5 ways to earn more cash back with credit cards, shopping apps, and more

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• Opening and using a rewards credit card can help you earn extra cash back when you shop.
• Consider applying for cards with generous bonus offers, and pay attention to credit card bonus categories.
• Shopping portals like Rakuten can be particularly useful if you do a lot of your shopping online. They're extremely easy to use, since you only need to click through before you make a purchase.
• Read Insider's guide to the best cash-back credit cards.

If your goal is earning more cash back on your spending, you should know about all the tips and tricks that can boost your earnings without too much extra effort. Fortunately, there are plenty of ways to earn cash back on regular purchases and monthly bills, and not all of them require a credit card.

That being said, having a cash-back credit card often allows you to "double-dip" on rewards, and you may be able to earn welcome bonus offers and score cardholder perks along the way. In fact, stacking credit card rewards with online deals is one of the best ways to save money when you shop. Moreover, you can take advantage of spending more during busy shopping seasons, like the holidays or back-to-school, to earn a card's welcome bonus. 

Here are the best ways to earn more cash back this year.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

1. Earn a credit card welcome offer

One of the easiest ways to earn cash back is by opening a credit card with a generous welcome bonus. Many cash-back credit cards let you earn a few hundred bucks just for meeting a basic minimum spending requirement, and the "bonus" is on top of the cash back you earn for each dollar you spend.

Take the Chase Freedom Flex℠ credit card, for example. It offers a welcome bonus of $200 cash bonus (received as 20,000 bonus points) after spending $500 on purchases in the first three months from account opening, plus earn 5% cash back on grocery store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart) on up to $12,000 spent in the first year. But you'll also earn 5% cash back on up to $1,500 spent in rotating quarterly bonus categories (then 1%) when you activate, 5% cash back on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3% back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants, and 1% back on everything else.

Another example is the Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express. There's no annual fee, and it's offering a welcome bonus of a $200 statement credit after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new card in the first six months of card membership.

You also earn 3% cash back on the first $6,000 you spend at U.S. supermarkets each calendar year (then 1%), 3% back at U.S. gas stations on the first $6,000 in purchases each calendar year (then 1%), 3% back at U.S. online retailers on the first $6,000 you spend each calendar year (then 1%), and 1% back on other purchases (cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as statement credits).

2. Maximize earning categories on the cards you have

If you have cash-back cards that offer more points in certain categories, make sure you're maxing them out. This includes cards that offer rewards in quarterly bonus categories like the Chase Freedom Flex℠ credit card and the Discover it® Cash Back (from July 1 to September 30, 2023, you can earn 5% cash back at Gas Stations and Digital Wallets on up to $1,500 in purchases after enrollment, then 1%). But it also means maximizing rewards on cards that offer more cash back in fixed categories like dining or groceries.

3. Use cash-back shopping portals

Consider signing up for an online shopping portal like Rakuten, which lets you rack up cash rewards for each dollar you spend through the portal regardless of how much you pay.

With Rakuten, you can earn a bonus just for signing up. From there, you can earn as much as 10% cash back at participating stores like Macys.com, Overstock.com, and PetSmart.com. The participating stores and earning rates change all the time, but it's always worth checking with Rakuten before you make a purchase on the web.

Other similar cash-back portals to look into include TopCashback, Swagbucks, and Ibotta. Ibotta is particularly popular because it includes an app that lets you earn cash back whether you shop online or in participating brick-and-mortar stores.

4. Register your credit card with a cash-back app

Some cash-back apps award you with more cash back when you register your credit card. Dosh is a good option in this space, and so is Drop.

With either app, you'll sign up for a free account and connect your cards. When you use a connected credit card to shop at a participating store, you'll automatically earn cash back in your rewards account. You may also be able to earn more bonus rewards with special in-app offers.

With Dosh, you can transfer rewards to your bank, PayPal, or Venmo once you've racked up at least $25. Redemptions with Drop also start at $25, and you can redeem your rewards at places like Amazon.com, Starbucks, and Netflix.

5. Pay for everything with your credit card

A final way to maximize your cash back is to make sure you're paying for everything you can with a cash-back credit card. This includes daily expenses like groceries and gas, but you should also focus on covering monthly bills like utilities, insurance, rent, and any other big expenses you pay each month. Some people can even pay for daycare or college tuition with a credit card without having to pay an extra charge, so this is also worth exploring.

If you don't want to keep track of bonus categories, a credit card that earns a flat rewards rate on all purchases is your best option. For example, the Wells Fargo Active Cash® Card earns 2% cash rewards on purchases, and it comes with a good welcome bonus offer too: $200 cash rewards bonus after spending $500 in purchases in the first three months from account opening.

There's also the Citi® Double Cash Card, which earns 1 point per dollar (worth 1% cash back) when you make a purchase and 1 point per dollar (1% cash back) when you pay it off, effectively a total of 2% cash back. But it doesn't currently offer new cardholders any sort of welcome bonus. 

You'll earn considerably more cash back if you use a cash-back card to make as many of your purchases as possible, but you should never charge more to a credit card than you can pay off. The key to using rewards credit cards responsibly is to treat them like debit cards, so don't use them as an excuse to overspend. 

Holly Johnson

Freelance Writer

Holly Johnson is a credit card expert, award-winning writer, and mother of two who is obsessed with frugality, budgeting, and travel. In addition to serving as contributing editor for The Simple Dollar and writing for publications such as Bankrate, U.S. News and World Report Travel, and Travel Pulse, Johnson owns Club Thrifty and is the co-author of "Zero Down Your Debt: Reclaim Your Income and Build a Life You’ll Love."

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Tessa Campbell

Junior Investing Reporter

Tessa Campbell is a Junior Investing Reporter for Personal Finance Insider. She reports on investing-related topics like cryptocurrency, the stock market, and retirement savings accounts. She originally joined the PFI team as a Personal Finance Reviews Fellow in 2022. Her love of books, research, crochet, and coffee enriches her day-to-day life. 

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