Capital One Shopping Review: the Good, Bad, & Ugly [Nov 2023]

We've all been there–tab after tab, expired code after code, hunting for the best bargain during online shopping. That's where Capital One Shopping comes in–a free browser add-on that can save money on online purchases by automatically comparing prices, applying promo codes, and alerting you when the items you want go on sale. 

This review will further explain how Capital One Shopping works and highlight my experience testing its browser extension and mobile app, helping you decide if it's worth adding to your devices. 

 Pros

• Automatically finds and inputs coupon codes during checkout 
• Cross-references other online retailers to find the lowest price 
• Can set up price drop notifications for watchlist items 
• Free to download and use; works with most browsers and devices 
• Can redeem accumulated shopping rewards for gift cards

 Cons

• Potential for limited functionality in Canada and Australia due to the recent launch 
• Limited gift card/retailer options
• Works best on a computer's internet browser 

The Bottom Line: For US residents who shop online, the Capital One Shopping browser extension is a great way to find cheaper prices and earn gift card rewards by making ordinary online purchases.

4.8 star WiseGeek Rating

• Pros

  Capital One Shopping searches for low prices among major online retailers and finds coupon codes for your shopping cart, all while earning you Capital One Shopping Rewards that can be exchanged for gift cards.

• Cons

  You can’t use Capital One Shopping outside of the United States and Canada. Capital One Shopping Rewards can’t be exchanged for Amazon, Walmart, or Target gift cards (although many other gift card options are available).

• The Bottom Line:

  For U.S. and Canadian residents who shop online, the Capital One Shopping browser extension is a great way to find cheaper prices and earn gift card rewards, just by making ordinary online purchases.

This article includes links for which we may receive compensation if you click at no cost.

What Is Capital One Shopping?

Capital One Shopping is a free browser extension that scours the web and tries coupon codes, searches for lower prices on the items you view, and alerts you whenever there's a better deal available from another retailer. You can use it on thousands of websites, including Amazon, eBay, Target, Walmart, Sephora, L.L. Bean, Barnes & Noble, Nike, and many more.

There's also a Capital One Shopping mobile app compatible with iOS and Android devices, although it works somewhat differently than the browser extension.

Capital One Shopping's benefits have made the browser extension extremely popular – millions of people have added it to their web browsers. Collectively, they saved an impressive $160 million last year.

If you're ready to add the free Capital One Shopping extension to your browser and start saving time and money at your favorite online stores, try it out now for free. 

How Does Capital One Shopping Work?

Getting started with Capital One Shopping is quick and easy. All you need to do is add the extension to your browser – it's available for Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Safari. It takes under a minute to get started.

To get the extension, head to Capital One Shopping and enter your name, email address, and ZIP code. Once the extension is part of your web browser, all you need to do is start shopping online. Capital One Shopping will immediately begin helping you find savings whenever you shop online. And when you're not shopping, you won't even notice it's there.

There are several ways to use Capital One Shopping:

• Shop at your favorite online stores: Thousands of retailers are Capital One Shopping partner sites. When you visit a store's website, the browser extension automatically finds available savings and notifies you. With online shopping, you can avoid store trips while saving money with coupons.
• Browse the Capital One Shopping site: If you don't have a specific retailer in mind, you can see what offers are available on the Capital One Shopping homepage or on the Capital One Shopping mobile app.
• Check for coupons: Many online retailers offer coupon codes, but it can be challenging to find valid codes. The Capital One Shopping extension can search for codes automatically, so all you need to do is click the "Try Codes" button when you're ready to checkout. The extension will then apply available coupon codes to your purchase.
• Use the price comparison tool: If Amazon is your go-to online store when you want to browse, you can still save money with Capital One Shopping. Once you've selected the options on an Amazon product page (e.g., size and color), the browser extension searches other retailers for identical products and compares their prices. Within a few seconds, you'll get a notification if there is a better price somewhere else or if the best price is what you're seeing on Amazon.
• Add the mobile browser extension or install the app: The Capital One Shopping browser extension and mobile app is available on iOS and Android devices with compatible operating systems and internet browsers. However, it's a bit harder to use and isn't compatible with retailer apps since it's designed for the browser. 

