WooCommerce reporting: advanced insights to grow your store

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The built-in WooCommerce reporting tools provide all the insights you need to grow your store, right? Well, not exactly. 

While WooCommerce does provide basic reports on orders and sales, it fails to offer a deep analysis of customer behavior, marketing performance, and long-term trends. Ambitious, fast-scaling stores need something more powerful.

Thankfully, advanced WooCommerce analytics tools and plugins exist, and can provide in-depth information about how your WooCommerce site performs. Integrating tools like Omnisend lets you access tons of data about your sales figures, marketing efforts, customer journey, and much more.

Why reporting matters for success in WooCommerce

Data is the fuel any successful ecommerce store owner needs to make good decisions. Without the right insights, you’re left guessing about what’s working and what’s not. Do people respond better to free shipping or 20% off? Is your latest ad targeting the wrong crowd, or are customers frustrated with your store’s UX? 

Whether you’re eying a new marketing campaign, considering the launch of an SKU (stock keeping unit), or contemplating a refreshed site design, hard data reduces the risk of wasteful spending. Thus, you can make the most of your capital and grow more profitably and faster.

The limitations of WooCommerce default reporting

The built-in reports included with WooCommerce offer a solid foundation, covering essential metrics like orders, revenue, and shipping costs charged to customers. However, for growing stores, these reports quickly become too basic. Customization is limited, and true marketing insights are non-existent in the native tool.

Advanced reporting plugins and extensions help fill this gap, giving you a full view of how your shop is performing. Want to know which specific ad drove the most purchases? Now, you can divert more of your budget its way. 

What style of email encourages the most clicks to your store? What paid search terms drive lots of traffic but few sales? 

None of this is possible with the default WooCommerce reporting functionality. You can gauge how your gross sales are performing compared to last year or see if you suddenly have to process many returns, but it’s not a good tool for intermediate to advanced decision-making.

The seven best WooCommerce reporting plugins and extensions

Ready to take your data and decision-making to the next level? There are several excellent plugins and extensions that provide advanced reporting features. Let’s explore some of the best options:

1. Email Marketing for WooCommerce by Omnisend

Omnisend for WooCommerce is a powerful marketing automation tool that integrates with WooCommerce. It puts your email and SMS marketing campaigns on autopilot with proven, easy-to-use tools for determined entrepreneurs. 

It even helps you grow your marketing subscriber list with innovative features — all at a fraction of the cost of most multichannel marketing solutions. 

Better yet, Omnisend has advanced analytics with streamlined ecommerce marketing reports, so you can see what’s working (and what’s not) and work smarter every single day.

WordPress rating: 4.9

Active installations: 70,000+

Features

• Email and SMS automation: Create and send personalized campaigns based on customer behavior and actions
• Pre-built workflows: Send welcome emails or abandoned cart reminders automatically
• Advanced segmentation: Target different customer segments based on purchasing behavior, engagement, or preferences
• Analytics and reporting: Track the success of your email and SMS campaigns with detailed performance reports, including revenue attribution, open rates, click-through rates, conversions, and revenue generated
• Customizable popups and forms: Capture emails with visually appealing, customizable forms that fit your store’s design

Pros

• The free plan includes all key features, with a generous limit of 500 emails per month
• It’s perfect for WooCommerce store owners looking to streamline email and SMS marketing
• It’s excellent for building automated workflows with plenty of triggers and filters

Cons

• There are fewer integrations compared to some competing plugins
• Advanced reporting features are not available with lower-tier plans

Pricing

• Free: Up to 500 emails per month
• Standard: Starts at $16/month for up to 6,000 emails
• Pro: Starts at $59/month for unlimited emails, advanced reporting, and priority support

2. Metorik

Metorik is a reporting and analytics tool with integration available for WooCommerce and Shopify. It provides a real-time view of your store’s performance, and its advanced segmentation features make it easy to generate customized reports based on revenue, customer behavior, and product performance. It also works with other platforms like Google Analytics and Mailchimp.

G2 rating: 4.8

Features

• Real-time reporting: This tool lets you track orders, revenue, and customer activity instantly
• Customer segmentation: Create unique filters to segment customers by behavior, location, or purchase history
• Customizable dashboards: Drag-and-drop features let you build dashboards that highlight the metrics most important to you
• Automated email reporting: Schedule regular reports to be sent to your inbox
• Retention analytics: Monitor customer retention and track the lifetime value of different customer segments
• Multi-channel data integration: Connect with Google Analytics, Mailchimp, and other tools to centralize your marketing data​

Pros

• It has highly customizable dashboards
• It offers excellent customer segmentation
• It integrates with third-party platforms

Cons

• There’s no free version available
• It’s a bit complex to learn and understand all the features included

Pricing

• Free 30-day trial 
• Plans start at $20/month for 100 orders per month

3. Putler

Putler is an all-in-one reporting tool that consolidates data across multiple stores and works with WooCommerce, Shopify, and Etsy platforms. Its dashboard provides detailed insights into customer behavior, sales trends, and product performance, making it ideal for stores that need to manage multiple storefronts.

