Curse of the Bargain hunter: what to do with BOGOF? #102

New issue

Open

opened 2026-08-25 07:43:23 +00:00 by moof · 2 comments

moof commented

2026-08-25 07:43:23 +00:00

Owner

Send the seekers a picture of a discounted price tag (or other written discount) that you found in the real world. They must find an item that is equally (or more) discounted, by percentage, before asking another question.

How do we handle BOGOF and similar discounts?

Is Buy 1 Get 1 Free a 100% discount or a 50% discount?

If you have a buy one, 60% discount on the second, is that a 30% discount on one item?

Is 3 for 2 a 66% discount?

Or do we just ban discounts that aren’t directly for one item?

> Send the seekers a picture of a discounted price tag (or other written discount) that you found in the real world. They must find an item that is equally (or more) discounted, by percentage, before asking another question. How do we handle BOGOF and similar discounts? Is Buy 1 Get 1 Free a 100% discount or a 50% discount? If you have a buy one, 60% discount on the second, is that a 30% discount on one item? Is 3 for 2 a 66% discount? Or do we just ban discounts that aren’t directly for one item?

moof added this to the Next Game milestone

2026-08-25 07:43:23 +00:00

moof added the

Status

Pending Discussion

Card Clarification

labels

2026-08-25 07:43:23 +00:00

moof added this to the Jet Lag Cards project

2026-08-25 07:43:23 +00:00

moof commented

2026-08-25 07:47:23 +00:00

Author

Owner

What about conditional discounts that only apply if you have a store card, or if you have a minimum spend?

nander commented

2026-08-25 11:06:22 +00:00

I would either go for the following:

compare the discount of the full offer

This option would be: look at what cost a new customer would need to make to reach the lower offer.
Examples:
50 euros cashback when buying a TV of 1000 euros --> nett cost of 950 euros for a 1000 euros nominal offer. Thus: 5% discount
2nd product free (cheapest product variation) --> 50% discount, since you could buy the same product twice
2nd product half price --> 25% discount

Singular product variation:

Consider what discount you would get according to the sticker, when buying one product. 3 for 1 doesn't apply for it doesn't apply when buying one product, and thus wouldn't apply.

Some further notes

I think the other variations of the rule are too complex or nonsensical. Counting a 2-for-1 offer as 100% discount does not make sense to me.

For store cards I would say: if you can grab one (or take one from google images) then its probably okay, but if you need to get it sent to your home or pay for getting the card then I'd say it shouldn't count. That is, one could use google to look for "Albert Heijn Bonuskaart" and use one of those.

My preference would be the first idea: you look at the offer-price for the total deal and compare it to the price without the deal. This feels the most "in the spirit of the curse".

I would either go for the following: # compare the discount of the full offer This option would be: look at what cost a *new* customer would need to make to reach the lower offer. Examples: 50 euros cashback when buying a TV of 1000 euros --> nett cost of 950 euros for a 1000 euros nominal offer. Thus: 5% discount 2nd product free (cheapest product variation) --> 50% discount, since you could buy the same product twice 2nd product half price --> 25% discount # Singular product variation: Consider what discount you would get according to the sticker, when buying *one* product. 3 for 1 doesn't apply for it doesn't apply when buying *one* product, and thus wouldn't apply. # Some further notes I think the other variations of the rule are too complex or nonsensical. Counting a 2-for-1 offer as 100% discount does not make sense to me. For store cards I would say: if you can grab one (or take one from google images) then its probably okay, but if you need to get it sent to your home or pay for getting the card then I'd say it shouldn't count. That is, one could use google to look for "Albert Heijn Bonuskaart" and use one of those. My preference would be the first idea: you look at the offer-price for the total deal and compare it to the price without the deal. This feels the most "in the spirit of the curse".