With inflation at its highest level in four decades, saving money by any means is a top priority. Coupon apps are one way to ensure you get the best deal with every purchase, whether it’s online or in store.
No matter what products you buy, there is often a coupon to help you save your hard-earned dollars. What’s more, gone are the days when you cut out paper coupons and dragged them around with you from store to store. If you have a smartphone in your pocket, there is an app (or apps) for that!
Here are some of the best coupon apps available to help you save money when you need it most.
Best Coupon Apps for 2022
While there are dozens of coupon apps, some are better than others and some only work for certain types of purchases. For example, some apps work exclusively in grocery stores, while others offer coupons for a wide variety of retailers. Also, some apps can be set and forgotten, while others require you to review and select coupon offers before purchasing.
Everyone’s shopping habits are different, so the apps that work best for you may not be the ones that work for someone else. While you won’t be making windfall every month with these apps, you can realistically expect to save a few hundred dollars over the course of a year.
Before we get into the details, here are some of our top picks for various categories.
- Best grocery coupon app: Ibotta
- Best for online shopping: Rakuten
- Best for Restaurants: Dosh
- Best coupon printing app: Coupons.com
- Best Automated Savings App: Honey
1. Rakuten
Rakuten is one of the oldest, largest, and best cash back apps that has paid out over $2 billion to its 15 million members since 1999.
Rakuten allows you to earn up to 40% cashback on purchases at thousands of retail stores, although savings are typically 1-3%. They partner with many famous brands such as Target, Lowe’s, Kohl’s, Best Buy and many more.
Sounds too good to be true? Rakuten receives a commission for sending orders to these retailers, and in return they offer their members a portion of that amount as a cashback. Once a quarter, Rakuten gives you a “big fat check” via Paypal or a paper check in the mail with your income.
How it works: Download the Rakuten app and create a free account. When you make in-app purchases or use the Rakuten browser extension, you will be rewarded with cash back to your Rakuten account with every purchase from one of their many retailers.
How to cash out: Rakuten makes it easy to collect your earnings. You get paid by check or Paypal once a quarter and can check your balance and watch it grow.
2. Honey
Honey is a browser extension for Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Opera that automatically scours the web for the best coupon codes available to apply in your shopping cart. Honey saves a lot of time compared to the traditional tedious searching for coupon codes online only to enter them and find out they are expired or not working.
According to their website, Honey members save an average of $126 per year from over 30,000 participating merchants. This app is a no-brainer if you do any online shopping at all as it runs in the background to save you money without requiring you to do anything.
How it works: Install the Honey browser extension, relax and save money. Honey will automatically notify you of promo codes on the checkout page and apply them to your cart for instant savings.
How to cash out: Since the browser extension looks for and applies coupon codes, there is no balance to track or points to redeem. You save money on every order you place when Honey finds a valid coupon code.
3. Dosh
The Dosh app offers over 10,000 cashback locations and is one of the easiest apps to use. No receipts to scan or digital coupons to clip. Connect your credit or debit card to the app and shop at your favorite stores and restaurants. You can get up to 10% cashback credited directly to your Dosh wallet.
Unlike many apps on the list, Dosh offers discounts at many local restaurants. The Dosh app even has a map showing nearby places where you can get your money back. If you are shopping online, things are not so automatic. Just be sure to start on the Dosh app and go to the merchant to get your suggested refund amount.
How it works: Download the app, connect your credit or debit card, and Dosh does the rest. Shop at the store and eat at local restaurants, and get automatic refunds to your Dosh wallet when you use a connected payment method.
How to cash out: Once you’ve saved $25, you can cash out using bank transfer, Paypal, or Venmo.
4. Ibotta
While Ibotta has expanded into other cashback options, its claim to fame is to offer virtual product coupons. Since its founding in 2012, Ibotta has paid out over $1 billion in cash rewards to its 35 million users.
You can view digital coupons for hundreds of staples and save money on every purchase with the app. What I like most about Ibotta is that they even offer coupons for non branded products like 25 cents on any brand of milk or 50 cents on any meat purchase. They even offer coupons just for scanning receipts. Ibotta is also one of the best signup bonus apps, offering a generous $20 just for creating an account and using the offers.
Ibotta also does grocery delivery and has exclusive deals with brands like Walmart and Shipt.
How it works: Download the app, select your store, and then add coupon offers for the items you plan to buy. After you have finished shopping, take a photo of the receipt in the app and the cashback will be applied automatically.
How to cash out: Once you have at least $20 in your balance, you can cash out your savings via Paypal, gift cards, or transfer directly to your bank account.
5. Get
Fetch is similar to Ibotta, but it’s even easier to use to save money on grocery or retail purchases. No need to select coupons in advance, just complete your shopping trip, scan your receipt and Fetch will give you points on any purchase from over 250 participating brands.
You can also link your online accounts to Amazon, Target, Home Depot, and more and earn points for your online orders—no receipt scanning required.
How it works: Download the free app, shop at your favorite stores, and take a picture of your receipt in the app. Fetch does the rest by matching the items on your receipt with coupons and deals from the respective brands. You can also connect your online accounts to earn rewards for shopping at many online stores.
How to cash out: You can cash out as little as 3,000 points (worth $3) to gift cards from many major brands, including Amazon, Chipotle, Lowe’s, and more.
6. Purpose
If you shop at Target as often as we do, you can take advantage of exclusive Cartwheel deals and coupons offered in the Target app. Then multiply your savings with the Target REDcard, which gives you 5% cash back in store and online, plus free shipping.
Browse the Cartwheel section and add them to your list to see current offers. When you pay, scan the barcode at the checkout and the coupon will be applied to your receipt. While the Cartwheel is primarily used for in-store purchases, you can save money on online purchases if you pick them up at the store.
How it works: In the Target app, browse the Cartwheel coupon offers and select the ones you want to use. Scan the barcode at checkout and the discount will be applied. You can also sign up for a Target REDcard (debit or credit) to save an additional 5% on every Target purchase and get free shipping.
How to cash out: Your savings are automatically applied to every purchase, so there’s no need to keep track of your balance or minimum cash out requirements.
7. Coupons.com
Do you still like the feeling of paper in your hand? Coupons.com offers a wide variety of printable coupons to take with you to the store to save money on everyday purchases. The advantage of Coupons.com lies in the wide range of offers of almost any branded products, including food, household items, medical services, and even pet products.
There is also a Coupons.com mobile app that allows you to get cash back on qualifying purchases and links different loyalty program accounts so you can track them all in one place. You can also apply digital coupons to your loyalty accounts to use in the store.
How it works: Browse Coupons.com online to view available deals and print coupons. You can also download the app to earn extra cashback and connect your store’s loyalty programs.
How to cash out: You can cash out at any time through the mobile app; no minimums are required.
Best Coupon Apps – The Final Word
If the idea of ”cutting coupons” gives you goosebumps, these seven apps can help you take full advantage of coupons without having to spend your Sunday afternoon with scissors and a newspaper. While these coupon apps won’t make you a millionaire overnight, they can be a practical part-time job from home, helping you put extra money back into your pocket every month.
This post originally appeared on Hello Reasonable