G2 rating: 4.6

Features

• A full dashboard: Monitor up-to-date metrics across all aspects of your store, including revenue, orders, and customer behavior
• Multi-store management: Consolidate reports and data from multiple WooCommerce stores, giving you a full view of all your businesses in one place
• 200+ KPIs: Track essential metrics like customer lifetime value (LTV), churn rate, monthly recurring revenue (MRR), and sales trends
• Customer profiles and histories: View detailed customer insights, including order histories and purchasing behavior, to understand how different segments engage with your store
• Automated and custom reports: Set up scheduled reporting or create custom reports to monitor specific business metrics

Pros

• Access comprehensive reports across multiple stores
• Automate report generation
• Gain deep insights into sales and customer behavior

Cons

• The visual interface can be hard to navigate
• There are limited templates for report customization
• It’s expensive for smaller stores or startups

Pricing 

• Starter: $20/month for one user and three data sources
• Growth: $50/month for unlimited users and teams
• Custom: Contact for pricing

4. Google Analytics for WooCommerce

WooCommerce Analytics is the official analytics extension provided by Woo. If you want the full Power of Google Analytics, this is the quickest way to connect the two platforms and start collecting advanced data for highly-detailed insights. 

WooCommerce rating: 4.4 

Active installations: 200,000+

Features

• Customizable dashboard: Create custom reports and dashboards to track metrics like sales, orders, revenue, and product performance in real time
• Advanced filtering: Use filters to segment data by date range, product, category, and customer type
• Orders and revenue reports: Provides detailed breakdowns of sales, revenue, refunds, and net profit across various periods
• Stock and inventory management: Track inventory levels, identify low-stock items, and receive notifications for out-of-stock products
• Customer reports: Monitor customer behavior, including new vs. returning customers, total lifetime value, and average order value
• Track user behavior: View and optimize the flow, from a customer landing on your site to browsing products, reviewing their shopping cart, and completing checkout
• Differentiate between transactions and actual revenue generated: Identify campaigns that appear successful but are actually unprofitable

Pros

• It’s totally free to download and use
• It offers customizable reports and dashboards
• It provides a detailed overview of your store’s performance
• It adds more real-time insights

Cons

• It doesn’t offer detailed sales forecasting like other premium tools

Pricing 

Google Analytics for WooCommerce is a free extension.

5. ShopBase (formerly Beeketing)

ShopBase is a comprehensive platform made primarily for dropshipping and print-on-demand stores. While Beeketing focused on WooCommerce stores with tools to increase conversions, ShopBase expands these features and now includes more services for automating fulfillment, managing inventory, and optimizing marketing efforts.

G2 rating: 4

Features

• Upsell and cross-sell tools: Automatically recommend related or complementary products during checkout to increase average order value
• Abandoned cart recovery: Send follow-up emails and SMS reminders to recover lost sales from customers who leave items in their cart
• Sales popups and social proof: Display real-time notifications with recent purchases
• Analytics and reporting: Track store performance and gain insights into conversion rates, sales trends, customer behavior, and marketing effectiveness

Pros

• It’s highly effective at boosting sales and improving checkout rates
• It integrates well with the WooCommerce marketing features
• It’s easy to set up and use

Cons

• There’s no free plan available
• Customization options for popups and emails are somewhat limited

Pricing 

• Basic Base: $19/month for two domains and up to five staff accounts
• Standard Base: $59/month for 10 domains and up to 10 staff accounts 
• Pro Base: $249/month for 20 domains and up to 100 staff accounts

6. ExactMetrics

ExactMetrics simplifies Google Analytics reporting within WordPress, offering WooCommerce-specific insights. It tracks critical ecommerce metrics like conversion rates, revenue, and product performance, all from an easy-to-use dashboard.

Active installations: 1 million+

Features

• Google Analytics integration: Includes real-time stats
• Enhanced ecommerce tracking: Ideal for tracking product and transaction performance
• Customizable reports: Create custom reports based on demographics and behavior
• Audience and content reports: Get a full rundown of who is visiting your site and what content they engage with

Pros

• There’s an easy setup with Google Analytics
• It includes real-time reporting
• It’s excellent for businesses focused on content performance

Cons

• The free version has limited functionality
• Pricing is high for premium plans

Pricing 

• Plus: $99.50/year​ for use on one site and unlimited users 
• Pro: $199.50/year for use on five sites and includes ecommerce reports 
• Agency: $399.50/year for use on up to 25 sites and includes multisite support. You can also add up to 500 sites for $999.50/year. 

