- Do you want to make money while you are shopping online?
- Do you want to easily find the best deals in your favorite stores?
- Do you want to have extra money for bills, a new purse, or a vacation?
Then you’re in the right spot — I’ll tell you all about how to save and make money with Rakuten!
You haven’t heard of Rakuten yet? Well, I’m sure you’ve heard of Ebates — they just changed their name to Rakuten, but it’s the same program.
How to save money with Rakuten (formerly Ebates)
Hi, this is Dagmar, one of the new co-owners of Healthy, Savvy & Wise!
I have been a blogger for 10 years over at Dagmar’s Home, where I blog about having a beautiful home on a budget and frugal living.
You could say I’m a bit of an expert of saving money — my girlfriends know how often I say “I have a coupon for that!”
Finding the best deal for everything, be that hotel stays, eating out, or clothing is kind of my hobby, has been kind of a hobby for me for many years.
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Call me crazy, but I’d rather cut a few coupons or use a store reward card instead of paying full price — it’s like found money I don’t have to work for!
I make a nice living as a blogger but live in a crazy expensive area, and even though food and everything else is very pricey here, I am almost debt free (not counting the house) because I know how to save money and make the money that I have go a long way. I love traveling, and my son and I travel many times during the year — thanks to me knowing how to get amazing deals.
I regularly save hundreds, if not thousands of dollars each year, with many tricks that add up, but in this post I want to focus on telling you how I make extra money with Rakuten.
I have been using Rakuten/Ebates for many years, I was even hired as their online community manager many years ago. That community no longer exists as the Internet has changed so much. But, the opportunity to save money and get cash back every time you shop online still exists.
And, I urge you to take advantage of it – it’s FREE!
Okay, money doesn’t grow on trees, but money in your Rakuten account grows every time you shop online and visit Rakuten first, kind of like a pitstop.
What is Rakuten?
Rakuten is a site that allows you to earn cash back on your daily purchases. They partner with more than 2,500 stores nationwide.
Stores pay them a commission for sending Rakuten members to their websites, and Rakuten shares the rewards with you.
You can double up on Cash Back when you shop their rotating selection of Double Cash Back stores.
Rakuten also provides cash back rewards with
- special offers
- promo codes
- hot daily deals
- and coupons
How do you make money with Rakuten (Ebates)?
Making money with Rakuten is super easy — you sign up and whenever you want to shop for something online, you visit their site first, then find the store you want to shop in among their large list of brands, and you will be redirected to that website.
It’s only one step — and that step will save you money. Once you make your purchase, Rakuten/Ebates makes note of that purchase and will refund you a percentage of the price a month or two later.
Depending on the website, you typically earn between 3% to 10% back. Every three months, you’ll get a check or a payment in your Paypal account with the cash you earned. Payment dates are February 15, May 15, August 15, and November 15.
When you sign up, they even give you $10 to shop with as a bonus — that’s free money right there!
I mean, it doesn’t get any easier than becoming a member in a minute and then shopping through Rakuten in your favorite online shops. You can also discover new online stores through Rakuten.
The site is super easy to navigate. It shows you Hot Deals, which online stores give you Double Cash back this week, and more.
I’ve gotten over $500 back from them. Even through I don’t shop online a lot, I still made over $500. If you are a big online shopper, you will get some big cash back!
Here is a check my friend Stephanie received recently:
Is Rakuten (Ebates) a scam?
No, Rakuten is not a scam. They have been around for years. I have received hundreds of dollars back from shopping through their site, and I benefited from their extra special deals.
One tip: pay attention to category restrictions by some retailers for earning cash back on “qualifying purchases.” Some retailers, like Amazon, only let you earn from Rakuten if you’re shopping for items that qualify.
What stores are on Rakuten?
The site has partnered with over 2,500 brands — all the big ones like Macy’s, Amazon, Overstock, Expedia, Dell, Sephora, Kohl’s, Target, Walmart, ACE Hardware, etc.
It’s almost impossible to not be able to find the store you want to shop in on Rakuten. And if you can’t find your specific site, you can search for a store they do offer and see if they have a better deal.
What do you use Rakuten for most?
What do you use Rakuten for most?I personally love shopping at Groupon.com through Rakuten. Groupon has amazing deals on restaurants, vacations, fun activities for the whole family, and more, and saving even more money thanks to Rakuten is a win/win.
I also shop at Target.com and Kohls.com, and always go to Rakuten first before I shop for anything on Amazon.
Brandless is another company I use because they offer affordable organic and non-GMO food (most of their items are only $3 each!), and I save an extra 1.5% shopping through Rakuten.
How can I maximize making and saving money with Rakuten?
Here is an extra frugal trip: if you have a credit card that gives you rewards or money back for shopping online, stack those savings on top of Rakuten to get additional cash back.
I have a credit card that gives me another 3% back for travel costs, and I recently saved a lot of money on two tickets to Germany for my son and me because I used Expedia.com via Rakuten and then got another 3% off.
Also: once you are a member, you can refer your own friends and family and get cash bonuses — $25 for every person who signs up! You get the $25 added to your cash back once that person makes their first purchase of $50 or more.
How much can you make with Rakuten (Ebates)?
This really depends on how many friends you sign up and how much you shop. There is lots of upward potential.
If you just sign up 2 friends a month, you could make $50 a month if they then shop on Ebates! It’s in their better interest to use Ebates as they are also saving money on shopping they were already planning on doing.
Why wouldn’t you share this site with friends? They will be thrilled to also save money.
And, on top of that, you can earn money back on your own purchases. Every time you log into Rakuten, you’ll see your running balance. It’s fun to see it grow.
Additional ways to earn extra money on Rakuten
They also offer:
- an app you can use on your phone
- a Rakuten Button for Google Chrome for your computer
- In-Store Cash Back offer
For that feature you need to link the offers to the card you’ve added to your Rakuten account. Visit In-Store Cash Back Offers, find the offers you like, and link them to the card. Offers must be linked to your card before you make your purchase, and they must be valid (not expired) when you make it.
Is Rakuten safe to use?
Yes, it is safe to use Rakuten. Founded in 1997, Rakuten is headquartered in Tokyo and employs over 10,000 people worldwide.
I’ve never had a problem with them. Thousands of people have taken advantages of their service, and you can’t beat the fact that it doesn’t cost you anything to use Rakuten — you just save and make money with this site.
How do you pronounce the word Rakuten?
The word Rakuten means “optimism” in Japanese and is pronounced RACK-uh-ten.
Sign up and save and make money with Rakuten today!
I hope you found this post helpful. Happy shopping!
Related articles to save and earn more money
- How to turn $1,000 in $2.6 million for retirement
- Here’s how you can save $500/month on your meals
- 20 tips to save money for a down payment on a home
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