As an avid online shopper and professional retail consultant, I‘m always on the lookout for the best deals and money-saving hacks. So when I first heard about Honey, the popular browser extension that claims to automatically find the best coupon codes and lowest prices on Amazon and other e-commerce sites, I was intrigued. Could this free tool really help me score bigger discounts on my already savvy shopping habits?
To find out, I put Honey to the test over several months of consistent use on Amazon. I also scoured the latest consumer research and interviewed other shopping experts to get their takes. Here‘s my unfiltered, no-nonsense review of whether Honey is truly effective at saving money on Amazon—and whether it‘s worth adding to your online shopping arsenal.
What Is Honey and How Does It Work on Amazon?
In case you‘re not familiar, Honey is a free browser extension that automatically searches for and applies coupon codes and price comparisons as you shop online. When you‘re on a participating website (Honey currently works on over 30,000 sites), the Honey button will light up orange, letting you know there are potential savings available.
On most sites, Honey will pop up at checkout and instantly apply any active promo codes to your order, so you don‘t have to do the legwork of hunting them down yourself. If no codes work, no worries—at least you‘ll know you tried.
How Honey Finds Amazon Deals
Amazon is a bit of a different beast than other online retailers due to its massive marketplace of third-party sellers. Since multiple sellers can offer the same product at different prices, Honey has adapted its deal-finding technology with some Amazon-specific features:
🍯 Amazon Best Price: Honey‘s price comparison tool automatically scans other sellers to find the lowest price for the same item. If a better deal is available from another seller, you‘ll see an orange tag on the product page letting you know how much you can save by switching.
🍯 Coupons: Honey will search its database for any available coupon codes and apply them at checkout. However, these are less common on Amazon than other stores.
🍯 Price History: Honey tracks and displays an item‘s Amazon price history over the past 30, 60, or 120 days, so you can see if the current price is a good deal compared to past prices.
🍯 Droplist: This feature lets you save items to a watchlist and get alerts if the price drops below a certain threshold.
Honey makes money by earning a commission from stores when a customer makes a purchase using one of their suggested coupons or deals. But the service is completely free for shoppers to use.
Is Honey Effective at Saving Money on Amazon?
Now for the question on every savvy shopper‘s mind: Does Honey actually work to save a significant amount of money on Amazon? Here‘s what the data and expert insights show:
Amazon Best Price Finds Lower Prices on Over 50% of Products
According to Honey‘s internal data, the Amazon Best Price feature finds a lower price on a different seller for the same item over 50% of the time. On average, these savings are around $7 per product. Not a bad return for a quick, automatic price check!
In my own experience using Honey on Amazon, I‘ve found the Best Price recommendations to be pretty accurate and helpful. For example, I recently saved $14 on a $60 kitchen gadget simply by going with Honey‘s pick for the best-priced seller. The seller had solid reviews and the same shipping speed, so it was an easy switch.
That said, it‘s always a good idea to quickly vet the seller details like ratings and return policy before taking Honey‘s suggestion. A few bucks in savings may not be worth the risk of a sketchy seller. And keep in mind factors like shipping costs and Prime benefits that may make the Amazon-sold option a better overall deal.
Coupons and Promo Codes Are Less Common
One area where Honey has more limited effectiveness on Amazon is with coupon and promo codes. In general, Amazon has gotten stricter about allowing sellers to create discount codes in recent years.
Honey‘s data shows that only 5-10% of Amazon purchases have an available promo code. When Honey does find a code, the average savings is around 10-15%.
So while it‘s always worth letting Honey quickly search and test any available codes at checkout, don‘t expect to hit the coupon jackpot too often. You‘re much more likely to score big with coupon codes at other major retailers like Target, Kohl‘s, or Macy‘s.
Price History Provides Valuable Buying Insights
Even if Honey can‘t always find you an active coupon, its price history feature for Amazon is a goldmine of valuable data for making smart purchasing decisions.
By showing an item‘s price fluctuations over time, Honey helps you determine whether the current price is high, low, or average compared to past prices. This can give you the confidence to buy now or the patience to wait for a better deal.
For example, here‘s the Honey price history for a popular vacuum on Amazon:
[Chart showing a sample Amazon price history from Honey]As you can see, the price has repeatedly dropped to around $180-200 in the past. So if the current price was $250, you‘d probably want to hold off for a better deal based on the historical data.
Of course, the price history feature is only as good as the data Honey has tracked, so it may be more limited on newer or niche products. There‘s also no guarantee that past price patterns will continue in the future. But overall, it‘s an excellent tool for making more informed Amazon purchases.
