the gap between a customer’s first purchase and their lifetime value.
Common mistakes
- Using a window shorter than the buying cycle, then concluding nobody comes back.
- Counting several items in one basket, or several services in one visit, as repeat purchases.
- Missing returning buyers who used another email or phone number at checkout.
- Comparing months with very different numbers of new customers without cohort analysis.