More $ but free or bargain price: which would you choose?

catgirl

So I am looking at an item and it is on Amazon, but I have a gift card that would cover the whole price. Or I could pay for it for $80 less at a different site and save the gift card. Which would you do and why?

I am not necessarily buying either way but am curious about girl math logic in this situation.

12 years ago

Shopping

38 replies

Latest reply was from Laura (rhubarbgirl)

Diana

Veteran

Haha I would buy the cheaper one and then use the Amazon card on a pair of shoes. =P

12 years ago

Vicki

(website)

Veteran

First question, have you ever shopped at this other site before?

Do you buy often at Amazon?

I would say pay less and save the gift card for something else. I'd be into saving $$$ for more buys.

12 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

Vicki, yes and yes. It's Neiman Marcus. So do you just think of the gift card as cash (vs "free")? This particular card was from points through my bank that I used, so no money was actually paid for it, just to add a plot twist. In other words it was truly a freebie.

12 years ago

April

Veteran

I would always spend to save. 80 dollars less is a lot - use the gift card for something whose price doesn't vary much between sites.

12 years ago

Sara L.

Veteran

Well, I think it depends on your budget. I'm broke right now (ok, not really, but not working full-time for 3 months when I'm the primary breadwinner has meant a severely limited clothing budget) so I would use the gift card so I wouldn't have to spend any of my own money.

12 years ago

Greyscale

Veteran

I think of Amazon gift cards as cash equivalent and save them to use on boring necessities. But, if it was a rewards card from a bank, I could see using it for a fun purchase. Still, I'd buy them for less at NM if there are other necessities you could buy from amazon.

12 years ago

Susie

Veteran

If it were $10 or less I would probably use the gift card so that it would be 'free' but $80 is worth saving because that is enough to buy something else

12 years ago

rebekahphoto

Veteran

I would save the 80$ and purchase from the site.
Amazon for me is like a giant "everything go-to store", there is always something there I will actually need to buy....or want to buy....

12 years ago

Emily

Veteran

Yeah, I'm with Diana on this one.

12 years ago

rabbit

Veteran

Having faced similar decisions, I personally tend to default to thinking of gift cards as equivalent to money, including the ones you get from bank points or as a present. I still shop sales and try to get the best bargain for an item. For example with prime I do a lot of everyday shopping off Amazon, toilet paper, razors, batteries, salad spinners, etc. so for me it really is the same as cash.

12 years ago

Suz

(website)

Veteran

Oh, I'd buy the item at the cheaper price and save the gift card for sure!

12 years ago

Gigi

Veteran

I'm with Sara L. I would use the gift card in this situation only if you didn't have enough money in the bank account to cover the $80-less version. Otherwise, since Amazon carries so many things and it's extremely likely that you'll be able to use the gift card on something else there, I would save the gift card for later.

12 years ago

(website)

Veteran

I think it depends on total cost of the item. If the savings is more than 25% I'd do the savings. If not, I'd go for using the gift card and having no out of pocket expense.

12 years ago

Glory

Veteran

I would buy the cheaper version and save the gc. That is a serious price difference.

12 years ago

Thistle

Veteran

First, I would decide if the site I have the giftcard for is a place I am likely to purchase from anyway. If so, I would save the giftcard and buy from Amazon.

If it is a place I am struggling to use the giftcard, I would buy somethign I think I would use even if it was a little more.

At $80 more, it would be really hard for me not to buy from the cheaper site.

12 years ago

trix

Active Member

I'd buy from the cheaper site. But that's because I buy enough at Amazon that I would find some way to use the gift card pretty soon (so really, it's like cash) ,and I presume I have enough cash to buy the item at the other retailer.

12 years ago

catgirl

Veteran

Wow consensus! Looks like nearly everyone is in the spend to save boat.

For me the danger of freebies is feeling I have the chance to buy stuff I wouldn't usually buy and don't need, on a whim. Such is this item so I'm passing altogether. But good to know how girl math would apply!

12 years ago

JayS

Veteran

Oh, that's easy. Keep the gift card and buy from the cheaper site. You're saving $80!

Of course, girl math is my specialty. I just got some new shoes from Amazon today because I didn't have a box to return some other ones that came the other day. I had ordered 2 pairs of shoes earlier and the box they came in was way too big to use to send back just one pair. So this way, if these new ones don't work, I just send them and the other pair back in the bigger box. They did work, yeah!, so I'm just gonna send back the one pair in the smaller box. Makes perfect sense to me...

12 years ago

Sheila

Veteran

$ 80 is $ 80...

as long as you do not throw it away at Amazon. They have some great deals on boots now... or you can save the giftcard until you REALLY need something.

12 years ago

rachylou

Veteran

Ja, I'd buy for $80 cheaper, use the gift card on something else.

12 years ago

carter

Veteran

I'd definitely buy from the less expensive site and save the gift card

12 years ago

Gaylene

Veteran

Interesting question. I'm going to throw a spanner in because I'd use the card.

I can't help but wonder if you'd posed the question as "Should I get this item for free or should I pay xx dollars for it?" would the responses be the same? But, then again, "girl math" always makes me roll my eyes.

12 years ago

Diana

Veteran

Gaylene: but it's not free. Amazon gift card is basically money as there's almost nothing they don't sell. I think that's the salient point here.

Now if it was "do I use the gift card from store that only sells X to buy X, or do I buy X from another site" it would be different.

I don't know. I have never considered my credit card rewards to be "fun money," as I pretty much don't differentiate between fun money and regular money anyway. It's all gotta come from somewhere, and you pay your bills, add to your savings first, and whatever is left is what you have for fun things.

12 years ago

Classically Casual

Veteran

Another aspect to take into consideration is hackability, or lack thereof, of the site you 'd be using a personal credit card to purchase the item. Color me gun shy...

12 years ago

rae

(website)

Veteran

Since it's Amazon, I'd go for the bargain price on the other site. Something will always turn up on Amazon, either a want or need... it's not a GC that will languish unused.

12 years ago

MsMary

Veteran

Yes. The card may not have cost anything to acquire, but it's still worth money, and if you can get the skirt for less money you should do it!

12 years ago

Gracie

Veteran

I would choose to pay less for the item and save the card. I treat gift cards and bonus cash-back cards as income. if I buy clothing with them, the amount still gets deducted from my clothes budget.

12 years ago

gryffin

Veteran

Girl math = how much did you spend this month....you were good, go with the lower price if reputable site. You were bad, but want it, need it, gotta have it....then amazon....the price you pay it's a gift to you but you didn't put more on the credit card. That's my scenario!

12 years ago

MsMary

Veteran

I also cringe at the term "girl math," and I don't think the consensus to save the gift card (which is a cash equivalent) and spend less cash elsewhere is "girl math" at all -- I think it's just plain math. I think treating the gift card (which, again, is a cash equivalent given that you can get almost anything at Amazon and could certainly find a good non-frivolous use for it) as "found money" or a "freebie" or anything other than, you know, money would be the worst kind of "girl math."

12 years ago

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