What appears to be the same chair sells for different price points on same website
Online shopping has seen massive growth over the past decade, but it really surged over the past year due to the pandemic.
Now it's easier than ever to compare prices online, but did you know the price you see could be different based on your browsing history and other factors?
A CTV News Toronto viewer searching on the Wayfair website said they found a chair for $900. Later, when he checked again, he found what appears to be the same chair for $730. He then found it again for $680 and again for $250.
CTV News Toronto reached out to the website to ask about the price discrepancy.
According to a spokesperson for Wayfair, “Though these chairs look similar, they are sold by different suppliers.”
“We realize this may cause confusion for customers, so we work to avoid similar products at different price points on site. In this case, we have taken these skus down for further review and to ensure they're accurately priced.”
University of Toronto Rotman School of Management economics professor Heski Bar-Isaac said price discrimination already exists when booking hotel rooms and airline tickets and studies have shown a price can also be higher or lower depending on the device you’re using to search a website.
As sellers gather more information about the kinds of items you shop for online he said it could become more common for websites to offer different prices to different customers.
“We are seeing more and more of this and we should expect to see more and more of this. This also ties in to how our data is being used," Bar-Isaac said.
Companies collect data from customers and can know a lot about you from your browsing history and past purchases. Prices could also be different depending on what times it is, the day of the week and your postal code.
Prices could also fluctuate depending on whether you're using a computer or a smartphone.
“Now in the online world there is this capacity to gather so much information about us and about what we want, so firms that have the ability to respond to that are choosing to do so," said Bar-Isaac.
You can use a private browser to see if the price of an item will be higher or lower. If you're on a computer, you can try searching for the same item on your phone to see if there is a price difference.
Consumers are advised to shop around to make sure they're getting the best deal possible. As for the chair sold through Wayfair, it's back on their website currently listed for $239.99.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What's a Barnacle? It's yellow, sticks and screams if you try to pry it off your car
Barnacles, bright yellow devices used to make sure parking scofflaws pay their tickets, could soon be making their way to cities across Canada.
Verdun Airbnb listing taken down amid complaints, fines and frustration from neighbours
An Airbnb in Montreal's Verdun borough was the source of much frustration from neighbours who say there were constant parties at the location. It has been taken down from the app, but housing advocates remain upset about short-term rentals.
Man who set himself on fire outside Trump trial dies of injuries, police say
A man who doused himself in an accelerant and set himself on fire outside the courthouse where former U.S. President Donald Trump is on trial has died, police said.
They were from different countries and barely spoke each other's languages. More than 20 years later, they're still happily in love
He decided to spend Christmas somewhere that wouldn't involve snowstorm disasters. She was spending the holidays with family, travelling for the first time outside of her native country of Venezuela. 23 years later, they're still in love.
Young people 'tortured' if stolen vehicle operations fail, Montreal police tell MPs
One day after a Montreal police officer fired gunshots at a suspect in a stolen vehicle, senior officers were telling parliamentarians that organized crime groups are recruiting people as young as 15 in the city to steal cars so that they can be shipped overseas.
A Nigerian chess champion plays the royal game for 60 hours - a new global chess record
A Nigerian chess champion and child education advocate played chess nonstop for 60 hours in New York City's Times Square to break the Guinness World Record for the longest chess marathon.
Fire in Labrador town under control, officials tells residents to stay away
RCMP say the fire that prompted a state of emergency in a Labrador town is now under control.
12 students and teacher killed in Columbine school shooting remembered at 25th anniversary vigil
Thirteen victims of the Columbine High School shooting were remembered during a vigil Friday on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the shooting that was the worst the nation had seen at the time.
Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza city of Rafah kills at least 9 Palestinians, including 6 children
An Israeli airstrike on a house in Gaza's southernmost city killed at least nine people, six of them children, hospital authorities said Saturday, as Israel pursued its nearly seven-month offensive in the besieged Palestinian territory.