If there’s one thing I’m good at, like really good at, it’s smart shopping. Over the years I have pretty much perfected it. Extreme couponing has become a popular way to save lots of money on groceries and many other things. Now add reverse couponing on top of that and you’ve really got a deal. I’ve gotten so good at it that every once in a while it ends up working out that I get things for FREE, and in some rare circumstances, I make money off of buying something!

If you’re wondering what reverse couponing is, let me explain it to you. With regular couponing you clip coupons prior to going to the store and get the discount when you buy. With reverse couponing, you get money AFTER your purchase. So essentially, you can use double coupons, one before, and one after. Plus if the item is also on sale, this is where you’ve hit the jackpot and might possibly get the item for free or make money off of it. Here are the 3 apps I use to reverse coupon.

1. Ibotta- I’m starting with my favorite app. I earn a TON of money with Ibotta. The way it works is you peruse the app for the store that you are shopping at, unlock the rebates you want to redeem, scan the barcode of the products that you bought, upload your receipt, and get cash added to your account! You can get paid for purchases at grocery stores, drug stores, club stores, clothing stores, online stores, Groupon, and much more. They also run bonuses where you can earn extra money if you redeem a certain amount of rebates within a specific amount of time. And here’s the best part- you can join a team and their rebates can count towards earning monthly bonuses. You need a referral code from someone to join their team. To join my team AND earn a $10 bonus, sign up here and type in my referral code: qrlqbqe

2. Checkout 51- This app also pays you for what you buy. You don’t need to scan the item barcodes for this app, simply upload your receipts that have the items that are eligible for a rebate. There is no referral code for you to get a sign up bonus on this one.

3. Shopmium- This is another app that pays you for what you buy. It is extremely limited in its rebate offers, but it’s worth it if there’s a rebate for something you purchased. You will receive a free Lindt chocolate bar when you use my referral code at sign up: KUHGUHFH

Now that you’ve learned my tricks for reverse couponing, here’s how you can make EVEN MORE off your receipts. Download these apps to get paid for snapping pictures of your receipts.

1. Receipt Hog- With this app you feed your virtual pig with receipts from all types of stores: grocery stores, restaurants, department stores, convenience stores, etc. Some receipts are worth coins, some are eligible for spins where you can earn more coins, and some earn you sweepstakes entries. Depending on the amount of the receipt is how many coins you will earn. You can cash your coins in for an Amazon gift card, a pay out from PayPal, or magazine subscriptions. Hurry up and sign up for this app because they are so close to their maximum user number that they have actually discontinued their referral program because they no longer need it.

2. ReceiptPal- With this app you snap pictures of your receipts to fill up cards. Every 4 receipts completes a card and earns you 100 points. Cash in your points for gift cards to a variety of places including Amazon. Unfortunately, there is no referral program for this app either so I can’t get you any bonuses. This is a very popular app and they are sometimes at capacity with the amount of people they need, but check back often as this app is an easy way to earn extra cash.

Now here’s a third way I make money back on my purchases- by making my purchases through a shopping website/app. There are 2 I use. I check them both prior to making a purchase to see which one offers the most percentage back.

1. Ebates- This is an app and they also have a website. You simply visit their website/app, search the website you want to shop at, click through to activate your session, and then it takes you to that website and you shop as usual. A few days later, whatever percentage of cash back the deal was for gets added to your account. At the end of the pay period, they send you a check for all your cash back. It’s that simple! I have found Ebates to offer the most amount for cash back and it’s always the first site I check. You can also link a credit card and activate in store offers to earn cash back. Get a free $10 to start your account by signing up here:

2. MyPoints- MyPoints.com is a similar concept to Ebates. You visit their website first, then search the website you want to shop at, click through, and shop. Except with MyPoints you earn points that can be redeemed for gift cards. There’s also other opportunities to earn points like clicking through emails, taking surveys, and watching videos. Sign up here with my referral link and earn bonus points when you make your first $20 purchase through the website.

And there’s one more! Shopkick is an app that gives you kicks (points) when you walk into stores, make purchases at stores with a linked credit card, and scan items at the store. Sign up here with my referral link and you will earn $2 worth of kicks.

Happy shopping!

**In full disclosure, these are all my referral links. You will earn the bonuses specified when you join though them, and I will earn something as well for my referral.