Behind the scenes
Walking pads booming on Galaxus
by Alex Hämmerli
How dynamic pricing at Galaxus works
21.8.2025
Translation: Elicia Payne
Why does a product on Galaxus cost more today than it did yesterday? Well, you’re not being tricked – in fact, there’s a system behind it that makes fair prices possible. The prices aren’t changing on a whim, they’re following clear rules.
When you look at a product on Galaxus, you often see a different price than the day before. Some are annoyed, others are happy about the unexpected bargain. For Michael Stähelin, Product Owner for Dynamic Pricing, this is part of everyday life: «Price stability is a myth in online retail,» he says. «The market is constantly changing – and we change with it.»
Why prices change – and why it’s even fair
A quick online search is all it takes to find the cheapest provider. «Compared to brick-and-mortar retail, there’s much greater price transparency in online retail,» Michael sums up. To ensure that Digitec and Galaxus offer competitive prices, a self-developed price algorithm adjusts them up to five times a day.
Our prices are the same for everyone at all times – whether they’re in Hamburg, Constance or Vienna. It doesn’t matter which device you use to browse our shops or how often someone has already looked at the product. No personalised pricing, no tricks. «Dynamic pricing like this has a bad image and has its origins in the airline industry – passengers often pay completely different prices for the same flight,» says Michael.
The price adjustment algorithm is based on a specially developed system that draws on external and internal data.
Despite how much we love data, at Galaxus and Digitec, human oversight is still key. With millions of price changes per day, errors are inevitable. That’s why a team of five developers led by Michael has set up alarms. If, for example, thousands of prices change significantly at the same time, the sirens go off. The team then immediately checks what’s going on.
A dynamic system
Despite all the technological sophistication, our primary goal remains the same: a pricing strategy that benefits both us and our customers. Fair, transparent and comprehensible – even if the market’s constantly changing.
«Online retail without dynamic prices is unthinkable today,» summarises Michael. «But with the right balance of automation and human control, we’re creating a system that benefits both us as a company and our customers.»
*What do you think of dynamic pricing? And would you like us to be even more transparent about when a product is particularly good value for money?
Manuel Wenk
Communications Manager
Manuel.Wenk@digitecgalaxus.chAs a multimedia producer, it is a matter of course for me to prepare content in a variety of ways. In my free time, I'm drawn to the mountains, whether it's skiing, mountain biking or hiking. And of course I always have my camera to hand, as well as my FPV drone.
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