14 replies to this topic

[TheFountain]

swansonvitamins.com/

Sorry but the last time I did a comparison between swanson, iherb and vitacost swanson beat them all by several price points. And no, I was not ordering just the companies namesake products either. As a matter of fact it beat out iherb by about 25 $ and vitacost by approximately 7$ which means that at least iherbs prices have been going up, because the last time I did this same comparison swanson still won but with not that much of a lead over iherb, which was itself about even with vitacost. Here are a couple of examples.

Now foods pea protein, 2 pound container, swanson price 14.99, iherb price 19.99

perika saint johns wort, iherb price 9.27$ swanson price, 7.07$

Now foods L-optizinc, iherb price 5.08$ swanson price 3.87$

Now foods l-carnosine 50 vcaps Iherb price 19.99 swanson price 14.90

And this is just a few name brand items.

This is why iherb lost me as a customer and swanson has secured my loyalty. Artificial inflation sucks and I can't support it. Iherb use to be a bit cheaper than it is, why they would chance losing customers by jacking up prices when they know that have other major competitors out there, like swanson, perplexes me.

Edited by TheFountain, 26 June 2011 - 03:24 PM.

[PWAIN]

When they sort out their freight, then they may attract my business

Swanson: International Shipping (including Canada) = $4.99 + actual freight

My last order from iherb cost me $4 shipping (to Australia) - that is it, no five bucks because we can plus "actual freight". I have found iherb to be fast, reliable, high quality, accurate, pack well and deliver in every area that I could want.

I'll be sticking with iherb for now.

[TheFountain]

When they sort out their freight, then they may attract my business

Swanson: International Shipping (including Canada) = $4.99 + actual freight

My last order from iherb cost me $4 shipping (to Australia) - that is it, no five bucks because we can plus "actual freight". I have found iherb to be fast, reliable, high quality, accurate, pack well and deliver in every area that I could want.

I'll be sticking with iherb for now.

Oh yea that's why, they know they'll still be able to profit from international buyers, who have trouble with shipping on other sites. That sucks about swansons freight charges, I hope they resolve that soon so international buyers can reap their cheaper prices.

[niner]

This is why iherb lost me as a customer and swanson has secured my loyalty. Artificial inflation sucks and I can't support it. Iherb use to be a bit cheaper than it is, why they would chance losing customers by jacking up prices when they know that have other major competitors out there, like swanson, perplexes me.

Yup. Me too. Iherb used to be a lot cheaper. The kicker was when they cut back their VIP discount in order to subsidize the lower-profit lines (groceries, for godsake) that they wanted to get into. Screw 'em. I hope someone from iherb is reading this thread.

[nameless]

I've been using Swanson's much more often too. Shame about iHerb, as they previously had the best prices, as they price-matched (which they also stopped doing), and had a decent VIP discount.

Now I notice sporadic sales of 10-20% off on specific categories, usually on items I have no interest in, and they last for like 3 days only.

I'd much prefer my old VIP discount.

And for those who order Swanson's, do a google search for Swanson discount codes beforehand. It's not uncommon to find some coupons out there, ranging from 10% off, $5 off, or free shipping.

[Stopwatch]

That wasn't the case with iherb for me. I ended up having to pay 44 dollars for delivery (Canadian here) despite the fact that this wasn't mentioned in the costs when I purchased. How did you end up having shipping be only $4?

[adamh]

I've been preaching swanson's for a while now. I'm glad to see others think the same way. Smart powders is great for what they carry, bac is good on some things and you will find a deal here and there. But for already capped stuff, swansons is about the best.

Don't forget to check for discount codes before you place the order. You can find them on the net and they mail them to you. My only beef with them is that the discounts are kind of a shell game. The prices in the catalogue they send to you are not the standard prices. That is using the code in the catalogue. If they send you an email saying free shipping, it isn't really free. You have to enter the code in the email and that gives you different prices (higher) than in the catalogue. I would open another browser and replicate the order both ways to see which is cheaper.

