Can’t decide which online cash back shopping portal to use? The two most popular cash back shopping portals are, Ebates and MrRebates. These are two of many referral (and coupon) sites that offer you a slice of the referral fee the companies receive from retailers when you click through their site. For example, if you click through an online cash back shopping portal to get to Amazon, Amazon will pay said shopping portal for bringing in business and the shopping portal pays you a portion of that referral bonus. It’s just like credit card companies using the interchange fee they charge merchants to give a slice back to the customer in the form of cash back or rewards.

Like most cash back shopping portals, Both Ebates and MrRebates earn a commission directly from the merchant websites they partner with. They earn this commission when you use their “affiliate link” to visit a shopping site like Amazon and make a purchase there. Then, they split this commission with you, in the form of cash back as a percentage of your purchase.

With MrRebates, you can earn up to 30% cash back at many of their participating merchant websites. MrRebates offers sign-up bonuses, store of the week, and weekly deals that can add up to lots of cash back for online shoppers. MrRebates works with over 2,500 online retailers, so you won’t have trouble finding an online store with products you already want to buy!

With Ebates, you will have access to, thousands of retailers and receive commissions anytime you refer customers to those sites. Ebates takes the money it earns from advertising those sites and then passes it on to you. Ebates’ cash back offers have helped it become extremely popular due to the sheer number of affiliate stores as compared to MrRebates.

What is Mr. Rebates?

Started in 2002 by Craig Cassata, and located at www.MrRebates.com, the site offers its members the opportunity to earn cash back from shopping online. MrRebates is a site that gives you cashback for everyday purchases like groceries, apparel, etc. But you may be wondering, “is Mr Rebates a scam?”. In this review I’ll be going over a few things you should know before you make the decision of whether or not to sign up.

What is Ebates?

Ebates is a website that offers its members the opportunity to earn cash back from their online purchases. Ebates.com is the official website and it was started back in 1998 by two Deputy District Attorneys in Silicon Valley. In 2014, Rakuten, Japan’s largest e-commerce firm acquired Ebates for a staggering $1 billion.

The cash rebates earned through the program are distributed to customers via a check mailed to their home or through a Paypal payment. Ebates also offers coupons to customers on various items so that you can stack your savings.

How Do Cash Back Shopping Portals Work?

If you decide to use MrRebates or Ebates, make sure you check the fine print. There are some hoops you have to jump through to make sure you get paid. For example, you need to ensure you log in through the specific portal for every individual purchase, or you might not get credit for your purchases. Some products, for example gift cards, might not be eligible for any cash back program. This restriction is usually determined by the merchant themselves and outside the control of the cash back shopping portal. After, using an online shopping portal is simple because you just;

1. Find Your Favorite Stores: Visit your desired cash back shopping portal, click the link to your favorite store. A new tab will open, and you’ll be eligible for cash back on your purchase.
2. Shop Normally: Once the new tab opens, you can shop normally. Feel free to visit multiple pages of the website and browse as you normally would. When you’re ready, add items to your cart and complete the checkout.
3. Earn Cash Back: Usually, within 3-5 business days, your cash back credit will show up on your account as pending. As long as you don’t return the item, your cash back should be approved within 30 days.

With that in mind, however, MrRebates is widely recognized as a reputable company that consistently follows its own rules and pays its shoppers according to its public guidelines. MrRebates is accredited by the Better Business Bureau and their “A+” rating means they work hard to resolve any customer complaints.

The sheer number of stores that partner with the program assures that there are rebates available at stores for most every person who likes or needs to shop. When I first considered looking into the program, I have to admit that I didn’t think that the program would do much good. However, Ebates offers rebate discounts at the stores for everyday items as well as at specialty and gift stores.

How Do You Get Paid?

MrRebates: 

You are able to cash out at anytime once your cash back is approved and the amount is above $10.

• If you live in Canada or the United States you have the option of getting paid via check or Paypal. For any other country Paypal is the only option.
• Payments take an average of 1-3 business days to be posted to your account however they do say that it can take up to 30 days on rare occasions.
• This is all dependent on the company you make your purchase from as every company is different when it comes to paying affiliates.
• As soon as your account has a minimum of $10 balance, you can get paid and payments are made at the beginning of each month.

