If you are looking for how you can make money online by doing those things you do regularly, then this BeFrugal review is for you.
With many cash-back websites on the internet, you have lots of opportunities to get free money for doing things you love doing.
One of such cash-back sites that pay you for doing tasks you were doing anyway is BeFrugal.
However, is BeFrugal a legit cash-back site?
This BeFrugal review will answer that question. In this review, we will look at how the platform works and what you need to do to make money on the site.
Quick Review
Here is my quick BeFrugal review:
- Offers cashback on purchases
- Legit cashback platform
- Offers best coupons
- Available via mobile app
- Save up to $200 – $350 every year as a member
- Cashout via direct bank deposit, PayPal, check, and gift cards
- Offers a $10 referral bonus
- Offers a $10 sign-up bonus
- The minimum payment threshold is $25
- BBB accredited with A+ rating
Detailed Guide
Let’s go ahead and learn more about Befrugal in this detailed BeFrugal review.
What is BeFrugal?
BeFrugal is a cash-back and coupon website. It works just like Ebates. The company is owned by the Founder and CEO of Capital Intellect, Inc.; Jon Lal. BeFrugal was founded in 2009 in Boston, Massachusetts.
When it was newly launched, BeFrugal featured online and printable coupons and promo codes for grocery stores and restaurants. In 2011, BeFrugal added the cash-back system to their services. The members of the platform had spent about $250 million worth of shopping by the end of 2014.
How BeFrugal Works
BeFrugal works by partnering with different online retailers to drive customers to their websites. These retailers then pay BeFrugal a specific commission for their service. This form of business model is termed affiliate marketing.
BeFrugal then pays a portion of the commission to their members for shopping in their partners’ stores.
There are two main elements of BeFrugal’s website:
Cashback
BeFrugal partners with over 5000 online retailers. These retail stores offer rebates to members of BeFrugal for shopping through BeFrugal’s website. When you create an account with BeFrugal and shop at the retailers’ stores through BeFrugal, they will pay you a portion of the amount you spent on these stores.
According to BeFrugal’s claim, they can give you 100% of the commissions they are paid from the stores that are featured on their website. They also announced that they paid out 102% of the commissions they received from directing customers to their partners in 2016.
Coupons and deals
According to information obtained from BeFrugal’s website, the platform claims to partner with over 50,000 stores (such as the largest 500 online stores in the US). These stores offer coupons and deals to members that purchase items through BeFrugal’s website.
See also: Cashback and Rewards: Which Is the Better Deal?
How To use BeFrugal
It is quick and easy to register on BeFrugal. It will take you about two minutes to create an account on the website.
To open an account, visit BeFrugal.com and choose the means through which you want to sign up (e-mail, Facebook, or Google).
Depending on the method you choose, follow the steps that follow. If you want to use Google, you can easily connect your Gmail account. The steps will take you approximately one minute to follow.
After connecting your Gmail account, create a unique username and password for your account. After doing this, you will be redirected to your BeFrugal dashboard.
If you are using a Chrome browser, click the ‘Add To Chrome’ button. You will find it on the right-hand side of your dashboard. The extension will show you the offers BeFrugal has for any website you visit.
You can now go ahead and make money through cashback on BeFrugal. Installing the Chrome extension enable you to easily visit any retailer’s website. You will see a notification if the website has cashback or coupons.
It is advisable to use the Chrome extension because it makes the whole process easy.
Alternatively, you can have access to the cashback offers via your BeFrugal dashboard. You can make use of the search function to quickly find deals for a particular retailer. You can also find cash-back offers and coupons by category.
When you find a deal, click on the deal and you will be taken to the retailer’s store. You will automatically earn a cash-back when you buy from the store. This is the same process when you want to use coupons on a retailer’s website.
These steps are the same when you use BeFrugal on Android and iPhone apps. Just open the app, browse cashback deals, and click on the deals to shop.
See also: Cashback Guide: Everything You Need to Redeem Cashback
How To Get Paid on BeFrugal
1. Direct deposit into the bank account
This is the most direct way to receive your cashback on BeFrugal. The direct deposit is done via ACH. You need to have a U.S. bank account for this option to work. Once you have at least $0.01 in your BeFrugal balance, you can request payment.
If you want to set this payment option up, you need to have your bank routing number and your account number. The money can be deposited into your checking or savings account number. The account can also be either a personal or business account.
2. PayPal
The PayPal option is present on most cash-back sites. When you request a payout with this option, your earnings will be sent directly to your PayPal account. You can then use your PayPal account to buy things online.
If you link a debit card to your PayPal account, you can use the card to buy online throughout the world. You can also transfer the earnings into your bank account.
Note that PayPal charges a fee when you make instant transfer money to your bank account. If you opt for a non-instant transfer, then you won’t incur any charges. If you want an instant transfer, then you should go for the Direct Deposit to Bank Account option as this will save you the PayPal charges (which is 1% of the amount you’re transferring, or a maximum of $10).
3. Check
If you’re the old-school version, then you may decide to go for a check. When you request payment with a check, BeFrugal will mail a check to the address that you used when creating your account.
