Save Money With Safe Internet Shopping

Rosslyn Elliott / Updated Apr 02, 2024 | Pub. Feb 06, 2024

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Online shopping is so common now that you may not even realize all its perks.

Maybe you first started shopping on the internet for the convenience. If you need something very specific in a hurry, some big retailers can get it to you overnight. That didn’t happen before we had dotcoms!

But there’s even more to like about shopping online. The best online shopping deals can save you a tremendous amount of money. The savings you get from online deals can be greater than the monthly price of your internet service. Your internet service may literally be saving you more than it costs!

So. internet shopping has real perks. But you do need to shop with care. Internet shopping is the most common way we put sensitive information into the world. You need to make sure your information and money stay protected.

This comprehensive guide will give you 25 tips and strategies to get the best deals online while avoiding scams and fraud.

Why Online Shopping Saves Money

Internet stores can give you great deals for several reasons.

No overhead vs. economies of scale

First, online stores don’t have the high overhead costs of rent, utilities, and staff for physical stores. That means they can still turn a profit even when they offer lower prices to customers.

But wait a minute, you may be thinking. What about the big A? Yes, Amazon has physical warehouses, zillions of employees, and vehicles all over the country. With Amazon and other giant retailers, the low prices can come from their economies of scale. They use so much packing material, etc, that each box costs them very little. And these mammoth retailers make so many sales that their profit margin can be lower from each individual sale [1].

Less overhead without brick-and-mortar

Competition lowers prices

Online shopping makes it easy for you to compare prices between retailers. That means more competition. And more competition lowers pricing.

Many ecommerce sites offer exclusive online coupon codes and flash sale discounts not available in stores.

You also save the money for gas and transportation when you don’t have to drive to multiple stores hunting for bargains. With free shipping offers and the convenience of home delivery, the savings really add up.

Overall, shopping online can often save you 10-50% off typical retail prices. For frequent shoppers, those savings will usually more than cover the monthly cost of internet service.

Risks of Online Shopping

While internet shopping presents fabulous opportunities for savings, it also comes with some risks to be aware of.

Your top concerns will be exposure of financial information, identity theft, online scams, fake websites, and getting fake or shoddy products.

But you can take precautions online, so you can get all the benefits while minimizing the risks.

First, you have to know how to tell the legitimate businesses from the shady ones.

Padlock in digital field to show cybersecurity

Protect your information

Safest and Best Online Shopping Websites

If you are new to the digital world, stick with well-established retailers that have been around for a while. Some of the best internet shopping sites include:

Amazon: The world’s largest online retailer, Amazon.com sells just about everything at competitive prices with excellent customer service and speedy shipping. They thoroughly vet third-party sellers on their marketplace.

If you buy their Amazon Prime membership, most of your shipping will be free, even for overnight shipping. You will have to calculate whether that’s worth it, as a Prime membership is now $139 annually. Though Amazon has its critics for some of its practices, there is no doubt that it is one of the best online shopping websites.

Target: This major big-box store offers an enormous selection of products available for purchase online and then pick up at your local Target store. If you pick up your order at a store, you won’t pay shipping the way you will for home delivery. Their website is professional, secure, and easy to use.

Target.com is known for high-quality products that are up-to-date and better made than some from other big-box stores. Because Target carries so many more products than it can hold in its stores, online shopping gives you a much wider selection.

eBay: eBay is slightly higher risk than the major corporate sites because it is a platform for lots of sellers. But because eBay.com has many protections in place as well as ratings for every buyer and seller, most of the transactions are satisfactory.

eBay is also a feel-good purchase if you buy from a private seller. You know that your purchase is helping out a real person or small business instead of a gigantic corporation. Just make sure you check shipping costs, which can be high depending on the sellers.

Lowe’s and Home Depot: Both of these stores are trusted brands for home improvement. And each has a user-friendly website where you can purchase everything for your next DIY project and either pick up in-store or have items delivered.

Lowe’s and Home Depot stores are already massive, but when you add their online inventory at their dotcom sites, the possibilities are endless. Picking up in-store can save you money, but sometimes you may need home delivery for a big or heavy item.

Amazon delivery sign showing best online shopping websites

Know your retailer

The key is to stick with major national retailers that have an established reputation for providing honest service, competitive pricing, and secure checkout processes. Be wary of any sites you haven’t heard of before.

Also be very cautious about sites with prices that seem too low. Newcomer Temu, which is flooding social media with ads for great discounts, is not accredited by the BBB and has an average rating of 2.5 out of 5 stars.

Fake Shopping Sites to Avoid

The internet is filled with great deals at reputable businesses. But there are also many shady operators out there running fake shopping websites designed to steal your money and information.

Here are some red flags that may give away a fraudulent shopping site:

The site looks amateurish or unprofessional
There are spelling errors and grammatical mistakes
Limited or no contact information is provided
Customer reviews seem fake or non-existent
Pricing seems too good to be true
URLs look suspicious (misspellings, extra letters, not HTTPS secured)

Also beware of any site you find through an ad rather than search engine results.

Common types of fraudulent sites include:

knockoffs of real brands
fake stores claiming to sell luxury/designer goods at impossibly low prices
fake pharmacy sites
scammers selling hot ticket items that are out of stock everywhere else

Always do your due diligence by researching any unfamiliar sites before providing payment info.

