In a post-pandemic world, many of us are still trying to recover financially. While we may keep food on the table, our lights on, and our car payment up to date, how do we find the time or the money to buy things for ourselves? Well, the good news is you can start by earning through online shopping cashback sites and, in the process, save up for a $100 Visa gift card. Sounds too good to be true, yes? It’s not; it’s all made entirely possible by Swagbucks.
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Swagbucks is an online rewards program that gives users the ability to earn points, or Swagbucks (or SB for short), in which they can cash in and turn into real money. What separates Swagbucks from other rewards programs is they offer a variety of ways in which you can do this, some of which you are likely already doing. Collect SBs by earning cash back on online purchases, turning in your grocery store receipts, playing app-based games on your phone, watching videos, taking surveys, and more!
After accumulating a good number of SBs, redeem your rewards by selecting a variety of gift card options from trusted retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, Sephora, and Chewy, just to name a few. The more you earn in Swagbucks, the higher you can cash in ($100 Amazon Gift Card anyone??). Check out our breakdown of this handy website and all the perks of earning cash back by shopping online.
Swagbucks’ Online Shopping Cashback Program
Getting started with Swagbucks is easy and completely free! Simply create an account using your email or Facebook and start earning right away. Earning SBs can be done right from your phone or computer, and you can dedicate as little or as much time as you’d like to start accumulating those rewards.
Navigating the site is simple but can be overwhelming as there are so many different options for earning SBs; therefore, it’s hard to know where to start sometimes. Luckily, Swagbucks has a couple of resources that can help get you started. First, be sure to check out your Daily Bonus which will take you through a couple of different options for earning SBs for the day.
You’ll complete the Daily Poll, watch videos, check out a few deals, and take a couple of surveys. Each activity will have a certain number of SBs attached to it, but by completing all the activities for the day, Swagbucks will reward you with bonus SBs. This is a great tool to get started and to get familiar with this online shopping cashback program. With this, you can start to explore the different ways to earn money and what works best for you.
Next, I would highly suggest adding the Swagbutton (which earns you SBs, of course) to your browser. This button will alert you whenever you’re on a website that has sales, coupons, and cashback offers through Swagbucks. It can be easy to forget which retailers are partnered with Swagbucks since there are so many. This eliminates that need and does it all for you, making it even easier to earn money back on all your purchases.
Cashing in your SBs is also a breeze! When you’re ready, head to the rewards page and pick out your gift card (or cards if you want to spread it out), and select Claim a Gift Card. The process for receiving the card will be different depending on the retailer (but it will all be virtual nonetheless). It will be available within a few days after redeeming, at which point you can start spending your hard-earned rewards!
Swagbucks and All the Ways You Can Earn CashBack Shopping Online
As mentioned, Swagbucks offers a number of ways in which you can earn cash back by doing simple tasks, some of which you do daily. Below we outline the top ways you can earn money on Swagbucks with little to no effort.
One of the biggest draws to Swagbucks is earning cash back on online purchases. Popular, name-brand retailers like Kohls, Home Depot, CVS Pharmacy, The Gap, and Uber Eats are everyday uses where you can earn a little money back for something you were already going to buy.
Some places will have product-specific deals, whereas others will have more general options (i.e., 4% back on Amazon devices or 8% back on all Home Depot purchases). Many of these retailers will offer additional ways to earn SBs as well, such as signing up for their mailing list, using a coupon, or submitting a recent receipt.
Speaking of receipts, you can earn Swagbucks for items you buy every week at the grocery store. Add items to your cart and then redeem your SBs by scanning your receipt. Items you can add include common household purchases such as milk, eggs, fruit, and paper products.
There are also name-brand items that you can add, which will give you a little bit more of a payout.
Most generic items are anywhere from 2 to 4 SBs, and brand name or feature items can have tag prices as large as 100 SBs! If you don’t mind venturing out from your normal brand, this is a quick way to accumulate SBs into your online shopping cashback account and is also a great opportunity to try something new!
Surveys are another big way to earn SBs, and their payout can be as little as 5 SB for a quick five-minute survey or as large as 250 SB for a forty-five-minute survey. The only downside to this option is you won’t qualify for all the surveys, and you won’t know if you qualify until you start answering questions. However, even if you don’t qualify for a survey Swagbucks will still throw you a 1 SB fee for your troubles, so you’ll earn something regardless.
