10 Grocery Apps that Will Save You Money

This past year I finally upgraded my basic cell phone to a smart phone. I know, I’m a little behind the times, but I couldn’t bring myself to pay more money for a data plan. After doing a lot of research, we finally found a cell phone carrier and data plan that was within the price range we were willing to pay, and that included being able to upgrade my phone to a smart phone. And I will say that I have loved it.

So now that I have a smart phone, I’ve been researching smartphone apps to find more ways to save money on groceries. These grocery apps have eCoupons or pay you money for purchasing groceries such dairy, produce, household items and more. I love saving money with eCoupons and earning money for products that I’m already planning on purchasing. And it’s nice that you don’t even have to hand clip a coupon. I have downloaded and used all of the apps, and the ones I use the most are Ibotta, Checkout51, Snap by Groupon, SavingStar and Savings Catcher. I enjoy sharing money saving tips, so I thought I’d share with you these 10 grocery apps that will save you money.

1. Ibotta

Ibotta is a smartphone app where you can earn money by purchasing participating products. Ibotta’s product offers range from food and beverages to cleaning products, personal care and more.  Here’s how it works:

• Register for an account, then download the Ibotta app to your phone.
• Before you head to the grocery store, unlock Ibotta’s cash back rewards on products by completing simple tasks such as a survey question or watching a short video. The amount of cash back from each product ranges anywhere between $0.25 to $1.00 or more.
• Head to a store on Ibotta’s list such as Walmart, Smith’s, Walgreens, Target and more to purchase the products you’ve unlocked.
• Verify your purchases by scanning the product barcodes, then finish by scanning the barcode on your receipt.
• Within 48 hours, you’ll have the cash deposited into your Ibotta account, and you can cash out via Paypal or an eGift Card once your account reaches $10.

In addition, Ibotta has a Teamwork Bonus, which is a monthly bonus where you and your friends work together to earn more money. Your team will consist of your friends on Ibotta who have connected their Facebook accounts to the app. And the more friends you have on your team, the faster you will earn. Each month, your team will be given a total earnings goal. Once you redeem one rebate and your team reaches the monthly goal, everyone on your team will earn a cash bonus. Join my team here.

By using Ibotta, I’ve received cash back on purchases at the grocery store such as any brand of milk, eggs, bread, produce, cleaning products & more. And it’s nice to earn money on items I am already planning to buy. Plus, you can use coupons at the store in addition to Ibotta’s cash back rewards. Ibotta started out by focusing on groceries, but it now has expanded to retail, restaurants, electronics, home and office, and more.

2. Checkout51

Checkout51 is similar to Ibotta and is a cash back app that saves you money on your groceries. Every Thursday morning, they have new offers available for only one week, and you need to redeem the offers during this time. By Wednesday night, the offers expire. You can download the Checkout51 app on your smartphone, but it is also possible to do everything on a laptop or desktop. Here’s how to use it:

• Register for an account, then download the Checkout51 app on your phone.
• Browse through the offers before you go shopping, then head to any local store to purchase the items.
• After you purchase the items, take a picture of your entire receipt and submit it to Checkout51 before the offer expires on Wednesday.
• Within 48 hours, your account will be credited for the qualified cash back purchases. Once your account reaches $20, you can request a payment via check.

You can stack these Checkout51 savings with coupons and digital coupons, as well as Ibotta cash back offers.

3. Snap by Groupon

Snap by Groupon is similar to Ibotta and Checkout51 and gives you cash back on everyday grocery purchases. You just buy promoted products at any store and snap a photo of your receipt to get cash in your account. Here’s how it works:

• Register for a Snap by Groupon account, then download the Snap by Groupon app to your phone. It’s available from both iTunes and Android. Snap by Groupon can also be used on desktop or laptop computer.
• Browse through the offers that are available to you. Some offers can only be redeemed once and others have unlimited redemptions, so make sure to read the fine print. Many offers will have a maximum number of uses attached to them, so it’s best to redeem an offer as quickly as you can. Expired offers will either no longer be visible or will be marked as “All Gone.”
• Purchase items from your list of offers at any store.
• Snap a photo of your entire receipt and upload it using the app or website. Make sure to do this within 2 days of making your purchases.
• Within 48 hours, your account will be credited. And once your account reaches $20, you can request to be paid. Payments are usually distributed within 2 weeks, but can take up to 60 days.

