Price matching has been quietly disappearing from US retail for six years. Most shoppers are still operating on rules that stopped being true. Here's the state of play in 2026.
Who stopped, and when
Target — ended competitor matching 28 July 2025
This is the big one, and it went largely uncovered. Target no longer matches Amazon, Walmart, or anyone else. It still adjusts against its own price for 14 days, including Target Circle promotions — but the competitor program is gone.
Walmart — ended competitor matching in 2020
Walmart killed its Savings Catcher tool in 2019 and stopped matching competitors in 2020. What remains is reconciliation between Walmart.com and in-store pricing at the register.
Amazon — never really had one
Amazon has no general price adjustment policy. There's a narrow, poorly documented exception for televisions within a short window of delivery, and beyond that any credit is entirely at a customer service representative's discretion. The practical workaround most people use is a return and repurchase inside the standard return window.
Credit card price protection — gone, 2018 to 2019
This one deserves its own paragraph. Chase removed it across its cards in 2018. Discover ended it in October 2018. USAA in August 2019. Citi killed Price Rewind in September 2019. Mastercard removed it at the network level. Barclays and American Express followed.
The reason is worth knowing: apps had automated the claims process at enormous volume, and issuers concluded it was cheaper to withdraw the benefit than to keep paying it. A small number of Capital One, Navy Federal, UBS and Wells Fargo cards still carry a version, usually capped and time-limited. Check your specific card's guide to benefits — general lists are unreliable.
Who still does it
| Retailer | Competitor match? | Own price drop | How to claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Best Buy | Yes — 16 named competitors | 15 days, 60 for Plus/Total | Self-service button, chat, phone |
| Lowe's | Yes | Varies | Store, phone, chat |
| Home Depot | Yes | 30 days | Store or service desk |
| Costco | Never has | 30 days | Web form online, counter in warehouse |
| Target | Ended Jul 2025 | 14 days | Guest Services, chat, phone |
| Walmart | Ended 2020 | Register only | At the register |
| Amazon | No | No policy | Rep discretion only |
What this means practically
Best Buy is now the best place to buy anything you might want to claim against. It's the only major retailer combining real competitor matching with a long window, and its 60-day member window is the most generous term left in mainstream US retail.
The awkward part: Amazon is the retailer people most want to match against, and it offers nothing back on your own purchases. Buy at Best Buy, match against Amazon.
The trend is one direction
Nothing in the last six years suggests these programs are coming back. Target's exit came with no warning and no press release. If you have a claimable window open, use it — the policy you're relying on can change while you're deciding.
Two habits that pay
- Check your own retailer's price first. A price adjustment at the store you already bought from needs no competitor and no argument.
- Know your window before you need it. 15 days moves fast. If you're a Best Buy member you have 60 and probably don't know it.