The Ultimate Price is Right Strategy Guide: Now...or Then

Now...or Then

Rules

A prize is shown. Then 6 grocery items are shown in a circle along with a past month and year. For each grocery item, the contestant must choose if the shown price is the price today or was the price in the month and year shown. If they are correct about 3 adjacent items, they win the main prize.

Random fact

There has been an unwritten rule used in this game for a long time: there are exactly 4 items for which "now" is the correct answer and exactly 2 items for which "then" is the correct answer.

Win-loss rate

• Actual (seasons 29-46): 139-57 (70.92%)
• What it would be by random chance: 25/64 (39.06%)

For each product, how often was it "now" or "then"? (seasons 41-46)

                  Now: 16 playings (50%)

                 Then: 16 playings (50%)

Now: 20 playings (68.97%)        Now: 21 playings (63.64%)

Then: 9 playings (31.03%)       Then: 12 playings (36.36%)

Now: 22 playings (68.75%)        Now: 20 playings (68.97%)

Then: 10 playings (31.25%)      Then: 9 playings (31.03%)

                 Now: 25 playings (73.53%)

                 Then: 9 playings (26.47%)

Strategy

Mostly know the prices, but the following can help you:

1. Keep the unwritten rule in mind. There will be four now's and two then's.
2. Ask yourself if the product even existed during the "then" timeframe. If it didn't, the correct answer must be "now."
3. Most importantly: do not jump across the board, especially if you get one wrong. For example, let's say you start at the top and get it wrong. Do NOT go to the bottom product! Yes, you will need to eventually get that one correct. But if you go straight there and get it wrong, the game is over. Instead, go to the first product clockwise from the top. (Or you can go counter-clockwise; direction doesn't matter.) If you get that right, great! If not, you're still in it. And then keep going one at a time in whichever direction you chose. Why? Because you want to find the two "then" products. So give yourself as many chances as possible to find them. If you do find them, you know everything else must be "now."

EDIT: As gamesurf at golden-road.net pointed out, the folks at Slate figured out how to win this game 100% of the time as long as there are 4 now's and 2 then's: