I’ll be the first to admit that tech stuff makes my head spin. I’m probably dating myself, but I grew up when typing was taught on typewriters, cell phones were bricks, and we bought music on cassette tapes. So as you can imagine, it’s hard for me to keep up with the constant flow of new tech stuff. I actually get excited when I see pins on Pinterest about new apps or sites because it’s all new to me. What gets me even more excited are the ones that supposedly save you money. I’m all over those. I mean, who doesn’t like saving money?
That being said, I’ve decided to try at least one new money saving app or site each month to see if they live up to the Pinterest hype. Below are some of the few that I’ve tried in the past month on my iPhone.
Reward apps:
- Viggle (no longer operating)
- Rewards you with points for watching television or listening to music.
- Earn bonus points for watching advertising, watching featured shows, or playing Viggle live trivia show games.
- Follow on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook to get extra offers and tips to earn more points.
- Turn in points for merchant discounts, products, or redbox free rental gift cards.
Pros – If you watch television or listen to a lot of music, you can earn points for something you already do. Viggle live trivia game play can be fun to do while watching your television shows.
Cons – Takes a lot of points to earn products and currently the only gift card available is for Redbox.
I currently do not use this app consistently because I don’t always remember to log into every show I watch. Also, while there are some really nice top rewards (iPad/cruise/iPod), it would take me forever to earn the points to receive these products.
2. Jingit
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Earn money by watching videos and answering questions on featured products.
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Earn money by scanning select barcodes of products from select stores.
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Earn money by buying select products from select stores and scanning receipt.
Pros – Earn up to $20 a week or $25 if you invite friends.
Cons – Need to accure $3.00 to earn a debit card to access earned money. Limited eligible products to earn money from. Many of the eligible items were products I do not buy or are at stores I do not shop in.
I have stopped using Jingit because I rarely purchase the featured products and I rarely shop at the featured stores. To me, this app is a bit time consuming.
3. iBotta
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Earn money for posting selected products on Facebook, getting a recipe, watching a video, learn a product fact, play trivia, etc…
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Complete the earning cycle by scanning the product barcode/receipt
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Balance can be transferred easily to Paypal or buy a gift card.
Pros – Easy transfer of earned cash to Paypal or gift cards (Starbucks, Redbox, iTunes, Regal Group) They often have 25 cent credit for a shopping receipt to eligible stores.
Cons – Featured products may not be something you buy.
Rewards websites:
1. NCP (National Consumer Panel)
- Earn points for scanning and transmitting all your household purchases.
- Redeem points for products from NCP catalog or for monthly raffles.
- Earn points for taking surveys
Pros – Simple and straight forward.
Cons – You have to apply and be approved to participate in this program. It can be time consuming because you have to scan the barcodes on each item you purchase. They ask that you to scan all purchases from each household member, including your children.
2. Rakuten (formerly Ebates)
- Earn a percent of your online purchases if you use the links on the site
- Available phone app
- Refer a friends bonuses
Pros – Earnings can be direct deposited into your Paypal account or sent via a check. Lots of affiliate stores participate with Rakuten. Eligible for referral bonuses. Payment is delivered every 3mos. as long as your earning are above $5.01. Otherwise, the balance is carried over to the next quarter. Earn $5 for initial sign-up and purchase through the site.
Cons – You have to use the affiliate link through the site in order to be eligible to earn a percentage of your purchase. To avoid visiting the site, you can download the cash back button, which allows you to shop without visiting Ebates first.
I still use this site and this is my favorite way to earn cash back for items that I’m already purchasing. I would recommend this to anyone that purchases items online. Most of the major retailers participate in Ebates. If you sign up using the link above, we can both receive $5 when you make your first purchase.
3. Swagbucks (referral link)
- Earn swagbucks by playing games, shopping, searching the web, taking surveys, watching videos, and more
- Redeem swagbucks for gift cards or Swagstakes
- Refer a friend bonuses
Pros – Lots of ways to earn swagbucks.
Cons – Surveys can be long and you don’t always qualify for the high point earnings. Don’t always get points for surfing the web.
I prefer using Rakuten because it’s a simpler cash back program. Although, if you spend a lot of time randomly surfing the web or game playing, this app might be for you. That being said, I was able to earn over 1,000 Swagbucks in a little over a month.
Do you have money savings apps or sites that you love? If you do, I would love to know which ones you recommend. Or if you’re already using one of the apps or sites above, I’d love to know what you do to make it work.
