By Mindi Rudan
When my bestie of 33 YEARS, Rick, reached across the table and snatched the checks we had just split at one of our favorite restaurants and started taking pictures of them, I just kinda looked at him perplexed and asked: “what’reyadoin?”
“Fetching,” he answered matter-of-factly not really looking my way at all.
“Huh?”
“I’m FETCHING” he repeated a smidge louder than the first time.
“You’re whatting?”
Now he gazed at me with the same regard you would someone asking you if you had an inny or outie. “FETCH, it’s an cash back reward app.”
Like I should know that.
Within 2 minutes he had me signed up so we bought a dessert (and two more drinks) so I would get MY OWN receipt and he showed me (the tech challenged) what button to press and miraculously by using his “referral code” we BOTH had successfully earned bonus points when I snapped my first receipt.
“I don’t have time to tweeze my eyebrows regularly,“ said the person with the bushy unibrow—I”’ll never do this.”
“You’re welcome,” he said with trademark Rick sarcasm. “Everyone I’ve turned onto this app is just slightly addicted already.”
Well, never say never. It’s about a year now and I’ve redeemed enough points to earn THREE $50 Amazon gift cards, $50 for Lowe’s, $25 for Nordstrom and $10 in Starbucks which I gave to a thirsty friend and if truth be told, I have been known to pick up a tossed receipt (or 3) in parking lots (multi-task bonus- ‘cause I counted bending down as exercise too!)
Out to dinner with a girlfriend, she reached for our check before the waiter had actually put it on the table.
“Oh you Fetch,” I said thinking I sounded cool and in the know. “No, what’s Fetch?,” she said with cautious regard. “I do Coin Out.”
HERE WE GO AGAIN.
What I have learned since, is fascinating really. Especially in the age of hi tech. Back in the day coupons were a way of life to get more bang for your buck. Publix, and other large supermarket chains were paid a commission of 5 to 8 cents PER COUPON by the product manufacturers when shoppers handed in a coupon when purchasing that item. I remember when I was newly married and we were saving for a house, I clipped coupons comparing them to items on sale that week and felt so proud of myself when a receipt showed an extra $10 or $30 saved by using coupons!
And then it happened: TRIPLE VALUE COUPONS came to our town. My friend Etta and I went to the SUPERMARKET where her husband was manager at the time. It was like the old TV show “Supermarket Sweep,” we barreled down the aisles with a mitt full of coupons and filled THREE carts EACH. I had 6 $2 off Folgers coffee coupons, so I took 6 bags of coffee. Those 6 bags cost like 19 CENTS ea. At the end, I purchased $192 in groceries for $14.87. And Etta did equally well.
Ok —-YOU can parachute jump out of a plane for your adrenaline rush, me? Pushing those carts made MY heart pound!
Back in the day, Wednesday and Sunday newspapers weighed 1/2 a pound more with the coupon circulars in them. Well there virtually are no coupons anymore, and few would clip them, organize them and REMEMBER to take them to the store if there were. AIN’T NOBODY GOT TIME FOR DAT.
Today “apps” on your phone and/or computer reward you for your actual receipt but also for what’s on the receipt. And you don’t have to do a thing. In the case of Fetch, they have a DISCOVER tab where manufacturers make YOU a point offer if you’ll buy their product. One week without knowing any of that, I sent Hank to Publix for just a few things, Talenti Gelato, Thomas English Muffins, Hellmans Mayo and Barilla pasta. He spent less than $20 since the items were BOGOS and yet got me almost $10 in points.
And all I had to do was shoot a pic of the receipt with my phone and the app started to sing like I had won a Las Vegas SLOT MACHINE jackpot!
You can connect your online accounts too and the app “fetches” and awards your points automatically.
They offer reward cards at all the top retailers, restaurants, e commerce sites, etc. And EVERY RECEIPT you get is eligible. Suddenly what I didn’t think I’d ever have time for has become fun, and essentially makes the same money I already would be spending go just a little bit further. And who doesn’t love that?
Yes, Rick’s “YOUR WELCOME,” replays in my head.
And when u refer friends you get points for that too. At times a lot of points. (It changes and what’s 1,000 points today can be 5,000 points near a holiday!)
