Capital One Shopping vs. Honey: Which One Saves You More Money?

Compare Capital One Shopping vs. Honey

Capital One Shopping and Honey help online shoppers find deals and save money while making everyday purchases. But knowing which offers more value can be challenging, as they seem quite similar.

I've dug deep into both products to help you understand how they work, and where each product excels. Since they're both free to use, you can't go wrong with either one, but why not use the tool that will save you the most money?

Online vs. in-store	Online only	Online only
Type of app	Mobile app (iOS and Android devices) and browser extension	Mobile app (iOS and Android devices) and browser extension
Redemption options	Gift cards	Gift cards, cash, charitable donations, or PayPal shopping credits
Minimum cash out	$0.01 minimum of Shopping Credits	You can cash out once you earn enough PayPal Rewards for a gift card of your choice (1,000 points is equal to $10 gift card)
Rewards expiration	Capital One Shopping Credits don't expire	PayPal Rewards don't expire as long as your account has been active for a 12-month period
Best for...	Shoppers who want more robust price comparison features and product options, and don't mind gift cards for redemption	Shoppers who want more diverse redemption options and like to watch products and wait for the best price
	Learn more	Learn more in our Honey review.

How Capital One Shopping works

Capital One Shopping's website, browser extension, and mobile app all require creating a free account and support different money-saving features.

When you're checking out with an eligible retailer while using the browser extension, you'll have an option to try different coupon codes, which Capital One Shopping automatically tests for you. I find this much simpler than having to copy and paste codes from different websites manually. Plus, you'll be able to earn shopping rewards for eligible purchases, redeemable for gift cards.

To find coupon codes and earn rewards using the Capital One Shopping mobile app, you'll need to shop directly in the app. I find this a bit more cumbersome than shopping through store-specific websites and apps. Applying coupons also isn't as streamlined as with the browser extension.

Capital One Shopping has time-saving price comparison features that I like. You can compare prices across select retailers via the website or mobile app, and the browser extension instantly adds a button to Amazon shopping pages that tells you whether another store has a better deal. You'll also receive notifications when prices drop on previously viewed items.

How does Honey work?

Owned by PayPal, Honey is a free browser extension and mobile app that works similarly to Capital One Shopping.

At the checkout, the browser extension will show a pop-up with a button to have Honey automatically try available coupon codes. If any work, Honey will apply the best code to maximize your savings. If you're using the mobile app, you'll need to do extra work to search for the store and copy and paste coupon codes yourself.

Honey also lets you earn cash back (known as PayPal Rewards points) on purchases from eligible retailers via its app or browser extension. You'll know whether the retailer qualifies since it will have a trophy symbol next to it. What's nice about these rewards is that they're redeemable for more than gift cards.

Plus, Honey lets you compare current prices across major stores in the app and via browser extension pop-ups. You can also take advantage of Honey's Droplist price tracking feature, which alerts you about price changes over time based on your settings. I find these features helpful for finding deals with less effort.

Which money-saving app should you choose?

The best money-saving app between Capital One Shopping and Honey is the one that could help you reach your financial goals. Both apps have the same end goal of saving you money, but they accomplish this in slightly different ways.

When you should choose Capital One Shopping

I think that Capital One Shopping is the better option if any of these apply to you:

• You're a big comparison shopper: Capital One Shopping is great if you'd like diverse ways to compare prices, whether you're already browsing shopping pages or doing some initial comparison research through the tool's website or app. You can save yourself a lot of time.
• You prefer a diverse product selection: When checking the product categories on the app and website, I noticed dozens of options, ranging from travel and entertainment to beauty products and household goods. If you shop for a variety of products, I think Capital One Shopping could help you spot the best deals through many retailers.
• You use Amazon a lot: The price comparison button shown on Amazon pages makes Capital One Shopping appealing if that digital retailer is usually your first stop. Recently, this feature helped me find a video game at a cheaper electronics store.
• You prefer a larger referral bonus: Capital One Shopping currently offers $80 (up to $500) for inviting others to sign up via your referral URL and using the tool for at least 90 days. This makes it a better option if you're after a bigger bonus and don't mind waiting longer for the person to use the tool.

