I’ve been trying to avoid shopping on Amazon for several years. For computer parts, I look at Newegg. For pet stuff, Chewy.
But what about all the miscellaneous stuff? What other websites do you trust when it comes to shopping online?
Fun side story. My first job as a developer, I was working in a small porn company in downtown Chicago. We had just hired a few people, so being the only techy in the company it was on me to order a bunch of hardware from NewEgg.
It was supposed to be delivered days later. But no, they had an employee, just like a regular dude, hop in his car and deliver the order on the same day. This was probably 2006, so same day delivery way NOT a normal thing.
I rarely get to tell this story because I don’t want people to know I started off my (somewhat long) software engineering career in porn and because who cares about this in today’s world.
However, OP mentioned NewEgg, so it fits here.
Porn starts a surprising number of careers.
Maybe not that surprising.
It’s not really… Just look at how VHS, DVD and blu-ray became popular…
I despise the porn industry because it’s so exploitative. But sometimes there are positive outcomes…
Just to note that the blu-ray was mainly thanks to PS3.
you can just tell this story without mentioning you worked for a porn company?? lol
Honestly I just order from Target. I know the products are legit, and I can usually do same day pickup.
(Lately I’ve preferred to shop in person. The stereotype is true – once you become a mom, getting a Starbies and walking around Target becomes your self-care.)
I’m a 42 y/o dude, not a mom, but I’m right there with you. My friend and I would walk along the aisle by the side of the building to see what kind of junk they have for sale at the endcaps. Then hit up the electronics and nerd stuff, like Funkos and new movie releases. Finally walk down the food section to pick up groceries. All the while with some drinks in hand. We usually avoid the clothing section unless we need something.
I’ve found that Target ships counterfeit items time to time, as well as shoddy returned items. Amazon does the same. I typically buy my electronics from Best Buy because i know they sort those items into Open Box deals instead.
I googled it, and that’s unfortunately a local shop only available in one country (and it might help others if you specify which country).
I think to be a truly viable Amazon alternative it’d have to be global, for example when I buy from Amazon, I might be buying from somewhere in Europe, and their shipping service handles getting it to me without me even noticing where it’s coming from, which is super neat! 😁
God, I hate Amazon, but god, I love Amazon.
I mean, it’s still another pretty big company, but the Shopify “Shop” app is actually pretty great as an alternative to Amazon.
Basically, all the businesses using a Shopify online storefront are amalgamated and searchable in one app, and the UI is pretty solid, too. I really like that a business can have their own website with a storefront, but also be there for convenience and still be in the same system.
My small shopify business thanks you!
That’s actually such a smart move for Shopify to incentivise use of their platform over others.
I go to Amazon to look at what name brands there are. Or Google. Go and order directly from the company. Their customer service is better and they usually have cheaper options. Plus if you need a modification that you didn’t know existed, refer back to the the customer service part.
Plus, if you buy directly from the manufacturer, you know you’re getting a legit product with a good warranty. Some brands also have stores that double as service centers. If I order Nikes and they don’t fit, I can return them to the local Nike store. Many offer free shipping just like Amazon, easy returns, better color choices and no creepy tracking or crazy knockoffs.
Returns is the whole reason I stopped using Amazon. They sent me a pressure washer without a gun to use the pressure washer. I called customer service and asked them to send me just the gun end. It’s this part number on your site.
They said ok and shipped it. They insisted for weeks that they delivered it and I told them they did not. I live on my own (just my young son and dog at the time) and no roommates. Plus I have a ring doorbell. It was a whole fiasco. Where I drew the line is they accused me of taking it without telling them. It was a 20 dollar part.
Amazon entirely dominated by white label products from Alibaba, though. Where are you going to find a WXTMO Potato Peeler for cheaper and with better service?
I just skip amazon entirely. The search really isn’t useful anymore.
What is your time worth for some cheap potato peeler? I just go to Target and pay the extra dollar. I have it that day and if there is a problem it isn’t hard to replace it.
I use Amazon to shop often times, and then just buy directly from the vendor. May take a little longer to mail or cost a tiny bit more, but worth it to me
Believe it or not I’ve never used Amazon.
I’m old, I never left eBay. I’ve seen things I want a lot cheaper on there though. I just don’t want to give them my money.
Bookshop.org for books
Scrolling down to see if anyone else had posted. Good for you.
https://www.abebooks.com/ great for used books.
It depends on what you’re trying to buy. For CDs and Vinyl I go with Discogs, usually. There’s also Mllusicstack, though I haven’t gotten around to trying it yet.
I love Chewy! I also like to buy gifts and handmade items on Etsy.
I have gone to the source and bought off the top 4-5 Chinese sites. Slow, but so far no issues.
Walmart occasionally, but their website is terrible and selection limited.
Microcenter for pc parts.
eBay for a few things.
Adorama and the other big NY camera seller (edit: B&H) often have deals on things like laptops.
Rock auto for car parts. Car-part.com for used car parts when my wife hits yet another deer.
Amazon, still way too much.
Bol.com. Though it only works in The Netherlands and Flanders.
I tend to use price aggregators more than individual websites because we’ve reached a point with Internet transactions that you can’t really get away with being a dodgy ecommerce website. People can just file paypal issues or complain to their credit card company for help, so just go with the cheapest option and see how it goes most of the time.
The ones I use are pricerunner and pricespy. I’m EU, but I know pricespy has a NZ version, so I assume it’s global.
leboncoin.fr I’m in France. It’s our local craigslist.
Niche category, but Board Game Oracle is great for comparing online prices for board games across sites, and seeing what’s on sale
I use Ebay as an alternative for some purchases, but I primarily use Amazon.