4. Savings Catcher

If you shop at Walmart, then you’ll want to download the Savings Catcher app. The Savings Catcher compares your receipt to advertised prices from top stores in your area, and if it finds a lower advertised price, you get the difference on a Walmart eGift Card. Here is how it works:

• Download the Savings Catcher app and register or log in to your account.
• After shopping at Walmart, scan your receipt barcode using the app, or enter your receipt number using a desktop or laptop. You have 7 days from the date of purchase to enter your receipt.
• Walmart matches the price of local competitor’s printed ads for an identical product. They work with an independent third party to collect weekly print and online circulars from top retailers in your area.
• If the Savings Catcher finds a lower advertised price, you get a Walmart eGift Card with the difference.

You can head over here to read more about my experience with the Savings Catcher and what I think about it.

5.  Target Cartwheel

If you shop at Target, this is an app you should download. Cartwheel is a free savings program that you use at Target where you can save anywhere from 5-50% on the items you purchase. The offers can be stacked with a manufacturer coupon, a Target coupon, as well as your Target REDcard.  They have coupons for groceries, as well as every single department in the store. And you can download Cartwheel from the app store on your smartphone or access it from a computer. Here’s how to use it:

• Download the Target Cartwheel app.
• Choose the eCoupons you want to add to your Cartwheel account. If you are using a computer, print off the barcode right from the Cartwheel website after you’ve chosen which eCoupons you want and take it with you to the store.
• The Target cashier will scan the barcode on your phone at checkout and you save money.

6. Favado

Favado is a mobile savings app that helps you save money by notifying you when your favorite items are on sale at nearby grocery and drugstores. Favado compares deals and savings across local stores to see which has the best prices on items you need that week. And the app shows you what coupons are available to use with the sales to help you save even more money–sometimes up to 70% on everyday items. In addition, Favado allows you to build your weekly shopping list within the app. Here is how it works:

• Download the Favado app on your phone an sign up to create an account.
• Select the stores in your area.
• Click on the store you want to shop at to see the best sales or compare multiple stores and their sales.
• Click on the “For You” tab to create a favorites list so you will be notified when these products go on sale.
• Look through sales and add items you want to your shopping list. The items with the paperclip mean there are more ways to save on the product by using coupons, eCoupons or a special promotion. Click on the paperclip to see the details how to save even more money.
• Email yourself the shopping list, then use the list to print and clip coupons you need to take with you to the store to get the best savings.

7.   SavingStar

SavingStar is a grocery eCoupon app that allows you to save digital manufacturer coupons to your supermarket and drugstore loyalty cards. More than 100 retail chains participate in SavingStar. There are participating stores that do not have loyalty cards such as Albertsons, Farm Fresh, Hy-Vee and more. Head over here to see how these stores work with SavingStar without a traditional loyalty card. And there are stores without loyalty cards such as Walmart, Target, Costco, Walgreens and more, where you can take a picture of your receipt to get the savings.

Every week, there is a 100% off freebie offer from SavingStar, as well as healthy offers. And every first of the month new offers are available. Since these are manufacturer coupons, you shouldn’t stack these eCoupons with other manufacturer coupons for the same purchase. You can use these eCoupons in addition to in-store coupons. And SavingStar has “One or Many” promotions where you can be rewarded for multiple purchases of products. For instance, save $5 when you purchase $20 on specific products. These purchases can be done in one shopping trip or many shopping trips and multiple stores. Here is how it works:

• Sign up here and create an account, then download the SavingStar app to your phone.
• Select the grocery and drug stores where you shop. These include stores with loyalty cards, as well as receipt-scan stores where you might shop regularly. Then sync your loyalty cards with SavingStar by entering each loyalty card number.
• Choose which eCoupons you want to activate. The activated eCoupons will then be automatically loaded onto all of your registered loyalty cards.
• Head to the store and use your loyalty card at checkout. The eCoupons will automatically register as being used in your SavingStar account. If the purchase is from a store that doesn’t have a loyalty card, then you’ll need to scan the receipt and submit it through the SavingStar app or website.
• The money will be deposited into your SavingStar account within 2-22 days depending on the store where you made your purchase. You will also receive an email when the savings is posted to your account. Once you have $5 in your SavingStar account, you can transfer the savings to your bank or PayPal.

