There is so much innovation happening with financial technology making it easier than ever to save, invest and understand where our money is going. The rise of the FinTech industry is still in its infancy and there are even better apps and solutions on the horizon. What technology is really good at is taking in lots of data and identifying opportunities. There are a number of apps that can help us save money either before we hit the buy button or even after we’ve completed a purchase by watching for sales and rebates.
But like most things in life, there is a trade-off. In order to take full advantage of most of the savings apps that are out there, we have to give them data about ourselves. Some require us to link an account or credit card, while others need access to our email to scan for receipts. And we have to assume that they are paying attention to what we are buying which is incredibly helpful to build a profile about what we like and don’t like. For some of you, saving some extra cash isn’t worth giving up this information about yourself. I totally get it and respect it. If you are all about saving money, you may happily make this trade off. Either way, I encourage you to read the privacy statements and legal disclosures so you know what they are and aren’t doing with your information.
Here are 4 apps that can help you save fast!
Honey
Honey is a browser extension that you download and enable on your web browser like Google Chrome or Safari if you use a Mac. When you enable Honey, it searches millions of known discount codes for over 40,000 websites, including Amazon. If Honey finds a discount or coupon for the site you are shopping on, you will get a pop up with the offers it found and can click “Apply Coupon” to get your best deal at checkout. If you’ve already found the best price or deal, it tells you that too so you don’t have to worry about missing out or having any buyers remorse. Just a few of those 40,000 websites that Honey has discounts for include J. Crew, Lowe’s, Adidas, Stubhub, Ulta, Target, Nike and Amazon.
A newer feature is Honey Gold that is a rewards program. When you shop at Honey’s 5000 participating stores, you earn Gold Coins as a percentage of your purchase. It is like Honey’s version of cash back. You can take your Gold and redeem if for gift cards to Amazon, Walmart, Target, Ebay and a bunch of other great places to shop. Just remember, don’t buy things you need just to get gold or take advantage of finding a coupon. That impulsive buying can set us back in achieving our money goals. Stay calm and on track!
Ibotta
We all have to buy stuff…groceries, clothes, maybe lunch for a friend. Sometimes that happens online. Other times you are in a store. The cool thing is now we have apps like Ibotta that can help us earn cash back when we go about our lives making every day purchases either online or in person. Like Honey, Ibotta has a browser extension that you can download for purchasing things online at home. But it doesn’t stop there. When you are on the go, you can use the mobile app to buy online or pay in store if you link a credit card. Don’t want to link a card? No problem, you can always submit a picture of your receipt from the 400+ retailers that accept Ibotta to get your cash back reward.
With over 35 million users, Ibotta has paid out over $600 million in cash rewards since they launched in 2012. They have a ton of partners from grocery store chains like Whole Foods, Kroger and Walmart, pharmacies including Walgreen and CVS and tons of retailers for clothes, makeup and food. You can even get money back on your booze! Stores like Total Wine and BevMo are partners when you buy a pinot or a porter.
All in, over 500,000 locations accept Ibotta and that number continues to grow. It’s super simple to start saving today.
Paribus
See if this sounds familiar. You do some research before you buy something online. Maybe you wait a week or two checking different sites for the best price, and then you finally pull the trigger only to have the price drop the next day. Super frustrating. Well, there is an app for that now.
Paribus not only helps you learn when the price drops on a recent purchase but it files a digital claim on your behalf. Here’s how it works. You give Paribus access to your email and it scans your emailed receipts for purchases. If something you bought goes on sale, it sends the claim to get a refund.
My wife and I just bought a new car seat for $200 from Amazon for baby number 2 that is on the way. When we did that, we got an email from Amazon with the receipt. With Paribus, it will see that purchase and track that item for price drops. So let’s say the price drops to $180, Paribus will file the claim with Amazon to get the money back. The refund gets applied back to your credit card linked to the app.
Paribus works with about 30 large retailers including Amazon and Target. The app can do additional things like track the different return policies at each retailer and let you know the drop dead date to send something back for a refund and it tracks late deliveries. This is especially helpful for Amazon purchases that don’t arrive on time. Paribus will file a claim and get you a money back for the late arrival.
Paribus is owned by Capital One which may make you think twice about signing up and giving a bank access to your email. They go out of their way to say they only scan for receipts for purchases and with over 2.5 Million users it is super legit. Just make sure you know what you are signing up for before registering.
Drop
Like Ibotta, Drop gives you the option to shop through their app to earn points. But it works a little differently. You pick the 5 stores or brands you visit the most or where you spend the most. When you make your everyday purchases with your 5, you earn reward points which can be redeemed for gift cards at popular destinations like Amazon, Starbucks and Netflix.
You don’t have to scan barcodes, take pictures of receipts or track promo codes which makes it really easy to use. Also the rewards get credited immediately which isn’t the case with other solutions. One of the drawbacks is this is an app that requires you to link a debit or credit card. It is easy to do and they have the bank-grade security you would expect, but I understand when people are hesitant to add another app where their credit card is linked and could get exposed. A nice bonus feature of Drop is you can use the invite code “SAVVY” to get a 5000 point bonus which is about $5 just for registering.
One last thing on Drop. They have special offers all the time to earn points outside of your 5 merchants. These vary from reward boosts for every $1 you spend or a deal like earn 10,000 points when you spend $40 or more at Adidas. It is always changing which is smart to keep you coming back to the app.
The number of apps will continue to grow as the technology gets better and more retailers realize how important these relationships can be for their business. And as new solutions are created that help you save, Calm Cash will let you know!
Remember that every dollar counts towards meeting your money goals. I hope one or a couple of these apps can help you find more cash. If you like any of these, let me know by shooting me an email at ben@calm.cash. Until next time, here’s to a happier life and healthier wallet.