For full disclosure, this is my FETCH code: 7KCPBE. When you sign up, if you enter this code when asked for a referral code, we BOTH will get bonus points. If you just download the app and join on your own you actually get LESS BONUS POINTS.
Once YOU are a member you can sign up your posse, your bank teller, the guy who cleans your pool, your neighbors, the dog walker and even your once removed uncle Fred (you get the idea) – AND THEN YOU and they get the bonus points. It is a little addicting, especially after you actually get your first reward card which is sent easily to your email.
I put together a synopsis of a few of the top cash reward apps. And before you ask, YES. That one receipt you scanned for 25 points on Fetch CAN AND WILL get you points on a host of other apps too. If you’re comfortable sharing your purchase data with one, it’s not that big a stretch to share the same information across a few different apps. So if you see me under a car, you know why.
It may not be G5 or new Chanel jumbo double-flap money, but hey a few hundred extra dollars a year for taking pictures of money I already spent? Well, YOUR WELCOME!!! And Fetch now gives you points for playing games and has a new “FETCH SHOP” button on the app that lets you make your other on-line purchases thru the FETCH app, earning even more points.
Well shut the front door!
Top Receipt Scanning Apps – there are others but some are way too complicated for my taste. Personally I concentrate basically on FETCH and a couple of others. FETCH in my opinion is big, fair and generous. But the others are worth a look see. FETCH – Founded in 2013, to me it’s the easiest of all and it works for my life. I buy stuff, get my regular receipts. Pull said receipts out once or twice a week out of my wallet, shoot a pic of them and my points rack up. At the grocery store, those receipts can earn large bonuses if you happen to buy the items that are featured on Fetch that week as “bonus” offers. I have personally gotten almost $300 in gift cards in just over a year.
CoinOut is a free app that allows users to earn rewards by submitting receipts for purchases. Users can scan paper receipts or connect eligible email accounts to automatically collect e-receipts from retailers like Amazon, Instacart, Walmart, Starbucks, and Kroger. Once submitted, receipts are converted into Coins that can be redeemed for rewards, such as gift cards, within the app.
Valid receipts – Receipts must follow the store limit rule, which states that only five receipts from the same retailer can be submitted within a 24-hour period. Receipts must also be unique and not previously uploaded to the user’s account or another account.
Earning coins – Each receipt scanned is worth 10–50 coins, depending on the user’s level in the app. Users can level up by completing surveys, connecting email accounts, scanning at least 10 receipts per month, and connecting retailer accounts. 1,000 coins are worth $1, but users must earn at least 3,000 coins to cash out.
Receipt verification – CoinOut may take up to 72 hours to verify receipts and credit coins to a user’s account. Leveling up is also only processed once per month, even if a user meets the requirements.
Ibotta is a free-to-download cash back app for both iOS and Android devices that offers cash back rewards when shopping in-store and online for things like groceries, clothing, home goods, beauty products, and gas. You can then redeem your cash back for cash or various gift card prizes. The average Ibotta user will earn between $10 to $20 each month, and very active users can earn as much as $300 per month claims the app that features 2,000-plus retailers. The app won’t make anyone rich. But saving $10 to $50 a month or even more is certainly possible if you complete enough offers. Ibotta is worth it if you do most of your household’s shopping and want an easy way to save a little extra on what you already buy. In contrast, it’s not worth using if you barely shop in-store and don’t want to spend time looking for offers before shopping.
To maximize your savings, make sure that you sign up for Ibotta text alerts and follow them on social media. This lets you get a heads up on new offers arriving regularly.
There are also Ibotta shopper Facebook groups you can join that will show you how to get the most savings from this app possible by using it in combination with other apps. You get a sign up bonus when you join, usually $5. Tip: sign up with someone’s referral code, the bonus can double. Once you accumulate $20 in cash back, you will be able to redeem it as a deposit into your PayPal or bank account, or you can use it to receive gift cards.
Receipt Pal – ReceiptPal (sometimes written as “Receipt Pal”) collects your receipts and gives you points to redeem for gift cards.
You can submit paper receipts through your smartphone camera, or connect your email and other retailer accounts to share digital receipts. You have 7 days from the date of purchase to submit your receipts.
With ReceiptPal, all receipts are treated equally. (Other apps give you more points for larger purchases, or only work with receipts from certain stores.)
