Get the Best Buys on Mac Stuff with Shopping Comparison Websites

You've heard that buying cameras, printers, computers and more on the internet can be a great way to save to money, but where do you start? I find that once I know what I want, price comparison websites are the fastest way to find a great price.

But first, why buy from a website in the first place rather than the big box store down the way? There are three key reasons. The first is selection: everything is available on the internet from reseller somewhere. Best Buy might have some attractive prices, but they usually only carry the top four or five brands in computers and consumer electronics. Secondly, when you buy from an out-of-state retailer, they do not charge you sales tax. Instead you are technically supposed to report it and pay the tax with your state income taxes. I have yet to meet someone who does this. With expensive electronics, sales tax can be substantial.

But most importantly, with the transparent market on the internet, there is much more competition, which drives the prices down. This squeezes the margins of the retailers in your favor.

So where should you start? For me, I still suggest going to the big box retailer to decide on what you want and get a feel for the product if they carry it. When you are there, note the model number and then come back to your Mac and get the best price on the internet. If you can't get out and shop the item in person, there are good sites to get ratings and reviews from. For more info, see A Guide to the Best Mac/Tech Review Sites.

Once you know what you want to buy, the strategy I suggest to you is to go to one or two price comparison websites, find the best total price and go for it. My favorite site for computers and electronics is shopper.com, but there are many favorites to pick from. Let us know yours in the Comments section below.

So how do these sites work? They tap the databases of the online retailers and present to you the prices side by side with other important criteria such as shipping cost and sales tax. See the example below.



I suggest once you get to the comparison site, just type your model number into their search field. It's rare that any two items have the same model number, so this alone will usually get you to the page where you confirm you are looking for that particular item. Once there, click on the name of the item and you should get the page with some raw numbers to compare.

Here are a couple tips: You should always make sure the site has a "total cost" feature that adds shipping and sales tax together to the item price. These two items can be anywhere from 0 to hundreds of dollars depending on the item price and shipping weight and distance. You need to make sure you can enter your zip code and have the site recalculate the price for you. Another tip is that the prices are often NOT listed from lowest to highest. You often have to click on the price column header or a "Sort by…" menu. Pay attention because the top listed retailer might not be the best price.

At this point, you usually click something like "Buy Now" or just the retailer's name and you will be taken to the retailer's website to begin the transaction.

Last note: Most major online retailers have affiliate programs where websites that promote them will get a small percentage of anything purchased after clicking on the promotional link. This is a great way to show your appreciation for a favorite website like My First Mac. For example, if you wanted to help MFM with our operations, rather than clicking on the Amazon link in Shopper.com after you found them to have the best price, you could click from the Amazon link on our site and then put the model name in the search field and continue the process from there.

Good luck shopping!


Do you have a favorite site that you like? Let us know why in the Comments section below!

DIG DEEPER

Here's a partial list of price comparison sites:
Shopper.com
MySimon
Price.com
Shopzilla

Just Mac Stuff:
MacPrices
DealMac

What is this?

Tell A Friend

Print Page

Your Comments:

I tend to get most items at amazon. I have had great service, one click shopping is easy, I have a prime member ship so I get free 2nd day shipping on most items, and returns are never a problem. Most importantly I have been dealing with them for years and they have earned my trust with my credit card info. I try to keep my credit card info on as few places as possible. Most items for my mac are on amazon or of course apple.com.

 Darrin
 09/04/2007  at  12:58 AM