I am a single woman without children.

I am very picky about which brands I choose, I eat organic, gluten-free and dairy-free and I have a terrible time planning my grocery shopping.

Even with all this in play, I still earned $23 using Ibotta during the past three weeks without changing my shopping habits.

Ibotta will give me around $250 cashback at this rate.

It takes just a few seconds to plan my grocery shopping trips, scan my receipts, and refer friends or family members to the app. Ibotta cashback has helped me cover all my Netflix, Hulu and Spotify subscriptions.

Ibotta could be a great way to earn more if you have a family, which means you probably have a higher grocery bill.

What is Ibotta?

Ibotta offers a simple and easy-to-use cashback platform. Earn cashback by shopping online or in-store at participating retailers via the Ibotta website, app, or browser extension.

Ibotta offers a wide range of deals, including travel, groceries, pet supplies, home and auto deals, as well as deals on groceries. Whole Foods, Kroger and Target are some of their most popular partners.

Apart from normal shopping, Ibotta allows you to earn by buying gift cards, referring friends, and qualifying for bonuses if you redeem a certain amount of offers within a specified timeframe (e.g. Earn $10 when you redeem 18 offers within a given time frame.

Sign up with Ibotta to start redeeming offers and receive 20 in bonuses Ibotta is a free service Get free price-rewards.com for items you already own. FreebieBlogger Rating Easy-to-use and more than 300 gift card options

Ibotta is an app that offers cash back. You can earn rewards by shopping at Kroger, Amazon, Target, Kroger and other retailers. Ibotta will credit you account within 24 hours after you visit stores either in-person or online. You can exchange your earnings for gift cards or cash, or send it directly to your PayPal or Venmo account. Continue reading

Related to The Best Ways To Save Money on Groceries

Is Ibotta Legit?

According to Ibotta, the company has paid over $1 billion to more 35 million users since its inception in 2012. It offers over 1,500 deals from more than 1,000 retailers.

Ibotta is my favorite Cashback App . I have tested many apps . I am only one user. Let’s look at the data.

Ibotta’s Better Business Bureau profile reveals that the company has a rating of B. In the past three years, they have received over 700 complaints. All complaints are marked as resolved. This means that the complainant has verified that the matter was solved to their satisfaction.

The most common complaint seems to be having an account removed and not being allowed to redeem any earnings. Ibotta’s BBB response indicated that most of the accounts in question were found to have violated their Terms and Use by creating multiple accounts using the same user information.

Ibotta still has a 4.8 rating in the Apple app store, and a rating of 4.4 in the Google Play store. Ibotta has received more than 10,000,000 Play store installs and has received 1.7 million reviews on both platforms. One user claimed she has saved hundreds of dollars and another stated that she has no problems using her rewards at restaurants and other retailers.

Based on the publicly available data and my personal experience with Ibotta, I would say that the company is legit and as safe as any other app.

Related to 22 Money-Making Apps To Earn More

How Does Ibotta Work?

Ibotta offers five ways for you to earn: online shopping, in-store shopping and referrals.

Shopping in-store

Ibotta makes it easy to save in-store by offering the option to link your store loyalty account and scan receipts after shopping. You can also buy gift cards to use later. To stay informed about new offers in your local area, you can turn on Nearby Offer Alerts notifications.

Connect your loyalty account to your store

Ibotta’s store shopping is made easy by this method. You can shop in stores with Ibotta by simply clicking “Link Account” from within your Ibotta profile.

After you have completed your purchase, Ibotta will scan your items and match them with the offers in your Ibotta Account. The cashback will be added to your total earnings.

You’ll receive a popup notification when you visit sites that allow account linking if you have the Ibotta extension installed. There you can easily add your details and link your account by clicking a button.

Reviewer’s Take: Target Circle is the only loyalty account I’ve linked with Ibotta thus far.

I hadn’t realized I could link my account until after I visited Target’s website to make some online purchases. Ibotta sent me a pop-up asking me to log in for my Target account.

My account is linked to Ibotta, which eliminates the one thing I forget most: scanning my receipt after I shop.

My only complaint is that Ibotta still requires you to add offers before you shop. You won’t be able to save if you purchase something Ibotta offers but don’t add it to the app.

Ibotta does not allow loyalty account linking with all retailers. Ibotta doesn’t allow me to link a Kroger loyalty card with my Ibotta account. This is not a problem for me as I can still scan my receipts and earn points.

Similar: 74 Creative Ways to Save Money with a Tight Budget

Scanning receipts

It’s similar to linking your loyalty card: search for the store you wish to shop at in Ibotta. Add the offers you like and then shop in store. To receive cashback, you will need to take a photo of your receipt.

