ModeSens: Purchase Assistant

Review by eFreeware

If you shop for designer clothing and accessories and you have ever bookmarked a piece, then spent an evening checking whether another store had it cheaper, ModeSens is built for exactly that routine. It is a free purchase assistant from ModeSens Inc. that takes a photo or a product link and turns it into a price comparison across a large network of retailers.

The appeal is straightforward. Rather than visiting store after store yourself, you hand the app something you have already found and let it do the matching. That makes it most useful to people who know what they want and are hunting for the best price on it, rather than browsers looking for inspiration.

It has been on Google Play since January 2019 and sits at a 3.9 average from 596 ratings, with more than 500,000 installs. Those numbers suggest a settled, widely used tool rather than a novelty, and the developer's own framing is confident: it calls ModeSens the world's most intelligent purchase assistant.

Searching by image instead of by name

The feature I find most interesting is image search. When you come across a style you like, you share the picture to ModeSens and it looks for the item itself. That solves a real problem in fashion, where the same bag or coat is often listed under different names, in different seasons and with slightly different descriptions depending on the retailer.

Typing a description rarely works well for this. A jacket might be filed as a cropped wool-blend blazer in one place and a structured short coat in another. Starting from the picture sidesteps that vocabulary problem entirely, which is why the image route looks like the more natural way to use the app.

The same idea applies when you already have a link. If you spot something in a browser or a message from a friend, you can share that product URL to ModeSens instead of the photo. Both routes lead to the same outcome: the app identifies the piece and goes looking for it.

Comparing prices across the store network

Once an item is identified, the comparison is the point. ModeSens works with more than 950 partner stores and a catalog of over 40,000 brands, so the same product can be checked against a wide set of retailers in one pass. The developer lists names such as Farfetch, Net-a-Porter, Nordstrom and Shopbop among them, alongside labels including Gucci, Fendi, Dior, Balenciaga and Burberry.

For anyone buying in this category, that breadth is the whole value. Luxury fashion pricing moves around, and a piece that is full price at one store may be reduced at another. Seeing the options side by side before you commit is the practical benefit, and it is the reason the app describes itself as a tool for finding products at the best possible price.

The mobile app is pitched as the way to do this while you are out and about, so you are not switching between websites on a phone screen. Whether you are in a boutique checking a tag or at home with a wishlist, the comparison happens in one place.

Points and rewards on partner orders

The most recent update adds a rewards layer. Orders placed through the partner stores earn ModeSens purchase points, and every 1,000 points converts into a $10 ModeSens Note. The developer presents this as earning while you shop, and it applies across the partner network rather than a single retailer.

I would treat this as a modest extra rather than a reason to install on its own. The value depends on how much you order through those stores, and the conversion rate means it takes a meaningful amount of spending to reach the first reward. It is a pleasant addition to a comparison tool, not a loyalty program you would chase for its own sake.

What matters more is that the app itself costs nothing to use. The comparison and the search features are the core of the app. The rewards sit on top of that, tied to purchases you make at the retailers rather than to anything you buy inside the app.

What you need before it works

Getting value out of ModeSens depends on having something to search with. The app works from a picture or a product link that you share to it, so the practical starting point is a photo you have saved or a URL you have copied. If you have neither, there is nothing for the assistant to match against.

The app concentrates on the moment after you have already spotted something you like, whether that happened in a social feed, on a retailer's site, in a message from a friend or in a photo taken in a store. ModeSens is the second step, not the first. It is not a browsing app where you wander a catalog looking for something new; it is a tool you bring a specific item to.

The developer also recommends leaving automatic updates switched on so new versions arrive without you thinking about it. Given that the rewards scheme arrived in a recent release, keeping the app current is the simplest way to stay on top of what it offers.

Designer shoppers who compare before buying

This suits someone who already knows the brands they like and buys deliberately. If you have a list of pieces in mind, or you regularly see something online and want to know whether it is available for less elsewhere, the app fits neatly into that habit. The 950-plus store network and 40,000-plus brand catalog are aimed at exactly that kind of shopper.

It also works for gift buying, where you have spotted a specific item and want to check availability and price before committing. The image route is useful here too, since a screenshot from a friend or a wishlist is often all you have to go on.

If you enjoy discovering new designers and browsing for ideas, the app is not built around that. Its focus is on identifying and pricing a known item, so the experience rewards coming in with a target. The 3.9 rating from 596 reviewers suggests most users get on with it, though it is not a flawless score.

A comparison tool worth keeping for designer purchases

ModeSens does one job and does it in a way that makes sense for its category. Searching by image or link, then comparing across a large partner network, removes the manual work of checking store after store for the same piece. That is a genuine convenience for anyone buying designer fashion regularly.

It is free, and the rewards scheme adds a small return on orders placed through partner stores. The trade-off is that it needs an item to work from, so it rewards shoppers who arrive with a specific target rather than those looking to browse.

I would suggest it to people who buy luxury and designer pieces and want a second opinion on price before they pay. If your shopping is more about discovery than comparison, this is a narrow tool that will not do much for you.

What's new in version 5.9.97

Check ModeSens before you buy! Turn on automatic updates to get every upgrade instantly. New in this version - Earn as you shop. Get rewarded with a $10 ModeSens Note for every 1,000 ModeSens purchase points earned on every order from any of our 950+ premium partner stores.