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One of our favorite online shopping portals here at TPG is back with a new referral offer — and this deal makes it even easier to take home a one-time bonus.

If you Join Rakuten, you can earn a $30 cash-back bonus by spending at least $30 at retailers like Walmart, Target, Saks, Lowe’s, Nordstrom, Instacart and hundreds of others within 30 days of joining. This offer is available till 30 September.

After joining, you can also choose to earn American Express Membership Rewards points as you look forward to your next trip. However, note that your $30 bonus is only available as cash back.

Recently, the referral bonus was offered as a 10% back bonus for the first seven days – which required significantly more spending to earn. Joining without a referral usually gives a one-time bonus of $10. With the return of a flat-rate, one-time bonus, it’s a great opportunity to earn some extra cash back.

Read more: How to get bonus cash back or Amex points on your online purchases with Rakuten

Overview of Rakuten

If you are unfamiliar with the site, Rakuten is an online shopping portal. It partners with hundreds of online retailers, from household brands like Target and Nike to small merchants like Temu. By starting your shopping at Rakuten and clicking through to the merchant from there, you’ll earn a home bonus on every qualifying purchase you make, in addition to earning on the credit card you shop with.

You can too Download the Rakuten plug-in To make things even easier. Once this is installed, go directly to the merchant site. A browser extension will notify you if a rebate is available — like this example from Macy’s (cash-back rate accurate as of Wednesday):

This friendly reminder makes it easy to earn more rewards for your online purchases.

Related: Don’t want to miss out on getting bonus points? There is an extension for that

You may wonder how all this is possible. Rakuten enters into marketing agreements with individual retailers, who then pay site commissions on purchases originating there. Rakuten then passes a portion of that commission to the customer. The retailer gets additional business, and you and Rakuten enjoy those purchases – a win-win for all parties.

While Rakuten is advertised as a cash-back portal, you can take your rewards to the next level by switching your earning choice to American Express Membership Rewards points. In the example above, you can take home 5 Amex points for every dollar you spend at Macy’s. As we value Amex points at 2 cents (as of July 2024), thanks to a range of valuable redemption options, you can get more returns for your online purchases.

However, the bonus is only available as cash back for new members who join through the referral link. You can link your Membership Rewards account after joining, but the one-time bonus will be paid as $30 (after qualifying purchases). That said, if a friend or family member joins through your referral link (and meets the spending requirements) after you switch your earning preference to Amex Points, you’ll receive a bonus instead of cash back based on any referral offer available on the referral offer. Get points. Time.

Note that going through Rakuten for your online purchases may mean sacrificing the higher rewards you’d earn through something like an airline shopping portal — especially if those sites have any bonus offers. However, Rakuten could be a good option given the current referral offer.

Not a member? Join Rakuten today To get $30 bonus.

Which credit card should I use?

If you’re shopping online, look out for any potential bonus categories. However, your best bet may be to use a card that offers solid value for everyday purchases, such as:

Remember that any cash back or Amex points you take home through Rakuten come in addition to the earnings on your credit card. You may also be able to stack Amex offers or Chase offers at select merchants, so be sure to check them out now to avoid leaving money on the table.

For example, holders Platinum Card® from American Express Enjoy up to $100 in statement credit at Saks Fifth Avenue each calendar year (up to $50 from January through June and up to $50 from July through December; registration required). Because Amex applies these credits on the back end — as opposed to via promo code at the time of purchase — you should still earn cash back or bonus Amex points on the entire subtotal of your purchases, starting with Rakuten and clicking through to Saks. .

This new offer is simple, and anyone can use it, so don’t miss out on an easy $30 for online shopping. Sign up for Rakuten Today (or refer your friends and family members to earn rewards for their online purchases).

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