In this post we will talk about 9 apps that pay you to scan receipts! Everyone is looking for a way to make extra coin. There’s always the option of getting a part-time job, but some of us simply just don’t have the time for that. More so, some of us don’t have the energy for that. We need something easy. A simple way to generate additional income, kind of like what the great Billy Joel once sang:
“I want the easy
Easy money
Easy money
Maybe this one time
Maybe tonight
You don’t have to try too hard
I don’t need a song and dance
I don’t need an invitation
If you’ve got a game of chance”
Fortunately, in the digital age, you don’t need a game of chance. Imagine how this song would’ve gone had it been written a few decades later. Companies are paying for things beyond services. They are paying for information. The information they want is what we are buying so that they can make more of it. Why not make money doing something that you have to do, like shopping? You go to the grocery store, the hardware store, or the mall, and you put yourself in a position to make your purchases work for you. There are many (many) applications and websites that will pay you for the information about what you bought. All you have to do is submit your receipts.
So how does it work? These cashback websites are affiliate marketing companies. They make their money by feeding you to companies’ websites. To many, the simplicity means it is too good to be true, but it’s not. These websites can not only make money for you, but they can save you money as well. When you purchase with their partners through their websites you often will receive discounts that you otherwise would not have had access too. There are some things you’ll need to do to make sure that you receive the discounts and payments promised. The first thing is to enable the cookies on your web browser. These cookies allow the retailer to track that you made the purchase through the third party marketing affiliate. You also should add the browser extension if that is an option. If you forget to go through the affiliate marketing website to make your purchase the browser extension will make the connection for you.
There are different types of criteria that these apps and websites have. You’ll want to select the program that suits your needs. How do you want to be paid? Some offer payment in cash. Most offer payment in the form of gift cards. You’ll want the gift cards to be to places you actually spend money. There’s no reason to get a Joanne’s Fabric gift card if you don’t sew. Others offer discounts and rebates. It also depends on how much time and energy you want to put into entering your information. Some programs just want a quick submission of a receipt, while others want a little bit more input. Below is a review of some of the leading programs that reward you for doing what you already do.
9 Apps That Pay You to Scan Receipts
1. ReceiptPal
The ReceiptPal program is for US or US territory purchases only. Guidelines for the receipts are that they must include the store name, purchase date, the total amount spent, and either phone number or zip code of the store. What is excellent is that the receipts can be from any retailer or store for consumer goods. Consumer goods are almost anything, including car dealerships and gas stations. Receiptpal works like this – New users receive five Point Cards with a value of 100 points each the day they join. After that, they hand out up to three new Point Cards to fill out every week. New Point Cards are handed out every Sunday. Five is the maximum number of Point Cards anyone can have at a given time. They allow submissions of as many receipts as possible each week. Once you run out of Point Cards for the week, you can submit any additional receipts to the Sweepstakes Card available in the app and earn two sweeps entries for every receipt.
2. Fetch Rewards
With Fetch Rewards you don’t need to clip any coupons or scan individual barcodes. The easiest way to earn points is to just shop for the products you already purchase. If any participating brands on your receipt, you’ll get points based on the cost of the products. Just scan each grocery receipt after you shop, and they find the savings for you.
Even though Fetch Rewards is a shot in the dark with regards to what brands are participating, their rewards are pretty stout. They include gift cards for shopping, beauty, travel, and Airbnb. The opportunity to fund specific portions of my travel incentivized me enough to download this app immediately.
Sign Up for Fetch Rewards here (with code PW146 for a free 2,000 points)
3. Ibotta
Ibotta is one of the most popular rewards apps out there. They offer many ways to earn cashback. You can save at in-store retailers like JOANN, Walmart, and Target by adding offers and uploading pictures of your receipt, or you can link a loyalty account for select retailers to earn receipt-free. You can also save on all of your online shopping by launching partner apps or websites like Amazon, Groupon, or eBay from the Ibotta app.
They also pay you cash that can be withdrawn via PayPal, Venmo, by receipt of gift cards. Once you’ve uploaded your receipt and barcode scanned the offers you want to redeem, you can complete your submission. You’ll receive real cash in your account within 48 hours.
