25 Ways to Save on Shopping

1. Buy discounted gift cards. On websites such as Raise and Cardpool, people list unwanted gift cards at a discount — 16 percent is average, according to the site. Buy a $100 gift card for $84 and save $16.

2. Do a postseason stock-up shop. The best time to replace worn-out clothes, gear or supplies is when their season has just ended. For example, a gas grill at Home Depot was listed at $299 last summer, then marked down to $249 after the season. Savings: $50.

3. Check out Amazon Warehouse. Before you buy, see if the item is available at a discount. A Poulan self-propelled lawn mower selling for $300 on Amazon was available on Amazon Warehouse, slightly used, for $210, a savings of $90.

4. Check for promo codes. Online retailers offer discount codes. Google the retailer and “promo code” to see what pops up or check RetailMeNot.com before finalizing a purchase. Recent savings: $31.98 off a Land’s End dress priced at $79.95, and $47.96 off a pair of Gap men’s jeans and a sweater worth $119.90 — a total of almost $80.

5. Buy through BeFrugal.com. This website offers coupons and cash back for purchases from 5,000 retailers. A Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon laptop was $1,339 using a $70 coupon. That’s a savings of more than $100 over online retailers.

6. Rent a dress. Need a glamorous dress or evening gown that you plan to wear only once? Don’t buy it; rent it instead at sites like RentTheRunway.com. A gown that sells for $695 can be rented for $115. Savings: $580.
7. Get magazines cheap. Subscribe to lots of magazines? Consider the Texture app: For one monthly fee, you get access to digital versions of more than 200 popular magazines. Save $10 to $50 per subscription.

8. Buy a refurbished computer. Why pay big bucks for the latest model? Go to sites like DiscountComputerDepot.com and pick up a refurbished laptop with a one-year warranty for $100. That’ll save you at least $100 over a new computer.

9. Get retroactive refunds. Stores will refund the difference if the price drops soon after you buy an item. The Earny app finds and claims price drops. Savings: $220 when that laptop you ordered drops in price.

10. Wait on a mattress sale. Never buy a department store mattress at regular price. Those stores regularly have steep discounts. A recent sale at a national chain store saw the price of a queen-size mattress and box spring set marked down from $3,589 to $1,749. Savings: $1,780.

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