New shoppers with MrRebates will have to wait 90 days before they can access their earned cash back, so if you are considering signing up, it is probably best to look into it sooner. MrRebates has a minimum cash back requirement of $10 in order for you to withdraw.

Ebates: 

You are able to cash out at anytime once your cash back is approved and the amount is above $5.01, but Ebates only sends out payments once every three months for purchases made during the previous quarter. So if you’re looking for a way to earn fast cash, this opportunity doesn’t fit the bill. But if you shop online quite often and you actually remember to use Ebates, it should be easy for you to get a payment from them every time they pay out.

• If you live in Canada or the United States you have the option of getting paid via check or Paypal. For any other country Paypal is the only option.
• Payments take an average of 1-3 business days to be posted to your account however they do say that it can take up to 30 days on rare occasions.
• This is all dependent on the company you make your purchase from as every company is different when it comes to paying affiliates.
• As soon as your account has a minimum of $5.01 balance, you can get paid and payments are made every 3 months or quarterly.

Ebates also has several options for actually getting your money. You can choose from Paypal payments, a check mailed to you, or you can opt to have it sent to a charity, or even to someone you know.

Ebates vs Mr. Rebates Similarites & Differences

Ebates vs Mr. Rebates Pros & Cons

Referral Program

MrRebates has a referral program where current members earn 20% of each of their referrals’ cash back, for life. If you refer a friend to sign up for MrRebates, you’ll get a bonus equal to 20% of the cash back they earn every time they use MrRebates! There are two ways to give out referrals, and they are:

• If your friend enters your email address as the person who referred them you’ll be credited with the referral.
• The other way to refer people is with your own special referral link.

Ebates will pay you for every new member you refer to our site who then shops and makes a purchase at our partner merchants sites in accordance with the Referral Program Terms set forth below.

Eligibility

With earning cash back online, there is a lot of fine print and eligibility as to what is able to earn you cash back. Some of the rules that are included are the following;

1. If you make a purchase with a gift card, you will not receive cash back.
2. If you purchase a gift card, you will not get cash back.
3. If you click onto a different website to compare prices while shopping, there is a good chance you won’t get cash back.
4. If you pre-order something, you will not get cash back.
5. If you buy something on a subscription, only the first payment will be eligible for cash back.
6. Taxes or any extra fees are not eligible for cash back.
7. Extended Warranties are not eligible for cash back.
8. Some orders outside of Canada and US will not pay cash back.
9. Buying things in bulk may void cash back.

Every company has a unique affiliate policy which is probably why there are so many caveats when using Mr. Rebates. Since Mr. Rebates only pays you after they’ve been paid, there will be times when you just don’t get paid and it might be hard to get an explanation out of them.

How To Join?

Joining these cash back websites are free, easy and anyone can join! Visit MrRebates, or Ebates, simply click on the “Join” button and fill out the registration form. The required information is as follows; your email address and preferred password, and your address, so they’ll know where to send your check.

1. Sign up for MrRebates and get a $7.50 bonus or sign up for Ebates and get a $10 bonus.
2. Make a purchase through the website and begin earning cash back!

Bottom Line

MrRebates and Ebates are absolutely indeed legit websites. However, which is one is better? These two are very similar but different at the same time. MrRebates allows you to withdraw your cash back every month, but you must have a minimum balance of $10 in order to withdraw while Ebates allows you to withdraw every 3 months with a minimum balance of $5.01. Both offer a wide range of cash back options, but really it’s all about how often you wish to withdraw.

In addition to great cash back offers, you’ll be able to earn a $7.50 bonus (MrRebates), and $10 bonus (Ebates), through the various links provided in this post! Both advertise that there’s no limit to the amount shoppers can earn through referral bonuses. MrRebates and Ebates are both popular and viable option for shoppers who want to use an online portal to earn cash back on their online purchases.

Lastly, both MrRebates and Ebates cash back rebates can “stack” with your credit card’s cash back benefits. This means that if MrRebates or Ebates offer you 5% cash back at a certain merchant, and your credit card offers 5% cash back for online purchases, you could get 10% total cash back. If you like these cash back offers, visit our full list of the Best Cash Back Portals for more information about the best portal to use with which retailer!

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