Best days, times to shop online and save
You’ve probably heard that it is best to buy gas or plane tickets on certain days of the week to save money, but what about when it comes to saving while you’re tracking prices on a dozen items online.
HOUSTON – You’ve seen dynamic pricing. When high demand can cause prices to surge on things like concert tickets, Uber rides, and gasoline.
In a new report, the data firm Smartproxy says it’s discovered the best and worst times to shop online by tracking prices on dozens of online retailers worldwide, including Amazon, Best Buy, and Wayfare.
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“We watched 12 random products from the most popular categories, and we scraped the data for 33 days in four hour intervals,” explained Mykolas Juodis of Smartproxy.
Dynamic pricing uses algorithms based on supply and demand, competitor pricing, and how often you look at a product online, or put it in your cart.
Here’s what they found. For overall online shopping, Smartproxy says the best time to shop is in the morning between 6 a.m. and 12 p.m., particularly Tuesday mornings, and the worst time was Friday mornings.
“There are specific categories that tend to fluctuate more in price. For example, the fashion category is one that changes prices,” said Juodis.
On Amazon, Smartproxy reports prices tend to be lowest on Monday afternoons, and most expensive on Tuesday nights.
“At Best Buy, we see that Friday nights offer the best deals, and Saturday mornings offer the priciest,” said Juodis.
To avoid dynamic price increases, Smartproxy suggests shopping during these lower price periods.
They also recommend:
- Using incognito mode, which hides your browsing history
- Switching devices before you buy something to change browsers, such as from a cell phone to a laptop
- And using price tracking apps, such as Camel Camel Camel, Honey or ShopSavvy, which show you when an item’s price has dropped in the past. These platforms let users sign up to be alerted when the price drops on an item they want to buy.
The Source: FOX 26’s Heather Sulllivan spoke with Smartproxy about when the best time and days are to shop online.