Contributed by Info Guru Jennifer Andrews

Shopping and buying are almost universally loved activities.

However, shopping can be expensive and will dent your bank account over time. Search for cheaper deals of your favorite and frequently used items by checking out online websites.

Read the following list of top ten online bargain hunting tips to determine where to get the most bang for your buck.

 

10. Amazon

Amazon.com sells everything from books to music to sporting equipment and more. This site also allows you to do price comparisons without jumping from site to site to determine where to find the lowest prices. And best of all, you can see real reviews from real customers. That can save you time as well as money!

9. Couponcabin.com

Coupons are a great way to save money and are increasingly popularized via online websites as well as reality television. Couponcabin.com provides over 150,000 coupons and deals to its customers, especially on grocery and pharmacy items. You can also find links to loyalty sign up programs that offer free or discounted premiums.

8. Alex’s Coupons

Find smart bargains online and pay it forward at the same time when you search for coupons on Alex’s Coupons. This site not only helps you save money, they also donate a portion of their proceeds to the Starlight Foundation, a childhood cancer care fund.

7. Free shipping

The downside to shopping online is often the high costs of shipping. Check out online site FreeShipping.org which provides free-shipping coupons for over 1500 stores including eBay and Amazon.com.

6. Housewares, plus yard and auto care gadgets

Pay less for all those must-have housewares, small electronics, auto car gadgets and kitchen tools without running around form store to store to store by shopping an online discount catalog like Heartland America. You get what you need, at a discount — and you save on gas, too! Can’t beat that!

5. Pronto.com

Bargain hunters will adore Pronto.com which provides price comparisons for more than 25,000 online companies. People who sign up to the site will also receive email alerts for upcoming sales.

4. Slick Deals

Find smart bargains online through Slickdeals.net featuring forums where hundreds of users post daily deals. This is user-generated content at its best. Other shoppers do the leg-work, and let you know what they found. And when you’re shopping somewhere and see a great price on a tool, appliance, electronic or other item, you return the favor by sharing your finds. It’s like having a thousand eyes looking for exactly what you want online and in stores.

3. Facebook

Follow the stores you love on social media, especially Facebook. Fans are usually the first to hear about deals, specials and new products, and often savings codes are just for Facebook fans. Some Facebook pages exist solely to broadcast savings from a variety of stores to a special interest group, for example, deals for dog owners. Others have deals for fans who check in on Facebook when they visit a bricks-and-mortar store.

2. Catalogs.com

An online shopping site like Catalogs.com is akin to a virtual shopping mall, and the savings for each store is displayed right on the front door! Go to a site that collects hundreds of stores to look for a deal that will make your time shopping online the most economical, whether it’s free shipping, a percentage off or a flat discount if you spend over a certain dollar amount. When you find a site you like for savings, sign up for the newsletter so you get alerts whenever there are great deals.

1. Book Deals

Book lovers will rejoice in online site Dover Publications which offers up to 50 percent off selected titles. Find all kinds of great books, including the best of fiction, nonfiction, cooking, travel and business.