# Free-shipping nudge based on cart value on a Hydrogen store

Asked by Priya Deshmukh on 2026-07-11. Tags: shopify, hydrogen, cart, cql, playbooks.

I read the [free-shipping ideas post on the Croct blog](https://blog.croct.com/post/free-shipping-ideas)
and want the classic "add R200 more for free shipping" banner on our home
goods store. Hydrogen, SDK already
installed, threshold is R500.

This is the CQL I drafted for the audience:

```cql
cart's subtotal is less than 500 and not cart is empty
```

Does that look right? And the part I am unsure about: does the cart attribute
update live as the shopper adds items, or only on the next page load? The whole
point is the nudge reacting while they shop

## 1 answer

### Accepted answer from Elliot Marsh (2026-07-11)

Your draft is right. `cart's subtotal is less than 100` is the documented
condition shape for the threshold, and swapping in 500 plus the not-empty
guard is exactly how I would write it.

On the live-update question: yes, it reacts within the session. Cart views and
cart updates are auto-tracked by the Hydrogen SDK, so every add or remove
refreshes the cart attributes, and audiences evaluate in real time per
interaction. A shopper who crosses the threshold stops matching the audience
and the nudge gives way to the default content (or a "you unlocked free
shipping" variant, which is worth testing).

For what it is worth, this is the same playbook from that blog post that ISZI
ran, and they saw +39% conversion with it, so the pattern has real numbers
behind it.

If you later want to go further with shoppers who build a cart and leave,
there is a related thread on that:
[Targeting cart abandoners](/answers/hydrogen-cart-abandonment-audience).

#### Reply from Priya Deshmukh (2026-07-12)

Live now and reacting exactly as described, the banner updates as items
go in. Testing the "unlocked" variant next week. Thanks!