Here’s how to earn a $40 cash-back bonus at Rakuten for joining

One of our favorite online shopping portals here at TPG is back with a new offer — and the deal makes it even easier to save money this holiday season.

Starting today, if you join Rakuten and spend at least $40 at eligible retailers within your first 90 days, you’ll earn a one-time bonus of $40. This includes a wide variety of popular merchants, including Walmart, Target, Saks Fifth Avenue and Lowe’s.

And if you’re already a Rakuten member, you can snag your own referral bonus for your friends. All you have to do is send them your personal referral link and make sure they use it to sign up. Then, when they spend at least $40 in 90 days, you’ll both take home a one-time bonus of $40.

In the past, we’ve seen similar referral bonuses of $30, as well as a bonus of 10% back for the first seven days — which required significantly more spending to earn $30. Joining without a referral usually only gets you a one-time bonus of $10. This new flat-rate, one-time $40 bonus is one of the best we’ve ever seen at Rakuten, and it’s a great opportunity to earn some extra cash back as you plan your holiday shopping.

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

Overview of Rakuten

In case you’re 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 smaller merchants like Gorjana. By starting your purchase at Rakuten and clicking through to the merchant from there, you’ll take home cash back on every eligible purchase you make — in addition to earnings on the credit card you use for the purchase.

You can even download the Rakuten plug-in to make things easier. Once this is installed, go directly to the merchant’s site. The browser extension will then notify you if there’s a rebate available — like this example at Macy’s (cash-back rate may have changed):

This friendly reminder simplifies earning more rewards for your online shopping.

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

To join as a new member, visit this link and complete the online prompts.

To refer a friend, simply log into your Rakuten account and click the “Refer & Earn” button along the top row. You can choose to send your friend an email or share your referral link by another route.

How to make the most of Rakuten

While Rakuten is advertised as a cash-back portal, you can take your rewards to the next level by switching your earning preference to American Express Membership Rewards points. In the above example, you’d take home 5 Amex points for every dollar you spend at Macy’s. Since we value Amex points at 2 cents apiece (as of November 2024), thanks to the array of transfer partners and valuable redemption options, that could offer an even higher return for your online purchases.

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

Note that going through Rakuten for your online purchases may mean sacrificing higher rewards that you would earn through something like an airline shopping portal — especially if there are any bonus offers through those sites. It’s always a good idea to compare earning rates using a shopping portal aggregator.

Which credit card should I use?

If you’re making purchases online, pay close attention to any potential bonus categories. One great example is PayPal since you can earn 5% back through the end of 2024 with the Chase Freedom Flex® after activation on up to $1,500 in total purchases each quarter you activate. 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’d take home through Rakuten come in addition to the earnings on your credit card. You may even be able to stack an Amex Offer or Chase Offer at select merchants, so be sure to check those first to avoid leaving money on the table.

For example, holders of The Platinum Card® from American Express enjoy up to $100 in statement credits at Saks Fifth Avenue every calendar year (up to $50 from January through June and another up to $50 from July through December; enrollment is required). Since Amex applies these credits on the back end — as opposed to via a promo code at the time of purchase — you should still earn the cash back or bonus Amex points on the full subtotal of your purchase by starting at Rakuten and clicking through to Saks. Enrollment is required.

Related: Things to consider for your holiday shopping credit card strategy

Bottom line

This new referral offer is simple, and anyone can use it, so don’t miss out on an easy $40 for online shopping. Sign up for Rakuten today, or refer your friends and family members to reap the rewards of their online purchases.

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