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I've Used Ibotta For Years: Here's My Honest Review

Review Updated
Kristi Waterworth
Author: Kristi Waterworth
Kristi Waterworth
Kristi Waterworth

Kristi Waterworth has been a writer since 1995, when words were on paper and card catalogs were cool. She's owned and operated a number of small businesses and developed expertise in digital (and paper) marketing, personal finance, and a hundred other things SMB owners have to know to survive. When she's not banging the keys, Kristi hangs out in her kitchen with her dogs, dropping cheese randomly on the floor.

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Eric McWhinnie
Fact Checked: Eric McWhinnie
Eric McWhinnie
Eric McWhinnie

Eric McWhinnie has been writing and editing digital content since 2010. He specializes in personal finance and investing. He also holds a bachelor’s degree in Finance.

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Many or all of the products here are from our partners that compensate us. It’s how we make money. But our editorial integrity ensures that our product ratings are not influenced by compensation. Terms may apply to offers listed on this page.

I've been using Ibotta for years on grocery purchases I make every week. Although it takes a little bit of time to load coupons, the app remembers my purchases and suggests offers that I might use, saving me time and money. Ibotta is a great choice for anyone looking to save money on regular purchases.

Ibotta
Best for: Cash back savings appIbotta
Learn More for Ibotta

Pros

  • Features more than 2,000 retailers
  • Earn a welcome bonus
  • Get paid to refer friends
  • Earn cash back on gift card purchases
  • Earn more with bonuses
  • You can cash out at $20

Cons

  • Inactive accounts are subject to maintenance fees
  • You may need to upload receipts
  • Many offers are store-specific
  • Many offers are brand-specific
  • There are ads
  • You must make online purchases through the app or browser extension

What is Ibotta?

Ibotta is a free-to-download cash back app that offers cash back rewards when shopping in-store and online. The app features 2,000-plus retailers.

How does Ibotta work?

To get started, create an Ibotta account and download the app on your mobile device. Within the app, you'll see available offers, many of which are store-specific. When you see an offer you like, click the plus button to add it to your clipped offers list.

Each offer will have more details listed. Details include:

  • Any product exclusions
  • How often you can redeem the offer
  • Whether the offer qualifies for any bonuses
  • The offer expiration date and time

How much cash back you can earn with Ibotta depends on what offers you redeem. The rewards rates vary, with the lowest cash back amount being $0.05. But many offers are in the $0.50 to $1.00 range. And some offer rates are much higher -- $3 or more.

Learn more on Ibotta's site: Ibotta

What I like about Ibotta

Earn receipt-less with loyalty card linking

Many of Ibotta's partner retailers allow users to earn without submitting receipts if they link their loyalty cards. The loyalty card link allows Ibotta to automatically pull the receipt information into the app for processing and makes it all a pretty painless experience.

Ibotta can now alert you to missed opportunities

One of the most frustrating things about Ibotta in the past was what might have been -- offers that you didn't realize you weren't earning. This has been fixed, and now the app will often alert you to purchases made within the last 24 hours that missed out on cash back and allow you to add the offer after the fact.

Cash back on gift card purchases

It's nice to earn cash back on specific offers through Ibotta, but it's even better when you can earn cash back on gift cards for something a lot less specific. Ibotta offers a range of gift cards with cash back attached through the app, which you can then use for purchases that might otherwise not be eligible for cash back from Ibotta. Ah, the circle of life.

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What could be improved

Certain types of receipts aren't accepted

Although a lot of people use Ibotta in retailers in real time, it's not the only way to earn, especially now that Ibotta has partnered with Instacart. If you don't have a linked loyalty card, or your retailer doesn't offer that option, and you don't have a receipt printed at the point of sale, you may not be able to redeem your rewards.

You may miss out on rewards if you aren't planning your shopping to the letter

Ibotta is a coupon app for planners. Although it now tries to remind you that you've missed a discount, it's not fool-proof, and it can be cumbersome to check every item in your cart.

You also must be diligent with receipts to ensure you've gotten all the rewards you're entitled to, as they don't always come through (customer service will rectify these issues, however).

You must use the browser app or mobile app with online purchases

Online purchases often run afoul of the problem mentioned above regarding receipt types. Generally speaking, loyalty cards won't do for these purchases, so you must either make them from your phone or from your computer with the app enabled.

I use the browser app and I can't always tell when it's actually working due to other coupon extensions that may try to force priority.

How much does Ibotta cost?

Ibotta is free to download and free to use. You may, however, incur a $3.99 per month penalty for inactive accounts, which will reduce your balance to zero, but not charge you beyond that.

This penalty only applies to accounts that have not redeemed an offer or received cash back for 180 days. Otherwise, there's no charge for this personal finance app.

Ibotta online ratings

Overall, Ibotta users are pretty happy with their experience using the app. They really like saving money on things they'd buy anyway (who doesn't), and the simplicity that linking loyalty cards provides.

However, some have complained about changes to the interface that have made it more difficult to use, though these seem to be specific to specific iterations of the app.

  • iOS app rating: 4.8/5 stars
  • Android app rating: 4.5/5 stars

Ibotta platform

The Ibotta platform is fairly intuitive and simple to use, especially when you have linked your loyalty cards. You simply select the offers you want at the retailers you'll frequent, make your purchases, and either let your loyalty card do the hard work or submit a whole receipt yourself.

Ibotta screenshot home screen

Ibotta app home screen. Image source: Ibotta, captured by author.

Ibotta screenshot For You tab

Ibotta app "For You" tab. Image source: Ibotta, captured by author.

Ibotta screenshot Any Item tab

Ibotta app "Any Item" tab. Image source: Ibotta, captured by author.

Is Ibotta safe?

Ibotta is a very safe platform and takes the security and privacy of its users seriously. If you don't feel comfortable linking your cards with the platform, you can always submit coupons manually, and select digital gift cards instead of withdrawing your earnings to your bank or PayPal account.

Alternatives to Ibotta

If you want an app for gas purchases: Checkout 51 offers some grocery rebates, but allows you to also earn cash back on gasoline purchases. If you're just looking for a wide range of retailer offers, though, Ibotta is your best bet.

Checkout 51
Best cash back app for gas stationsCheckout 51
Read Review

If you want to earn points instead of cash: Fetch gives you earnings in the form of reward points that you can use for gift cards or to enter monthly cash sweepstakes. However, if you prefer cash, Ibotta is still the way to go.

Fetch
Best cash back app overallFetch
Read Review

Ibotta might be right for you if:

Ultimately, you know your needs far more than I do, but in general, Ibotta is a good fit for people who:

  • Plan their shopping ahead of time.
  • Don't mind linking their loyalty cards to simplify the process.
  • Like getting cash rewards for their purchases.

FAQs

  • Ibotta is free to download and use. However, accounts with no activity within the last 180 days are charged maintenance fees. If you have a rewards balance in your inactive account, Ibotta will deduct $3.99 from your earnings for every 30 days that your account remains inactive. You can avoid these fees by performing an account activity at least once every 180 days.

  • Yes, Ibotta users can earn rewards by shopping in-store and online with participating retailers.

  • You must have a minimum of $20 in earnings to request a cash out. If you choose to redeem your rewards for gift cards, be aware that some gift cards may have a minimum cash out requirement of $25.