Shopping

Everything on the site about shopping: practices to vote on, common pricing problems, and the tactics companies use to charge more.

Fair or not?

Is it fair when "best of" lists and reviews are shaped by who pays?

Is it fair for a business to give you only store credit or a voucher when you want your money back?

Is it fair when a warranty claim is denied, delayed or bounced between the maker and the seller?

Service, facility and order fees on concert and sports tickets

Cheap intro rates, auto-renewals and phone-only cancelling

Pricey courses, upsells and memberships that keep renewing

Protection plans that overlap coverage you may already have

Music and audiobook plans that renew quietly, raise prices, or bundle unused extras.

Paid store and shipping memberships that auto-renew whether or not you save money.

Family history sites and DNA kits with auto-renewing plans and pricey record access.

What used to come with the price is now sold piece by piece, so the real total goes up.

Smaller packages and cheaper quality at the same price. How to spot it and compare.

Crossed-out prices, nonstop sales and ticking timers that make normal prices look like deals.

A yearly or monthly fee for shipping, prices or access that used to come free.

Something unfair in shopping we haven’t covered? Share what happened.

Other areas: Money & banking · Home & real estate · Tech & software · Phone, TV & internet · Cars · Health & insurance · Food & dining · Travel · Work & jobs