When it comes to shopping online, there’s nothing like Amazon. With its Prime two-day shipping, its instant video streaming, and even new features like Prime Pantry and the Dash buttons, there’s no more convenient way to buy your everyday household goods online.
Not everything on Amazon is a good deal, because shipping expenses do factor into some of their prices. But you can always find good deals on something on Amazon, and it’s even better when it’s something you need or want.
There are tons of blogs and apps that can help you save money on Amazon — think deal alerts and price threshold notifications — but when it comes to knowing, without a doubt, that you’re getting the best price on whatever you’re buying, there’s nothing like Honey. And what makes Honey even sweeter is that it can turn into a real money-maker for you, too.
What Is Honey?
Honey is an extension for the Google Chrome browser. It’s incredibly easy to set up via their website, and then you’re off to the races. When you get to the sign-up page, you click the Get Honey button, follow just a couple of prompts, and you’re done!
Honey only works in Chrome right now, but it’s really fast and it runs automatically. It really couldn’t be easier.
Once you’ve signed up, you’ll have your own account where you can track your orders and keep tabs on how much you’re earning with Honey.
Save Money With Honey
Honey’s money-saving side has two different “prongs” of operation. One is within Amazon itself. When you’re looking at any product’s page, you’ll see a little orange bar hovering near the price. What it’s doing is calculating your total price at checkout for that item, and then seeing if there are any better options hiding in the “other sellers” section.
If the Amazon price is the best one, the button will say Best Deal, but if there’s a better price available from a different seller, the button will darken and tell you how much you could save by using a different seller.
This next part is my favorite feature. If you hover your mouse over the button, you’ll be able to add the least expensive alternative directly to your cart. No more hunting and tabulating… just one click, and you’re ready to checkout with the lowest possible price. It automatically applies the lowest coupon code, so there’s no copying and pasting and dealing with lots of new tabs.
The other way Honey app works is with popular online retailers. It tracks all the publicly available coupon codes, and when you’re shopping at a site like Target.com or Hotels.com, Honey will automatically apply the best coupon code at checkout. Honey’s portal is great because it shows you which stores have great deals and are really popular at the moment. This can be a big tip for a hot offer.
Honey will activate automatically when you hit the checkout page and a small popup will appear toward the top of your screen. When you click the button, it’ll scan all of the available coupon codes out there and find the one that gets you the best deal.
Make Money With Honey
There are also ways you can make money through Honey. There’s a cash-back program (called HoneyGold) and a referral program.
HoneyGold is different from other cash-back programs in that the amount of cash you’ll get is randomized, and it could be anywhere from 1 to 100% of the commission that Honey receives from your purchase. To get HoneyGold, you’ll have to shop through Honey’s portal — just like with other cash-back programs. You can also qualify for surprise bonuses by checking the HoneyGold tab and activating your bonus before shopping.
The referral program is a great way to make money, too! For each person who signs up using your referral link and earns any amount of HoneyGold, you’ll receive a $5 referral bonus (in the form of HoneyGold).
Cashing Out on Honey
Currently, you can redeem your HoneyGold for Amazon gift cards, but they’ll be adding PayPal soon, as well. The cash-out threshold is fairly low, at $10, so it won’t take too long to be able to meet the threshold and pocket your money. I like saving up my Amazon gift cards and using them to buy gifts for birthdays and holidays, but they’re also great to use on regular household expenses and office supplies as well.
Final Thoughts on Honey
Honey app is a great idea that’s been a long time coming. I especially love it when I’m shopping on Amazon, because I’ll know if I’m really getting the best deal available or if there’s a way to get a lower price from another seller.
Their cash-back shopping is fairly standard among cash-back sites, and the relatively low threshold for cashing out gives it a slight edge. If you really want to be able to get cash for your credits, Honey isn’t quite there yet, but if Amazon cards are as good as cash for you, then you’ll love how quickly you can earn them.
The referral program, too, is a great way to make even more money. Each referral gives you 500 gold, the equivalent of $5, so just two referrals will let you cash out.
Plus, it sure beats manually typing in every single code I can find! Sign up for your free account here.
Have you used Honey before? What did you think of it?
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