Another great feature is the Watchlist tool. It's perfect for big-ticket items like electronics and luxury brands. Add the item you're interested in to the Watchlist, and let Capital One Shopping do all the research for you. It will track prices, and you can always go to your Watchlist to compare the current price against the last price you viewed.

You can also enable the new Price Protection feature, automatically identifying price drops on recently purchased items and engaging with the retailer to secure a price adjustment refund.

Top Capital One Shopping Features

Whether you only make one online purchase a month or are a certified shopaholic, having the Capital One Shopping browser extension can save significant time and money with no effort. 

To use Capital One Shopping, you shop online as usual, and the browser extension will take care of the rest. It's one of the easiest ways for online shoppers to save money, earn shopping rewards, and get the best price on the items they love. Below, I explain my favorite Capital One Shopping features based on my experience using it for various online purchases. 

1. Automated Coupon Codes

Everyone loves finding coupon codes that save money, but it's frustrating when you try a dozen codes to no avail. Capital One Shopping solves this problem (or at least mitigates it). 

Whenever you shop online at one of its thousands of well-known partner sites (including Microsoft, Home Depot, Adidas, etc.), Capital One Shopping searches the internet for coupon codes, ensuring you save time searching for fake or expired codes. When you're ready to check out, Capital One Shopping applies any available codes to your shopping cart. Depending on the site, this may happen automatically, or you may be prompted to click a "Try Codes" button by the browser extension.

If multiple working coupon codes apply to your purchase, Capital One Shopping uses the one that will get you the most favorable deal at checkout. However, based on my experience, the coupon codes don't always apply. Still, I've gotten a couple to work, and the feature itself saves time since I don't have to research the coupons myself. 

Some of these codes are publicly available, while others are crowdsourced from Capital One Shopping users who have successfully used them on their purchases. This means you'll likely encounter coupon codes you wouldn't find if you just relied on a Google search.

If you come across a coupon code that you'd like to submit to Capital One Shopping or need help with a code that is supposed to work, you can contact the customer service team at [email protected].

2. Price Comparison Tool

Capital One Shopping is looking for more than just helpful coupon codes. Whenever you shop with supported retailers like Amazon or Best Buy, the browser extension quietly searches behind the scenes, ensuring you get the best available price.

This is one of Capital One Shopping's most valuable features. It saves you from having to click between browser tabs to determine who has the cheapest price for that new couch you've had your eye on. If you have a specific color, size, or design in mind, Capital One Shopping will ensure that it only suggests deals on the item you want.

With the Capital One Shopping browser extension, whenever another Amazon seller or a different retailer offers the item you're looking at for a better price, you'll see a helpful little popup informing you about the other deal and providing you with the link. It even alerts you to great deals among individual sellers on Amazon and eBay. And if you've already found the optimal deal, Capital One Shopping will confirm you've found the lowest price. 

Capital One Shopping also considers shipping times, delivery costs, and Amazon Prime membership when comparing prices, which helps avoid any unpleasant surprises when you finalize your purchase. This is why you're asked to provide your ZIP code when you first add Capital One Shopping to your browser.

3. Capital One Shopping Rewards

As you shop online with Capital One Shopping, you'll automatically build up Shopping Rewards. For example, at the time of writing, you can earn up to 5% back in Shopping Rewards at Reebok, 7.5% at Sam's Club, 5% at YETI, and 4% at Microsoft. 

Some retailers offer Rewards as a fixed amount rather than a percentage. For example, you'll earn $100 in Rewards when you make a qualifying purchase with AT&T Wireless. Hundreds of brands participate, and I found several I regularly shop with. 

