BeFrugal Review: A Legit (But Mediocre) Cashback Site
If befrugal review legit but is on your radar, this short guide cuts through the noise. Here is what is worth knowing, and how to put it to work today.
Key Takeaways
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- I’ve been a member of BeFrugal since 2017.
I’ve been a member of BeFrugal since 2017. Over the years, I’ve always used cash-back sites for online shopping, constantly comparing the top platforms to maximize my savings.
Despite some decent features, it’s been a while since I’ve used BeFrugal for an online purchase. In this review, I’ll discuss its features, explore its weaknesses, and explain why there are better alternatives out there.
4/5BeFrugal is a reliable cash-back portal with a large database of retailers. However, its cash-back rates are average, and while its "best rate" guarantee promises 125% of other sites' cash-back, the extra effort required to get that guaranteed rate may not be worth it (especially for small purchases).
BeFrugal does offer some advantages, such as the fact that you can cash out with Zelle and Venmo starting at 1 cent, and there are bonuses for gift card cash-outs. The platform can automatically apply coupon codes when shopping online, and new users get a $10 sign-up bonus after earning $10 in cash-back.
Verdict: It’s worth earning the sign-up bonus when you can easily reach the $10 minimum earnings on one purchase. However, it’s not a site I'd go out of my way to use exclusively.
Alternatives: If you're going to use one cash-back site exclusively, we recommend Rakuten as it consistently has better than average cash-back rates, and we've never had an issue with their tracking. We also love Capital One Shopping for coupons and exclusive deals, which frequently result in best-in-class rates. Additionally, sites like Swagbucks, which allow cash-back shopping and rewards, are excellent if you want to go from just making some cash-back while shopping to earning a bit of side income on top of your shopping rewards.
Pros:- Has a "best rate" guarantee that will pay you 125% of the cash-back offered by other sites.
- Offers multiple options to cash out (including PayPal, Venmo, Zelle and gift cards).
- Has a $10 "refer a friend" program.
- You can only use the "best rate" guarantee once at each merchant.
- The browser extension sometimes fails to alert you when a website offers cash-back.
- Very few opportunities to earn outside of cash-back shopping.
Table of Contents
ToggleHow BeFrugal Works
BeFrugal is free to join and use.
Once you’re signed up, BeFrugal says you can earn up to 40% cash-back at more than 5,000 stores, including big retailers like Amazon, Target, and Walmart (more on the specific cash-back rates below).
You earn this money because online retailers give BeFrugal a commission for driving shoppers to their website. BeFrugal then gives you a share of that commission.
If you’re new to cash-back shopping, what’s going on behind the scenes is that when you visit a website through BeFrugal or via their browser extension, the site or extension uses tracking technology to monitor your purchase activity.
Once the purchase is complete, your share of the commission typically appears as “pending” in your BeFrugal account. The retailer may need to verify the purchase before paying the commission to BeFrugal.
Once the retailer pays BeFrugal for the referral, which typically happens after the return period is over, BeFrugal will update the status of the commission in your account to “available.” At this point, you can request payment and the money will be transferred to your designated payment method.
It’s worth noting that while BeFrugal does track your purchases, the site does not sell or share your personal information with third parties.
Can You Really Earn Up to 40% Cash-Back?
Up to 40% cash-back sounds like a crazy promise. And, to be candid, it’s a bit misleading.
You’re not likely to find numerous opportunities to earn 40% on the site, and when you do, they won’t be for the retailers you’re most likely to shop with.
The 40% figure represents the absolute upper end of the cash-back rates offered on BeFrugal, and is typically only available for products and services like subscription boxes and software licenses (antivirus programs, VPNs, etc.).
As with most other cash-back sites, the most you’ll score with major retailers tends to top out at around 10%, and is typically between 2% and 18%.
As an example, here’s a snapshot of BeFrugal’s cash-back rates for a few popular merchants, compared to top competitors like TopCashback, Swagbucks and Rakuten. (This data was collected on August 7, 2024)
BeFrugalTopCashbackSwagbucksRakutenBest BuyUp to 5.5%2%Up to 10%Up to 1%Home DepotUp to 12%Up to 12.12%Up to 1%NoneWalmartUp to 15%Up to 3%Up to 1%Up to 2%As you can see, the rates of the main sites listed above tend to be in the same general ballpark, with a few percentage points of difference between them.
When the table above says “Up to,” that’s because the highest cash-back rates for that particular merchant are only available within certain categories. For example, with BeFrugal, you can get 4% back at Walmart on pet supply purchases but only 2% on electronics.
Not all stores have separate rates for specific categories, but if they do, BeFrugal displays them on the merchant page of the specific retailer.
What Is Bonus Cash?
To get the most cash-back possible, take advantage of BeFrugal’s Bonus Cash offers. These limited-time promotional rates pay more than the site’s “regular” rates.
The site has a dedicated section for Bonus Cash offers. You’ll see a list of featured offers at the top of the Bonus Cash page:
Final Thoughts
Before you check out, double-check befrugal review legit but against current offers and any coupons you can stack. Small habits like this add up to real savings over a year.
Originally published at thewaystowealth.com.
R.J. Weiss
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