Prior price is the lowest price at which a good or service was offered during the 30 days before a price reduction was announced. Under India's amended e-commerce rules, when a price cut is announced, both the reduced price and the prior price must be displayed, from 1 January 2027. This is general information, not legal advice.
Where does the rule come from?
The Department of Consumer Affairs amended the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 through the Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) (Amendment) Rules, 2026. A law-firm summary says they were notified on 9 September 2026 and that the prior-price duty is Rule 4(13). The same amendment also covers search results, sponsored listings, dark patterns and seller disclosures.
A quick example
If an item sold at ₹1,499 for most of December but dropped to ₹1,199 for two days in the 30 days before a sale, the prior price is ₹1,199, not ₹1,499 and not the MRP. A "sale" at ₹1,099 would then be a ₹100 cut. The numbers are illustrative.
What is not clear yet
The sources we read do not say how prior price works with MRP, new launches or platform-funded discounts. These points are not confirmed as of November 2026. For the full reading, see our guide to the prior price 30-day rule and the wider e-commerce rules amendment of 2026.
Who has to show it?
The PIB release describes the rule as applying where a price reduction is announced, and the law-firm summary says Rule 4(13) applies to e-commerce entities generally. The earlier page notes the gazette wording says "an e-commerce entity or the seller"; read it in the full text before you assume only the platform is affected.
What should a seller do before 1 January 2027?
Start logging the selling price of each SKU every day, including deal prices and coupon-adjusted prices you control. Without that history you cannot show what your prior price was. Avoid dropping to a token low price for a day before a sale: under the rule that low becomes the prior price. The same report notes that about 29% of the National Consumer Helpline's 17,71,622 grievances in 2025 concerned e-commerce.
Blooprint, a Bengaluru e-commerce agency, can help you keep a clean price history per SKU through its catalogue and listing optimisation service.