Discover How to Save Hundreds Each Year with Smart Cash Back Strategies

Last year, just from scanning receipts from my family’s weekly Target shopping trips with Ibotta, I earned back well over $100, and this was me using the app intermittently throughout the year. Someone who dives deep into this online shopping space can learn how to save hundreds yearly.

The highlight here is the Capital One shopping portal, which offers names like Nordstrom, Kohl’s, and 30,000 total retailers to help you save hundreds every year. The discounts and savings found on this site will vary, but it’s all money you would otherwise not have if you didn’t take the extra 30 seconds to use this site.

Many of us grocery shop at least once a week, often spending hundreds of dollars to feed a family. In these cases, taking advantage of something like the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express, which offers 6% cash back at supermarkets around the United States, can be a huge win.

You can earn 6% on up to $6,000 in grocery purchases, with a max reward of $360 a year. Add in that this same card can earn you 3% cash back on every gas station fill-up, and you can quickly see how bonus categories from certain credit cards will become a mainstay of refilling your wallet.

Of course, the best way to save hundreds of dollars yearly is to carry multiple credit cards. One of the smartest strategies is to have a card like the Blue Cash card from American Express for use with gas stations and grocery trips. However, you’d also want a card like the Chase Freedom Flex, which offers 1.5% cash back on every purchase.

If you’re a Wells Fargo banking customer, grab the Active Cash card and get even more with 2% cash back on every purchase. With another cash-back card offering specific or rotating categories, you can sit back and watch the reward totals add up. This money can be used toward your savings or to pay down your balance.

Building on the idea above, instead of just letting your cash-back rewards sit and continue to accrue, you can and likely should cash this amount and start putting it toward an emergency savings fund. Alternatively, you can put this money toward a major goal in your life, like paying off a high-interest loan.

If you can accrue over $1,000 per year in credit card rewards, you might want to consider dropping it into a high-yield savings account and let it be the start of additional savings. There is no question that this money can be best used outside of paying off your credit card balance.

Even the best cash-back strategies can cause problems if you slip into common pitfalls, like chasing rewards categories you don’t naturally spend in, carrying balances that accumulate interest, or opening too many cards too quickly. Remember to be intentional and avoid these traps, so you can ensure that your rewards strategy actually saves you money rather than costing you more in the long run.

No tip around saving hundreds each year with a cash-back credit card is as valuable as a reminder to watch what you spend. Monitoring your purchase habits is the best way to ensure you are not overspending. If you’re careful, you’ll potentially save hundreds per year because you are no longer making unnecessary purchases.

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