I was having a conversation about Americans being price gouged in foreign countries when it comes to buying things.
The sentiment is Americans are stupid and don’t know how to barter.
I argued that it’s a cultural thing. We go into stores with set prices. We don’t argue about prices when we shop with few exceptions. Maybe at a car dealership or 2nd hand shop.
But generally it’s considered bad taste to try and get money off.
Trying to get a free meal, low balling people who provide services or even legitimate discounts like using 100 coupons is seen as annoying.
Do you guys live, in places in the US, where haggling is acceptable?
37 comments
i think it mainly depends where it is. grocery store? nope dont barter there. flea market? sure you can see if you can get a lower price. the main reason using 100 coupons is seen as bad is it takes a lot of time and stuff can go wrong (like ones expired, ones missing, register locks out, etc)
It’s incredibly rude to say the least.
I agree. It’s absolutely cultural. It’s considered rude except under certain circumstances (garage sales, car sales, house sales).
Only in very isolated circumstances. Buying a car? Sure. Any kind of daily consumer good? Nope.
It’s also partially WHERE we visit that haggling is common and simple economic realities. Frankly a lot of places where it’ s common Americans aren’t sweating even the rip off price.
Only thing I’ve ever bargained for was a car.
No except in a few limited circumstances:
1) expensive jewelry
2) cars/houses
3) used goods
4) large construction projects
>The sentiment is Americans are stupid and don’t know how to barter.
People say this stuff and claim we are the culturally unaware idiots.
Haggling is not cool in most situations like retail stores.
Some large purchases can have some wiggle room depending on the market. Housing and automobiles are the primary ones.
Second hand deals for stuff on craigslist. Estate and garage sales. Places like that it can be expected.
I think Americans are used to getting the lowest prices because we live in a capitalist economy with plenty of competition for most goods and services. Competition makes prices lower so haggling isn’t common.
No it makes me uncomfortable. I even used a service to buy my car because I didn’t want to haggle.
Ha! My wife gets super embarrassed by me haggling and has learned enough to not go with me to buy high ticket items anymore.
Pretty much anywhere the salesperson/manager has the ability to lower the price I haggle. Gallon of milk? No… I’m not gonna haggle with the cashier. At Home Depot buying a fridge to put that milk in? You’re damn right I do.
Me: “Babe! Look! They have this thing we want and it’s on sale for $500! Lemme find a manager.”
Her: “Oh shit. Here we go.”
I can barter but it just seems stupid. If it’s too expensive then find somewhere cheaper for a good/service. If you have to consistently barter, unless it’s a necessity, then you should probably not buy said item or use said service
It is a bit expected that people are acting in good faith when buying something.
It’s can be seen as cheap to haggle and very crooked and dishonest to charge someone more than something is worth.
I might say, “oh is that your best price” if I am some place foreign knowing things are done differently. If they say yes I say thanks I walk away if I think they are trying to screw me.
They chase me dont but I dont do business with people who are trying to fuck me over. No thank you.
The only places you negotiate are flea markets (and various swapmeet, garage sale, rummage sale), possibly fireworks stands, automobile.
I saw an old babushka try to haggle at the farmer’s market at the heirloom tomato stand. The farmer just politely shook her head “no”
I just saved $20 by offering to pay for a car repair in cash. They have to pay a 3% processing fee, so everyone saves money. I learned this from my daughter’s orthodontist, who gives a 3% discount if I write a check.
First, so many businesses are run by big corporations who control the prices. The lowly store employee has no control over prices and discounts.
Second, if you do a little bit of research, you can find lower prices elsewhere, so why haggle when you can just go elsewhere?
>The sentiment is Americans are stupid and don’t know how to barter.
What a weird conclusion to draw from an obvious cultural difference. If, per chance, it was actually foreign countries that were the dumb ones… well, you can’t successfully argue with stupid, can you?
I haggled a vintage Holly Hobbie tin lunch box from 10 to 8 at a swap meet once.
This is why a lot of people in retail hate dealing with foreigners because they think EVERYTHING should be haggled on price her in the US where it ISN’T. When I worked at a toyota dealer, I made sure to hide any current promotional displays or paperwork on a car when an Asian couple would come in. They were always the biggest pain in the ass; had to feel like they were getting a huge discount type of people. So by telling them that the actual sales price was a “special deal” I got just for them, they would think they were getting some huge discount, and then still want to spend another 30-40 minutes haggling over another 1-2k off on a 40k car, which at the end of the day was barely a difference in the monthly payment.