Reviewer’s Take: This has been the main way I have used Ibotta sofar. Kroger is my favorite grocery store and I cannot link my store account to Ibotta, as I said before.

Before I go grocery shopping, I love to browse through the app. When I find a great deal, I click the “+” button to add it to my deals and then use my final list to plan my week’s meals. I love the “any item” deals, which allow you to choose any brand of an item such as milk, bread, or single-serve coffee.

Adding offers to your account can usually be done in one click, but you may need to watch a brief video (usually less than 30 seconds) before you can claim a particular deal.

After you have claimed a deal, you will see a checkmark beside the item.

Before you shop, make sure to carefully read all details. Write down the quantity of each item that you will need to purchase to redeem an offer if you have a shopping list.

This was my first mistake. I didn’t realize that the BOGO (buy one and get one) deal for oat milk was available on my grocery list. I bought one, but I didn’t receive the cashback that I was expecting when I scanned my receipt.

Most deals have a limit on how many times you may redeem them. This is usually 2-5.

The main problem with this method is the fact that you need to keep track of your receipts and remember to get one.

It was a difficult adjustment as I am used to either throwing away my receipt or not even taking one.

Even if I get a receipt, there is a 50% chance that it will be lost somewhere between my kitchen and the cash register.

This is why I have gotten into the habit to scan my receipt every time I reach my car. It takes only a few seconds and I don’t miss any cashback due to lost receipts.

I am still hoping that Ibotta will add Kroger to its loyalty linking program in the near future. To help me sort through the store deals, I would like to see more diet-specific filters, such as organic, gluten-free, and so on.

Similar: 11 Apps like Ibotta to SAVE MONEY with Cashback

Gift cards available

Ibotta’s gift cards feature is quite unique. You can buy gift cards from Ibotta to more than 130 retailers including Starbucks, Bed Bath & Beyond and Lowe’s as well as Uber, Walmart, Lowe’s, Uber, and Uber.

To buy a gift certificate on Ibotta you have two options: either use your Ibotta earnings or add a personal debit to your card. You’ll receive cashback in either case.

You can toggle the “This gift card” option if you are buying a gift card for someone else. Next, choose the method you wish to send the gift certificate off. To use the card, you don’t need to have an Ibotta Account.

Reviewer’s Take: While I admit that I haven’t yet used this feature, I’m going to be using it as a birthday gift in the coming months.

Ibotta doesn’t allow me to use my credit card for gift cards, which is a minor inconvenience. I do like the option of using my Ibotta earnings for payment.

Ibotta gift cards are a great way for you to get cashback, especially if it’s for someone else. I recommend that you check with Ibotta to see if they have a better deal for you if you are buying the gift cards for yourself.

Since I needed to go to Lowes this week, I nearly used my account balance to purchase a gift certificate to Lowes. Out of curiosity, however, I decided to check if there were any in-store or online offers. Ibotta currently offers 10% cashback on online Lowe’s purchases, while my gift card would have gotten me just 2.2%.

I placed my order online, which is not surprising.

Ibotta gift card cards have my second concern. While they offer gift cards to many stores, Ibotta doesn’t offer gift certificates to Kroger or Target. This is a good thing, because it would be simple to earn double cashback by purchasing a gift card via the app and then redeeming offers in store.

Even with these minor issues, I think gift cards purchased through Ibotta are a great way of earning cashback, especially if they’re gifts for someone else.

Online Shopping

Ibotta has two options for you if you prefer to shop online, whether it’s for local deals or stores that aren’t in your region.

Use the Ibotta browser extension to shop online

The Ibotta extension for Firefox and Chrome works in the same way as other cash-back applications. A popup will appear when you shop on a site that offers cashback. To claim your cashback, click the activate button and go about your normal shopping.

Within a week you will see your Ibotta cashback.

Reviewer’s Take: Ibotta works exactly the same way as Rakuten and Honey’s cash-back extensions: you see a popup, activate it, shop, and earn.

Ibotta’s extension is not accurate, so I did some additional research to verify my review. Although I have used the extension before for online shopping, I decided to try it again. I clicked different buttons and tried new websites in order to see the experience from all angles.

And I believe I have found a loophole in the matrix.

Athleta is listed in my Ibotta account as a partner retailer that offers 2% cashback

I did not get any popups from Ibotta when I visited Athleta’s website. So I clicked on the extension and it didn’t show any deals.

Refer to the following: If there’s a deal that isn’t yet activated, the popup should be the same as the American Eagle picture in Section 1.

Ibotta customer service sent me a request to investigate the issue. However, this made me wonder how much cashback Ibotta users who have used their browser extension to get because of this error.

Ibotta has two important points to keep in mind when you shop online.