You can upload receipts from convenience stores, grocery stores, clothing stores, sporting goods stores, gas stations, and more. The Receipt Pal earning system is somewhat convoluted, but the more receipts you share, the more you can earn. Every four receipts you submit earns you one “card.” A card is worth 100 points. It takes a minimum of 2200 points to cash out for a $5 reward.
One potential downside to be aware of is you must connect your email account for at least 30 days to redeem any ReceiptPal reward.
HONEY is a browser extension that scours the Internet to find promo or coupon codes you can use to save money at checkout. It automatically tests coupon codes on over 30,000 websites so you don’t have to manually look for them and add them yourself.
Coupons and discount codes, like the ones Honey finds, can make shopping more affordable by lowering the total cost of items you needed to buy anyway. Honey is a free service and is available as an app and as a browser extension that is compatible with Chrome, Safari, Opera, Edge and Firefox.
On the Honey app, you can look through the top coupons to determine the best deals and earn Honey rewards on purchases with certain stores. If you shop on the website of a retailer on the app, there will be a toolbar at the bottom to show you any available promo codes.
Upside – is a free GAS rewards app for Android and iOS users that aims to help people save money at the pump.
The app is basically like FETCH, just for gas. If you frequently drive and are interested in earning cash back on gas this is where this app really shines. Upside has also added cash back rewards for groceries, restaurants, and convenience stores. It’s an excellent download if you put a lot of miles on your vehicle each week.
There’s also a BEST MATCH AUTO INSURANCE tool that can (they claim) save you up to $600+ per year on your car insurance by using the free tool to compare quotes and find cheaper coverage.
You can get started in four steps after you’ve installed the app and created a free account with your email address or Facebook account.
If you’ve ever used an app like Ibotta, Upside works the exact same way. And currently partners with in excess of 12,00 gas stations across the US including: BP, Shell, Exxon, Valero, RaceTrac, Phillips 66, Circle K
Once you open the app, you see local gas station prices, as well as Upside’s cashback “offers.” Upside clearly outlines how much each station pays you to gas up there and that is returned to you thru the app. When I wrote this there were 11 stations in Coral Springs, 4 in Coconut Creek, 11 in Boca, 8 in Boynton, 19 in Ft. Lauderdale, so it’s not like you’re driving for miles trying to find a participating station.
Alongside gas rewards, Upside now lets you earn cash back when you shop at partner grocery stores, restaurants, and convenience stores.
The process is similar to claiming gas offers. In fact, the app highlights food and restaurant deals on the same map so you can find local opportunities to save money so if the gas station has a convenience store and you buy a drink or snack you can see if that purchase also gives you cash back. Another local example is restaurants like McDonald’s and Hungry Howie’s are paying over 5% cash back, which is a very high rate. And Hungry Howie’s is paying 16% cash back! If you stop at some places anyway, the app guides you to where you might stop that’s willing to cough up cash back to encourage your business, so you’re not spending more. But by having the app and if you care to take time to learn and use it, you will get real cash back in your pocket for doing what you already do.
Last thoughts:
While I highlighted a few in this article, know that there are DOZENS more apps avail.
The best way to maximize your reward potential is to just stick your receipts in a place you’ll remember to scan them when you have free time and sign up for at least one and try it to see if it’s for you.
All the apps, want to connect to your email address so they can scan your inbox for online shopping receipts. That way, you’ll get points for all the shopping you do, not just the trips with paper receipts and most send your gift card to your email.
Using these apps won’t be a lifestyle-changer in terms of quitting your day job, but for an almost mindless side hustle, you’ll slowly build rewards over time, and getting cash back or gift cards here and there can be fun.
AND……YOU’RE WELCOME!!
Mindi Rudan is a semi-retired writer living in Parkland with her husband and houseful of 4-legged fur babies and is the former publisher and founder of Parkland Life, Coconut Creek Life and BocaDelray Life Magazines, and the former chair of the Parkland Chamber and Coconut Creek Chambers of Commerce. A sometime event planner, she currently makes handcrafted custom wreaths, bakes, gardens and writes occasional blogs, articles or custom social media content. Follow her on FB at: https://www.facebook.com/mindi.rudan?mibextid=LQQJ4d
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