What "discount on the most expensive item" means

With this type of discount, the percentage does not apply to the whole order, only to the item with the highest price in your basket. If you add several items at different prices, the system automatically picks out the most expensive one and takes the discount off that. The other items stay at full price.

It is the counterpart to a discount on the cheapest item, where the same percentage applies to the lowest single price and therefore brings a smaller saving.

Why this type works out better for you

A fixed percentage always comes to a larger amount in euros the higher the price it applies to. If a discount goes on the most expensive item in your basket, the saving in euros is therefore higher than with the same percentage on the cheapest item. For a shop this version costs more; for you as a shopper it is the better deal.

Because it costs the shop more, especially when there are high-priced items in the basket, you are likely to come across it less often than a discount on the cheapest item.

It still turns up, though, because it is easy to advertise as a clear benefit: "20 per cent off the most expensive item" sounds like a noticeable saving, and with suitably high-priced items in your basket it genuinely is one, unlike a version that only favours the cheapest item.

A worked example with three items

Say you put three items in your basket: one for 30 euros, one for 20 euros and one for 10 euros, making 60 euros in total. The promotion promises 20 per cent off the most expensive item. Here that is the 30-euro item, so 20 per cent comes off it, which is 6 euros. The total drops from 60 to 54 euros.

If the same discount applied to the cheapest item instead, the saving would be 20 per cent of 10 euros, so 2 euros, and the total would be 58 euros. With the same percentage and the same three items, the difference between the two versions comes to 4 euros here.

When you add another, more expensive item

If you put another, even more expensive item in your basket, the promotion's point of reference shifts straight away. With the three items at 30, 20 and 10 euros from above, adding an item for 50 euros would mean the 20 per cent discount now applies to those 50 euros, saving you 10 euros instead of the 6 euros on the previous most expensive item.

The total of your order goes up with the extra item, but the saving from the promotion grows along with it. That is the opposite effect to a discount on the cheapest item, where adding another cheap item tends to make the saving smaller.

Where this type of discount typically appears

A discount on the most expensive item tends to appear in promotions meant to push a particular, usually higher-priced product in the range, for example when a shop wants to boost sales of certain products. It also comes up when a shop wants to advertise a benefit without risking an unlimited discount total on a basket full of expensive items, because the discount is still limited to one single item.

This type is most worthwhile for you when there is already a noticeably more expensive item in your basket alongside cheaper ones.

Imagine you are buying a backpack for 80 euros anyway, plus two smaller accessories at 15 euros each. A 20 per cent discount on the most expensive item saves you 16 euros here, while the same percentage on one of the accessories would only bring 3 euros. If you know there is a high-priced item in your basket, you benefit a lot more from this type of discount than from a promotion based on the cheapest item.

What to check before you pay

• Read whether the discount applies to the most expensive item, the cheapest item or any item.
• Check the basket to see exactly what amount has been taken off, rather than relying on the percentage alone.
• Bear in mind that adding an expensive item can increase the saving, while adding a cheap one cannot.
• If prices vary a lot, compare whether a standard discount on the whole order would be worth more overall.

How a discount on the cheapest item is calculated is explained in the article Working out a discount on the cheapest item. You can read how a discount on the second item works in the article Working out a discount on the second item. How a quantity-based discount scale works is covered in the article Tiered discounts explained. You can find current promotions by category on the categories page.

Frequently asked questions

With several items, is the most expensive one discounted automatically?

Yes, as long as the promotion is set up that way. The system automatically compares the prices in your basket and applies the discount to the highest single price.

Why is this type better for me than a discount on the cheapest item?

Because the amount taken off in euros is higher, as long as the percentage is the same. A fixed percentage on a more expensive item always works out as a bigger saving.

Can I influence which item counts as the "most expensive"?

Only indirectly, by changing what is in your basket. The comparison is always based on the actual prices of the items currently in the basket.

Is this type of discount worth it with only one item in the basket?

Yes, and then there is no difference from a standard discount, because that one item is automatically both the most expensive and the only one the promotion can apply to. The difference from other types of discount only really shows once you have several items at different prices.