These offers change occasionally, so it's worth checking the Capital One Shopping website to see whether one of your favorite stores offers Rewards. And not just physical items like clothes, electronics, and cosmetics come with rewards. You can also earn Rewards on a wide range of services, such as Marriott Bonvoy hotel bookings, Weight Watchers healthy eating plans, H&R Block tax software, Ancestry.com family history tools, Avis car rental, StubHub sports, concert, and theater tickets, and many others. 

Whenever you visit a participating retailer's website, the little Capital One Shopping icon next to the address bar will turn green and show you the Capital One Shopping Rewards you can earn. All you have to do is click "OK" when prompted to activate the deal and wait for the button to say "Activated." Ensure you activate the deal before purchasing, as Rewards can't be earned retroactively. 

It's also good to check that any other rewards or shopping plug-ins are turned off on your browser, as they can interfere with Capital One Shopping. It can take up to 60 days for Shopping Rewards to show up in your account, but even before that, you can check that you made an eligible purchase in your Capital One Shopping account's My Rewards & Savings section. 

When you've accumulated enough Capital One Shopping Rewards, you can redeem them for online gift cards for retailers such as eBay, Nordstrom, Lowe's, Barnes & Noble, Kohl's, Sephora, L.L. Bean, Hulu, AutoZone, Grubhub, and Chewy. Once you've chosen a retailer, use your Capital One Shopping Rewards to purchase an e-gift card, which should arrive in your email inbox within 24 hours. You can also add additional funds to increase the value of your gift card beyond your Rewards points.

4. Price Drop Alerts

When you're looking for the best price for a particular item but aren't ready to buy it just yet, Capital One Shopping will keep an eye on things. This feature takes the hassle out of making large purchases such as furniture and electronics since you won't have to keep checking to see if any sales or promotions come up. 

The Watchlist is especially useful when shopping for holiday or birthday gifts and having some time before buying. By viewing items online with the Captial One Shopping browser extension enabled, you'll automatically receive emails or can check your account dashboard to see if prices have changed. 

5. Capital One Shopping Product Search

Rather than going to a particular retailer's website to look for a product, you can use the Product Search tool on the Capital One Shopping website to view and compare products from many different retailers. The displayed price already considers taxes, shipping, and coupon codes. Additionally, you'll see the amount of Capital One Shopping Rewards the retailer offers.

For example, if you're looking for a coffee maker, you can use the Product Search tool to view deals on hundreds of related products. You'll also learn that you can earn up to 4% in Capital One Shopping Credits when you purchase from Keurig and discover which other retailers have relevant coupons.

6. Featured Offers, Trending Coupons, and Popular Deals

If you're interested in viewing a list of curated deals from various stores all at once, checking out the Capital One Shopping homepage is an excellent way to discover current bargains. You'll see "Featured Offers," "Trending Coupons," and "Popular Deals," which provide unique opportunities to earn Capital One Shopping Rewards, as well as limited-time discounts on popular products and services.

7. Price Protection

Price Protection is a fairly new Capital One Shopping feature that ensures customers get the best prices, even after their purchases. Price Protection compares your recent purchases with current prices to ensure you haven't missed any recent price drops. 

To use Price Protection, you must link an email account through your "My Purchases" dashboard. This allows Capital One Shopping to scan your inbox for purchase receipts and order confirmations made in the last 30 days to check whether an item or service has decreased in price. You don't have to take any action for Price Protection to kick in – Capital One Shopping will contact the retailer and start a claim for a price adjustment refund.

How to Get Started with Capital One Shopping

Getting started with Capital One Shopping is easy. Setup only takes a few minutes, and you can go shopping immediately.

Step 1: Make sure you have a compatible browser

Capital One Shopping works with Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, and Safari.

Remember that certain browser settings can prevent extensions from being downloaded. For example, most work computers prevent users from downloading browser extensions as a security measure.

Step 2: Download the Capital One Shopping browser extension

To get the Capital One Shopping browser extension, visit Capital One Shopping. The site automatically detects your browser and provides a button for downloading. For example, if you visit the site using Google Chrome, the blue download button says, "Add to Chrome - It's Free." Clicking it takes you to the Chrome Web Store, where you'll add the extension first and create or sign in to your account later.

