Help & getting started

What is DealStacker?

DealStacker finds the genuine cheapest way to buy something in the UK by stacking every discount that can legitimately be combined on a single purchase — loyalty pricing, voucher codes, discounted gift cards and cashback — and applying them in the right order.

Most people grab one discount and stop. The real saving comes from layering several together. We do that maths for you and show the bottom-line cash price, so you can compare retailers fairly and know exactly what you’ll pay.

Want the detail on why order matters? See How it works.

Quick start in 3 steps

1. Search for a product. Type what you want to buy into the search bar. We show matching items across supported UK retailers, each with its lowest stacked price.
2. Open a result to see the breakdown. The waterfall shows every discount coming off, step by step, down to the final cash price — plus which cashback site gives the best rate.
3. Follow the steps to buy. To claim cashback you must start your purchase from the cashback site (see the golden rules). Apply any listed voucher at checkout, and pay with a discounted gift card where it helps.

Optional: sign in and save which loyalty and credit cards you actually hold. Then every price is calculated for your wallet instead of a best-case demo.

Reading the stacked price

Each breakdown separates three very different things:

• Pay today — the cash that actually leaves your account at checkout.
• Earned back — cashback you’ll receive later, once it confirms. Real money, but not instant.
• In points — loyalty points (Nectar, Clubcard…) you earn to spend on a future shop. Valuable, but not money off today, so we never fold it into the headline price.

The headline net cash cost is always pay today minus earned back — an honest figure, never inflated by points.

How cashback sites work (the bit most people get wrong)

A cashback site — TopCashback, Quidco or Rakuten in the UK — is a free membership site that pays you a percentage back when you buy from a retailer after clicking through from them.

Here’s the mechanism: when you click a retailer link on the cashback site, it tags your visit. If you then buy, the retailer pays the cashback site a commission for sending you, and the cashback site shares most of that with you. No tag, no commission, no cashback. That single fact is behind almost every “my cashback didn’t track” story.

The journey of a claim:

• Pending — tracked, waiting for the retailer to confirm (usually days to a few weeks).
• Confirmed / payable — the retailer has approved it, often after the returns window closes. This can take weeks to a few months.
• Withdrawn — you transfer it to your bank, PayPal, or (often at a bonus rate) a gift card.

DealStacker shows the best rate and the runners-up, but you claim it through the cashback site itself — you need a (free) account with them. We don’t hold or pay your cashback.

Golden rules for getting cashback to pay out

Cashback tracking is fiddly. Follow these and the vast majority of claims go through:

1. Always start from the cashback site. Click through to the retailer from TopCashback/Quidco/Rakuten immediately before you buy. The last link you clicked usually wins the commission.
2. Buy in one clean session. Don’t wander off to other deal sites, voucher sites or price comparisons after clicking through — a later click can overwrite your tracking. Add to basket and check out in the same visit.
3. Allow cookies; pause ad/tracker blockers. Tracking relies on a cookie. Accept cookies on the retailer site and disable ad-blockers, privacy extensions or VPNs for that purchase.
4. Only use voucher codes the cashback site lists. An unlisted code found elsewhere is the single most common reason cashback is declined. If a code isn’t shown next to the offer, it may void your cashback.
5. Start with an empty basket. Items added before you clicked through may not be counted. Clear it and re-add after.
6. Mind the gift-card rule. Some retailers don’t pay cashback when you pay with a gift card. DealStacker flags these and picks whichever route is genuinely cheaper for you.
7. Be patient, then chase. If a claim doesn’t appear as “pending” within a few days, raise a missing cashback claim with the cashback site — keep your order confirmation and date.
8. One portal per purchase. You can’t earn from both TopCashback and Quidco on the same order — pick the best one for that retailer (we tell you which).

Using discounted gift cards

Some sites sell a retailer’s e-gift card for slightly less than its face value — e.g. £100 of credit for £96. Pay with it and you’ve shaved a few percent off anything, on top of other discounts.

• Buy a card value close to your order total to avoid leftover credit.
• Check the card works online and doesn’t exclude sale items.
• Remember the gift-card / cashback exclusion: at a few retailers, paying by gift card cancels cashback. DealStacker shows you which route wins so you don’t lose more than you save.

Points vs cash savings

Loyalty points are worth having, but they’re not money off at the till — you redeem them later. We keep them in a separate deferred value line so the price you compare is the real cash you pay now. Treat points as a bonus, not a discount, and you’ll never overestimate a deal.

The browser extension

The DealStacker Chrome extension runs the same engine right on a retailer’s product page. While you shop, it reads the live price and shows the stacked total in place — handy for confirming a deal and remembering which voucher to apply at checkout.

Discover and compare on the website; close the deal with the extension. Both use identical maths, so the numbers always match.

Frequently asked questions

Please note: cashback rates, voucher codes and retailer terms change frequently and are set by third parties. The figures DealStacker shows are estimates to help you compare — always check the live rate and terms on the retailer and cashback site before you buy. DealStacker doesn’t pay cashback and isn’t responsible for a third party declining a claim.