Games are also another fun and easy way to earn SBs. These are all app-based games where you’ll need to reach certain milestones by a certain time period to earn your SBs (i.e., reach level 11 by such and such date). For the most part, most of the games are available for both Android and iPhone users, but there are a few that are specific to each product. The SB cash value on completing these tasks is HUGE, often ranging in the 1000s. This is a fun way to make a dent towards that $50 Bath and Body Works gift card you’ve been eyeing.
Lastly, you can earn rewards by signing up for various memberships and subscription services. Signing up for a Sam’s Club Membership, or an investment app, or a streaming service will offer decent SBs. Depending on the deal, you could be earning anywhere from 200 to 5000 SBs a sign-up. A lot of these come with an actual price, though and will require monthly payments after your short free trial. If you’ve been leaning on signing up for one of these services, this is a great incentive to do so.
Is Swagbucks Right for Me?
Swagbucks is great for college students, parents, and really anyone looking to earn a little extra on the side through an online shopping cashback opportunity. The website and app are easy to use for earners of any age and education level. And the wide range of retailers available through Swagbucks makes it great for all types of shoppers. Anyone can find something they like at Swagbucks, and anyone can earn rewards on Swagbucks.
For college students, signing up for sites like Acorns and Credit Karma are great resources to start managing your finances. Whereas for parents or any adult, you inevitably go to the grocery store at least once a week, so why not earn money doing so?
If you’re going to take a study break or a break from the kids by playing a game on your phone, why not play one of the games that will help you redeem that Visa gift card you’ve wanted. Swagbucks gives you that incentive to start earning, and you don’t even have to change your lifestyle to do it!
Breaking It Down: The Pros
Let’s start with the Swagbutton; I can’t praise this feature enough. I don’t know how many times I’ve missed a discount item or coupon because I’ve simply forgotten to check my email for any rewards I’ve earned. The Swagbutton practically earns the SBs for you by reminding you to check the deals before you make the purchase. It’s a no-brainer.
The gift card values are worthy of the effort it takes to get them. Ranging anywhere from $20 to $100, these are notable payouts by notable companies. You won’t have to settle; with a huge list of stores and retailers, you should be able to find something you’ll legitimately want and use in your online shopping cashback journeys.
All the ways to earn SBs are incredibly easy. Surveys are looking for straight-forward, honest feedback. Whereas the games are fun to play. The available videos to watch are often ads for TV shows or quick news blurbs, not all that different from your Facebook feed. And of course, the online shopping and receipt cash in are easy rewards that require no work.
There’s also the option to buy Swagbucks, which may seem counterintuitive, but if you are 200 SBs away from a $100 gift card, is sacrificing $3 really all that bad?
Breaking It Down: The Cons
Not all Swagbucks are the same, and the method in which you receive them is not the same. Sometimes some of the bigger cash-out tasks that are 100 Swagbucks or more can take days or even weeks to apply to your account, so it’s not always a quick turnaround.
Many of the third-party surveys will want you to provide personal information, such as your full name and address, and all of them utilize cookies. Depending on your level of comfort with this, this may not be the best source of earning through Swagbucks.
Some of the sign-ups for things like a meal delivery service or a year membership at a gym, not only cost money to start but are long-term investments. While some of these are great resources to have, others can feel a little out of place on a website where the sole purpose is to earn money back. In short, why sign up for a $90 monthly meal service to accumulate points towards a $20 gift card?
While you can redeem your Swagbucks for Visa Gift Cards, the wide range in which you receive your rewards and prizes doesn’t make it a consistent source of income. This won’t replace your day job or even your second job, as it’s really just a means to earn a little bit on the side.
What’s the Verdict for Swagbucks’ Online Shopping Cashback Program?
Swagbucks is incredibly easy to use with a huge assortment of ways to earn cash back by shopping online. My recommendation is to download the Swagbutton and just get in the habit of scanning your receipts when you return from the grocery store. Then when you have a quieter moment, spend a little bit of time working towards those larger SB tasks like filling out the surveys or becoming a master at Solitaire. The growth over time from the shopping paired with higher ticketed items will have you earning a gift card in no time.
It’s entirely possible to earn money back on Swagbucks, but how much you can earn depends on you. The more time you put into the site, the larger your payout will be and the quicker you’ll get to those high-value gift cards.
In our fast-paced lives, we often forget to reward ourselves. Our expenses and other people always seem to take priority. Dedicate one hour a day to earning SBs, and within a few months, you can treat yourself to that item on Amazon that always gets pushed to the side by more pressing purchases, or cash in on a Chewy gift card to lighten your fur-baby load for the month. You deserve a guilty-free splurge, so start earning it through this great online shopping cashback opportunity!