Every discount ad screams "UP TO 70% OFF!" — so we did something simple: we analysed every single live coupon code in our own database to find out what shoppers actually get. The answer is a lot more grounded than the marketing, and a lot more useful.
The short version
- We analysed 4,988 live coupon codes across 984 retailers.
- The average percentage discount is 16.5%; the median is 15%.
- 91% of all codes are for 20% off or less.
- 15% off is the single most common discount — it appears on 1,324 codes.
- Discounts of 70% or more make up under 0.5% of codes — fewer than 1 in 200.
- The most generous categories are dating apps, web hosting, online marketplaces and meal kits.
- Dollar-off codes average $54 off (median $35); free-shipping codes are just 3.3% of offers.
The average coupon is worth 16.5% off — not 70%
Across the 3,534 codes that offer a percentage discount, the average saving is 16.5% and the median is exactly 15%. In other words, the typical "real" coupon code is modest — a useful 10–20% nudge at checkout, not the headline blowout you see in banner ads. Here is how every percentage code breaks down:
| Discount range | Share of codes |
|---|---|
| 1–10% off | 33.8% |
| 11–20% off | 57.3% |
| 21–30% off | 4.2% |
| 31–40% off | 1.1% |
| 41–50% off | 2.6% |
| 51–70% off | 0.7% |
| 71–100% off | 0.5% |
Stack the first two rows together and you get the headline: more than nine in ten coupon codes are for 20% off or less.
15% off is the magic number
When we counted the exact discount on every code, one figure dominated. 15% off is the most common offer by a wide margin, followed by 10% and 20%. Retailers cluster around these round, psychologically comfortable numbers — generous enough to convert a hesitant shopper, conservative enough to protect their margin.
| Discount | Number of codes |
|---|---|
| 15% off | 1,324 |
| 10% off | 1,161 |
| 20% off | 696 |
| 50% off | 89 |
| 25% off | 76 |
| 30% off | 67 |
| 40% off | 33 |
| 5% off | 24 |
The "up to 70% off" myth
The phrase "up to" is doing a lot of work in coupon marketing. Codes offering 70% off or more accounted for just 0.5% of everything in our database — and even those usually apply to a narrow clearance selection, not your whole cart. If you see a code promising to halve a full-price order, treat it as the rare exception it is, and read the terms before you get your hopes up. The big, genuine markdowns tend to arrive during seasonal events instead — which is why timing a purchase around Black Friday and Cyber Monday still beats hunting for a mythical everyday mega-code.
Which categories give the biggest discounts?
This is where it gets practical. We grouped every percentage code by the retailer's category to see where your money stretches furthest. Dating apps, web hosting, online marketplaces and meal kits lead the table — digital and subscription services can afford deeper new-customer incentives because their marginal cost is low and a signup is worth a lot to them. Traditional retail sits lower, clustered in the high teens.
| Category | Average discount |
|---|---|
| Dating Apps | 29.0% |
| Domains & Hosting | 25.6% |
| Online Marketplaces | 25.4% |
| Meal Kits | 24.3% |
| Arts & Crafts | 24.1% |
| Video Streaming | 23.5% |
| Photo Printing | 21.1% |
| Fast Fashion | 20.3% |
| Surf & Beachwear | 19.6% |
| Eyewear & Contacts | 19.2% |
| Lingerie & Intimates | 19.1% |
| Off-Price Retail | 18.9% |
| Jewelry & Watches | 18.6% |
| Pharmacy & Health | 18.6% |
The takeaway: if you are signing up for a marketplace like Temu, a hosting plan, a meal-kit trial or a dating-app subscription, a new-customer code is almost always worth applying — those are the categories where coupons move the needle most. You can browse them all in our category directory.
Dollar-off deals and the free-shipping reality
Not every code is a percentage. 749 codes offered a flat dollar amount off, averaging $54 (median $35) — though these almost always carry a minimum spend, so the effective discount depends on how much you were going to buy anyway. And despite how often "free shipping" gets promised, only 3.3% of codes in our data were specifically free-shipping offers. Free delivery is increasingly something you unlock with a spend threshold or a loyalty membership, not a code.
What this means for you: 5 takeaways
- Set realistic expectations. A working code is usually 10–20% off. That is still real money — but "70% off" everyday codes are mostly a myth.
- Always check for a new-customer code in high-discount categories (marketplaces, hosting, meal kits, dating apps) — that is where coupons save the most.
- Hit the minimum, not above it. Dollar-off codes need a threshold; buy to just clear it rather than padding your cart.
- Time big purchases around seasonal sales for the genuine deep discounts, and combine them with a code where you can. Our live coupons page is updated continuously.
- Verify before you trust. Most "70% off" codes you see floating around the web are stale or fake — see how we verify codes.
Methodology
This study analysed all 4,988 active coupon codes listed across 984 retailers on SaversPrice as of June 2026. Percentage discounts were extracted from each code's stated discount value and title; where a code listed a range (for example "up to 30% off"), we used the maximum stated figure. Category averages include only categories with at least 15 percentage-based codes to avoid small-sample noise. Dollar-off figures cover the 749 codes that specified a flat currency amount. Figures are descriptive of the offers retailers publish, not a measure of how much any individual shopper saves.
Cite this study
You are welcome to reference these findings. If you use the data or charts, please credit SaversPrice with a link back to this page (saversprice.com). For questions about the dataset or a custom breakdown, get in touch.
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SaversPrice Editorial Team
VerifiedOur team of deal researchers hand-tests every coupon and writes practical, no-fluff guides to help you spend less. We only publish what we'd use ourselves.
