Binkies and Briefcases

Hey everyone! Chelsea here, back again with a tutorial on how to save money on all the stuff everyone hates buying. I remember when I first got married, complaining to my mom about the cost of shampoo, razors, and deodorant. I couldn’t get over how much it tacked on to my regular grocery list. One of those #adulting things that as a kid, I never put a second thought into how much money my parents spent on all of the essentials every month.

Today’s app is Swagbucks. Swagbucks has a smaller number of offers, so I don’t use it as much as Ibotta, but it still has helped me to save over $150!

Here’s how it works:

Open the Swagbucks app and click on the Shop icon at the bottom of the screen. Then click Magic Receipts at the top. Scroll through the offers and select Add to List for any offers you’d like to redeem. Click on the picture to read the details. 1 Swagbuck (SB) equals 1 cent. 100 SB = $1. Often, there is a certain amount you have to buy to receive the rebate and it is only eligible at the stores listed so make sure you read the details before purchasing!

After purchasing the products at one of the eligible stores, open the app, and under shop–magic receipts, click the Submit Receipt button on the bottom of the screen. It will prompt you to take a photo of your receipt and select the offers you are redeeming. Once the SB’s are in your account, you can redeem them for a gift card. I typically choose Paypal or Amazon, but there are tons of options. They often have “sales” on the Amazon gift cards which makes the rebates stretch even farther so keep an eye out for that!

Here’s the breakdown:

Let’s try it on this deal for Morton’s SeasonALL. The Swagbucks offer is to buy 2 get 400 SB ($4). It must be purchased at Walmart.

• Buy 2 Morton’s SeasonALL for $1.62 each. Check on the Walmart.com app before going to the store to make sure they are in stock!
• Submit your receipt to the Swagbucks app to receive $4 back making this deal a $.76 moneymaker!

Let’s try another deal and combine it with an Ibotta rebate.

• Buy 2 Lemishine Dishwasher Cleaner for $6.97 each. This rebate is also only available at Walmart–don’t forget to check the app for availability first!
• Submit your receipt to Swagbucks for $5 back.
• Submit your receipt to Ibotta for $3.50 back for each pack.
• Your total cost for both packs is $1.94.

I just did a Lemishine dishwasher detergent tabs deal using Swagbucks and Ibotta, but didn’t think to take screenshots before redeeming my offers so I don’t have them to show you. I got 3 packs of the dish tabs for $3.97 each. I had an offer for $5 back on SB and it also credited me for an additional $1.50! Next, I submitted my receipt to Ibotta for $2 back for each pack. I made $.59 on these! I’ve seen this offer a bunch of times since I downloaded the app a few months ago and have taken advantage of it every time. I haven’t paid for dishwasher detergent in months and that makes me ridiculously happy.

Other things I’ve scored from SB for free or super cheap? Method hand soap, chocolate bars, Alba shampoo and conditioner, Green Giant frozen vegetables, kid’s toothpaste, Gillette deodorant, and Colgate toothpaste, and Secret deodorant.

Swagbucks Tips:

• It’s only a few cents, but SB always has offers for any brand of produce. Right now, I have rebates for broccoli, potatoes, carrots, lemons, tomatoes, and more. Add them to your list and submit your receipt!

• Inbox Dollars is the exact same app as Swagbucks and typically has the same offers! You can do the same deals on both apps, but you must purchase the deals twice and they need to be on separate receipts. You cannot submit the same receipt to both apps.
• If you like playing games on your smartphone, go to the Discover section and look through the game offers. I’ve earned over $50 by getting to a set level in x amount of time. I google the name of the game and Swagbucks and Reddit has advice for how to beat the game before your offer runs out.
• Download the extension on your computer. The extension will pop up with offers if the site you are on has anything available on Swagbucks. I used SB to get $17.50 back on my first Fabletics purchase and I can’t get over what a great deal it made my new biker shorts. Cheaper than shopping at Target!

Since I started couponing earlier this year, I’ve been able to donate personal care items to our local Children’s Home and be generous with friends and family. I love being able to pass along things I know my siblings and parents use and chances are if you come to my house, I’m sending you home with toothpaste.

Looking for more ways to save? Check out these posts on how to use Ibotta, Shopkick, and Coupons.com to save hundreds of dollars. Ibotta has tons of bonuses right now so if you haven’t downloaded the app, now is the time. In the last two days, I’ve earned an extra $10 in bonuses! Are there any apps I’m missing out on? I’ve got a couple more store and rebate apps to share with you so stay tuned for a few more posts!

Hey everyone! This is Chelsea, Steph’s assistant, back with another amazing rebate app that will save you $100s of dollars on groceries, household products, medicine, beauty, and personal care items. I started using this app in March and have already received $442.28 back through Paypal! If you missed last week’s post about Shopkick, check that out here!

Have you ever heard of Ibotta? If you haven’t it’s about to become your new best friend. Seriously.

Here’s how it works:

Ibotta is a rebate app. Scroll through the available rebates. You can look by store or you can type in what you’re looking for. You could keep it generic with “yogurt” or look for a specific brand like “Chobani.” I tend to get most of my deals at Target, CVS, and Walmart so I usually select those stores and look through the deals offered there.