4. Shopkick
Shopkick offers six different ways to earn rewards. You can go to actual brick and mortar stores that they have partnered with like Target, CVS, Marshalls, or Best Buy. You can purchase select items in stores and earn points by scanning their barcodes on the app scanner, or you can submit your receipt through the app. You also can earn points by purchasing those select items with a linked credit card or buying those items online at partnered retailers. Finally, you can earn rewards by watching videos about new products on the app. The rewards through Shopkick are via gift cards, and they have a huge variety of options. They even have Uber as one of their gift card options.
Sign Up Here (code CARD250804 to Get 250 Points Free).
5. Coinout
All retailers are accepted through Coinout. There are no minimums and you can even cash out directly to your bank account. You can also earn by shopping through CoinOut at online merchants and signing up to CoinOut partners.
6. Savingstar
Savingstar When your balance reaches $20 or more, you can withdraw your balance into your bank account or your PayPal account. You also can receive payment like a gift card or donate the money to a selected charity.
7. Topcashback
Topcashback Available in the UK since 2005 and the US since 2011, cashback is a resource used by over 11 million online shoppers worldwide. They also offer a variety of means to be paid and they do not require a minimum to receive your funds. Search for your favorite online retailers on their website to make a purchase. Once the purchase is completed you’ll have value added to your account. Once they are paid by the retailer, you get paid.
Sign Up Here and Get a Free $10 Credit
8. Rakuten
Rakuten, formerly known as Ebates, is an affiliate marketing company. Rakuten offers payment for over 2,500 stores in addition to providing discounts and coupons.
Get Rakuten here (and receive a free $10 credit through this link).
9. Receipt Hog
Receipt Hog is similar to a receipt game. When you upload your receipts to their app, you earn coins. They incentivize you to play “hog slots,” and to take surveys to earn more. You collect the coins to eventually earn money. This application, in my opinion, is one of the easiest to comprehend.
Bonus – More Than Just Receipts!
Swagbucks
Swagbucks offers to pay you just gain insight into your daily life. This one is beyond just receipt submission. To earn points, you can use their website as your default search engine, install their browser extension, fill out surveys, watch videos on their app, or listen to the videos on Swagbucks TV.
MyPoints
Mypoints just wants your opinion. You can do this without having to spend anymore at all, just time. Do it while you’re sitting in front of the TV, or waiting at the doctor’s office. They’ll send you survey’s fill out and you earn points to get rewards. They also have options like playing games and watching videos.
Ways to Get the Most Out of Your Money
Now that you know how to make some extra jingle by doing the things you’re already doing, why not make even more? A penny saved is a penny earned, and these tips will help you save a few.
Get a Grocery Store Loyalty Card
Most supermarkets offer store loyalty cards. Some grocery stores, like Kroger, don’t even allow you to have the discounted prices on their featured items unless you have a loyalty card. Also, like Kroger, you can earn points that can be applied to having discounted gas.
In-Store Coupons
There’s a good chance that you’ll be able to you can use a store’s coupon plus the app discount. Do some reading on the coupon terms, each one is different.
Conclusion
I’ll admit, sharing the amount of information that these applications are asking for can seem a bit unsettling. That’s just the world we live in now. Whether you sign up for it or not, you information is being used all over the place. You might as well make and save money from it. I’m sure at times it’ll seem tedious. If you’re like me, your receipts get shoved inside of your wallet and becomes a part of a big jumbled mess that inevitably gets tossed at the end of the month. Try develop a routine or take a picture of your receipt as soon as you receive it. That way, it won’t matter if it gets tossed. Alternatively, if the receipt submission is just too tedious, try some of the alternatives to submitting receipts. These are apps, obviously, are getting creative with ways to get your preferences on products. The effort is minimal, so why not live like Shania Twain said:
“So it’s shopping every Sunday at the mall
All we ever want is more
A lot more than we had before
So take me to the nearest store
Can you hear it ring
It makes you want to sing
It’s such a beautiful thing, ka-ching
Lots of diamond rings
The happiness it brings
You’ll live like a king
With lots of money and things”
