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Whether you’re a student on a tight budget or a big family with an even bigger appetite, higher food costs don’t have to equate to higher grocery bills. With some savvy shopping skills and money-saving apps, you can get some big savings every time you go grocery shopping.
To help you save, we’ve rounded up grocery coupon apps and some of the best cashback apps that are actually worth downloading. Each of these free applications offers its own incentives, and the more you use, the more you save.
1. Rakuten (formerly Ebates)
Get cash back when shopping online at over 750 stores.
Rakuten offers cash rebates as well as cashback bonuses when you make online purchases. Download the Rakuten app, sign up for a free account, and start shopping through the app for everyday items to earn up to 30% cashback. Every time you shop through their app, Rakuten gets a commission from stores – and they share that wealth with you.
With over 750 stores on their roster, Rakuten is like a treasure chest for penny-pinchers. Earn cash back on your groceries when shopping online at popular sites like Amazon and Walmart. You can also earn money back by subscribing to meal prep services like Hello Fresh and Chef’s Plate. Plus, if you start referring friends, you can earn extra money per friend who subscribes.
Rakuten pays out your cash back every 3 months – as long as you’ve banked at least $5.01. You can choose to get your money through a physical cheque in the mail, a deposit to your PayPal account, or an Amazon e-gift card. They currently don’t offer interac e-transfers.
2. Checkout 51
Upload your grocery store receipt to get cash back on things you bought.
Checkout 51 is like a digital coupon book – except you don’t have to remember to give your coupons to the cashier. This money-saving grocery app offers weekly cashback offers on everything from peanut butter and granola bars to body wash and laundry detergent. Browse the weekly offers in the app, add offers to your list, and then go shopping. And don’t forget to keep your receipt when you’re done.
After you pay for your groceries in-store, upload your receipt to the free app Checkout 51 and check off the cashback offers you’re redeeming. Checkout 51 will review your receipt and put cash back in your account when they approve it. Once you have $20 extra cash in the bank, Checkout 51 will mail you a cheque instead of depositing it into your bank account.
3. Save.ca
View flyers, clip coupons, and save your shopping lists in one place.
The Save.ca app is serious about helping you find grocery deals and start saving money. This clean, well-organized app lets you view local flyers; clip coupon offers on everyday purchases, create grocery shopping lists, and add your loyalty cards to earn points.
Looking for the best deals on bathroom tissue and bacon this week? Save.ca will show you deals from different stores so you know where to go to get the best bang for your buck. And if you still get a thrill from paper coupons, you’ll be happy to know that Save.ca offers free coupons mailed to your home.
4. Flipp
Flip through digital flyers and find the best deals.
Flipp turns grocery shopping into an organized, money-saving affair. Rather than spending time flipping through a mountain of paper flyers, you can let the Flipp app do the work for you.
The Flipp weekly shopping app makes it easy to browse flyers from your favourite grocery stores, find deals on specific items, save things to your shopping list, and clip grocery store coupons. It’ll also show you the hottest deals on food so that you can create your grocery lists with the best prices in mind.
5. The Coupons App
Sales, coupons, and discount codes are all in one place.
The Coupons App is like a massive stack of coupons that fit in your back pocket. Packed with coupons, deals, and online promo codes from over 100,000 retailers, this grocery coupon app saves you the hassle of clipping paper coupons and scouring the web for promo codes.
In the Coupons App, you can browse weekly flyers, monitor product price changes, and even sign up for freebie alerts. The Coupons App will also tell you when deals are expiring soon, so you can take advantage before it’s too late.
6. Websaver
Websaver is a great way to find coupons for your favourite grocery coupons. You can either get these coupons mailed to you, print them, or use a digital coupon. All you need to do to use these coupons is create a websaver account and start downloading.
Keep in mind, though, that these coupons do expire, so make sure you use them quickly. The great thing about these apps is that they also have cashback coupons when you spend a certain amount on certain items. That said, comparing prices at different store to get the best deal is up to you.
In order to get your money back with the cashback offers, you need to upload your receipt. This is similar to what you would do with Checkout 51. Once your receipt is uploaded, you’ll get your money back.
7. Go Coupons
Go Coupons has a ton of grocery coupons available as well. When redeeming these coupons, you have the option of getting the printable coupons or the cashback coupons. In order to gain access to these coupons, all you have to do is make an online account. From there, you can use them how you like. It’s even available on Android phones and Apple devices.
8. Brand Websites
While not all coupons may be on the sites we mentioned, many popular brands offer print coupons on their websites. These coupons are available to you once you sign up on their site. Once you’ve signed up one time, you will get updates on any upcoming or current deals. Here are some popular brands that offer coupons on their sites:
- Chapmans
- Royal
- Dempsters
- Kelloggs
- Purina
- Cavendish Farms
- Armstrong Cheese
- Finish
- Promise Gluten Free
- Huggies
- Pedialyte
- MIchelinas
- Blue Buffalo
There are plenty more as well, and they change quite often. Checking the different brand sites only once per week can get you quite a stack of coupons that can help you save on groceries.