8. Shopmium

Shopmium has exclusive offers that you can purchase at any store that sells the product, and it allows you to receive a cash rebate for purchasing these select products. There are offers that allow you to get a percent off the product. They also have offers that are set price points. For instance, if they say a product is only $1, they will refund you up to a certain amount if you paid more than $1 for the product. This app only works with iPhones or Smartphones. Here’s how it works:

• Download Shopmium on your iPhone or Android and register for an account (Use my referral code KCGMKMFL to get a FREE Lindt Chocolate Bar).
• Click on the Offers tab and browse through all of the current offers. If you find a product you like, click on the product, then click on “Discover this offer” to see specific information about which products are eligible.
• Head to any local store and purchase the eligible product. You can verify if a product is eligible by clicking on the “Check Product Eligibility” button while in the store and scanning the barcode of the item.
• After you purchase the product, go to the offers tab, find the offer and then click “Request My Rebate.” You will be prompted to scan the barcode of the purchased item and to take a picture of the store receipt.
• There is no minimum amount needed to cash out. The money will automatically go into your Paypal account, so make sure you sync your Paypal email address.

Pay attention to how long each offer is valid for so you don’t miss out on receiving cash back. You can only get cash back on one product per offer per receipt. If you have multiple phones, then you can use each phone to get cash back. Be sure to get a separate receipt for each product. Similar to Ibotta and Checkout51, you can also use coupons in addition to Shopmium.

9. BerryCart

BerryCart is an app that pays you cash back when you buy natural, organic, gluten free and non-GMO foods and beverages. It can be used in more than 25,000 locations including Target, Whole Foods, Sprouts, Walmart and more. New offers are available on Thursdays, and many of the offers are available in limited quantities so be sure to check current offers before you go shopping to ensure the ones you want are still available. BerryCart is a great a app because it has rebates available for products that typically do not have coupons. If there are coupons are available, the rebates can be stacked with the coupons for additional savings. Here’s how it works:

• Download the BerryCart app, and register for an account.
• Browse through the current offers and select the ones you like. Then unlock the rebate offers by completing a task such as tapping an icon, reading a fact, or answering a one-question poll. Each action completed unlocks a one-time rebate that you can redeem after you buy the product.
• After purchasing the product, scan the code, then take a picture of the receipt and upload it to BerryCart. A valid receipt from an in-store purchase must be presented within a week from the original date of purchase. The receipt will be validated within 24 hours.
• Once your account reaches a minimum of $5, you can cash out via PayPal or gift cards.

10. Shopkick

Earn points or “kicks” with the Shopkick app when you walk into a store, scan barcodes on specific products, or purchase products.  You don’t need to purchase anything at a store to collect points. You can walk in the store, get the points, scan barcodes on specific products, and leave. The “kicks” that can be redeemed for gift cards and other products at a variety of stores. Here’s how it works:

• Download the Shopkick app, then sign up and create an account.
• Open the Shopkick app and it will show nearby retailers offering a “kicks” for walking in and what products are available to scan or purchase for additional kicks. Just by opening the app everyday, even if you are not visiting any store, you can earn daily bonus points.
• Once you walk into a store, Shopkick will load available coupons for purchasing specific products. Just click on the coupon you want to use (you can also select your coupons within twelve hours prior to use), and Shopkick will give you a barcode on your phone to show to your cashier at checkout.

A few stores where you can get Shopkick points include Target, Best Buy, Old Navy, American Eagle, Macy’s, Walmart, Walgreens, and more.

What other apps or ways to save money on groceries do you use?