Note that you need to have at least $25 in your BeFrugal balance for you to use this option.
4. Gift card
If you want to get the best value from the cashback you earned, the gift card option is the best route to take. When you decide to receive your payout with a gift card, you will earn bonus cashback in addition to what you’ve already earned.
For instance, you could cash out your $20 as a $21.20 gift card for Walmart. Although it doesn’t look like a huge bonus, however, imagine if you earned $1,000 cashback in a whole year. This would amount to an extra $60 based on the 6 percent bonus.
The following gift cards are available on BeFrugal:
- Kohl’s
- Walmart
- Gap
- eBay
- CVS
- Amazon
- Sephora
- Bed Bath & Beyond
- And lots more
See also: Why Cashback and Not Discount: The Advantage of Getting X% Back
Pros
- BeFrugal offers a $10 referral bonus for every individual that you refer to their website.
- The website also offers a $10 sign-up bonus for new members.
- It offers cashback offers that are higher than what Ebates offers.
- You can earn as high as 40% cashback.
- The deals section of BeFrugal has a combination of price discounts and cashback.
- There are bonus opportunities that you can take advantage of to increase your cashback rates.
- The platform has lots of helpful coupons and coupon tools that will increase your savings.
- You need just $0.01 in your payable balance if you want to receive your cashback via direct deposit into your bank account.
- You can easily speak with customer service by using the Live Chat option.
Cons
- In some cases, you may experience long wait periods between shopping and access to cashback.
- The design of the website is not as sleek and user-friendly as that of Ebates.
- You need to have at least $25 in your payable balance if you want to receive your earnings through check.
As you can deduce from the pros and cons above, BeFrugal does not have many cons. The occasional long wait periods raised in the cons are not peculiar to only BeFrugal; it is common to all cashback platforms.
Also, the fact that BeFrugal is not as sleek as Ebates and other cashback platforms does not bother me.
More so, if you feel the minimum threshold for the check is too high, you can go for PayPal which offers a very low minimum threshold.
Alternatives
See also: Swagbucks vs Ibotta: Which Cashback Site Should You Join?
FAQs
1. When will I receive my BeFrugal cashback?
After shopping, your cashback earnings will show as Pending in your BeFrugal account. The earnings will stay in this section until your purchase is confirmed by the retailer. The confirmation usually takes a few days.
Once the retailer confirms your purchase, your earnings will reflect in the Verified section. Your cashback earnings will remain in this until BeFrugal receives its commission from the retailer. This can take about 30 to 90 days.
This implies that your cashback will show Verified for about 30 to 90 days. You cannot withdraw the earnings during this period. This waiting period can be frustrating. However, it is a compulsory step for BeFrugal. Retailers cannot pay BeFrugal any commission if a buyer returns or cancels his or her order.
Once BeFrugal receives its commission from the retailer, your cashback will be transferred to the Payable section. This shows that you have received your earnings and you can use them as you wish. You can then withdraw the earnings by making use of any of the payment options that we have discussed in this BeFrugal review.
2. How can I get paid by BeFrugal?
BeFrugal offers four types of payments; check, PayPal, gift cards, and direct deposit into the bank account. As stated earlier, you will only be paid if BeFrugal receives its commission from the retailer.
3. Is BeFrugal safe?
It is important to know if a website is safe especially if the website is linked to your bank account. Although no transactions on the internet are completely secure, BeFrugal does all it takes to secure your information.
According to McAfee Secure (an online security company), BeFrugal is a secure site. McAfee Secure did not find any malware, phishing, or suspicious links on the website. They also stated that BeFrugal has a valid SSL certificate.
Finally, BeFrugal regularly scans its website. They regularly check their website for any weaknesses that may be used by hackers. They do this so that they can be sure that their website is fully secured.
However, despite all these, some members have complained about popups, malware, and viruses on BeFrugal’s website. While BeFrugal claims to be on top of their website’s security, I must let you know the truth about the history of BeFrugal’s cybersecurity.
See also: Best 10 Cashback Platforms: Earn Rewards for Shopping Online
Conclusion
BeFrugal Review: Is BeFrugal Legitimate?
Before I conclude this BeFrugal review, let us see if you should join BeFrugal.
When a website agrees to give you money, even if it is cashback, it is important to know if the website is legit. After all, you do not want any company to have access to your identity and use it for dubious means.
To know if BeFrugal is a scam, I dug into what other users have to say about the platform.
My first point of contact was Better Business Bureau. According to this site, BeFrugal is an accredited business. This implies that they do all it takes to resolve issues customers have, and they allow BBB to track their progress.
They have an A rating on BBB because they respond to their customers’ issues on time. They have been on the BBB website for over nine years, and they have just a few complaints out of the thousands of users they have.
At this moment, I believe they would have resolved or answered almost all the complaints. You can check out their BBB profile by clicking here.
I also came across reviews from users that gave a good picture of the website.
All these show that BeFrugal is safe and legit. You can sign up on BeFrugal and start shopping at their partners’ stores to earn cashback.
I hope you found this BeFrugal review helpful. Don’t hesitate to join BeFrugal to save some money while shopping online.
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