The best A/B testing ideas change one thing on a page that already gets traffic and already matters to your revenue: the headline, the call to action (CTA), the form, the offer or the checkout step. Start where visitors drop off, test one change at a time, and decide in advance what number counts as a win. Below you get 25 concrete ideas, grouped by where they live, and a simple way to choose which one goes first.
TL;DR
- Test one element at a time, on a page with real traffic, so you know what caused the result. Nielsen Norman Group recommends this approach.
- The usual starting points are headlines, CTAs, page layout, copy, forms and checkout pages.
- Pick tests by evidence: analytics drop-offs, customer comments and a quick usability review beat guessing.
- Decide your main metric and a guardrail metric (one that must not get worse) before you launch.
- Bloggers, freelancers and store owners can all use the same list: only the page changes.
Table of Contents
- What an A/B test is, in one paragraph
- How to choose what to test first
- Headline and value proposition ideas
- Call-to-action ideas
- Form ideas
- Pricing and offer ideas
- Ecommerce ideas: product page, cart and checkout
- Blog, email and promotion ideas
- What to measure for each test
- How long to run a test and when to stop
- Common mistakes that waste a test
- Our view on A/B testing
- Want the full system behind these tests?
- FAQ
- Sources
What an A/B test is, in one paragraph
An A/B test shows two versions of the same thing to different visitors at the same time. Version A is what you have now. Version B has one change. You then compare how each group behaves: clicks, sign-ups, purchases. Split testing means the same thing. Because both versions run side by side, a holiday, a viral post or a slow week hits both equally, which is why it is more reliable than “we changed it and sales went up.”
The catch is that a test only tells you something if you change one thing. NN/G’s A/B Testing 101 makes the point directly: change one design element at a time so the cause of a result is clear. Swap the headline, the image and the button together, and you will not know which one moved the number.
How to choose what to test first
The most searched question here is simply what to test. The honest answer is that the best idea is the one backed by evidence from your own site. A list helps you generate options. Your data decides the order.
Look for the leak
Open your analytics and find the step where the most people leave. Common leaks:
- A landing page with lots of visits and few sign-ups.
- A product page with plenty of views and few add-to-carts.
- A cart or checkout step where people abandon.
- An email with a good open rate and a weak click rate.
Segment by device if you can. A page that converts fine on desktop and badly on mobile points to a layout or form problem, not a messaging one.
Read what people say
Review support emails, replies to your newsletter, survey answers, comments and sales-call questions. Repeated confusion (“does this include shipping?”, “what happens after I sign up?”) is a test idea handed to you. The answer to that question often belongs in the headline, the button or the line under the button.
Do a ten-minute usability pass
Load your page on your phone. Ask a friend who has never seen it what it offers and what they would click first. If they cannot tell you in five seconds, your headline or hero section is the first test.
Score the shortlist
Write every idea down and rate each from 1 to 10 on three questions: how big could the effect be, how confident are you given the evidence, and how easy is it to build. Multiply or average the scores, and run the highest one. This is the common ICE method (impact, confidence, ease), and it works fine in a spreadsheet.
Headline and value proposition ideas
The headline is usually the first thing a visitor reads, so it is the most common first test. NN/G lists headlines, CTAs, layouts, copy, checkout pages and forms as typical elements to test.
- Benefit versus feature. “Get 10 hours back every week” against “Project management software with automations.”
- Specific versus broad. “Email marketing for Etsy sellers” against “Email marketing made simple.”
- Question versus statement. Sometimes a question pulls the right visitor in; sometimes it reads like filler.
- Add proof to the headline. A number of customers or a result, but only one you can back up.
- Subheadline job. Test a subheadline that explains how it works against one that handles the biggest objection.
If you want a fuller checklist of what a high-converting page contains before you start testing it, our guide to landing page best practices covers the elements in order.
Call-to-action ideas
A CTA is the button or link that asks for the next step. It is small, so it is cheap to test, and it sits right at the point of decision.
- Wording. “Get the guide” against “Send me the guide” against “Start now.” NN/G’s own example changes a purchase button’s label to “Buy Now” and tracks the button’s click rate, the purchase rate and the average sale amount.
- Size and contrast. Make it easier to spot without making the page shout.
- Placement. Above the fold only, repeated after each section, or sticky on mobile.
- Surrounding text. A short line under the button that removes risk, such as what happens next or how to cancel.
- One CTA versus two. Many pages work better with a single clear action. Test removing the secondary link.
Note that button color is the idea everyone reaches for first, and it is rarely where the big gains are. Wording and the promise next to the button usually matter more.
Form ideas
Forms are where interest turns into a lead, so a small improvement here pays directly. Kit’s landing page guide suggests testing form length, color, location, placeholder text and privacy messaging.
- Fewer fields. Name and email against email only.
- Single step versus multi-step. Ask for the email first, then the rest on a second screen.
- Placement. Form beside the copy against form after the copy.
- Privacy line. A one-sentence note about how you use the email address, placed next to the field.
- Button label. “Subscribe” against a label that names the thing they receive.
If you are building these pages from scratch, our short course on creating forms and landing pages walks through the setup.
Pricing and offer ideas
Pricing tests carry more risk than copy tests, so go in with a clear hypothesis. Show different presentations before you change an actual price.
- Price framing. Monthly against annual with the saving stated.
- Anchoring. Show a higher-priced option next to the one you want people to choose.
