Online shopping has taken off over the last decade. It’s now commonplace to order everything from groceries and household items to luxury goods with a couple of clicks. If you look in the right places, you can find anything online. If you want vintage glassware or designer bags, the internet has you covered. Exotic fruits will be delivered right to your door after you order them online.
All that to say, there are a lot of people who share a love of online shopping, and plenty of them also care about saving money. Fortunately, you can do both at the same time. Below, you’ll find a list of websites, money-saving apps, and extensions that help you make the most of your money (and leave some in your bank account). Keep these money-saving tips in mind before you start shopping online next time!
Groupon
Groupon is dedicated to the idea of pairing savings with experiences. With this online deals site, you can score deals on white water rafting, save at your favorite restaurant, book a spa day, or even get a discounted oil change, all on Groupon.
This site scores extra points for keeping its deals location-specific, so you’re not stuck seeing the great savings you could get if you lived a hundred miles away. Just put in your city or zip code and you’ll see offers from businesses near you, so you can enjoy your deal right away or browse for something fun to do on your next vacation. With this site, you can book packages or just pick up some heavily discounted gift cards, depending on the offer. How does 40% off a gift card to your favorite coffee shop sound? You might just find it on Groupon and practically double your money! That's great news for your checking account.
Amazon
Amazon has its fingers in nearly every pie at this point. This retail giant started mostly as a bookseller, but now you can get medication, groceries, clothes, home decor, electronics, and…well, everything (including books).
Amazon’s success largely comes from its low prices, and you can count on some mega sales to pop up throughout the year. Prime Day, which happens once a year, offers deep discounts on a bounty of items. There's no need to worry about special coupon codes or hacks. The deals are offered upfront, but there might be a limited amount of items. It pays to move quickly!
Comrade
Of course, we're not going to talk about money-saving websites without mentioning the Comrade browser extension. Comrade is compatible with most major browsers, including Chrome, Firefox, and Edge, and it's completely free to sign up.
All you need to do is head over to the website and create your free account. From there, install the browser extension and start shopping. Comrade gives you recommendations from partnered brands as you stop, so anything you see will be relevant to what you're looking for. It's a way to help you save money on the things you're already interested in. But that's not all Comrade does! Any time you interact with one of the recommendations, you'll instantly get cash back. The heart and purpose of Comrade is making sure you get a slice of the marketing pie, so our partnered brands pay you for your attention every time.
Once you've earned enough, you can use the money however you like. Send it to a savings account or checking account or just keep the shopping fun going.
RetailMeNot.com
If you've ever looked for coupon codes while you're trying to save money online, you've probably stumbled across RetailMeNot.com. The website offers discount codes and coupon codes for tens of thousands of different stores. They're easy to paste into the checkout as you're shopping, but you can also use many of the codes in person! If you're looking to spend money, don't do it before checking RetailMeNot.com first.
The site also has a free app, so you can take the discounts wherever you go.
Chime
Sometimes, saving money starts with the account itself. Many banks charge a wide range of different fees, and each one of them eats into your hard-earned money. There are a few places doing things different, like Chime.
Chime is a financial technology company, first and foremost. It's not a bank in the traditional sense, but it presents an excellent opportunity to take control of your personal finance issues, build credit, and keep your money safe while you spend. Chime works alongside local banks and its users to offer financial products, like a free Chime debit card, savings accounts, and checking accounts. With Chime, you won't pay:
- Monthly Fees
- Overdraft Fees
- Service Fees
- ATM Fees
- Minimum Balance Fees
- Foreign Transaction Fees
There's no minimum balance required to hold your Chime savings account (or checking) and no credit check needed for their credit builder credit card.
Mint
Mint is primarily a budgeting app. It lets you track create a personal budget, track your bills, and more. With Mint, you'll have a complete picture of your personal finances all in one place, which means you can shop smarter and make sure all your bills are paid on time. Even though Mint is all about keeping a handle on your budget and expenses, that makes it a top money saving app! After all, you can't save if you don't know how much you have to spend in the first place. Good budgeting is a major component of shopping smart.
Among Mint's many offerings are:
- Custom budgets
- Mintsights (personalized recommendations for saving and spending)
- Free credit score
- Bill tracker and alerts
- Investment tracking
- And more!
Ibotta
Ibotta is all about those receipts, and it's one of the best money-saving apps around. The basic premise is that you create your account, choose the store where you mean to shop (either online or in person) and select any applicable deals. Once you complete your shopping trip and scan in the receipt, you'll instantly earn cash! When you shop online, Ibotta automatically recognizes the savings and puts the money into your account. When you hit $20 of savings, you can cash out or use it to purchase free gift cards to hundreds of different retailers!
There's some solid competition to Ibotta, including Fetch, Rakuten, Dosh, Checkout51, and several others. Don't be shy about creating accounts on different platforms to get the most out of your receipts and cashback opportunities! The more you save, the more you earn.
Final Thoughts
Saving money online can be as easy as a few clicks. Sometimes it's accomplished by finding the perfect coupon code or catching half off your favorite restaurant for the next three hours, but you might find that you save more by getting your spending habits under control and managing your budget. Whether you're looking to manage money a bit better or just avoid paying full price for anything, there's a site or an app out there to help you do it.
So go on - treat yourself to your favorite stores. Just don't do it without a good promo code, a discounted gift card, or having the Comrade browser extension installed while you shop! Make your money (and shopping habits) work for you!