*Thank you Groupon for sponsoring this post. All opinions are my own.
Saving money online is a bit more tricky than saving money in person. Saving money while shopping in person usually boils down to waiting for a sale and a coupon that can be used at the same time. Most people only have a couple of store options near them, so there’s little comparison to do. When shopping online, you have to compare and contrast the different retailer options, and shipping cost (and time!) come into play as well.
8 Tips For Saving Money When Shopping Online.
1. Compare website prices. Most items are available at several online retailers, so visit several sites and see which one has the lowest price.
2. Compare shipping time and cost. If your item is $20.00 at “retailer A”, with 9.99 shipping, but is $25.00 at “retailer B” with free shipping then you’ll save the most by shopping at retailer B, even though retailer A appears to be cheapest on the surface. Also check their shipping policy – if you need the item by a specific date then you might need to pay more in shipping to get the item to you in time.
3. Wait for sales. If you aren’t on a specific deadline, waiting a few weeks and watching the price of your item from a few retailers can help you save if you purchase while the item is at a discount.
4. Buy a lot at once. If you have several items that you regularly purchase online, you can save on the cost of shipping by ordering all of the items at once from the same retailer instead of placing multiple orders.
5. Buy in bulk. If you order items like toilet paper or laundry soap online each month, you can probably save money by only ordering every three months but ordering twice as much.
6. Shop during peak sales events such as cyber monday (the monday after Thanksgiving) or free shipping day (in Mid December).
7. Shop off-season. Just like in stores, many online retailers will offer items at clearance prices once they are off-season such as buying shorts or a bathing suit in the fall.
8. Use Groupon Coupons. Yes, Groupon is the site that you know for offering big discounts on local events like restaurants, spa services or golf games. They also have a coupon section for online retailers that can save you money while shopping online. For example, they currently have a Shutterfly coupon that will save first-time users 30% off their order! Many of the coupons are codes that can be used online, but they also have some printable coupons that can be used in store.
Hi there! I am Emily Evert, the owner of Emily Reviews. I am 28 and live in a small town in Michigan with my boyfriend Ryan and our two pugs. I have a large family and I adore my nieces and nephews. I love reading memoirs, and learning about child development and psychology. I love watching The Game of Thrones, Teen Mom, Sister Wives and Veep. I like listening to Jason Isbell, John Prine, and other alt-country or Americana music. I created Emily Reviews as a creative outlet to share my life and the products that I love with others.
I’ve used Groupons before and trust them. They even responded well when I had service questions. I’ve used similar coupon sites before and a few went out of business. One I just got my money back this year from last year’s mess, since it was a lawsuit and they had to pay creditors. I didn’t really save any money there, so beware!
Deb E
Nice post admirable