If you’re going to buy something online, wouldn’t it be nice if you could get a little cash back?

Ebates is a program that I have been meaning to write about for quite some time. It’s a shopping portal with links to a wide variety of stores, and when you use their links, you will get a percentage back on your purchase. It works because Ebates has deals with the merchants–they get paid something for sending you to the store and they give part of that fee to you to keep you using their site. You’ll get an email from Ebates a few days after your order, telling you how much has credited to your account. They send checks four times a year, as long as your balance is over $5. The money in your account doesn’t expire, though, so if your balance isn’t high enough, you can still get your money eventually, when you’ve done a little more shopping.

Yes, this really works and no, it isn’t a scam. I have received about $60 in total back from Ebates over the past six years, and I’m just a casual user. I kind of forgot about the account for the first couple of years. Now I am pretty good about using it, or a similar service (there are other companies that I will talk about later) whenever I shop online.

I am using it quite a lot these days because you can click through to eBay and get 2% back.  I buy almost all of the coupons I order from eBay, so it really works out well. Coupon auctions go for very little money, usually just a dollar or two, so I might only get two or four cents per click through, but it adds up faster than you’d think. It’s something I’d be ordering with or without Ebates so it’s pretty much free money.

And, even better!  When you sign up, you’ll get a $5 bonus in your new account!

Earning money for shopping… that is pretty much one of my favorite things!