Your smartphone is one of the most helpful tools in your arsenal when you go shopping. Here are just 5 great apps that can come to your aid on the go. Use them to make sure you’re getting the best prices for the items you need!

• Amazon Price Check: Amazon is one of the best places to score items on the cheap. So when you’re out shopping, wouldn’t it be nice to be able to quickly check if the price of something you want to purchase is cheaper than on Amazon? That’s what the Amazon Price Checker is for. Not only is it a free app for iPhones and Android devices, you’ll score an extra 5% discount if you use the app and then make a purchase.
• Google Shopper: this free app is a sort of “mobile portal” to all of Google’s shopping options, i.e. Google’s local offers, daily deals, and product search and comparison shopping via Google Shopping.
  

  Simply scan the barcode of a product, speak its name aloud, or even scan the covers of books, magazines, and other media to search Google’s database for the product. If the same product is available at one of Google’s partner retailers, you’ll see how much it costs, along with ratings and reviews, specs, and more. The best part of Google Shopper is that it combines prices from local retailers with online prices to make sure you get the best deal.

• RedLaser: this simple free app lets you scan barcodes to quickly compare prices in brick-and-mortar stores and online. Not only will the app tell you if another store has the same product at a lower price; it will tell you if that store is near to you, how far it is, and whether or not they have the item in question in stock. You can even scan books and find out if they’re available in a nearby library.

Find more helpful apps over at Lifehacker’s Five Best Mobile Price Comparison Apps.