1. You have 45 minutes from the moment you activate a deal to complete your checkout before it expires. It is possible to reactivate the deal, all you have to do is remember.
2. Cashback will not be given for items you add to your cart after activating a deal. You can’t get cashback if you shop while you’re browsing.

I have always loved the Ibotta extension’s user experience and consider it a great way to earn cashback when I shop online. If you do decide to use the deal, you will need to check Ibotta’s retailers section and ensure that your deal has been activated.

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You can shop directly through the Ibotta app

If you don’t have a laptop, you can order online with Ibotta from the app.

The browser extension will not appear when you land on a website with a deal. You have to make more deliberate shopping with the Ibotta app. This means that you need to know where you’d like to shop, or browse the stores until you find it.

You can shop as normal when you select the store you wish to visit.

The reviewer’s view: This feature is one of my least favourites (and least used) Ibotta shopping features.

Most likely, you’ve had an experience where clicking on a link in Instagram opened the website in Instagram. Similar experience can be had when you shop through Ibotta.

It would be great if the store website could open in Safari or Chrome. Or at least that you had that option. It’s a little slow and awkward. I don’t think many Ibotta customers would shop this way. It is not something I would recommend.

Ibotta offers other ways to earn

Ibotta allows you to earn money beyond your regular shopping. Refer friends and complete bonuses.

Refer family and friends

You can earn money by referring users to Ibotta, just like many other apps of this type. Your code can be shared via text, email, and social media directly from the app.

You’ll each receive a $10 referral bonus if your recruits sign up using your code and submit their first receipt.

The reviewer’s view: It’s difficult to complain about a referral system, and Ibotta’s seems generous. I have successfully referred one person via the app and sent three people my referral code.

My only issue so far is the inability to track who you refer. Only way I know that I received a notification stating “$10 has been added in your account — congratulations!” Refer your friends to earn more cash than ever.

It doesn’t appear in my earnings history and there is no record of which people I sent my referral to sign up. I would love to have this information to know who I should thank and who might need some coaching to get through the first deal.

Bonuses

Ibotta offers two kinds of bonuses: non-specific and specific. Specific bonuses usually relate to one brand. You might see the example of “Earn $0.50” when you redeem three Chameleon Organic Coffee offers. Other bonuses, such as “Redeem 15 offers this weekend and earn $1.”

Both types can be viewed on the “Bonus tab” in the app’s bottom menu.

The reviewer says that Bonuses are a great way to increase your earnings and can be a great choice if you like certain brands. While you can plan your shopping around bonus offers, it’s unlikely that you will ever get a bonus. It was quite a surprise when I received my first bonus.

I was shopping during the week and redeemed some offers. The next day, I noticed that my account had $3 more. There was an additional $3 bonus for Flash bonuses that I didn’t know about. It meant that if you redeem three offers within three days, you get an additional $3.
Ibotta’s bonus feature is what I love most: You don’t need to sign up for a bonus, or add it to an existing account. You can shop as normal and receive cashback unexpectedly.

I like the fact that Ibotta separates your “in progress” bonuses on the bonus tab, and then sends you an email when you have started a bonus. Chameleon Organic Coffee offered a bonus that I would not have known about. I’m going to stock up on coffee and grab that $0.50 bonus.

I have noticed that the best bonuses are usually found mid-week so I make sure to be on the lookout for them and grab them as soon as I can.

Ibotta promo code

A sign-up bonus is hard to beat, and Ibotta has it. Ibotta’s $20 Welcome Bonus is available to new users by simply using our partner link and redeeming certain offers.

• First Welcome Bonus: Get a $10 Bonus to redeem an in-store deal (Excludes Any Brand and Any Receipt Offers).
• Second Welcome Bonus: Redeem a Mobile Shopping Offer with a $5 Bonus.
• Third Welcome Bonus: An additional $5 bonus to redeem an in-store, or mobile shopping offer.

Your team should be strengthened

Ibotta Teamwork used to offer additional earnings. Referring a friend would make them part of your team and allow you to unlock bonuses.

As of the 2/1/2022, however, teamwork bonuses have been removed from Ibotta’s app.

Ibotta Review Summary (The Verdict).

Each app has its problems, but Ibotta I believe the pros outweigh any cons. This is a great way for you to get cashback on shopping, especially if you shop at grocery or department stores.

You might not find a deal for your favorite brands or items all the time. Therefore, it is important to be open to trying new brands in order to save money. There are more than 240 deals online and over 2000 retailers. You’re sure to find something you like.

It can be a bit cumbersome to add offers to your account and find them before you shop. I hope that Ibotta will be able to automate this process in the future. This way you can link all of your loyalty accounts and shop as usual (without having to tell them what deals you are interested in beforehand). They can also match your receipts with deals. Even if this never happens, I will continue to use and recommend Ibotta.