What Is the Walmart Savings Catcher In 2023? (Full Guide)

As an experienced ecommerce seller, I get asked often about whether Walmart still offers its popular Savings Catcher price matching tool. Many shoppers miss being able to submit receipts for automatic rebates when Walmart gets undersold.

Unfortunately, Walmart retired its innovative Savings Catcher feature in 2019. As a retailer myself, I understand the reasoning behind Walmart‘s decision. In this comprehensive guide, I‘ll explain what the Savings Catcher was, how it worked for shoppers, and why Walmart discontinued it.

A Quick History of Walmart‘s Savings Catcher

First, let‘s briefly go over what the Savings Catcher tool was. Walmart launched this free app in 2014 as a way to match competitor prices. If you purchased an item at Walmart and then found it advertised lower somewhere else, you could get refunded the difference via an eGift card.

This allowed Walmart to back up its "everyday low prices" promise. If a customer found a true lower price, the Savings Catcher made it right. For shoppers, it provided confidence that Walmart had the best deals.

The Savings Catcher app compared prices from major retailers after scanning customers‘ Walmart receipts. If savings were found, shoppers were notified and gave eGift cards within 3 days. It was hugely popular among Walmart‘s loyal customer base.

Unfortunately, the Savings Catcher program ended abruptly in May 2019. Walmart pulled the app, saying it had “reached the end of its useful life.” Much to customers’ dismay, the price matching tool suddenly disappeared.

Next, let’s explore some key questions about how Savings Catcher worked and why Walmart cancelled it.

What Was the Purpose of Walmart’s Savings Catcher?

As an ecommerce business owner, I recognize Walmart’s motivations behind introducing Savings Catcher. Essentially, it aimed to reinforce Walmart’s brand promise of cost savings and convenience in two ways:

1. Price Transparency – By automatically checking competitors’ pricing, Savings Catcher gave customers confidence they were getting the lowest price at Walmart.

2. Price Matching – When another retailer did have a lower price, Savings Catcher made it easy to get a refund for the difference.

Together, these two factors enhanced trust in Walmart’s prices and brand. Savings Catcher also drove app engagement with receipt scanning and eGift card rewards.

However, maintaining price parity had major costs associated with continually issuing refunds. As I‘ll explore next, Walmart deemed the Savings Catcher too expensive to justify longer term.

Why Did Walmart Get Rid of Savings Catcher?

Walmart stated that it discontinued Savings Catcher because the tool successfully accomplished its purpose. Essentially, Walmart believed the app was no longer necessary or worth the cost.

In a public statement, Walmart‘s reasoning was:

"The program did what it was designed to do – bring customers the confidence that they were getting the lowest price at Walmart. A vast majority of the time, we already have the lowest prices, so we‘ve decided Savings Catcher has served its purpose and reached the end of its useful life.”

As a fellow retailer, two key insights stand out to me:

1. Lowered Operating Costs – Maintaining price parity was expensive for Walmart. Eliminating Savings Catcher reduced issuance costs for refunds.

2. Competitive Pricing – Walmart grew confident that its everyday low pricing was consistently competitive without needing Savings Catcher.

Rather than spend resources on an unnecessary app, Walmart passed those savings to customers with competitive pricing. Cancelling Savings Catcher reinforced Walmart‘s commitment to cost leadership.

How Did the Walmart Savings Catcher Actually Work?

During its tenure, the Walmart Savings Catcher provided a seamless price matching experience:

• Make a Purchase – Shop for items in-store or online while signed into a Walmart account.

• Submit Receipt – Upload a photo of the receipt through the app or Walmart.com.

• Automatic Price Check – Savings Catcher instantly compared advertised prices from competitors.

• Receive eGift Card – If Savings Catcher found a lower price, an eGift card was delivered with the difference (up to $50 per item).

This automated process removed the burden of manually checking prices at other major retailers. As soon as shoppers spent money at Walmart, Savings Catcher went to work in the background to ensure the best pricing.

Eligible Purchases

Not every Walmart purchase qualified for Savings Catcher price matching:

• Included: Most regularly priced items bought in-store or online.
• Excluded: Clearance, marketplace/3rd party seller items, limited-time deals.

As long as the item wasn’t already heavily discounted or sold by a third party, it was likely eligible for Savings Catcher. This ensured the tool compared true regular retail pricing.

Competitors Monitored

Savings Catcher monitored competitor pricing from major retailers like Target, Amazon, Best Buy, and more. It also checked grocery stores, drugstores, and specialty shops.

Here is a full list of the 60+ retailers Savings Catcher automatically price checked against:

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This exhaustive list demonstrates Walmart’s commitment to matching the lowest price available online or locally. Very few retailers were not monitored.

Now that we’ve covered how Savings Catcher worked, let’s discuss Walmart’s limited price matching in the wake of discontinuing the app.

Does Walmart Still Price Match Without Savings Catcher?

Since Savings Catcher retired, Walmart only offers limited price matching in 2023. The only instance is if you find a lower price on Walmart.com for an identical in-store item.

However, even Walmart.com price matching has qualifications:

• Must be the same item, brand, size, quantity , etc.

• Only 1 price match per item, per customer, per day.

• Item must be in stock and sold directly by Walmart.

• Requires showing the online listing to an associate before purchasing.

• Managers can deny price matches at their discretion.

Beyond matching its own website, Walmart no longer price matches any competitor‘s pricing in stores. The limited policy is likely a cost reduction measure.

As a seller, I understand Walmart limiting price match availability to rein in expenses and minimize eGift card issuance. This allows Walmart to focus on what it does best: maintaining everyday low prices.

What Does Walmart‘s App Offer Without Savings Catcher?

Although Savings Catcher is gone, the Walmart app still provides useful shopping features:

• Contactless Pay – Walmart Pay allows in-store checkout by scanning a QR code; no physical phone or wallet needed.

• Prescription Management – Refill and manage Rx orders and set medication reminders.

• Weekly Ad Previews – View upcoming sales, rollbacks and deals before new weekly ad arrives.

• Inventory Lookup – Check if an item is in-stock at your local store before going.

• Maps and Item Finder – Use location-based store maps to create efficient shopping routes.

• Digital Receipts – Access paperless receipts to simplify returns and expense tracking.

• Grocery Pickup – Place online orders for curbside or in-store pickup; skip going inside.

• Shared Shopping Lists – Collaborate on shareable shopping lists with others to stay organized.

The app provides convenience for planning trips, managing prescriptions, and saving time during checkout. While price matching is gone, helpful tools remain.

Conclusion – The Life and Death of Walmart‘s Savings Catcher

In the end, Walmart‘s Savings Catcher changed retail by removing the customer‘s burden of price matching. This innovative idea established trust in Walmart‘s brand promise. However, maintaining the tool long-term did not make fiscal sense.

While shoppers miss the convenience, Walmart‘s reasoning is understandable from a business perspective. As a fellow seller, I recognize the costs involved, and how price matching had diminishing returns once Walmart solidified its everyday low price reputation.

Savings Catcher served its purpose in its heyday. But Walmart has shown its prices remain highly competitive, even without the app. In place of refunds, those cost savings get passed to customers through Walmart‘s continued price leadership.

I hope this guide gave you a deeper look into Walmart‘s former price matching tool. Let me know if you have any other questions! I‘m always happy to provide insider seller insights to help customers understand retailers‘ strategies.