Article
How to Spot a Fake Discount (Before You Get Tricked)
That bright red "60% OFF" tag is often hiding a price that was never real. Here is the 60-second check that protects you.
RV
Rohan Verma
Consumer Rights Writer · 1 Jun 2026 · 5 min read
The short answer\nA discount is only real if the "original price" was genuinely charged recently. The fastest way to verify is to check the price history with a tracker before you buy.\n\n## The inflated-MRP trick\nMany listings show a struck-through "original price" that the product never actually sold at. The displayed discount percentage is meaningless if the base price is fake.\n\n## How to verify a deal in 60 seconds\n1. Check price history using a free browser extension or price-tracking site.\n2. Compare across retailers — if Amazon and Flipkart both sit near the "discounted" price, that's the real price.\n3. Ignore the percentage, look at the absolute price — is this genuinely cheaper than usual?\n4. Watch for sale-event inflation — some prices quietly rise just before big sale events.\n\n## How we help\nEvery deal on DealSpot is price-checked before we publish it, and we link to multiple retailers so you can compare instantly.
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