Buzz
Have you ever felt like you paid too much for something that was pitched as a “fantastic deal”? If so, you’re not alone. It's easy to fall into the trap of online shopping events like Black Friday or Prime Day, where retailers often raise prices before these so-called “sales” or use tactics to get you to spend more than planned.
Knowing the perfect time to make a purchase takes constant monitoring of fluctuating online prices and a good understanding of past price trends. As a deal expert, I can tell you how much effort it takes. Thankfully, you don’t have to do it all on your own. Here are the top websites and browser extensions I've relied on for years to check price history and track prices, ensuring you get the best deal possible.
The best tool for tracking Amazon prices: Camelcamelcamel.
CamelCamelCamel is one of the top platforms for monitoring Amazon product prices. You can add a browser extension (available for Chrome, Firefox, Microsoft Edge, Opera, and Safari) to conveniently track prices without leaving Amazon, or you can directly paste an Amazon link or search term into the website's search bar. This tool helps you view the price history of an item, track price movements on Amazon itself, and observe fluctuations from third-party sellers offering new or used items.
By signing up for a free account, you can create alerts to notify you via email when an item's price drops below a set threshold, when it's available at a desired price second-hand, or when it's at its lowest historical price—helping you decide when to purchase. Additionally, you can check previous price highs and lows to find the best time to buy.
Honey is regarded as one of the best price comparison tools for online shopping, helping users track prices across various online stores.
You’ve likely come across the Honey influencer scandal that made headlines in December 2024. In short, Honey exploited affiliate links from influencers endorsing them. In many cases, they purposely withheld the best coupons from users of the extension, contrary to their business model. Honey isn't the only company involved in such practices; many coupon sites do the same, but Honey is currently under scrutiny due to its size. It's best to make your own decision about using their services.
The downside for those seeking a price-tracking tool for a variety of online stores is that Honey is the sole provider. The positive aspect is that Honey's price tracker won’t deceive you or offer subpar coupons. The Honey browser extension compares prices from multiple retailers, not just Amazon. It allows you to create a Droplist that alerts you when an item on your list drops in price if you’re willing to wait for a deal. Here’s what setting up a Droplist can offer you:
Firstly, it helps you stay organized by keeping track of your desired items in one place. Secondly, it monitors the prices of these products and notifies you when they’re on sale at any major retailer. You can analyze price trends leading up to the sale to determine if the deal is genuinely worthwhile or if retailers are attempting to take advantage of you. Additionally, you can compare prices across different major retailers to find the best offer. You can learn how to set up your droplist here.
If you don't make purchases through Honey's affiliate links, you're not contributing to their revenue. You can still take full advantage of the tool without impacting their affiliate earnings. Until a better solution comes along, Honey remains the top choice for instantly accessing price histories and tracking prices across various retailers through its browser extension (for now).
The top tool for comparing prices: Capital One Shopping
Capital One Shopping, formerly known as Wikibuy, helps you compare prices from other sellers when shopping on Amazon. The browser extension alerts you if the item you're considering is priced lower elsewhere and provides a pricing history, estimated delivery times, and total costs, including taxes and shipping. If a coupon is available, it will automatically apply. Capital One Shopping will also notify you when a price drops for an item you've previously viewed. Additionally, you can earn credits for purchases at partnered sites like Walmart and eBay, which can be redeemed for gift cards or used toward purchases on Capital One Shopping's platform.
The extension works on Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari, and there’s also an iOS app that lets you scan barcodes and search products, enabling you to compare prices directly from your phone.
The ultimate price tracker tool for gamers: CheapShark
While many other tools focus on categories like electronics, clothing, home goods, and appliances, CheapShark is the perfect choice for those wanting to save on video games. CheapShark gathers all the best discounts for games in one convenient location, offering a searchable database with current prices from sites such as Steam, GoG, Green Man Gaming, GameStop, Amazon, and others. It’s specifically for video games, but you can search for a game to find out not only its price but also availability—and which store has it in stock. You can even filter by games currently on sale at participating stores.
When you look up a specific game, CheapShark will show you its all-time lowest price, when that price was reached, and give you the option to either purchase it from your preferred retailer or sign up for a price alert if it drops again.
Honorable Mentions
SlickDeals: Perfect for finding deals and comparing prices
SlickDeals is well-known for bringing you real-time discounts, coupons, and deals from all over the web, but its price tracker is also excellent for monitoring prices on nearly any item on Amazon and a wide range of other popular shopping websites, such as Newegg, GameStop, Chewy, Home Depot, and more.
While it doesn’t provide a detailed price history like some other tools in this roundup, it does offer a 'deal history' under the 'price intelligence' section for a few popular products. Once you set up a price alert, the service will track your item and send you an email if the price drops below your specified threshold. You can also log into your account at any time and view all your tracked items in one place.
Keepa: An excellent tool for tracking prices on Amazon and eBay
Keepa functions similarly to Camelcamelcamel, but instead of clicking on the extension to view the price history, the information is automatically shown below the product image. This is convenient if you prefer to skip the extra click for the extension or installation. Keepa also allows you to track specific products and sends notifications when their price drops below your specified threshold. It works on eBay as well. The extension is available for Firefox, Chrome, Opera, Edge, and Safari.
