How it works

1. Retailer prices

Prices come from retailer product feeds and affiliate networks. Each offer records the retailer, the product as that retailer describes it, the price, delivery cost where published, stock status and when we last saw it.

2. Matching products

Before an offer appears on a product page it has to be matched to a whisky in our database. We match on barcode (EAN/GTIN) first, then a reliable retailer product identifier, then normalised brand, expression, age and bottle size. Anything uncertain is held for manual review rather than merged, because a wrong merge would show you the price of a different bottle.

3. Total price, not just the bottle price

We compare the effective price: the sale price where a retailer has one, otherwise the standard price, plus delivery where it applies. £45 with £7.95 delivery is not cheaper than £49.99 delivered free, and our tables reflect that.

4. Price history

We store a new price point only when a retailer's effective price actually changes, which keeps the history meaningful. Over time this gives a typical price, a lowest recorded price and a basis for spotting genuine drops.

5. What counts as a deal

We describe a price as a deal only when our own recorded history supports it. If we have not tracked a bottle long enough, we say there is not enough price history rather than guess.

6. How we are funded

We may earn a commission when you buy through a link to a retailer. Commission never affects the prices shown or the order of the comparison table, which is ranked by total price.