The PayPal Honey browser extension is, in theory, an easy way to find better deals on products when shopping online. but in a Video published this weekendYouTuber Megalag claims that the extension is a “scam” and that Honey is “stealing money from influencers, including people they paid to promote their product.”
Honey offers to find coupon codes for you when you're checking out at an online shop. But as Megalag notes, it often fails to find a code, or provides a Honey-branded code, even though a simple internet search will cover something better. Honey website pitch Will it “find every working promo code on the internet.” But according to Megalag's video, overlooking better deals is a hallmark of Honey's partnership with its retail customers.
Megalag also says Honey will usurp affiliate revenues from influencers. According to Megalag, if you click on an influencer's affiliate link, Honey will swap in its own tracking link when you interact with its deal pop-up at check-out. It doesn't matter whether Honey found you the coupon or not, and as a result Honey gets credit for the sale, not the YouTuber or website whose link led you there.
Josh Crisco, PayPal vice president of corporate communications, said in an email. The Verge That “Honey adheres to industry regulations and practices, including last-click attribution.”
Megalag is not the first company to make such claims. A 2021 twitter post The affiliate recommends using Honey's discount code in a different browser to avoid taking credit. An employee of Linus Media Group also told 2022 forum reply Linus Tech Tips removed Honey as a sponsor due to its affiliate link practices.
According to Megalag, the extension has resulted in Honey's feature being widely recommended, including nearly 5,000 Honey-sponsored videos on nearly 1,000 YouTube channels. We also recommended it here The Verge; Now we don't.
Here is Crisco's full statement:
Honey is free to use and provides millions of shoppers with additional savings on their purchases whenever possible. Honey helps merchants increase sales conversion as well as reduce cart abandonment and comparison shopping.