7. Glew.io

Glew.io provides advanced ecommerce analytics, offering detailed reports on sales, customer behavior, and product performance. It’s useful for stores that want to combine reporting with inventory and marketing management.

G2 rating: 3.9

Features

• Sales and product analytics: Track best-selling products, underperformers, and sales trends
• Customer segmentation: Detailed insights into customer lifetime value, retention rates, and purchasing behavior
• Inventory management: Monitor stock levels and set automatic reorder points
• Marketing analytics: Assess the performance of marketing campaigns, including email, PPC, and social media

Pros

• There is comprehensive reporting across multiple facets of your business
• It combines ecommerce, marketing, and inventory analytics in one place
• Customizable dashboards show at-a-glance insights

Cons

• It’s expensive for small businesses
• It has limited free plan features

Pricing

A free trial is available. You have to contact Glew.io for pricing details.

Key metrics to track with WooCommerce reporting tools

Tracking the right metrics is a foundational step for your store’s growth. By identifying these metrics and leveraging at least one of the tools outlined above, store owners can make better data-driven decisions to improve the customer experience, optimize operations, and ultimately increase revenue. 

Below, we highlight some of the most essential metrics you should monitor: 

1. Sales performance

This is the backbone of any ecommerce business. Sales metrics help you track your store’s overall revenue, number of sales, and average order value (AOV).

• Revenue: This metric shows your total income over a specific period
• Average order value (AOV): A key metric that reveals how much a customer spends on average per transaction
• Refunds: A high refund rate could indicate product quality or customer satisfaction issues​

2. Customer behavior

Understanding how customers interact with your store helps you optimize their journey for higher conversion rates. Use the following metrics as a baseline for customer behavior:

• Customer lifetime value (CLV): CLV estimates how much profit you can expect from a customer over the entire relationship
• New vs. returning customers: This metric shows whether your store is attracting new buyers or retaining existing customers
• Conversion rates: This is the percentage of visitors who complete a purchase

3. Product performance

Knowing which products drive the most sales helps to refine your inventory and focus marketing efforts. Some metrics in this category include:

• Best-selling products: Tracking your top-selling products helps identify which items are resonating with your customers
• Low-performing products: Identifying underperforming products allows you to revise pricing, adjust marketing, or remove the products altogether
• Inventory levels: This metric ensures you have enough stock of your top-performing products to avoid missed sales opportunities while also preventing overstocking of underperforming items​

4. Marketing performance

With tools like Omnisend, you can track the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns alongside sales performance. Here are a few categories you can monitor:

Email campaign performance metrics 

• Open rate: This is the percentage of people who open your message, indicating how engaged subscribers are with your messaging
• Click-through rate (CTR): This shows the number of people who opened your email and were inspired to act
• Conversion rate: This reveals how well your email marketing resonates with your audience

SMS marketing campaign metrics

• Click-through rate: This tells you the number of people who were inspired to click and view additional information
• Conversion rate: This measures the number of sales (or other desired actions) that directly result from a campaign
• Response rate: This measures any sort of positive action, including both a click-through and a reply
• Opt-out rate: This tracks the number of people who unsubscribe from your list 

5. Cart abandonment rates

One of the most critical issues facing ecommerce stores is cart abandonment. The cart abandonment rate indicates how often customers add products to their cart but don’t complete the purchase. 

6. Customer segmentation

Using advanced reporting tools means you can segment customers based on their behavior, demographics, or purchasing history. Segmenting customers into groups helps you create targeted marketing campaigns for each. For instance, high-value customers (repeat purchasers) would get a different marketing campaign than first-time buyers.

7. Refund and return rates

Tracking refunds and returns identifies potential issues with product quality or customer dissatisfaction. High return rates may indicate that products don’t meet customer expectations, either in terms of quality or product description accuracy​.

WooCommerce reporting: FAQs

Here are some of the most frequently asked questions about WooCommerce reporting tools:

Use advanced WooCommerce reporting for growth

The WooCommerce built-in reports provide a reliable way to track your store’s basic sales and order data. However, for store owners looking to scale, third-party reporting tools are essential. Integrating a marketing automation tool with advanced analytics capabilities, like Omnisend, provides a wealth of information on customer behavior, product performance, and your latest marketing campaigns.