Honey’s bargain hunter browser extension has been accused of ripping off customers and YouTubers

The PayPal Honey browser extension is, in theory, a handy way to find better deals on products when shopping online. But in a video posted this weekend, YouTuber MegaLag claims the extension is a “scam” and that Honey “stole money from influencers, including those who paid them to promote their product.”

Honey works by displaying an offer to find coupon codes for you while you shop at an online store. But as MegaLag notes, it often won’t find a code or offer one with the Honey brand, even if a simple internet search would find something better. The Honey website claims that it “finds every working promo code on the internet.” But according to MegaLag’s video, ignoring better deals is a feature of Honey’s partnerships with its retail customers.

MegaLag also says Honey will hijack affiliate revenue from influencers. According to MegaLag, when you click on an influencer’s affiliate link, Honey exchanges its own tracking link when you interact with the deal popup during checkout. This applies regardless of whether Honey has found a voucher for you or not. This results in Honey receiving credit for the sale and not the YouTuber or website whose link brought you there.

Josh Criscoe, vice president of corporate communications at PayPal, said in an email to: The edge that “Honey follows industry rules and practices, including last-click attribution.”

MegaLag is not the first to make such claims. A 2021 Twitter post recommends using Honey’s discount codes in a different browser to avoid using affiliate credit. A Linus Media Group employee also stated in a 2022 forum response that Linus Tech Tips removed Honey as a sponsor because of its affiliate link practices.

Honey’s convenience has led to the extension being widely recommended, including in nearly 5,000 Honey-sponsored videos on about 1,000 YouTube channels, according to MegaLag. We even recommended it here The Edge; Now we don’t.

Here is Criscoe’s full statement:

Honey is free to use and offers millions of shoppers additional savings on their purchases whenever possible. Honey helps merchants reduce cart abandonment and comparison shopping while increasing sales conversion.