How to Use Tech to Find the Best Deals

Who doesn’t love a little retail therapy? Whether you’re looking for something new, stocking up on staples, or browsing—until something leaps out at you—fitting our love of shopping into our budgets can be difficult. But there’s a whole world between clutching the purse strings tightly and never, ever checking your balances. Thanks to the ubiquity of tech these days, you can find deals on just about everything. Here are some of our favorite ways to save money with the help of day-to-day tech and tools.

Post sponsored by Shop.com

Apps & Browser Add-Ons

Most of us do a ton of shopping online—whether we’re at home on our computers or on the go on our phones or tablets. There are a ton of mobile apps and browser plug-ins that clip coupons, sift through deals, and even offer cash back when we shop through their specific portals.


ShopBuddy is a great example of both an app and a browser plug-in. Through ShopBuddy, you can find and apply coupons for your favorite store, see deals in your search results when you’re looking for an item using your preferred search engine, earn cash back, and more money—and time—saving features.


No matter what kind of shopping you do online or what stores you frequent, there’s an app or browser plug-in for you. Try a few and see which works best for your shopping pattern.



Your Favorite Search Engine & Social Platform

21st-century bargain hunting gives us almost endless options to find great deals on pretty much everything. And the first place to start your hunt should be your favorite search engine.


Most search engines have built in shopping functions and/or the ability to catalog what’s available at top retailers. These features can reveal price differences, sales, and even stores you normally wouldn’t consider—or didn’t even know existed.


Already know what you want and where to get it? Try searching the name of your item or store plus the word “coupon” or “promo” and see what happens. Sometimes this will reveal coupon codes and other savings you didn’t know about already.


On social? Follow your favorite brands’ pages and keep an eye out for special announcements—they do happen! Not a fan of social media platforms? Fear not: Many of the same promos and savings advertised to social media followers are shared in brands’ e-newsletters. Sign up for your favorites and check your inbox for savings before your next online shopping spree.



Check Your Credit Cards

This may seem a little lo-fi, but in the high-tech world of shopping, credit cards stay competitive against each other and other alternative methods of payment by offering lots of perks and bonuses. Depending on the cards you hold, you may be entitled to:

• Members’ only pricing on ticketed events or travel.

• Store-card discounts, coupons, and appreciation days.

• Accumulated points or miles that you can trade for gift cards, merchandise, or cash off.

• Cash back savings on certain categories.

To keep up with everything your cards offer, download their apps and/or sign up for their card member newsletters. Your wallet will thank you!


Don’t feel overwhelmed by all your options for using technology to save you cash. You don’t have to do each of these things; experiment to see what works best for you and your shopping patterns. Or start with an app and plug-in like ShopBuddy, a tool that encompasses a lot of the other functions of using tech to save cash.


No matter what you choose, you’ll be saving in no time.

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About Author: 

Stephan Maldonado is a digital marketer, health & fitness enthusiast, and aspiring novelist. He is currently a freelance writer for SHOP.COM, where he writes about a variety of health-related topics.

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