The rebates are organized by category. I typically look through, “Best Value,” “What’s New” and “Any Offer.” Best Value is the highest-value coupons, labeled “50% off” or “free after rebate.” I’ve gotten totally free Core bars, Perfect Peanut Butter Cups and Bars, an 8 pack of Yoplait yogurt (twice!), cereal, Sabra Hummus, Laughing Cow Cheese Spread, Baby Bell Cheese, McCormick spices, crackers, and more. The What’s New section highlights recently added offers. The Any Offer section shows rebates that are not brand specific and will apply to any type or variety. There’s currently $.10 back on any sparkling water which I’m going to use–we drink a lot of sparkling water in my house.

To add an offer to redeem, simply click the plus sign after clicking on the offer. Once the plus sign turns to a green check mark, you have it ready to redeem after purchasing.

At the store, find your offer that matches. Make sure the offer is eligible with your store by scrolling down to see the store icons where the item can be redeemed. Then click the button that says Check Product Barcode and scan the item to ensure it’s eligible. I made the mistake in March of not scanning the products in-store and bought a few things that did not actually qualify for the rebate.

Once you redeem a rebate, it disappears from your gallery. It may come back again, but it will be gone for a few days until it resets. Don’t expect to go to all the stores the offer is available in and buy it multiple times. If the rebate is for $3.50, but the item only costs $3.00, it will refund you the full rebate and you’ll make $.50 profit on the item!

On the offer, it will tell you how many of the item you can redeem. A common limit is 5 items. That means you could buy the item up to 5 times on one receipt and get the rebate back 5 times. Pay attention because some offers will say must by 2 to receive the rebate. If no limit is listed, that means it is only eligible for one rebate.

One of my favorite features of the pap is the Earn More section. You can get bonuses for buying a certain amount. Check out this limitless bonus: buy 4 and get a $.75 bonus.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Buy 4 Limitless Sparkling Waters for $3.38 each
• Redeem 1 rebate for $3.99
• Redeem the $2.00 rebate 3 times
• Redeem the $.10 off any sparkling water 1 time
• Receive the $.75 bonus for buying 4
• Total cost for 4=$13.52
• Money back from rebate: $8.83
• Final cost for ALL 4 cases: $2.68!

Ibotta helps you maximize your savings with weekly bonuses. On Mondays, check your account for a Mid-Week Money Maker Bonus. Last week, I had a $3 bonus if I redeemed 15 unique offers in 3 days. Looking at the Limitless offer I just shared, I would get 2 offers counted towards my bonus: one for limitless and one for any offer sparkling water. On Fridays, Ibotta releases a Weekend Warrior bonus where you also have 3 days to redeem a certain amount of offers. You are not guaranteed to get these bonuses and they vary by account.

I’ve got an awesome bonus right now for $10 if I redeem 30 offers by the end of the month. Bonuses stack so if I had a Mid-Week Money Maker Bonus, any offer I redeemed would count towards both bonuses. Ibotta randomly gives out bonuses throughout the month so check your app often to see what you have available!

Here’s the very best part: you can combine Ibotta with other savings!!! You can use paper coupons, Shopkick, printable coupons, digital coupons on store apps, and other rebate apps to stack your savings! This is how I often get products for free or a moneymaker. Last week, I got two packs of Compeed blister bandaids from CVS ($11 each) and MADE $3 total! My daughter refuses to wear socks and always winds up with blisters and these band-aids are a game-changer! I was introduced to them through Ibotta and am so glad I found them!

If you have an issue with a rebate, you can submit a help ticket using this link and customer service is great about adding the rebate to your account. Just google Ibotta ticket and the form will come up as the first hit.

Ibotta Tips:

• ALWAYS scan the item in-store to make sure it qualifies for the rebate.
• Make sure you have the offer selected by clicking the plus sign.
• ***Check the store app when possible to make sure they carry the product. I always check Walmart and Target on my app before heading to the store so I don’t waste my time looking for something they don’t have.
• Scan your receipt right after checking out so you can ensure all of your rebates worked. If I make an expensive mistake, I’ll return the item before leaving.
• Keep an eye on offer expirations so you don’t miss them!
• Wait for your bonuses to appear on the app before redeeming offers so they credit towards your bonus count. Maximize your rebates!
• Maximize your savings by using paper coupons, digital coupons, and other rebate apps.
• DON’T link your store accounts (like Target account). The rebates take days to get into our account compared to when you just upload your receipt right away.
• Follow coupon accounts on Instagram. They do the work for you and share all the best rebates so you don’t have to spend tons of time searching. My favorites are torok.coupon.hunter, Bree The Coupon Queen, Couponing With Kayla, Coupon Wins with Lins, and Coupons With Alysia.

Get started with Ibotta today using my code: kbkeyed You’ll join my team and we’ll work toward monthly bonuses together!

Let me know if you download the app or have any questions. I’m happy to help! Go get those savings!