I tried Amazon’s new AI assistant, and I’m never shopping without it again

December 22, 2025

Amazon's Rufus shopping assistant in action
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET

Shopping for holiday gifts for family, friends, and other loved ones can be challenging. You not only need to find the right presents, but you also want to take advantage of any bargains or sales and ensure the items arrive in time. With so many people using Amazon for their shopping sprees, the retail site offers an assistant called Rufus. This AI-powered tool can locate and research products, uncover the best deals, and provide answers to your questions about a specific item.

Also: How to shop with AI: 6 ways I find deals, price track, and let agents buy for me

Rufus is accessible at the Amazon website as well as the Amazon mobile apps for iOS and Android. On the website, just click the Rufus button on the top toolbar to access it from any page. With the mobile apps, tap the chat bubbles icon at the lower right. You can then kick off your chat with Rufus.

For this year’s holiday season, I called on Rufus as my Amazonian shopping assistant. Here are seven ways I used it to tackle the challenges of holiday shopping.

Find and research products
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET
Compare products
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET

Also: I’m a shopping editor, and this is the No. 1 reason I prefer Best Buy over Amazon for tech purchases

Ask specific questions about a product
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET
Find deals on a particular product
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET

Also: Should you trust AI agents with your holiday shopping? Here’s what experts want you to know

Get product recommendations
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET
Alert me to price drops
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET

Also: Attention, shoppers: Visa has a plan to tell real agents from bad bots

Check the status of my recent orders
Screenshot by Lance Whitney/ZDNET

 

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