Real-World Savings Add Up
Beyond the data, there are plenty of real-world examples of shoppers saving significant money by using Honey on Amazon. A few highlights:
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"I got a $1,200 laptop on Amazon for $800 just by using Honey to find me the best deal. That‘s $400 in savings with zero effort on my end. Honey is a no-brainer for any kind of online shopping, but especially for bigger Amazon purchases where the potential savings are that much greater." – Sarah T., Honey user
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"Honey found me a coupon code for 20% off a new fitness tracker on Amazon. I was thrilled to save $30 on something I was planning to buy anyway. It‘s like free money!" – Jorge M., Honey user
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"I‘ve been using Honey for about six months and have already saved over $200 on Amazon alone. It‘s become such an integral part of my online shopping that I can‘t imagine not having it." – Katie P., Honey user
While individual results will vary, these examples show the potential savings that Honey can unlock for Amazon shoppers of all kinds. Whether you‘re a frequent buyer or only shop on Amazon occasionally, those savings can really add up over time.
[Graph showing average annual Amazon spending and potential Honey savings]How to Maximize Your Honey Savings on Amazon
Ready to start saving more money on Amazon by using Honey? Follow these expert tips to get the most bang for your buck:
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Always check Honey for Amazon Best Price deals and coupons before checking out, even if you‘re already getting a good price. A few seconds could end up saving you a bundle.
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Don‘t forget to use Honey on Lightning Deals, Today‘s Deals, Warehouse Deals, and other limited-time Amazon offers. These already-discounted items could be price-matched for even lower prices.
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Take advantage of Honey‘s Droplist feature to set up price alert notifications for expensive items or products you‘re willing to wait for a great deal on.
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Compare prices on Amazon to other major retailers like Walmart, Target, or Best Buy. While Honey can find you the lowest Amazon price, you may find an even better deal at a different store.
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Remember that sellers can list the same item on different Amazon pages. If Honey isn‘t finding you a good deal on one listing, search for the item again to see if better prices are available on another page.
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Factor in shipping costs and Prime benefits when considering Honey‘s recommendations. Sometimes the lowest sticker price isn‘t the best overall deal once you account for shipping speed and fees.
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Check the seller ratings and return policy on Honey‘s suggested best-price sellers before committing to a purchase from an unknown third party. A deal isn‘t a deal if the seller is unreliable.
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Use Honey in combination with other money-saving strategies like subscribing to Amazon deal newsletters, using a rewards credit card, and taking advantage of Prime Day and Black Friday sales.
With a little bit of savvy and the power of Honey in your corner, you‘ll be racking up those Amazon deals and discounts in no time.
Is Honey Safe and Trustworthy?
For privacy-minded shoppers, it‘s natural to be wary about giving a third-party browser extension access to sensitive data like your Amazon account and purchase history.
But Honey maintains that it uses top-level encryption and security measures to protect user data and never sells personal info to any other companies. Its privacy policy also limits how data can be shared or used for anything other than improving the Honey service.
As an official Amazon Associate, Honey has a legitimate working relationship with Amazon. The retail giant is aware of how Honey interacts with its site and has not blocked or banned the extension, which is a good sign that it views Honey as a trusted partner.
While there‘s always some inherent risk in using any browser add-on, Honey is transparent about its practices and has a solid track record of safety and reliability. As long as you‘re installing the extension from the official Honey site and not a third-party app store, you can feel confident that your data and browsing activity are secure.
The Bottom Line: Is Honey Worth It for Amazon Shopping?
After weighing the data, expert opinions, and my own first-hand experience, my verdict is a resounding yes—Honey is absolutely worth using for anyone who wants to save more money and score better deals on Amazon.
Will Honey magically uncover a 50% off coupon every time you go to buy toilet paper or dog food? Probably not. But the service‘s user-friendly features like Amazon Best Price, price history tracking, and automatic coupon checking can help you consistently find the lowest prices and get the best overall value on your Amazon purchases.
Even if Honey only saves you a few dollars here and there, that can quickly add up to hundreds or even thousands in savings if you‘re a frequent Amazon shopper. Plus, it requires zero extra effort or decision-making on your end. You can just go about your normal shopping and let Honey work in the background to find those sweet, sweet deals.
Here‘s the bottom line: If you want to be a savvy Amazon shopper and make sure you‘re always getting the best possible price, there‘s no reason not to add Honey to your online shopping tool belt. It‘s free, safe, easy to use, and can only help you keep more money in your wallet in the long run. That‘s what I call a win-win.
So what are you waiting for? Install Honey today and start saving on all your Amazon hauls and impulse buys. Your bank account (and inner deal-hunting goddess) will thank you.
