*This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure
Everyone loves to save money while shopping. Unfortunately, sometimes saving money comes at a major cost–your time! Clipping coupons, testing out promo codes, wading through emails, combing weekly sale ads. It all takes time! And how many times have you made a purchase only to have that gnawing feeling in the back of your mind, wondering if you got the best price? Thanks to Capital One Shopping, though, you can simplify your savings.
Capital One Shopping streamlines the saving process with an easy-to-use desktop extension and mobile app. The shopping tool automatically applies coupon codes and allows you to comparison shop with ease. With just a few clicks, you can be confident that you’re scoring the best price!
Capital One Shopping Review Summary
Capital One Shopping is an online tool formerly known as Wikibuy. This tool allows shoppers to find the best prices and automatically applies the best promo code at checkout. Plus, Capital One Shopping also allows users to create a watchlist to monitor prices and gives users rewards for doing the same shopping they normally would. The best part is that this tool is free to use and you do not have to be a Capital One customer to save big.
Capital One Shopping Pros & Cons
Capital One Shopping makes serious saving seriously easy. Does this sound too good to be true? Let us break down the pros and cons of this coupon app for online shopping.
Pros
- Free and easy to use
- Available as browser extension and mobile app
- Automatically finds and enters online coupon codes
- Streamlines comparison shopping
- Stack savings further with Shopping Credits reward program
Cons
- Privacy concerns with tracking online activity
- Mobile version may not be as reliable as desktop version
- Shopping Credits cannot be exchanged for some popular stores, like Target and Amazon
- Currently limited to US shipping addresses only
Dive into the rest of our Capital One Shopping Review to see how this tool can help you start saving more while you shop.
How Does Capital One Shopping Work?
If you’re ready to shop smarter and save more, you need Capital One Shopping. Think of it as a RetailMeNot alternative that packs even more incentives. To start using Capital One, snag a browser extension for any of your favorite browsers, including Chrome, Safari, Firefox, and Microsoft Edge.
Once you’ve added the browser extension, you will have to sign up with some of your basic information. You will enter the following details:
- Your name
- Email address
- Zip code
After you’ve added the extension and added your information, you’re ready to shop and save as Capital One Shopping gets to work without any extra effort or time from you.
So how exactly does Capital One Shopping work?
Let’s say that Google Chrome is your browser of choice. With the Capital One Shopping Chrome extension added, the tool gets to work in several ways.
Let’s take a look at how you can start saving big with a few easy clicks.
Browser Extension
The browser extension showcases exactly what people mean when they talk about the Capital One Shopping app being easy to use. Shop on any of thousands of different websites as you normally would. Capital One Shopping gets to work in the background. While you shop, Capital One Shopping notifies you of possible savings on the same screen!
Automatic Online Coupon Codes
Do you ever feel like finding a valid coupon code is like the proverbial needle in a haystack? Capital One Shopping is a RetailMeNot alternative that automatically tracks down fresh online codes automatically. To apply them, click “Try Codes” before you check out.
Cash Back (Shopping Credits)
Capital One Shopping offers shoppers another perk with their Shopping Credits. Who doesn’t like a reward on top of saving money?
When you shop with the Capital One Shopping tool, you earn Shopping Credits with no extra effort on your part. It’s easy! You open your favorite retailer’s website, and you’ll notice that the browser extension is activated. When the icon turns green, it will also display a percentage. This allows you to see how much you can earn as a Shopping Credit. Simply click “Activate” and keep shopping as usual.
You can also earn Shopping Credits for the purchases you make in person. Do a search for your zip code to find a list of retailers and restaurants. Then, when you swipe a linked credit card or debit card, you earn Shopping Credits.
What do you do with your Shopping Credits once you start earning? You can redeem them as online gift cards. Choose from popular retailers like Walmart and Lowe’s or more specialty stores like Petco and Barnes & Noble. After choosing your online gift card, it will be emailed to you in a day.
The best part about these Shopping Credits are that they stack with your credit card rewards. So if your credit card offers cash back or travel points, you can earn those in addition to the Shopping Credits. That’s a serious reward for shopping you were going to do anyway!
Price Comparison Tool
We all know that comparison shopping can save you money, but it can also eat up your time. Unless you have Capital One Shopping. When you’ve decided on an item to buy, Capital One Shopping will scour other websites to let you know if you’ve found the best price.
Capital One Shopping Site
Think of it as browsing a catalog. The Capital One Shopping site houses a variety of offers that you can use to kick off your virtual shopping trip.
Price Watchlist
On the hunt for something with a significant price tag? You can add big ticket or luxury items to the watchlist on Capital One Shopping. Then, the tool will monitor and record prices, so you can keep a lookout for the best deal.
My Experience Using CapitalOne Shopping
I have been using CapitalOne Shopping for over a year, and have saved serious money on a few online purchases.
First, I was helping my mother-in-law purchase an airline ticket, and was able to get a one-way ticket down to only $18! This was a $25 discount on the short-haul flight, and over a 50% savings.
When shopping online for Christmas presents, we were able to find quite a few discounts. One of the biggest was for a pair of shoes. Our fav shoes are called Vivo Barefoot, and they are about $100 per pair.
Using the CapitalOne Shopping Chrome Extension, we found a coupon code for $27 off the pair, which was massive!
