Cash back when you shop? Is this a scam? Or some kind of crazy dark magic?
Like most people nowadays I shop online. Honestly, I love the convenience. When my kids were little and getting to the grocery store was hard, I did my grocery shopping online. Now it’s mostly clothes and Friday night eat-in dinners. But I have been known to buy bikes and toys online too. Online shopping is just part of how our household runs now.
However, did you know there are apps available that will give you a percentage of your purchases back to you as cash? Money for nothing.
The two big players in the Australian market are Shopback and Cashrewards. It works like this:
- Download their app
- Open the app and go to the icon of the store where you want to shop
- Make your purchases
- In a couple of days, a percentage of your purchase will become available in your balance on the app.
- Transfer that balance into either your bank account or PayPal account.
The percentage available as cashback changes and is different from store to store. There are hundreds of stores who participate in the cash back programs. They include: The Iconic, Menulog, Amazon, eBay, Myer, booking.com and Woolworths and most offer click and collect options too.
You can even purchase store gift cards at a discounted price. For example you could buy a Woolworths gift card at a 5% discount and then use the cards to pay for your regular grocery shop and then double dip by getting the cash back a second time when you shop online. Genius.
Your spending levels will determine how much money you get credited back to you. However, it seems on average people are making back about $100 or more a year. This is a nice amount and money you wouldn’t otherwise have.
There are a couple of things you should be aware of: make sure you do some research and check prices for those more significant purchases. Some people say that when it comes to travel, they save more money by going directly to the site rather than through these apps. So, make sure you check prices broadly before you make those larger purchases.
Also, as brilliant as these apps are and I am a fan, cash back doesn’t mean it’s a deal, and you should buy it no matter what. These apps work best when you use them for purchases you would normally make. Don’t get into debt or spend more than you otherwise would have just because there’s a cash back option.
However, if you were already going to buy that Friday night eat-in dinner through Menulog from that fab little Indian restaurant, do it. Enjoy eating it AND get your cash back too my friend.