9. PC Optimum
PC Optimum is continually updating its program. While users are aware that you can earn PC points that you can redeem at certain Loblaws stores and partners, they’ve also come out with some digital coupons and member deals. If you have a PC Optimum account, all you have to do is log in online or with the app. On your account, you’ll be able to see what your weekly offers are.
You’ll notice that with your PC account, the offers are tailored to the items that you purchase more frequently. Depending on the weekly offers, some items will earn you points while you can save money on others. There’s also a section for weekly coupons which can be used by anyone with an account.
10. Caddle
Caddle is an app you can get with Apple or Google Play where you can earn cashback or get deals on items from brands and stores such as Canadian Tire. How it works is you sign up and engage with brands as well as share their data. This helps brands build data, so they offer consumers cash rewards as well as deals which can be found on the Caddle app.
A Good Choice for a Food Coupon App
One of the most popular food coupon apps out there right now is Flashfood. With this app you can purchase fresh fruit and veggies, meat and more, all at discounted prices. The best part is that you can purchase them right from your local grocery store. Since there aren’t often manufacturer coupons available for fresh food, this is a great alternative and makes it one of the best grocery coupon and cash back apps.
Using Flashfood is actually pretty simple too. There’s no coupon codes, online tasks, or watching videos required. All you do is download the app so you don’t need a browser extension either. Once it’s downloaded you can browse your local stores. If you find something you want, you can purchase online using a credit or debit card, and then go pick it up.
There are a few different perks to using this app. You don’t have to play games or spend time completing surveys, and you’re reducing food waste. A lot of these items are going to be expiring soon so they need to be used up, that’s why they’re sold for such a discounted price.
Grocery Cashback Apps
When it comes to grocery cashback apps, there are many of these apps that require you to shop with online retailers or a certain store or gas station. With Checkout 51, no taking surveys is required and you can shop in store with any of the popular retailers you want.
The reason that Checkout 51 is one of the best rebate apps and couponing apps out there, is all you have to do to redeem your cash back is select the offers you want and upload your receipt. While some of the best cash back apps make the price comparisons for you, this you can do yourself and shop wherever you want.
When selecting your offers, you can select more than one of the same product. You can also choose to purchase the same item at different stores. Plus, instead of having the ability to earn rewards, you earn cashback which you can cashout or, in some cases, choose to earn gift cards.
Other Great Apps to Choose From
While the ones we’ve mentioned above are some great choices, there are others that you can choose from as well. Here’s a look at some other great choices that just didn’t quite make the list.
Honey
Honey is a really cool alternative however it does require a brower extension if you’re using your computer. How it works is when you shop online it continuously looks through various sites for coupon codes and deals. You don’t have to do anything except use the savings that the app finds for you. It even offers you rewards through different stores and you can earn Honey Gold on certain purchases which will earn you free gift cards.
Swagbucks
Swagbucks is different from these other apps because you essentially get paid to take surveys. How it works is once you complete these surveys and other simple tasks, then you earn swagbucks. Once you start earning these, then you can redeem them for online deals and additional cash back. For someone who likes to shop online, this is a great option.
Using Multiple Coupon Apps
One of the great thing about these coupon apps is that you can stack the offers with different opportunities. For examples, if you’re a PC points collector then you can redeem and collects points while using your coupons. Then you can also upload your receipt to claim any offers on Checkout 51. On top of this, you can use your flyer apps to compare prices and price match to get the lowest offer.
Combining all of these different grocery saving options can save you the most money. You can even work the products from your Flashfood purchase into your weekly meal plan to save you even more. Many people don’t realize this though and tend to use these apps on their own. The fact is, though, is that you get the most benefit when you compile them together.
Are Couponing Apps Worth It?
The fact is, couponing apps are free. This means it cost you nothing to do a little searching and save some money. However, depending on how deep you dive into it, they can take up a lot of your time. In general, though, couponing apps can save you a decent amount of money when you use them properly.
The key to couponing apps is to use them in combination with sales and other offers. This gets you the best bang for your buck. In many cases, you can get items for free or almost fee. While you can’t stack items in Canada you can make purchases on multiple days and even combine different offers to greatly reduce your grocery costs.
Overall, whether you use coupon apps occasionally or all the time, they are a great way to save you some money. They’re also a great way to find some new products you may just fall in love with.
Overview
Coupon apps can really help when it comes to earning cash and saving money. That said, consistency is key to creating significant savings and building your savings account. The great thing about these apps is that you are going to be online shopping or making purchases anyway. All these apps do is allow you to save real cash in multiple ways.
Depending on the apps you use, instead of just earning cash, you can join loyalty programs and earn discounts and savings on future purchases with virtual cards. The more points you earn, the more you can save. Plus, with the top cashback apps, you can earn more back on specific purchases and cash in on special promotions. That said, before you join any of these apps, it’s important to read the fine print and verify that these apps will work for you. you.
