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Frequently asked questions

Want to know more about InvisibleHand? Here are our most frequently asked questions.
Web browser Add-on for
FirefoxChrome, Edge and iOS
What is InvisibleHand?
It's a browser extension which discreetly notifies you if the product or flights you're shopping for is available more cheaply from another retailer or travel site. The notification provides a convenient button which links you straight through to the relevant page on the competing website. It also provides a drop-down menu, so that you can see the prices at the other sites which sell that product or flight.
Why is it called InvisibleHand?
The invisible hand was originally mentioned by the 18th century economist, Adam Smith. Smith's idea has been generalised since he suggested it, but the essence of his argument is that in a free market, individuals will pursue their own self-interest, and the consequences of this will be beneficial for the rest of society. If each person can choose what to buy, and each producer can choose what to sell and what price to sell it at, there will be a more efficient distribution of prices and products. Prices will be lower, quality will be higher, and the best sellers will make the largest profits. Smith didn't have Firefox to help make his point, but we hope he would approve if he was alive today.
How does InvisibleHand make money?
If you buy a product after clicking on the button in an InvisibleHand notification, the retailer or seller pays us a small commission. The price you pay is not affected by the commission. It would be the same price regardless of whether you used InvisibleHand.
How secure is InvisibleHand?
InvisibleHand has passed Mozilla's strenuous vetting process which ensures that it's safe to use and does not present security issues. It has also been certified 100% clean by Softpedia. It's also a Featured Extension for Google Chrome and a 2010 Webby Award Honoree.
What information does InvisibleHand collect?
InvisibleHand does not collect any personally identifiable information. It does not store IP addresses and it does not track individual user browsing behaviour. To provide the price notifications, it records the retailer product page URLs which have been browsed, but it does not collect any information about who browsed those pages. No URLs are collected for sites other than retailers and travel sites. It's impossible for us to identify who has browsed products, and we do not collect any personal or demographic information about our users. See our Privacy Policy for more details.
Why don't I get a notification every time I browse a product?
InvisibleHand doesn't yet cover every single product or retailer. We're making a significant investment in growing InvisibleHand's product & retailer coverage to ensure the best possible user experience, but we don't yet cover everything.
I clicked on an InvisibleHand notification and it took me through to the wrong product. What happened?
Sorry about that. Invisiblehand's product-matching technology is usually very accurate, but it does make mistakes occasionally. We're working towards perfect accuracy (i.e. no mistakes at all!) In the mean time, if you get linked to the wrong product, please email us the product page URL and we'll make sure it gets fixed.
Why don't the InvisibleHand notifications take account of postage & packaging?
Yes. This can be a pretty annoying. Getting our notifications to accurately reflect the cost of P&P is actually quite tricky. We're working on it, but we decided to wait until we've got this problem nailed rather than releasing it broken.
Which browsers does InvisibleHand support?
InvisibleHand supports Firefox and Google Chrome.
Which countries does InvisibleHand work in?
InvisibleHand works with retailers in the United States, United Kingdom and Germany. If you'd like InvisibleHand to support retailers in your country, drop us email!
I'm a retailer. How do I go about getting my products included in InvisibleHand?
Excellent! Drop us an email and we'll walk you through the steps to get your business covered by InvisibleHand.
Which retailers & airlines does InvisibleHand show prices for?
A lot! Check out our Retailers & Airlines page for more info.
Your question isn't answered?
Drop us a line at info@getinvisiblehand.com or click the 'Feedback' tab on the right.