If you download the extension on Microsoft Edge, you'll see a popup asking you to sign in to Capital One Shopping by creating an account with your email address and a password. You can also sign in with an existing Capital One Shopping account or your Google or Facebook account. 

While you can choose to sign in later, it's easiest to provide your account details and then download the extension. Once you make an account or sign in, click on the top banner that says "Add Capital One Shopping to Edge. It's free."

Step 3: Create a Capital One Shopping account

Once you have the extension, you can create a Capital One Shopping account. It's completely free.

You must enter your email address, create a password, and click to accept the Terms of Service and privacy policy. You'll also need to provide your ZIP code so the tool can verify you are in the US and calculate shipping and taxes.

There is a place to note whether you're an Amazon Prime member. If so, the tool will factor in free Prime shipping.

Step 4: Start shopping

Once you've created your account, you can answer a few optional questions to personalize the experience. You can skip this step if you want. If you choose to answer the questions, the tool estimates your savings based on your answers about online shopping. You can also select your favorite retailers and see a tutorial on how the different features work.

With the Capital One Shopping extension installed, you can start shopping. The tool will immediately begin helping you find savings whenever you shop online. And when you're not shopping, you won't even notice it's there.

How Much Does Capital One Shopping Cost?

One of the best things about Capital One Shopping is its price. (It's free!) There are no hidden fees, monthly charges, or penalties. You don't need a Capital One bank account or credit card to use the service, making it easy to save money shopping online without strings attached.

Additionally, you can earn money with Capital One Shopping. Some retailers offer to give back a percentage of the money you spend on eligible purchases when shopping online. These refunds come in Capital One Shopping Rewards, which you can redeem for gift cards to some of the most popular online retailers.

Is Capital One Shopping Legit?

Yes. Capital One Shopping is completely legit. It's a genuine service offered by one of the biggest companies in the financial industry. It has millions of active users and a 5-star rating on the Google Chrome Store from more than 11,000 reviews. According to Capital One, the service saved customers over $160 million over the last year.

The Capital One Shopping tool offers several other excellent benefits:

• You don't need to worry about getting annoying ads from the service.
• The browser extension is fairly efficient and will only slow down your computer noticeably if you have an out-of-date operating system.
• It provides honest information, including crowdsourced data, legitimate coupon codes, and reliable recommendations.

While Capital One Shopping is a legitimate service, it does track your personal data. As explained in the Terms of Service (TOS), the extension may collect many forms of data, such as your IP address, browsing history, order information, purchase history, location data, and social media preferences. It can also see how you interact with email in specific ways, like opening and forwarding messages.

You may wonder about the legality of this sort of data tracking. In fact, it is entirely legal, and most browsers, apps, and devices do the same thing. When you sign up for Capital One Shopping, you agree to allow data tracking.

Capital One Shopping promises to help you find the best price, but it does have some "favored" retailers that it might tend to show more often. Usually, this is because these retailers participate in the Capital One Shopping Rewards program, which means you could get a refund on certain purchases. Having a favorable relationship with certain retailers doesn't affect the legitimacy of Capital One Shopping, but it is something that consumers should be aware of.

Is Capital One Shopping Safe?

Yes. As stated, the browser extension collects certain types of personal data based on your online activity, but this is something that practically every other online service does. Capital One Shopping clearly states in its TOS what sort of data it collects and what it does with the information.

You don't have to worry about Capital One selling your data to other companies for marketing purposes. The company's Privacy Notice states that your data is not shared with other financial companies, Capital One's affiliates, or nonaffiliates for advertising purposes. Additionally, your data isn't shared with affiliates to give them information about your creditworthiness.

While the Capital One Shopping website, apps, and browser extensions are legitimate and safe, any online service is subject to certain risks, such as malware and hacking. However, there is no indication that this service is riskier than any other online application, and based on its Google Chrome Store score, it appears to be one of the safest.

Who Can Use Capital One Shopping?

