Earn Money by Shopping Online
I love online shopping, I love to buy stuff from the comfort of my home. (It seems so fancy!) I love that I can save money on gas by not driving 40 miles to the mall, and that I can spare myself and others from the drama that is shopping with a gaggle of munchkins and I find that online retailers often have a better selection than their brick and mortar counterparts.
I usually find great bargains from shopping online sales and clearance and by using coupon codes I find. Online shopping is, in my opinion, awesome and it can save you a lot of money. You can also MAKE MONEY by shopping online! There are a number of ways to do this and I like to check them all out before I make a purchase. The ticket is to take into account the money you will save AND the money you will EARN before you buy, so you know you are getting the best deal possible. It may take a little more time, but it can really be worth it.
All the programs I use to earn cash back from shopping are free to join and are easy to use:
1. Upromise
I love Upromise and cannot say enough good things about it. You sign up and shop through their links and any cash back you earn is directly deposited into your linked 529 accounts. You can actually accumulate money for kids’ college education by shopping. I think it is genius. You can also earn through grocery shopping-you just need to register your club cards and they offer cash back for restaurant purchases as well. Each retailer(they have hundreds available) deposits a percentage of your total purchase into your Upromise account. Upromise then transfers the money you have earned into your 529 account(s) quarterly. I have so far earned over $400 for my kids. The best part? It wasn’t all me;you can sign up Grandma, Aunts, Cousins, friends, anyone that shops online can register through a referral link you send them and they too can earn for your kids. Marvelous. If you don’t already have a 529 account set up, Upromise has links to research them and it is a good idea to check with your state, many times the deposits are tax deductible. Go here to research more 529s and go to Upromise.com to learn more about their program.
2. My Points
I’ve only recently signed up for Mypoints, but I must say I really like it. You earn points through shopping, taking surveys, reading/clicking through emails they send you and referring your friends. The points are then redeemable for gift cards at a variety of stores like Target or CVS. They have so many retailers, you’re guaranteed to find what you are looking for. You can earn a lot of points through just the surveys they send you too, and they never take too much time, so I am really loving Mypoints right now.
3. Ebates
Ebates is a great shopping site. They have a lot of retailers(900) and offer a lot of good deals and coupon codes. I really like all the promotions they run, you can find some amazing bargains and the site is really easy to navigate. You can search by free shipping offers, money off coupons or by category, which makes it easy to find a great deal. They also offer referral bonuses and you can request a check for your cash back after only $5.01 is in your account, that is not much at all, especially if you are referring a friend or two. By signing up right now, you will get a $5.00 bonus after making your first purchase through the site. Not too shabby. I really Ebates and think it can be pretty handy to find deals and earn some cash back on your purchases.
4. GPT Programs
I belong to a few GPT(get paid to) Programs and most of them offer some sort of cash back earnings for shopping through their links. Inbox Dollars is the one I check frequently. Inbox Dollars offers as many retailers as the other shopping sites and offers a lot of coupon code savings. I earn cash back through them as well as all the money I earn by taking the daily surveys and reading the paid emails they send. I often will purchase something through them when I know I am going to buy something anyway and I am close to the 30$ payout threshold. Whichever GPT programs you are participating in, it is a good idea to check what shopping rewards they offer, you may be able to accumulate quite a bit of money and still save by shopping the bargains they offer.
Some notes on online shopping:
Make sure you check around for the best possible deals before deciding where to buy. There are also a ton of coupon codes just waiting to be used, so check retailmenot, naughty codes and rather-be-shopping for codes to use. Don’t be afraid to shop online, the stuff you can buy online is often better and cheaper than what you can find in the stores. You can always return items, just like at a store, in fact you can return a lot of items to the stores even if you bought online.
What are your favorite ways to earn cash back for shopping online? Have you tried any of these programs?
Happy Shopping, Happy Earning!
Topics: Make Money, Shop Smart |
February 25th, 2008
Jellyfish.com is also a good cash-back site. I’ve printed out the lists from Jellyfish, Ebates, and Upromise, and will shop through the site that gives the best cashback. Sometimes they’re all the same, but sometimes one will be 3% and another 10% so it’s worth shopping around.
February 25th, 2008
OK…feeling like a bit of an idiot here. I do MUCH of my shopping online (since I don’t get out much with the triplets) and didn’t even know I could be earning while doing so. Oops! Thanks for the education. Now when hubby complains about my shopping, I can honestly tell him I’m just making us some money!
February 26th, 2008
Just a reminder to people who are new to this: Be wary of any ‘freebie’ that has eligibility or participation requirements or of any place that asks for financial information. And it’s always a good idea to use another email address separate from your primary, preferably a free one, to sign up for these deals because they are invitations for spam.
February 26th, 2008
Just wanted to add - I love UPromise!
February 29th, 2008
[…] Earn Money by Shopping Online From Mommy Gets Paid […]
March 11th, 2008
Bigcrumbs.com is a GREAT site if you are an ebay shopper.
First, they are the only site I know, except for Upromise, that pays to shop at eBay.
2nd, they have most of the stores as ebates.
3rd..but not least…they pay you monthly…whether you earned one penny or $200
and finally…4th….when you refer people…you get paid everytime they shop, too! Bonus!
By the way, I just found this site…love it!