Quick Money Tip: Price Matching

I have a confession: Frequently, when I'm in a rush to buy something, I'm willing to pay the (often ridiculous) price for the convenience of having it quickly and having "no other choice."

For example, I was asked to film a wedding a couple of months ago and I knew that, since it was going to be an all-day affair, I should probably purchase an extra camera battery, just to be safe. Of course, I waited until the night before the wedding and rushed to Best Buy just before closing time to buy one. My heart sunk a little when I discovered that my cheapest option was $70 - and it wasn't even name brand. I sucked it up, grabbed it off the hook, and angrily started toward the checkout lane, ready to pay full sticker price.

Before I could leave the aisle, my boyfriend asked me to wait for a moment while he looked the same battery up on Amazon. "I DON'T HAVE TIME TO ORDER IT ONLINE, THE WEDDING IS TOMORROW," I groaned in an attempt to shove my way past. "But they price match here," he said, "and look! They'll match the price of this $12 one."

I stopped in my tracks. And cried tears of joy.

Well, the majority of that is true, anyway. The most important fact is that I really did save a whopping $58 that night, and it only took a couple of minutes of research to do it.

We are frequently able to save a good chunk of change, especially on electronics, by taking the time to price-match. What is this money-saving miracle, you ask? According to Wise Geek, "Price matching is a practice in which a store promises to match another store's prices for certain products."

That means, at retailers who offer price matching, if you find an item at their establishment that is being sold at a higher price than another (qualifying) location's price, you can point that out to a clerk or manager - often by way of a paper ad, a website listing, or a receipt - and they will lower the price to match their competitors'.

Price-matching policies will differ slightly from store to store, so you'll want to check into the rules first, but most of them are pretty similar.

Some of the more popular retailers that offer price matching are:

• Target - See price-match policy.
• J.C. Penney - See price-match policy.
• Lowe's - See price-match policy.
• Home Depot - See price-match policy.
• Best Buy - See price-match policy.
• Walmart - See price-match policy.
• Sears - See price-match policy.
• Kohl's - See price-match policy.
• Office Depot - See price-match policy.
• Staples - See price-match policy.

Other smaller retailers, like regional grocery stores and independent specialty shops, may offer price matching, too. For the amount of money you could save by doing so, it never hurts to ask!

You may also be interested in: Target & Walmart Price Matching Policy Tips & Tricks | A Savvier Way to Price Match | 10 Tips for Organized Shopping & Price Matching