While predicted Christmas shopping budgets reached an all-time high in 2019 at $942 per person, 2020 Christmas shopping looks a bit lighter. Americans are only expected to spend $805 each this year, which is still quite a bit.
If you’re struggling to figure out how you’ll find your shopping this holiday season, we’re here to help. Aside from setting a strict budget, we recommend trying to also focus on cashback deals that can help you earn money as you spend on gifts and other holiday necessities. Not sure how? Here are five ways to use cashback deals in your favor this holiday season.
How to Use Cashback Deals for Holiday Shopping
1. Price Match Big Gifts
Not sure what price matching is? Check out our helpful guide on price matching and price match apps here. In short, it’s the practice of asking for a refund on an item when the price drops within a given timeframe. Most retailers have a set price matching policy that’s between about 14 to 30 days. This means that if you purchase a large item this Christmas, such as a TV or a phone, and then you see it for cheaper in three days, you’re able to bring the new, cheaper price in, show it to the retailer, and they’ll offer you a refund on the difference. Using an app to monitor price drops is way easier than doing it manually, and you can check out those apps in the guide above.
2. Ask Your Credit Card Company
Certain credit cards such as the Discover it Cash Back card offer up to 5% cashback on certain purchases, even throughout the holidays. Make sure you check with your credit card company to ensure you’re eligible for the maximum amount of cashback this season. Sometimes, it’s as simple as requesting that they change the spending category to something that you’ll actually use, or that you request an upgrade to your account so that you can receive better cashback deals.
3. Use Cashback for Small Gifts
Even though certain credit cards offer up to 5% cashback, it’s not usually enough to fund larger expenses of pay off full bills. However, if you budget correctly, you can put your cashback straight towards smaller gifts that won’t eat into your monthly spending budget. Figure out how much you’ll earn in cashback from cashback apps and credit card spending in November and December. If it’s $200 in total, budget that money for smaller gifts such as office gifts, white elephant gifts, and classroom gifts if you’ve got kids.
4. Take Advantage of Shopping Apps
Often, larger retailers will offer great cashback deals directly through their own shopping apps. If you frequently shop at Target and plan on getting most of your Christmas gifts at the large retailer this year, download the Target app to access cashback deals and super savings. Pair that with a cashback app like Rakuten, Ibotta, or Shopkick and you’re on track to save serious amounts of cash this year. Be sure to browse around the apps, though, to get the most out of their features and functions.
5. Earn More Cashback
Okay, we know that this one sounds silly at first. How do you use cashback deals for holiday shopping? Earn more cashback! But really, there are always ways in which you can focus on earning more cashback than might seem possible. For starters, you can us Cashback Monitor or a similar site to ensure you’re optimizing current cashback deals. Then, sign up for rebates via Mr. Rebates. And, last but certainly not least, use a Cheese Debit Card. It’s optimized for savings and comes with $0 in fees, which is something we can all get behind this holiday season.
Not sure if it’s the right card for you or not? Check out a few of the perks:
❌ No Monthly Fee 🧀️ $5 cash bonus
❌ No ATM Fee 🧀️ Up to 10% cashback with every purchase/transaction
❌ No Overdraft Fee 🧀️ Potential Double Cheese Cashback
❌ No Insufficient Fund Fee 🧀️ Up to 3% Deposit Bonus
❌ No Minimum Balance Requirement 🧀️ Early Paycheck
Take control of your financial health this holiday season and get your Cheese Debit Card here.