Capital One Shopping is available to anyone with a US mailing address. This is determined by ZIP code and excludes United States territories like Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Capital One Shopping has recently been launched in Canada and Australia, where the company is working to increase the service's functionality.

You must sign up for a free Capital One Shopping account to use the service. You can enter your name and email address into the system or sign in with a Facebook or Google account.

Additionally, you must be at least 18 years old and have a compatible browser to use Capital One Shopping. The service works with Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, and Microsoft Edge.

The browser extension shouldn't noticeably affect your computer's performance. However, if you have an old device or exceptionally slow internet, you might be unable to use the Capital One Shopping extension as efficiently as designed.

Capital One Shopping on iOS and Android App

If you prefer to shop on your phone or tablet rather than on a computer, you can download the Capital One Shopping mobile browser extension or the mobile app, which is available for Android and iOS devices. However, the app is intended to be more of a companion to the desktop tool than a completely comparable mobile alternative.

Although it has been significantly improved over the past couple of years with useful updates, the app doesn't offer the same level of functionality as the desktop browser version. The app allows you to search for items and see prices from selected popular retailers. Like the browser extension, you can also have coupon codes automatically applied to your shopping cart and earn Shopping Rewards that can be exchanged for e-gift cards. 

Capital One Shopping Customer Service & Support

If you need help downloading or using the Capital One Shopping extension or app, you can find answers to several common problems on their website. To get to the customer service section of the site, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on "Help Center."

The Help Center has several sections for commonly asked questions about finding and using coupons, earning Rewards, and linking your credit or debit card.

If you want to disable or uninstall the extension from your browser, you can access step-by-step instructions for all four supported browsers. To stop using the mobile app, delete it from your device.

If the online Help Center doesn't answer your question, you can email [email protected]. You can also send a message to this address if you find a new coupon code for a retailer. Doing this allows Capital One Shopping to make it available to other users.

Capital One Shopping vs Alternatives

If you want to save money with online shopping, many other great websites, apps, and browser extensions will do just that. Here are some of our favorites:

Capital One Shopping is my top pick, but it's a close call. With RetailMeNot, you can use it for in-store purchases and have access to a vast range of retailers, including LG, Amazon, Target, and Uber Eats. While it doesn't have a price comparison tool, it's still an excellent service for coupon savings, discounts, and additional cash-back rewards. 

Honey essentially has all the same features as Capital One Shopping, except it has a much higher reward redemption minimum of 1,000 points. In comparison, you only need $0.01 with Capital One Shopping. 

Additionally, you might be interested to look further into these services:

• Rakuten
• Shopkick
• Fetch
• ShopSavvy
• Swagbucks
• Gumdrop by Goodshop

Capital One Shopping Pros

Capital One Shopping offers several excellent benefits. Some of the biggest "pros" of using Capital One Shopping are that it saves you time, is easy to use, offers tangible rewards, and doesn't require you to sign up for additional products and services.

Efficiency

Capital One Shopping's services can save you valuable time. Of course, you could do some of the things that the extension does on your own:

• Search for coupons.
• Look for a better price.
• Track the price changes of items you're interested in.

However, performing all those tasks whenever you shop online would take many hours. The Capital One Shopping extension does all these things for you in a fraction of the time.

Free rewards

While you can use the Capital One Shopping extension to ensure you get the best deal, you can save even more money with the Shopping Rewards program. When you buy from participating retailers, you can earn Rewards that you can trade in for e-gift cards at stores like Nordstrom and Kohl's.

No strings attached

If you are over 18 years old and have a US or Canadian address, you can use Capital One Shopping. You don't need to be a Capital One banking customer or have their credit card. As long as you provide an email address, name, and physical address, you can get the browser extension and start shopping.

Capital One Shopping Cons

Although Capital One Shopping is an excellent tool for saving money online, it has a few limitations to consider.

