Coupons.com Study Reveals AI Chatbots Fail to Provide Working Coupon Codes 76% of the Time

ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude were put to the test across 101 major US retailers for finding coupon codes to help shoppers save

Atlanta, Georgia, Sept. 16, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A new study from Coupons.com has found that AI tools struggle to find working coupon codes, with over three-quarters of the codes they suggest not working. The study, which tested ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude’s ability to find codes for 101 well-known US retailers, found that only 24.5% of the discount codes returned by the three tools combined were valid.

Infographic: Coupons.com AI Coupons Study Results

With people increasingly using AI in their shopping journeys, this raises questions about how reliable such tools are as a source of real-time, verifiable savings information, and broader questions about where they are, and aren’t, useful for online shopping.

Key findings

Across 101 retailers, the three tools suggested 689 codes in total. ChatGPT returned the most at 476 (averaging 4.7 per answer), followed by Gemini, which returned 155 (1.5 on average per response), with Claude returning the fewest codes at just 58 (0.6 per answer).

Less than 1 in 4 suggested coupon codes worked. Of the codes that could be reliably tested, just 24.5% came back as working.

Gemini had the highest working code rate at 38.6%. ChatGPT and Claude were almost identical, at 20.2% and 20% respectively. This is despite them responding very differently; while ChatGPT freely suggested codes, Claude was much more cautious.

The sources ChatGPT cited reveal the likely culprit. ChatGPT was the only tool to provide sources directly in the response, and Coupons.com's analysis of these sources showed that the sites AI tools cite most often as sources are not necessarily the most reliable ones.

The best tool still fell far short of a human-verified source. At best, AI returned a working code 38% of the time, versus an 89% average success rate for codes sourced directly from Coupons.com.

Commenting on the findings, Alexander Ketter, Managing Director USA at Coupons.com parent company Atolls, said: “Our study shows that AI tools aren't good at finding discounts. They'll try, but more often than not will suggest non-working codes. While AI is genuinely useful for a lot of things, this is a reminder not to blindly trust everything it tells you, or indeed to assume it’s always the best tool for the job."

Analysis of sources used reveals shortcomings

Coupons.com’s analysis of the sources cited by ChatGPT in its responses reveals the shortcomings of AI tools for this kind of query.

The sources ChatGPT cited tended to be low-quality coupon aggregators, which don’t necessarily do the hard work of checking and verifying codes they publish. The more established, reliable sites (including Coupons.com) have taken steps to prevent AI tools from accessing and scraping their content. As a result, AI tools can’t extract codes from these sites, which is why they fall back to the less reliable ones.

“The findings show that humans are still the most reliable way to test and verify coupons, which is why that’s our approach at Coupons.com,” commented Ketter.

“We prevent AI tools from scraping our codes because that severely impacts our ability to generate revenue; we rely on users visiting our site for this. Without revenue, we wouldn’t be able to employ our dedicated editorial team who find and hand-check coupon codes, meaning shoppers also lose out.”

For reliable, working coupon codes and the chance to earn cashback at thousands of retailers, US shoppers are encouraged to visit coupon sites with real people behind them, such as Coupons.com.

Methodology

Between early August and August 4, 2026, Coupons.com prompted ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude with the same query — "Find me valid, currently working coupon codes for [retailer name]. List each code with the discount it gives." — for 101 well-known US retailers. In each case, the free versions of the tools were used and in ‘incongnito’ mode.

Codes, stated terms, and any cited sources were extracted from each response (93 of the 101 retailers produced at least one testable code from at least one tool). Every extracted code was then manually tested at the retailer's real checkout and marked working, not working, or undetermined (for codes that couldn't be conclusively tested, such as single-use codes, account-gated codes, or codes tied to unavailable products). Working-rate percentages are calculated as working ÷ (working + not working); undetermined codes are excluded from that calculation, so the figures reflect reliability among codes that could actually be checked.

Codes on Coupons.com for the same 101 retailers were tested on several occasions between August 4-10, 2026, resulting in an average success rate of 89%. (100% success rate all of the time isn’t possible due to factors that are out of our control, such as retailers ending promotions early, codes with limits on the number of uses, etc.).

About Coupons.com

Coupons.com is your go-to destination for all things savings. We provide shoppers with the best ways to save, including online and in-store coupons for thousands of your favorite stores. We also offer cashback, so you can get rewarded every time you shop with us. Our goal is to help you make smarter shopping decisions and save the most money every time you check out! Founded in 1998, Coupons.com is today part of Atolls, where it continues to build on its more than 25-year legacy.

Press Inquiries

Yusra Malik
yusra.malik [at] atolls.com
https://www.coupons.com/