The Shopping Trick You Can Use to Get Free Money

Frequent online shoppers know to hunt around for the best deal and try to dig out big coupons. But even if you do, guess what: You’re probably still spending more than you need to. The reason: You’re not using online rebate sites—services that pay you back when you shop on the Internet. Sites like Ebates, FatWallet, and Mr. Rebates all offer cash—yes, straight cash, usually in the form of a PayPal deposit—for purchases you make online.

What’s the catch? There isn’t one, according to Kathleen Barrett, communications supervisor at American Consumer Credit Counseling. “There’s no additional risk to the user to use an online rebate site,” Barrett says. “I say ‘additional’ risk because there’s always a potential risk when you input your credit card information online—but that risk is with the online shopping outlet, not the rebate site.” 

Online rebate sites use a pretty simple model:They accept referral bonuses from online stores, and pay you back a small portion of that referral bonus. It’s an everybody-wins situation—the store gets your business, the rebate site gets paid for “advertising” the store to you, and you get money from the rebate site. Sure, the rebate site may not actually be advertising you anything (you were probably going to shop at that store anyway), but it still counts as a referral. Using an online rebate site is simpler than inputting a coupon code, too—all you have to do is go to the rebate site, click on the store you want to shop at, and then . . . buy stuff.

If it’s so simple, why don’t more people use these sites? “The main reason people don’t use online rebate sites is because they don’t know about them,” says Money Crashers financial expert David Bakke. “But it’s definitely something you should do, because it will add up in the long run.” Although most cashback offers are small—around 2 to 5 percent of your total purchase price, not including tax or shipping—if you do a lot of online shopping that can add up quickly. 

Online rebate sites tend to be geared more toward female shoppers, but there are plenty of deals for guys out there, too. Here are four sites to check out.

Ebates 
Ebates is probably the most well-known online rebate site, and it does skew toward women, with its focus on clothing and beauty outlets. However, you’ll also find excellent cashback deals from sports suppliers (Adidas, Eastbay, and The Sports Authority), hardware stores (Ace Hardware and Home Depot), and some electronics outlets (Dell, Lenovo, and Newegg). Ebates regularly offers extra incentives, such as sign-up bonuses and double cashback days, and pays its users a “big, fat check” once per quarter via PayPal. The biggest drawback with Ebates is that you have to wait for your money—but it was money you wouldn’t see otherwise. I can vouch personally for Ebates, since they’ve shot $220 back to me over the past year.

FatWallet
FatWallet is an online rebate site that was actually acquired by Ebates in 2011. It’s like Ebates’ nerdy brother—not only does it have different deals, its deals are almost all of the technology (hardware and software) variety. If you buy a lot of tech for yourself or for work, FatWallet is where you’ll want to start: Stores include Adorama, Acer, McAfee, Alienware, Staples, and Tiger Direct, as well as cheaper outlets like 123Inkjets and Laptops For Less. Like Ebates, FatWallet pays out once per quarter via PayPal. 

Mr. Rebates 
Mr. Rebates offers a ton of guy-centric deals, including auto parts, electronics, games/software, sports, and watches. It’s not exactly guy-focused, it just happens to offer a ton of deals. Still, if you’re shopping at BatteriesPlus.com or Cruiser Customizing, Mr. Rebates has your back. Like Ebates and FatWallet, Mr. Rebates relies on a click-through model—you go here first, find the store you want to buy from, and then click through to that store and make your purchase. Unlike Ebates and FatWallet, Mr. Rebates pays its users every month via PayPal, and faster cash is always nice.

CashReporter
Not technically a cashback site, CashReporter is a tool that helps you find the best cashback site for each individual purchase. In other words, it’s an extra step—you click through this site to the cashback site, and then click through the cashback site to the store, and then you get money. But it can be worth it if you’re making a large purchase. For example, right now Mr. Rebates is offering 6 percent cashback from Nordstrom. With CashReporter, you can find better rebate deals from lesser-known rebate sites, which ultimately means more free money for you.