Last updated on October 8th, 2022 at 08:41 am
Wouldn’t you love to make money while you spend money shopping? Sounds pretty great, huh? Well, cashback apps make it easy to shop and earn money in the process. Here is one of the most popular apps that works both on your phone and web browser
Formerly known as Ebates, Rakuten is a browser extension and phone application that allows you to receive exclusive discounts and cash back using their applications. They are currently offering a $30 sign up bonus so keep reading to find out how you can score this deal!
How Does It Work?
Many people don’t believe that you can make money when you shop, so they think cashback apps like Rakuten are a scam. That is far from the truth.
Rakuten is affiliated with thousands of retailers and the company earns a small commission when they refer costumers to shop on the stores’ websites. They then gives the costumers some of their commission, allowing you to earn cash back!
Rakuten partners with all types of retailers from clothing and accessories, to travel, media, and books and entertainment. Really anything you could shop for, Rakuten likely is partnered with a retailer.
By offering cash back to costumers, Rakuten is driving more traffic to the store, allowing them to increase revenue. It is a win-win for everyone; the store gets more sales, Rakuten receives a commission, and the costumer gets cash back.
How to Get Started
There are several ways to get the most out of Rakuten, but first you’re going to need to create an account. Sign up here by either logging in through Facebook or Google or sign up with your email.
Once you input your basic information you are all set to start earning some cash back!
Rakuten offers a new member welcome bonus after you complete these 3 easy steps:
- Sign up for a new account through this link
- Shop through Rakuten and make a qualifying purchase of at least $25 within the first 90 days of becoming a member
- Choose how you want to get paid
It’s as simple as that!
There are five ways you can start saving and/or earning money with Rakuten:
Cash Back Button
The cash back button is an automated tool that finds discounts through the browser extension. A Rakuten button can be seen in your browser bar and will activate when there are money saving opportunities on a website. A drop-down window will appear showing your cash back or coupon options when you browse through an affiliated website. If the window does not appear you can click on the icon show your options or view your rewards history.
Rakuten Cash Back Visa Credit Card
For even more savings, Rakuten offers the Rakuten Cash Back Visa Credit Card to allow you to earn unlimited cash back rewards, with no annual fees. You can use this card anywhere Visa credit cards are accepted. Qualifying online purchases through the Rakuten app are eligible to earn an extra 3% cash back, while all other purchases are eligible for 1% cash back. You can read more about the Rakuten Cash Back Visa Credit Card here.
In Store Cash Back
Rakuten does not only work online, but in brick-and-mortar stores. To use this feature, link your credit or debit card to your Rakuten account. Then search through the In-Store Cash Back offers on Rakuten’s website for desired offers and activate it. When you complete the purchase using your linked card, the Rakuten rewards will be automatically applied to your account. See the exclusions and limitations here.
Rakuten sends out emails to its subscribers containing exclusive deals and offers. Shop one of these offers by clicking the link in the email and save!
Rakuten.com
Rakuten allows you to shop directly through their website at Rakuten.com. Click on the website you would like to purchase from the list of affiliates. You will be redirected to the individual merchant’s website and notified that your shopping trip has been activated. Continue your shopping like normal and the rewards will be added to your Rakuten account after completing a purchase.
Rakuten Payment Schedule
Unlike other Cash Back apps, Rakuten operates on a quarterly payment schedule. This means you’ll get your payment every 3 months in February, May, August, and November. Rakuten does require you to have at least $5 in your Cash Back Balance before they will pay you out. If you haven’t reached this threshold, don’t worry! Your money will be saved for you until the next quarter when you reach at least $5.
You can choose to receive your payment in one of two ways. Big Fat Check or PayPal payment. Either method is free of charge so pick the one that works the best for you! Make sure you have an updated mailing address and all information on your PayPal account (if choosing this method) is updated prior to your payout being processed. The following table shows their current schedule of sending out checks.
You can also choose to donate the change from your quarterly Cash Back payments to several nonprofit partners. Just select opt-in before the next payment cycle to start.
Additional Things to Know When Shopping Through Rakuten
Exclusions
Before you click through the “Shop Now” button for a store, make sure to look if that store excludes certain items from earning cashback. For example, many stores do not include gift card purchases in cashback
Cash Back Percentage Variation
The cash back percentages Rakuten offers can chase at any time. There usually is a baseline percentage that the store sits at, but sometime Rakuten will increase (or rarely decrease) the cashback percentage.
Additionally, Rakuten offers Double Cash Back promotions each day to a variety of stores. Check the website for even greater savings at these stores.
"Up To" Cash Back
It is important to be aware of some of the wording used on Rakuten.com. Specially when they state “up to X% Cash Back”. This means that only certain items purchased at that store will earn that amount of cash back, while other times purchased may earn a smaller percentage or potentially zero cash back. Lately this has applied to popular stores such as Amazon and Walmart
Tips to Maximize Earnings on Rakuten
- You can stack the rewards! Combine cashback, coupon codes, as well as credit card rewards for even more savings!
- Don’t go through Rakuten until you are sure you are making a purchase. It can be easy to click off the cookie enabled site without realizing it and miss the chance for cashback
- And to avoid the above, download the browser extension to always be reminded when you have a cashback opportunity
- Make sure browser cookies are enabled and adblockers are turned off or muted for Rakuten
- Use the Rakuten mobile app to access in-store cash back wherever you are
Rakuten is so simple and easy to use! At first I was skeptical that it could really work, but after I started receiving my first rewards I was hooked! In the end, if you want to get paid for the shopping you already do, I highly recommend getting started with Rakuten today.
