If you could track only one retention metric, it should be repeat purchase rate. It's simple, it's honest, and it correlates with almost everything that matters: lifetime value, profitability, and how much you can afford to spend on acquisition.
The formula
Repeat Purchase Rate (RPR) = (customers who bought more than once) ÷ (total customers) over a period.
If 1,000 people bought from you in a quarter and 220 of them placed two or more orders, your RPR is 22%. That's it. You can slice it by SKU, by channel, or by acquisition cohort, but the core math never changes.
What good looks like
The average DTC repeat purchase rate sits around 25–30%, with the median across many stores closer to 18.8%. Top lifecycle-driven brands hit 45%+. Consumables run higher because of replenishment; considered, durable purchases run lower.
Why marketplace brands can't see it
Here's the catch for Amazon, TikTok Shop, and Walmart sellers: the marketplace shows you orders, not customers. Two orders from the same person look like two strangers. Without identity resolution, your real RPR is invisible — which means you're flying blind on the single most important retention number.
Five ways to improve it
- Capture identity. Turn anonymous buyers into known customers with a post-purchase QR capture.
- Nail the second order. Customers who reorder within 60 days are 3x more likely to stay — focus flows there.
- Automate replenishment. Remind consumable buyers just before they run out.
- Build a reason to return. Loyalty rewards, Subscribe & Save, and members-only drops.
- Cross-sell the catalog. A buyer of one SKU is your warmest lead for the next.
Don't confuse RPR with retention rate
Retention rate measures how many customers you keep over time; RPR measures how many buy again at all. Track both, but RPR is the faster, cleaner signal for a growing brand.
How Swapt helps
Swapt resolves marketplace orders into real customer identities, so you can finally measure repeat purchase rate — then automates the flows that move it. See how it works.
Own the relationship with every customer.
Swapt captures your marketplace customers and turns one-time orders into lifetime value — compliantly.