Stores where price online and in store differ

[jim584672]

Shopping for Turbotax and see it in Target for $49.xx. Go home and see it at Target.com for $39.xx. Go to the store and have to go through a hassle to get them to price match their own store. They are showing me some app where it is $49.xx. Lucky I had my phone and showed them the lower price.

It reminds me of Best Buy where they had the same thing going on.

Tip of the day, always check for lower prices online for any purchase you make.

 

[RE2Boys]

I've encountered the same pricing difference on selected items regarding Wal-Mart and walmart.com several years ago.

 

[audreyh1]

Yep, I’ve run into that issue at Best Buy, but they were willing to match their online price in store with no prob.

Wildly at Staples their in store price was lower than online. They only had the floor model available in store, but they overrode the online price and gave me the store price even though they had to order me a unit online and have it shipped to my house!

 

[Amethyst]

Walmart.com, which has a "free shipping over $35" policy, has started offering "discounts" for in-store pickup on most grocery and drugstore items. The "discounted" price is basically the store price! They probably want to discourage people from ordering cheap-but-heavy-to-ship items online.

 

[CaptTom]

I expect to pay for shipping, in some way. Maybe sometimes it's cheaper to ship just the items people have ordered and paid for, than to maintain inventory at a bunch of B&M stores. Either way, we pay for it in the end. Everyone's trying to strike the right balance, so it's not surprising to see odd results like in the OP.

To me, the huge advantage of "free" shipping is that the seller sees this as a cost to be minimized, rather than a profit center to be maximized. This way, even knowing it's built into the price, I'm more likely to pay the lowest cost for shipping.

Remember when products were advertised at or below cost, and the vendors soaked us on the grossly inflated shipping and "handling" fees? Remember "Allow 6-8 weeks for delivery?"

I'd never want to go back there.

 

[CRLLS]

Several years back we went to BestBuy in person to purchase and take home a TV that we saw on their website. Their in store price was higher and they would not honor the online price. So we purchased it online with "pickup" thru a different BB and they gave us free delivery! So we did that. I just don't understand that.

 

[Jerry1]

I’ve only seen a difference at Best Buy, but admittedly, I don’t shop or by much. BB will honor the price without any issue, but I’m sure they’re happy to sell you something for the higher price if you don’t ask.

Costco is similar but their issue is that they don’t hold the same inventory on line as they do in store. I really like it when I can check to see if a store has something in stock before I go to the store to purchase it. Home Depot is great for this. They’ll tell you the location of the item so you can go get it without wondering around.

 

[zinger1457]

I've encountered the same pricing difference on selected items regarding Wal-Mart and walmart.com several years ago.

Just happened to me yesterday, it wasn't a high cost item but checked Wal-Mart online first to make sure they had what I needed in stock. The online price wasn't a on sale price but it was lower than the in store price. I don't normally compare online and in store prices at Wal-Mart so not sure if this is common or not.

 

[audreyh1]

Several years back we went to BestBuy in person to purchase and take home a TV that we saw on their website. Their in store price was higher and they would not honor the online price. So we purchased it online with "pickup" thru a different BB and they gave us free delivery! So we did that. I just don't understand that.

Shocking!

I’ve done pickup in store many times at Best Buy from the online price.

 

[audreyh1]

Just happened to me yesterday, it wasn't a high cost item but checked Wal-Mart online first to make sure they had what I needed in stock. The online price wasn't a on sale price but it was lower than the in store price. I don't normally compare online and in store prices at Wal-Mart so not sure if this is common or not.

I’ve found that at least at my local Walmart, they say something is available in store from their site, but it’s not!

At a smaller Walmart near my Dad’s, ordering for in-store pickup has worked well.

 

[CaptTom]

I don't really expect the web site to reflect the actual inventory. Even before stores put this information on the web, salesmen would often say "The computer says we have xx in stock, but that's never right..."

It has been getting better though. Usually Lowe's and Home Depot are pretty close.

 

[audreyh1]

I don't really expect the web site to reflect the actual inventory. Even before stores put this information on the web, salesmen would often say "The computer says we have xx in stock, but that's never right..."

It has been getting better though. Usually Lowe's and Home Depot are pretty close.

Well some are very good.

 

[MrsHaloFIRE]

I don't really expect the web site to reflect the actual inventory. Even before stores put this information on the web, salesmen would often say "The computer says we have xx in stock, but that's never right..."

It has been getting better though. Usually Lowe's and Home Depot are pretty close.

When I worked at Sears in HS, 3 in stock meant maybe 1, maybe not. "Shrinkage" I.e. it grew legs and walked away

 

[COcheesehead]

Costco does this. I found better prices in store for example on iPads.

 

[Teacher Terry]

If it’s cheaper online I order it and get free shipping. We had a tv come right to the door which was better than transporting it ourselves.

 

[Dare]

Best Buy in-store will match their own online prices now, but you have to ask. It seems silly that you have to ask them to match their own pricing, but at least they do it readily now.



Best Buy will also match Amazon prices (if the item is in stock and sold by Amazon itself, not a marketplace seller). It pays to check, although I've noticed Best Buy having more "special" model numbers for laptops, which means you can't find an exact match anywhere else. Even if you can find the same brand with all the same specs, the model number is different, so no price match. It's always something.

 

[gwraigty]

I recently bought a computer mouse at Target. Their online price was $4.49. In store it was $8.99. The cashier in electronics gave me the online price when I showed him their online price on my phone. No grief or hassle at all.