Learn more in our Capital One Shopping review.

When you should choose Honey

If any of the following sounds familiar, then you'll probably be happier going with Honey:

• You like seeing historical prices. Sometimes, you might buy something simply because you see a notification about a great price. If you're someone who likes to see how prices have trended over time before you head to the checkout, Honey is great for letting you see up to 120 days' worth of product prices.
• You want personalized price tracking: If you have an item you're interested in but want a better price, you can add it to your Drop List on Honey and get instant notifications when the price changes. This is a great way to save money and ensure you don't miss a deal that may sell out quickly.
• You prefer simpler referral bonuses: I find this a better deal for those who want some extra cash than Honey's referral program, which pays only 500 PayPal Rewards points and requires a single purchase from that person.
• You want multiple redemption options: Unlike with Capital One Shopping, you're not stuck choosing only from gift cards from limited retailers. Whether you want to put some rewards toward paying your bills, give to your favorite charity, or treat yourself with a shopping trip, I like that Honey offers diverse redemption options.

Learn more in our PayPal Honey review.

Key differences between Capital One Shopping and Honey

Capital One Shopping and Honey can seem similar since they're both available as free browser extensions and mobile apps that help you save money when shopping online. However, there are some key differences between them.

Store and product selections

Both Honey and Capital One allow you to search for products across multiple retailers and view current prices and deals. But Capital One Shopping includes products from more than 100,000 online retailers, compared with Honey's 40,000. This is an important difference if you want to find the most deals.

For example, when searching for a specific pair of shoes I was interested in, I could quickly find eight savings options on Capital One's site, whereas Honey said it couldn't find the product.

If you're looking for a harder-to-find product, there's a higher chance you won't have luck with Honey.

Winner: Capital One has more than twice as many stores as Honey and boasts a more diverse product selection.

Price comparison and tracking

If you're shopping on Amazon, Capital One Shopping instantly shows better deals at other stores, when available. It also sends a notification if something you've viewed while using the app or extension has a price drop. These features help you save money quickly, but don't show you a detailed price history.

In addition to a similar price-drop notification feature called Drop List, Honey lets you view an item's price history for the last 30, 60, or 120 days. Its stronger price comparison tool helps you determine whether a deal is really a great buy, even if you don't buy right away and save money.

For example, I searched for a pair of Converse shoes that had not changed in price over the last 120 days, which made me feel better about paying full price, and I was able to earn cash back.

Tie: Capital One Shopping is the winner if you prioritize instantly finding great deals, while Honey excels if you're interested in tracking prices and reviewing deals more carefully.

Redemption options

Earning rewards for your purchases is a nice perk, but it's also important that you can redeem them for something you actually like or need.

Capital One Shopping only lets you redeem rewards for digital gift cards from select retailers, such as Under Armour, Office Depot, Michaels, Petco, and Macy's. While this might not be OK if you shop at such stores or give the gift card to someone who does, it's less helpful for paying your bills or building up savings.

On the other hand, Honey offers several redemption options, including cash back, gift cards, charitable donations, and PayPal shopping credits. I prefer the flexibility to use my rewards for different financial goals, rather than being locked into spending them at a small number of retailers.

Winner: Honey's multiple redemption options beat Capital One's limited gift card selection.

FAQs

Bottom line

There is no overall winner between Capital One Shopping and Honey, but you can see that both shopping tools have their benefits and drawbacks. To determine which offers the best option, you can search for a product on Capital One Shopping and Honey, but can ultimately only get the deal from one or the other.

However, you can double dip by using one of the best cash back credit cards to make your purchases. This way you'll stack credit card rewards with rewards from money-saving apps.