Full functionality is only available in the US

One significant shortcoming of Capital One Shopping is that you need to have a US shipping address to enjoy the full functionality of this money-saving browser extension. Capital One Shopping has recently launched in Canada and Australia, but only some features are available for customers of those countries. However, other virtual shopping assistants work in other countries, such as Honey, which accommodates shoppers in the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union.

Somewhat limited gift card options

Some users may be disappointed that Capital One Shopping Rewards cannot be turned into Amazon or Target gift cards. However, a long list of retailers offer e-gift cards in exchange for Capital One Shopping Credits, including eBay, Lowe's, Macy's, Kohl's, Hulu, and many others.

Fairly basic mobile app

Although Capital One Shopping has a mobile app, it is not nearly as useful as the One Shopping browser extension, which works seamlessly on desktops and laptops. Although the app has undergone several updates that have added features like automatically applying coupon codes and earning Rewards, it still does not have all the features of the desktop version.

If you're frustrated with the Capital One Shopping mobile app, try Honey, which has also developed a mobile app in addition to its browser extension. It's free, so nothing stops you from downloading it and adding it to your browser!

Capital One Shopping Final Verdict: Should You Try It? 

While Capital One Shopping has some drawbacks, it's an invaluable tool to install if you want to simplify the online buying process. Whether you want an easier way to find coupon codes, get notified when prices drop, or confirm you've found the best deal, Capital One Shopping is the perfect tool for any form of online shopping. When you're ready to get started, head to Capital One Shopping's website.   

Frequently Asked Questions About Capital One Shopping

Still have questions about Capital One Shopping? Below are some commonly asked inquiries and their answers. 

Is Capital One Shopping a legitimate site?

Yes, Capital One Shopping is a legitimate service provided by a major financial company, with millions of users and a high rating on the Google Chrome Store.

Is Capital One Shopping completely free?

Capital One Shopping is entirely free to use, with no hidden fees or charges, and you don't need a Capital One bank account to sign up.

Is Capital One Shopping owned by Capital One Bank?

Yes, Capital One Shopping is a genuine service offered by Capital One, a well-established company in the financial sector.

How do I get rid of Capital One Shopping?

The information on how to remove the Capital One Shopping extension or service is not detailed in the provided article. It typically involves removing the browser extension or deleting your account through their service platform. For detailed steps, it would be best to consult the help or support section of Capital One Shopping's official website or the settings of the browser where the extension is installed.

What is the benefit of Capital One Shopping? 

Put simply, Capital One Shopping automatically looks for discounts and savings when you make online purchases. It finds and tries coupon codes, notifies you of better deals, and accumulates Shopping Rewards as you continue using it. Without it, you may not be able to find these savings. 

Is it safe to install Capital One Shopping? 

Capital One Shopping is a safe platform that takes the security of its users seriously. It uses up-to-date security protocols to safeguard any identifying information. Capital One Shopping also has thorough authentication procedures to protect customers from identity theft and uses data encryption to secure credit card information.

Are there hidden fees for Capital One Shopping?

No, Capital One Shopping is entirely free to use and has no hidden fees. Anyone over eighteen can join even if they're not customers of Capital One Bank. 

Can I use Capital One Shopping on my phone?

You can use Capital One Shopping on your phone by downloading the mobile browser extension. Capital One Shopping also has a free mobile app available for Android and iOS, although it does not have all the browser extension functionality. 

How do I use Capital One Shopping on Amazon?

Download the browser extension and set up a free account to use Capital One Shopping on Amazon. Once the extension is active, you can navigate to Amazon and browse products as you normally would. Capital One Shopping compares prices among thousands of Amazon sellers and lets you know if it finds a lower price on your item from another seller.

How do I redeem Capital One Shopping Rewards?

After you build up a certain amount of Rewards, you can decide to redeem them for e-gift cards from a list of retailers. You can also add additional funds to increase the value of the e-gift card. After making your selection, the e-gift card should arrive in your inbox within 24 hours.

Do Capital One Shopping Rewards expire?

Capital One Shopping Rewards do not expire. However, if your account is closed, you will lose any Rewards that you have not redeemed.