Overall, we’ve probably saved over $100 with this app, as well as earned about $10 in credits. Definitely the best free coupon app out there!
How Much Does Capital One Shopping Cost?
Capital One Shopping is completely free. No subscription, no sign up cost, no nothing.
How Do I Use Capital One Shopping?
There are two ways that you can use Capital One Shopping to save big. You can either download the browser extension or use the mobile app–or both!
Once you have Capital One Shopping on your device, you start to shop like always. Then, at checkout, Capital One Shopping will check for the best promo codes to apply. You can also use the price comparison feature to make sure you’re getting the best deal and the watchlist function to keep an eye on big ticket items you’re considering.
Capital One Shopping (Wikibuy) FAQ
Capital One Shopping, formerly known as Wikibuy, is a mighty tool that can help you make major money moves with the shopping you already do. This free tool is packed full of benefits, but it’s possible you’ve got some questions before you download the extension or app.
Here are the answers to the most common FAQ about Capital One Shopping:
Do I Have To Have a Capital One Credit Card?
Nope. Anyone can use Capital One Shopping, as long as you have a US address. There is no need to be a Capital One account holder.
Are Wikibuy and Capital One Shopping The Same?
Yes! Capital One acquired Wikibuy, rebranding it to Capital One Shopping. Since Wikibuy has been a shopper favorite for nearly a decade, fans often still call it Wikibuy.
Is Wikibuy (now Capital One Shopping) Safe?
Wikibuy was safe then, and Capital One Shopping is safe now. Don’t believe us? Let’s look at what the experts have to say!
Wikibuy has a current score of 4.7 out of a possible 5 stars on Trustpilot. 94% of users rated the tool as excellent. Though Wikibuy was not an accredited Better Business Bureau company, it maintains an A- rating on the BBB. The current Capital One Shopping Chrome extension has a 4.8 star rating based on a 5 star scale with over 10,000 raters.
Despite these high ratings, you might still be wondering if Capital One Shopping is safe. It’s true that they do collect user data not unlike many other websites and apps.
In addition to the information you share when you add the extension and create an account, Capital One Shopping also collects data about your shopping history and the searches you perform. Capital One Shopping does, however, promise to not share that information with other companies.
What Browsers Can Use the Wikibuy Extension?
The Wikibuy extension (or the Capital One Shopping extension) can be used on all of the most popular browsers, including:
- Chrome
- Mozilla Firefox
- Safari
- Microsoft Edge
How Does Wikibuy Make Money?
We’ve already covered how Wikibuy saves shoppers money, but you’ve likely got another question that doesn’t get covered in most Wikibuy reviews: How does Wikibuy make money?
Capital One Shopping (Wikibuy) chooses their partner retailers strategically. They enter an affiliate relationship with them. But what does that actually mean? Well, these retailers offer Capital One Shopping a kickback in exchange for their partnership. This kickback is also what allows Capital One Shopping to reward your shopping habits with their shopping rewards. It’s a win for everyone!
How Do You Uninstall Wikibuy (Capital One Shopping)?
If you decide to give Capital One Shopping a try and realize it’s not for you, that’s OK! It’s very simple to use the Capital One Shopping Chrome extension, and it’s just as easy to uninstall it.
To remove a Chrome extension, follow these easy steps:
- Open your Chrome browser
- Navigate to the top right of your browser bar and open the dropdown
- Click More Tools
- Click Extensions
- Find the Capital One Shopping Chrome extension and click Remove
The steps to uninstall Capital One Shopping are similar on any other browser you might use.
Bottom Line: Is Capital One Shopping (Wikibuy) Worth It?
Absolutely! Capital One Shopping–formerly known as Wikibuy–is certainly worth it. Shoppers can save some serious cash without changing any of their shopping habits. As an added bonus, shoppers snag rewards in the form of Shopping Credits. While the coupon code tool does track your online activity, its data collection falls in line with many other popular online tools. Your information is kept safe while you save big.
Capital One Shopping (Wikibuy) Alternatives
Capital One Shopping is a fantastic tool to help shoppers save more money. However, there are some minor drawbacks. Instead of receiving cash back, shoppers get Shopping Credits. Shopping Credits can be used in many places, but not Target or Amazon. So if you prefer more flexibility with how you spend your shopping rewards, there are several Capital One Shopping alternatives that you can test out as well.
Honey App
Honey is another browser extension that finds coupon codes and applies them at checkout. There are currently more than 17 million shoppers using Honey. Honey estimates that users save an average of $126 per year.
Shoppers can use a mobile browser extension on iPhones and iPads as they shop at over 5,500 stores. Every time you shop, you can earn Honey Gold. These points are redeemable for gift cards at popular retailers like Amazon and Target.
BeFrugal
Are you a Chrome user? BeFrugal has a BeFrugal Button that works on Chrome. While it is lesser known, it is beloved by its current users. With over 200,000 users, BeFrugal maintains a perfect 5 out of 5 star rating.
BeFrugal is committed to applying the best online coupon codes automatically and also securing you the highest cash back. That means there are no points or rewards programs. Instead, shoppers receive cash back, sometimes as high as 40%. Shoppers have several payout choices including, checks, direct deposit, PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, and even gift cards.