Fake designer goods

How to Tell if an Online Shopping Site is Legit

When visiting a new online shopping site, there are several things you can evaluate to determine if they are a real, legitimate business you can trust:

Secure connection – Check that the URL begins with HTTPS indicating info is encrypted during transmission. Also look for a lock icon.

Contact information – Reputable sites provide a customer service phone number, email, physical business address, and identity of owners.

Return policies – Detailed return policies including timeframes, conditions, and processes indicate a legitimate retailer.

Spelling and grammar – Professional sites contain proper spelling, grammar, and formatting

Reviews – Search for reviews of the company online and check sites like Trustpilot. Beware of reviews that seem fake.

Social media – Real brands maintain active social media presences you can check.

Competitive pricing – Pricing that seems too good to be true could indicate a scam.

Shipping information – Detailed shipping policies, tracking numbers, and realistic delivery estimates are good signs.

Taking a few minutes to thoroughly check out an unknown shopping site can help you avoid the pitfalls of scammers and fake retailers. When in doubt, stick to well-known sites.

screenshot of social media site for best internet shopping

Look for legit social media sites

25 Tips for Safe Online Shopping

Follow these 25 tips to keep your money and information safe! You can get great internet deals without getting ripped off.

Research new businesses – Don’t just rely on their website. Do an internet search to see what others are saying about their service and reputation.
Avoid too-good-to-be-true deals – Super cheap prices on luxury or rare items are usually a red flag for a scam. Make sure deals make sense.
Don’t use public Wi-Fi for shopping – Public connections can expose your data. Shop only on private networks.
Use a VPN – A VPN encrypts your internet connection to conceal your online activity and data.
Create strong passwords – Avoid common words and personal info. Use a mix of numbers, symbols, upper and lower case.
Check site security – Look for the lock icon and HTTPS in the URL.
Watch for phishing scams – Emails pretending to be from real retailers may try to steal your login credentials.
Use credit cards, not debit cards – Credit cards have better fraud protections under federal law.
Consider virtual credit cards – Services like Privacy.com let you generate virtual card numbers for one-time use [2].
Monitor your statements – Review credit card and bank statements frequently to identify any unauthorized charges.
Keep digital or printed receipts – This provides proof of purchase and can help secure refunds for defective or undelivered items.
Track shipping status – Make sure packages arrive on schedule and contact the seller with any delivery issues.
Report scammers – Alert the FTC, state attorney general, and Better Business Bureau if you encounter a fake shopping site [3]. Leave reviews warning others.
Update software regularly – This patches security vulnerabilities hackers can exploit to steal data.
Limit optional info – When creating accounts, provide only required personal info, not unnecessary extras.
Secure devices – Use lock screens and always log out of shopping sites after checkout.
Only download official apps – Verify the developer and download popular retailer apps only from Google Play and the App Store [4].
Don’t share private info – Legit retailers will never contact you requesting login credentials, Social Security numbers, or bank info.
Research gift card exchange sites – Only use reputable verified sites backed by guarantees when buying/selling gift cards from other users.
Read the fine print – Understand shipping fees, return policies, price matching guarantees, and other details before completing a purchase.
Use online payments – Services like PayPal and Apple Pay provide an extra layer of protection between your credit card and retailers [5].
Verify reviews – Fake reviews are common, so read carefully and focus on low ratings to identify potential issues.
Type URLs manually – Avoid clicking links which may lead to fake phishing sites. Manually enter known retailer URLs.
Use a separate shopping email – Keep your main email for correspondence and create a secondary address just for online orders.
Unique passwords – Don’t reuse the same password between shopping sites and banking. Use a password manager.

Following these tips will help you spot shady operators and make smart decisions.

tiny grocery carts sit on laptop keyboard

Tips for safe shopping

What to Do if You Have a Bad Shopping Experience

You can have bad experiences even with major online shopping platforms. Sometimes, a product won’t look the way it did online. At other times, delivery may be delayed so you don’t get what you need in time. If you work from home and you really needed that printer cartridge to arrive in one day, it can be a real bummer to have a delay.

With major retailers, you can usually get a refund pretty easily. Amazon has a national system of returns. Once you get your return label, you can drop off your return items at Whole Foods or Kohls, and you don’t even have to box them up [6].

If you get scammed by a private seller, be sure to report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center and the BBB [7,8]. Making the effort to report gets bad actors out of the marketplace. You can help other consumers get the advantages of internet shopping without the scams.

Report fraud

Do You Need Fast Internet for Online Shopping?

You don’t need the fastest internet for shopping. Not really. Because retailers want you to buy their products, they have optimized their websites for browsing even from slower connections.

Sure, there is some DSL internet out there that is so slow that it won’t load pictures properly. But that is rare. And of course, dial-up is very slow, but few people are still using dial-up connections.

If you have any trouble finding your way around the internet, you can get oriented with our beginner’s guide to using the internet.

The main reasons you need super-fast internet are for more data-intensive tasks, such as 4K streaming, gaming, or remote work.

But if your internet service is not working for you, check out all the options in your area by entering your zip code. We’ll give you all the providers, plans, and pricing to choose your best deal.