[TheFountain]

Depending on how large my order is, I have gotten as much as 100+ dollars off retail prices after their capped prices and discount codes. They are an excellent model on how to run a supplement site. My only gripe is I wish they sold Piracetam. It sucks having to order from another site and pay extra shipping.

[Deckah]

I would clear cookies and refresh their page. Will change any price differences you may see, unless their locked into your swanson account which you can't change unless deleting and re-adding to cart. I get their catalog as well, which I probably shouldn't since there's really nothing ground breaking that isn't on the website. Don't think they offer special catalog promotions or anything seasonal with the catalog. If you fan/like their facebook page, sometimes they do special promotions or drawings/contests. Their ebillme/billmelaterthingy is pretty neat, cashback. I think coupons don't apply while using it since I think it's a different checkout, so using coupons would yield more savings than using ebillme, which is 5% (or, earn "up to" 5% cashback).

For big orders I would wait until a main season is nearing. I remember halloween last year they did "13%" off, which is pretty immense considering their prices in the first place.

I would only use the free shipping coupon for anything $50 or under and the 10% one for anything 50+. A simple percentage should tell you that though . Unless of course you're outside their flat-rate area and have to pay more. Then again there are qualifications to that I assume and the coupon probably isn't valid for a crazy shipping distance.

[TheFountain]

I would clear cookies and refresh their page. Will change any price differences you may see,

Can you be more clear on this? I don't get what you mean. What 'price differences' would it alter exactly? Examples?

[Deckah]

I would clear cookies and refresh their page. Will change any price differences you may see,

Can you be more clear on this? I don't get what you mean. What 'price differences' would it alter exactly? Examples?

You have to enter the code in the email and that gives you different prices (higher) than in the catalogue. I would open another browser and replicate the order both ways to see which is cheaper.

Was just adding to the above browser scenario. Was under the impression that adding a code from a certain place would mark up prices in relation to the account/discount code. Or I totally misread the post

[TheFountain]

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I would clear cookies and refresh their page. Will change any price differences you may see,

<br /><br /><br />Can you be more clear on this? I don't get what you mean.  What 'price differences' would it alter exactly? Examples?<br />

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You have to enter the code in the email and that gives you different prices (higher) than in the catalogue. I would open another browser and replicate the order both ways to see which is cheaper.

<br /><br /><br />Was just adding to the above browser scenario. Was under the impression that adding a code from a certain place would mark up prices in relation to the account/discount code. Or I totally misread the post  <img src='http://www.longecity...fault/laugh.gif' class='bbc_emoticon' alt='' /><br />

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I am not sure but I have noticed that prices of certain things are sometimes not reduced in final check out, but a quick phone call to the customer care number alleviates this dilemma.

[adamh]

They only allow 1 code per order. The catalogue offer is a code, the email offer is a code, some code you see on the net is another. Only 1 will work at a time. Decide if you want the free shipping or the $$ off or % off or whatever. If you have more than 1 code you can try each in a seperate browser to see which one comes out the best.

[sdxl]

I have used Swanson for US shipments, but I don't see why I should use them for international shipments. For international buyers iHerb is still a good option. Shipping to my country starts at $2, which is really good. I also order from Vitacost. Last time I checked prices from brands like Doctor's Best and Jarrow don't differ that much from Swanson. They do have the occasional 10% off coupon.

[TheFountain]

<br />They only allow 1 code per order. The catalogue offer is a code, the email offer is a code, some code you see on the net is another. Only 1 will work at a time. Decide if you want the free shipping or the $$ off or % off or whatever. If you have more than 1 code you can try each in a seperate browser to see which one comes out the best.<br />

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There are two fields in the shopping cart. One is 'promo code' and the other is coupon/gift certificate. I have been able to successfully use both in a single order, sometimes allowing me an additional 15-20$ off my already discounted prices.