- Bonus versus discount. Add something of value instead of cutting the price.
- Guarantee wording. Where the guarantee sits and how it is phrased.
We break down three presentation levers worth testing before you touch a price tag in pricing psychology.
Ecommerce ideas: product page, cart and checkout
For stores, the same logic applies at each funnel stage. A funnel-stage list from CustomFit.ai includes category filters, product image galleries, lifestyle photos against plain product shots, review placement, shipping estimates, cart drawers against full cart pages, guest checkout and payment-method order.
- Reviews near the buy button. Move a short, genuine review snippet next to Add to Cart.
- Image set. Lifestyle photos first against a clean product shot first.
- Shipping information. Show the delivery estimate or free-shipping threshold on the product page instead of at checkout.
- Guest checkout. Offer it prominently against asking for an account first.
- Trust cues. Test where payment and return-policy reassurance sits.
For a broader plan across the whole funnel, see our modern playbook for increasing conversion rate.
Blog, email and promotion ideas
If you are a blogger or run a newsletter, you can test without a store.
- In-post CTA. A text link at the end of the post against a boxed offer in the middle of it.
More ideas in the same family:
- Email subject lines. A specific benefit against curiosity. Measure clicks, not just opens, because open numbers can be distorted by mail apps that preload images.
- Email send time. Morning against evening, run on the same weekday so the days match.
- Lead magnet title. The same download under two names.
- Content upgrade placement. A free checklist offered at the top of a post against at the bottom.
- Popup timing. Appear after a scroll depth against after a number of seconds.
- Promo codes. A percentage off against a fixed amount off.
What to measure for each test
Pick a primary metric (the thing you want to improve) and a guardrail metric (a number that must not get worse). NN/G’s CTA example is a good model: the primary measure is the button’s click rate, while the purchase rate and the average sale amount show whether more clicks actually led to better business.
| Test type | Primary metric | Guardrail |
|---|---|---|
| Headline | Click on the main CTA | Bounce rate, sign-up quality |
| CTA wording | CTA click rate | Purchase rate |
| Form length | Form completion rate | Lead-to-customer rate |
| Pricing display | Purchase rate | Average order value, refunds |
| Email subject line | Click rate | Unsubscribe rate |
| Checkout change | Completed orders | Support tickets, refunds |
A form with fewer fields can raise sign-ups and still hurt you if the extra leads never buy. The guardrail is what catches that.
How long to run a test and when to stop
Traffic decides how fast you can learn. The smaller the change you hope to detect, the more visitors you need, and the exact number depends on your baseline conversion rate. A free sample-size calculator will give you a figure before you start. Write down that number and the end date.
A few habits keep you out of trouble:
- Run the test for at least one or two full weeks so weekday and weekend behavior both show up.
- Do not stop the moment one version pulls ahead. Early leads often fade.
- Do not launch two overlapping tests on the same page and element.
- If you have low traffic, test bigger changes (a new offer, a rewritten page) instead of button tweaks, or compare before and after periods carefully while noting that this is weaker evidence.
A test that ends flat is still useful. It tells you that element is not your bottleneck, and you move to the next idea on the list.
Common mistakes that waste a test
- Changing several things at once. You get a winner and no lesson.
- Testing a page nobody visits. Move to the page where most of your traffic or revenue passes through.
- No hypothesis. Write one sentence: “Because visitors ask about shipping, showing delivery times near the button will raise add-to-carts.”
- Only counting clicks. A better click rate that lowers purchases is a loss.
- Never logging results. Keep a simple sheet with the idea, the hypothesis, the dates, the result and what you decided. In six months it is your most valuable file.
Our view on A/B testing
We run a lot of pages, emails and offers, and the pattern is the same every time: the tests that pay are the dull ones. A clearer headline. A button that says what happens next. A form with one fewer field.
The mistake we see most readers make is hunting for a clever trick. Start with the page that already earns, find where people leave, and fix the message before you fix the design. Then write down what you learned so the next test starts smarter.
Keep each test small, keep the log, and let your own numbers overrule any list, including this one.
Nathaniel
Want the full system behind these tests?
If you would rather learn the whole process of building offers, pages and email sequences that you can then test, our Instant Course Access for Life gives you lifetime access to the course for a one-off $97. You can read the details on the course page.
FAQ
What should I A/B test first?
Test the element on your highest-traffic, highest-value page where visitors drop off most. For most sites that means the headline or the main CTA on a landing page, or the add-to-cart area on a product page. Use analytics and customer questions to choose, not hunches.
How is split testing different from multivariate testing?
Split testing compares two versions that differ in one element. Multivariate testing changes several elements in combination and measures every mix, which needs much more traffic. If your site is small, stay with simple A/B tests.
What are good A/B testing ideas for ecommerce?
Start with review placement near the buy button, the order of product images, delivery information on the product page, guest checkout and the wording of the final order button. Each sits at a point where shoppers decide to continue or leave. Measure completed orders and average order value together.
Can I A/B test with very little traffic?
Yes, but test bigger changes, such as a new offer or a rewritten page, because small tweaks take too long to show a reliable difference. Run each test for full weeks, keep a record, and treat the results as directional rather than final.
Sources
- A/B Testing 101, Nielsen Norman Group
- The why + how of Landing Page A/B Testing, Kit
- Ecommerce A/B Testing Ideas by Funnel Stage, CustomFit.ai