by Kimberly Solis
There are apps that will pay you to shop. Yes. Really.
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You have to go to the grocery store anyway so you might as well get paid for doing it. Yep. There are apps out there that will pay you when you shop. Sounds too good to be true, right? Well, fortunately, there are apps you can download on your phone right now that can help put some more money in your pocket. Of course, you won’t get rich doing this, but every little bit helps. Ready to save some money while you shop? Here are the top apps that will put some coin into your bank account.
1. Ibotta
Ibotta is a free cashback and mobile coupon app. You get cold, hard cash just for buying the stuff you buy every day. Use the app to buy groceries, electronics, clothing, and other products. Ibotta partners with well-known retailers and restaurants like Amazon, Walmart, Target, Macy’s, Home Depot and Dominos Pizza.
There are three ways to get your rewards. You can link your credit or debit card, go shopping in person and get instant cashback. You can link your store loyalty card or account to the Ibotta app and get automatic cashback when you buy a qualifying item. You can also submit a photo of your receipt and get your cashback reward on your qualifying purchases within 24 hours.
2. Fetch Rewards
Scan your grocery receipts using the Fetch Rewards app and you’ll get rewards. It doesn’t matter where you do your grocery shopping. You’ll save money on thousands of products when you use the Fetch Rewards app. Each time you scan your grocery receipt, you earn points for thousands of qualifying products. Use your points to earn gift cards for places like Sephora, Gamestop, 1-800-Flowers, Bed Bath & Beyond, Old Navy, Applebees and more.
3. Shopkick
Shopkick is another app that rewards you for shopping. Earn reward points (known as kicks) by shopping in person or online. Spend your kicks on gift cards at places like Target, Best Buy, Amazon, Old Navy, Sephora and tons of other places.
Earn kicks by shopping inside stores, purchase stuff with a linked debit or credit card, scan barcodes of select products and scan your store receipts. You can also shop online or watch videos to earn even more kicks. And here’s the coolest thing: get kicks just by walking into a store. You don’t even have to buy anything! Visit the Shopkick website to learn more.
4. Dosh
Dosh prides itself on not fooling around with points or coupons. Nope! They are ready to put cold, hard cash in your greedy little hands. Link your credit and debit cards with the app. Then every time you make a purchase, you get cash back.
Dosh partners with thousands of stores and restaurants. Get up to 10 percent back on qualified purchases. Once you have the money in your Dosh Wallet, you can transfer it to PayPal, your bank account or donate to charity. It’s a win-win for everyone! Check out their website to learn more.
5. Rakuten (formerly called Ebates)
Rakuten used to be called Ebates, but it can still save you a lot of money when you shop at over 2,500 retailers. Shop at stores like Walmart, Sephora and Macy’s.
Go to the Rakuten site and find the store where you want to shop. Then just start shopping the way you normally do online. This activates Cash Back, and you make money every time you buy an eligible item. You can even download Rakuten’s free browser extension so it’s always ready to activate Cash Back when you are shopping online at a participating store.
6. InboxDollars
InboxDollars is a little different from the other apps in this list. Not only do they reward you for shopping, but they also reward you for watching their videos and taking surveys. Once you take a survey, watch one of their short commercial videos or shop, you get inbox dollars. After you have $30- worth of InboxDollars in your account, you can request payment.
7. Acorns
Acorns Found Money app works a little differently from the other apps on the list too. Whenever you shop at a participating retailer, the retailer invests in your Acorns Core account. If you, like millions of other people, struggle to save money, this just might be the app for you.
Barnes and Noble, Groupon, Walmart, Walgreens and Macy’s are just a few of the retailers who will put money in your investment account. This cash may not be readily available, but it may be useful for those who have trouble saving and making investments in stocks and bonds on their own.
8. SavingStar
SavingStar is another app that rewards you for grocery shopping. Link your store card, select your rebates, use your store card at checkout and SavingStar adds saving to your SavingStar account. After you have at $20 in your account, you can transfer the money to Paypal, your bank or donate to charity.
And don’t worry. If your grocery doesn’t have a store card, you just have to scan your receipts using the SavingStar app or go to SavingStar.com. You don’t have to worry about clipping or printing coupons. And you definitely don’t need to worry about mailing the coupons anywhere.
9. Receipt Hog
With Receipt Hog, it’s pretty simple. Take a picture of your receipt, submit it to Receipt Hog and receive rewards on any qualifying purchases. You can earn coins, spin a virtual slot machine and earn sweepstakes prizes. And you can even cash out through PayPal or Amazon gift cards.
None of these apps will make you rich, but it’s nice to get rewarded for something you’re going to do anyway. Have you tried any of these apps to earn extra money? Let me know by commenting below!