Yeah for sure. You can’t haggle with corporations. As someone from the US but frequently goes to Ukraine where haggling is common at bazaars, its uncomfortable for me to argue prices. I cannot stand being ripped off but I have no experience with haggling and its draining to argue with every seller. So if I do haggle its not in the US and not often.
Haggling is just not part of American culture outside very large and/or informal purchases. Most of the time, if you try to argue about the price of something, you’re being an asshole and the effort is also probably futile. The seller sets a price he thinks will sell, and the buyer either takes it or doesn’t. Don’t waste a large establishment’s time, and don’t try to squeeze a small business unless you sincerely believe it’s ripping you off and you don’t have a better option.
I can but I’d rather not. Buying a car sucks. It takes so much time I’d rather spend going to the beach or reading something interesting.
look man, I see all the dealer fees and non sense you’re throwing on the bill. I’ll just keep driving my two year old car, thanks.
Haggling is common in developing countries because there is less structure to the exchange of goods and services.
I don’t know why anyone would be happy to live in a country where haggling is normal…it literally means that you’re getting ripped off and need to argue with someone for 5 minutes just to get an honest price. No thanks
If someone is so desperate that they are willing to take a lower price than posted just to make a sale, then I always feel that I can probably afford to pay the full price and spread my wealth around a bit. So I don’t bother with haggling, I don’t need to.
There are few circumstances where it’s acceptable for shoppers in the US to haggle.
One place where it’s common to haggle in some countries is at markets where people are selling the goods they personally have grown or made (or their family or very small business or cooperative). In the US, it would be really rude to try to tell some artist or farmer that their goods are not worth the price they have set. They have put the prices as what they expect to get, not some artificially inflated price with the expectation of haggling. They don’t want to haggle with all their customers; it would just waste everyone’s time, especially in a busy market with a lot of buyers.
Similarly if you are trying to hire someone to perform some service for you. They will not be happy if you try to tell them they should work for less than their standard rate. If they’re hungry for work/money and think they might not get it, they might offer a discount on their prices. But you should make sure you’re in a good position to ask and that the rate is still fair before you even broach the subject. It isn’t at all a given that they’re going to be willing to negotiate. In some cases, the price might definitely be too high, which indicates that they’re busy and don’t actually want the job very much.
And in most stores, the employees don’t have the authority to change prices.
> The sentiment is Americans are stupid and don’t know how to barter.
The sentiment from when I read something like this is people in other places are insufferable and need to shut the fuck up with their incorrect notions about mundane details of our life.
There are a few places where haggling is acceptable. Car purchases, craft markets, flea markets, gun shows, private yard/garage sales, and a few others. Most small businesses are already struggling so trying to barter with a small business owner generally isn’t going to work.
The answer is Fuck yeah I do cause I am American, but I usually lose the war 😞
Only for cars. My favorite thrift store has a sign for no haggling.
Very rarely, only certain situations. At a regular store? Duh of course not. They’re set prices. At a flea market? Sure, I can only give you $10 for that freeze dried bat, $15 is too much.
The contexts in which haggling is acceptable are generally acceptable across the US. For example, vehicle sales are always subject to negotiation.
It’s actually quite nuanced in the US but generally, if you have to ask what the price is, then there is some room for negotiation. If the price is labeled, then there isn’t.
Ive never seen someone barter for something outside of a garage sale or online. You can barter with individuals, but trying that in a physical store with set prices is going to do nothing but waste your time.
I often don’t haggle with street vendors in other countries because it doesn’t bother me to let go of a couple extra bucks and I know it makes a lot more difference in their life than it does in mine. Part of the “toll” for me visiting a country is leaving a little cash behind and I’d much rather it go directly to someone than through a business.
People try haggling over hotel rooms prices. I might or might not accept it. Rack is $179 but they counter offer with $159? Sure. Rack is $179 and they counter with $79? Ha! No.
I’m a terrible haggler; drove my father crazy when we used to take day trips down to Nogales, Sonora.
I loved haggling in India it was exhilarating and I felt I was a natural after learning the real prices from a local friend I made.
Unless the sales person is commission-based or you’re dealing with the owner of the shop, there isn’t any haggling. The person you’re dealing with wouldn’t have any authority or discretion to change the sale price. And commissioned sales is pretty much non-existent now, except for cars, custom items, and some high-end luxury items. Basically, if it can be bought online from more than one seller, you’re probably not going to be able to haggle for it in person.
No, it’s generally not okay. So much so that when I’m in a scenario where it’s accepted or even expected (like you mentioned buying a car) I usually feel pretty uncomfortable with the whole situation.
I went to Cuba and haggled with a taxi driver and that felt really weird lol