How to save money with cash back programs
The quickest and easiest way to save money online without even changing your spending habits or purchasing behavior is to sign up for a cash back program. Cash back programs are free to join, offer cash back on nearly all purchases, and feature hundreds of partner sites.
As a member of a cash back program, you simply go to the cash back program web site and search for your favorite online store. For example, if you wanted to save money on a purchase from Staples.com, you would simply sign in to the cash back program’s website, browse/search for Staples, click through to Staples website, and complete the purchase.
Using cash back programs, you can save anywhere from 1% to 15% and sometimes even more on purchases. Each cash back program has different cash back rates and cash back rates vary from time to time. For best results, you should join several cash back programs to maximize your savings.
The best cash back programs include Big Crumbs, Ebates, Fat Wallet, MoreRebates, and Mr. Rebates. I also suggest checking out the eBay Bucks cash back program. Finally, consider using a cash back/rewards credit card to further maximize your savings.
Cash Back Programs:
Big Crumbs: A unique cash back program that seems more like an online community. Big Crumbs offers cash back rewards, hot deals, coupons, and even exposure for your own business (through Amazon, eBay, and Etsy). Big Crumbs has two membership levels, both of which are free. The standard membership, CrumbSavers, offers cash back rewards on your own shopping as well as on purchases for direct referrals to Big Crumbs. The alternate membership, CrumbEarner, offers slightly lower cash back rewards, but allows you to build a referral network that generates commissions for purchases from up to 5 generations of referrals.
Ebates: A traditional cash back program where you can find rebates up to 26% at over 1200 stores. Ebates not only features a cash back program, but also offers coupons, coupon codes, a referral program, and a blog with cash back promotions at various sites. Ebates is currently offering a $5 bonus to new members.
Fat Wallet: Another traditional cash back program offering cash back rewards as well as coupons, coupon codes, and top deals. They also have a forum for hot deals, deal discussions, and free stuff postings. Fat Wallet provides an easy way to combine savings using coupon codes and cash back rewards. I have seen cash back amounts of 15% with stackable coupon codes offering an additional 15% which would make the overall savings nearly 30%.
MoreRebates: Another traditional cash back program offering rebates up to 30% as well as coupons, discounts, mail in rebates, and a referral program. MoreRebates is currently offering a $6 bonus just for signing up. They also have a blog featuring the best deals and coupons.
Mr. Rebates: Another traditional cash back program offering rebates up to 30% as well as coupons and a referral program. Mr. Rebates is currently offering a $5 bonus just for signing up. Compared to Ebates and Fat Wallet, Mr. Rebates’ website is simple and lacks a blog/forum or community feel, but their cash back rebates often seem higher or at least more consistent. I personally use Mr. Rebates much more often than the other cash back programs.
ebay Bucks: A specific cash back program to save money on eBay. The cash back program offers savings that are pretty much automatic. Savings are generally displayed during checkout. According to eBay, you can earn 2% cash back on qualifying items. The cash back amount is tracked within your eBay account and paid out every 3 months in the form of a certificate to spend on eBay.
Rewards Credit Cards:
The easiest and yet most misunderstood method to save money on purchases is to sign up for a cash back or rewards credit card. Many people use debit cards to make online purchases, but credit cards offer more consumer protection, deliver more rewards, and are actually much safer to use online than other payment methods.
Cash back credit cards typically offer at least 1% cash back on all purchases and may offer preferred cash back rates at certain stores or during promotional periods. For example, the Amazon.com Rewards Visa Card from Chase essentially offers 3% cash back on Amazon.com purchases, 2% on gas station, restaurant, and drug store purchases, and 1% on everything else. You even get $20 to $30 off your first purchase with the Amazon.com Rewards Card. It is critical for shoppers who make frequent purchases on Amazon, as it is the only method that I have found to receive cash back on Amazon purchases.
While the Amazon.com Rewards Card is my preferred credit card, some other popular cash back/rewards credit cards include Chase Freedom which offers up to 3% cash back, American Express Blue Cash which offers up to 5% cash back, and Discover Card Rewards which offers 5% cash back bonuses.
The key to choosing a cash back or rewards credit card is to make sure the rewards are something you can actually use. Unless you are truly a frequent flyer, stay away from the cash back/rewards miles cards. Also, ensure that the card you choose features no annual fee and provides at least a 20 day grace period. The most important thing to remember when using credit cards is that you must pay the balance in full every month in order to actually save money.
Using credit cards can actually have additional benefits. For example, if you use a debit card to make purchase, then the money leaves your bank account the moment of purchase. However, with a credit card, you do not have to pay for the purchase until your next credit card statement. As a result, money stays in your bank account longer and can potentially earn/save you even more money if you have an interest bearing checking account.
Using these cash back programs and methods, you can start saving up to 36% on your online purchases or even start generating cash through online referrals. To use the cash back programs successfully, I recommend joining several, if not all, of the programs listed above. At a bare minimum, I suggest joining the Ebates and Mr. Rebates cash back programs. I also highly recommend the Amazon.com Rewards Visa Card.