Nordstrom’s E-Commerce UX
This is a case study of Nordstrom’s e-commerce user experience (UX) performance. It’s based on an exhaustive performance review of 661 design elements. 122 other sites have also been benchmarked for a complete picture of the e-commerce UX landscape.
Nordstrom’s overall e-commerce UX performance is decent. Their main culprits are mediocre Homepage & Category performance.
First benchmarked in April 2012, and reviewed 20 times since then, most recently December 2021.
Overall UX Performance
690 Guidelines · Performance:
Desktop Web
484 Guidelines · Performance:
Homepage & Category
59 Guidelines · Performance:
Homepage
15 Guidelines · Performance:
Category Taxonomy
13 Guidelines · Performance:
Main Navigation
16 Guidelines · Performance:
Intermediary Category Pages
6 Guidelines · Performance:
Site-Wide Layout
9 Guidelines · Performance:
On-Site Search
47 Guidelines · Performance:
Search Query Types
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Search Form & Logic
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Search Autocomplete
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Results Logic & Guidance
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Results Layout & Filtering
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Lists & Filtering
87 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Lists: Layout & Loading
14 Guidelines · Performance:
List Layout
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Loading Products
6 Guidelines · Performance:
List Items: Product Info & Thumbnails
18 Guidelines · Performance:
List Items: Product Info
9 Guidelines · Performance:
List Items: Product Thumbnails
9 Guidelines · Performance:
List Items: Interface & Hit Areas
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Filtering: Available Filters
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Filtering: Scope & Logic
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Filtering: Interface & Layout
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Sorting
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Page
96 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Page Layout
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Images
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Image Gallery UI
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Price, Purchase & Delivery
16 Guidelines · Performance:
The 'Buy' Section
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Shipping, Returns, and Gifting
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Variations
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Descriptions & Spec Sheet
15 Guidelines · Performance:
Product Descriptions
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Specifications Sheet
5 Guidelines · Performance:
User Reviews
13 Guidelines · Performance:
Cross-Sells & Cross-Navigation
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Cart & Checkout
130 Guidelines · Performance:
Shopping Cart & "Added to Cart" Behavior
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Account Selection & Creation
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Customer & Address Information
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Gifting Flow & Features
5 Guidelines · Performance:
Shipping & Store Pickup
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Payment Flow & Methods (Incl. Third-Party)
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Credit Card Form
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Review & Confirmation
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Review
5 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Confirmation & E-Mail
4 Guidelines · Performance:
Layout & Flow
23 Guidelines · Performance:
Form & Page Design
10 Guidelines · Performance:
User Interactions & Distractions
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Cross-Sells
4 Guidelines · Performance:
Validation Errors & Data Persistence
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Form Fields
23 Guidelines · Performance:
Field Labels & Microcopy
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Field Design & Features
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Default Values & Autocompletion
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Customer Accounts
40 Guidelines · Performance:
Account Drop-Down
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Account Dashboard
6 Guidelines · Performance:
Account Sign In
6 Guidelines · Performance:
'Your Account': Addresses, Payments, & Newsletters
13 Guidelines · Performance:
Account-Wide Navigation, Structure, & Information
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Tracking & Returns
25 Guidelines · Performance:
Place Order & Order Cancellation
5 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Tracking
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Order Returns
11 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Web
206 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Homepage
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Main Navigation & Categories
21 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Main Navigation
6 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Category Taxonomy
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Category Pages
5 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile On-Site Search
24 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Autocomplete
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Query Types
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Search Design & Logic
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Product List
48 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Product List Layout & Features
18 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Filtering
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile List Item Content
18 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Product Pages
13 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Product Page Layout
5 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile User Reviews
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Checkout
47 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Layout & Features
2 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Shopping Cart
4 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Account Selection & Creation
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile User Info
7 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Shipping & Store Pickup
6 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Payment
12 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Order Review & Confirmation
9 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Forms
26 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Form Fields
10 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Field Validation
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Input Optimization
8 Guidelines · Performance:
Mobile Site-Wide Features & Elements
19 Guidelines · Performance:
To learn how we calculate our performance scores and read up on our evaluation criteria and scoring algorithm head over to our Methodology page.
The scatterplot you see above is the free version we make public to all our users. If you wish to dive deeper and learn about each guideline and even review your own site you’ll need to get premium access.
Nordstrom’s Desktop Web E-Commerce Design
24 pages of Nordstrom’s e-commerce site, marked up with 313 best practice examples:
Nordstrom’s Mobile Web E-Commerce Design
14 pages of Nordstrom’s e-commerce site, marked up with 159 best practice examples:
Similar Case Studies
Explore similar case studies of Apparel & Accessories and Mass Merchant sites:
38 page designs: mobile, desktop
46 page designs: mobile, desktop
45 page designs: desktop, mobile
67 page designs: mobile, desktop, app
45 page designs: mobile, desktop
40 page designs: desktop, mobile
47 page designs: mobile, desktop
49 page designs: desktop, mobile
Explore Other Research Content
Every 2nd week, we publish a new article on how to build “state of the art” e-commerce experiences — here’s 5 popular ones:
See all 306 articles in the full public archive.
Premium Research
Get full access to Baymard’s 78,000+ hours of research and empower your UX team and decisions.
Audit Service
Get Baymard to audit your site’s UX performance, compare it to competitors, and identify 40 areas of improvements.
