Start with a rewards credit card and from there look for special rebates through your bank, extra savings when you shop proprietary portals, bonus programs with a given retailer and more. There are so many ways you can save money online, it’s dizzying. Take a look at this list of strategies you may want to try.
Obviously, we’ll mention a rewards credit card at the start. One percent off anything is nice, but if you can get, say, 3% or 5% off a product right from the get-go, that’s real money you’re saving.
But if you use a rewards credit card and try some of these strategies as well, you really will start to feel like you’re making out like a bandit. So when you use your credit card, also try the following…
Shop through a website that offers cash back. Browse sites like Rakuten or RetailMeNot.com, so that you’re getting cash back from the websites you want to shop in addition to earning rewards on the credit card you’re using.
Shop with your bank’s proprietary shopping portal. It’s also worth noting that most major banks’ credit cards have shopping portals, like Capital One with its CapitalOneShopping.com website. You load it onto your desktop, device or phone, and it’ll look for discounts and coupons anywhere you shop online. Sometimes these portals offer you bonus rewards when you click through the bank’s site to get to your retailer of choice, like earning 5% back on your GAP purchase instead of just the 1% your credit card would normally offer. Other times they offer a percentage of cash-back, normally applied as a statement credit or deposit to your account, when you use your card with a particular retailer either online or in-person. The bottom line is there are lots of ways you can boost your rewards earning or save money when shopping with a credit card online or otherwise.
Search for promo codes online. It’s easy to have your rewards credit card and think, “Great. I’m saving money, and I’m done,” but don’t forget the promo codes. When you’re ordering food especially, restaurants often seem to have promo codes – but so do many specialty online stores. It’s a worth a try. A quick Google search may turn something up.
Remember coupons. You know, old-fashioned coupons. You don’t have to just clip them out of the newspapers, though. There are also plenty of coupon websites, like Coupons.com or TheKrazyCouponLady.com that can help you save money when you shop online or in-person.
Look for deals. It’s also an old-fashioned shopping strategy but one that should never go out of style. Bargain hunt. As we said, “It’s easy to get that rewards credit card and figure you’ve done your part to save,” but the goal should be – find the lowest price, and then get it even lower with your rewards credit card. You don’t want to get a rewards credit card and suddenly stop shopping strategically. So look for the best sales and discounts – and utilize technology if you can. For instance, CamelCamelCamel.com is a price tracking website that focuses on finding the best Amazon deals. You pair the CamelCamelCamel website with an Amazon-branded credit card, and you really could save a ton of money. Other tracking price websites to look at include PriceGrabber.com and Google Shopping.
Use more than one rewards credit card. This, too, is important to remember. You may have one credit card that offers you the most rewards with groceries and gas – and then have another card that offers you the most rewards with department stores. If you have two or three or more credit cards that offer rewards in a variety of categories, you may be able to maximize your savings. Just remember, of course, to always pay back everything in full every month. It does you no good to spend a lot of time maximizing your savings, only to waste it by paying additional interest.