Save Today: Double Cash Back on Travel at Ebates
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Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here – American Express® Gold Card
Every savvy traveler should take the extra 15 seconds to book online travel by first clicking through a cash-back or mileage-earning site. It doesn’t prevent you from earning points, getting deals and booking directly with the travel provider. If you aren’t doing this, you’re likely leaving miles, points or actual cash in someone else’s pocket.
One of these cash-back sites is Ebates (now known as Rakuten), and today they’re offering double cash back at select travel providers. For example, if you book a Choice Hotels property today by first clicking through Ebates/Rakuten, you’ll get 10% cash back in your Ebates account on the reservation amount. Make a $200 booking, get $20 cash back. It’s that simple.
Some travel sites offering up to double the typical cash back amount on Ebates today include:
- Travelocity: Up to 10% back
- Priceline: Up to 12% back
- IHG Hotels: Up to 8% back
- Hilton Hotels: Up to 7.5% back
- Hertz: Up to 5% back
- Hotwire: Up to 8% back
- Cheap Tickets: Up to 10% back
- Orbitz: Up to 10% back
- Choice Hotels: Up to 10% back
Your elite status, the type of purchase you make and so on will determine how much cash you get back from some of these providers.
Bonus for New Ebates Members
If you’re a new Ebates member, you have fun choices to make. You can get $10 in bonus cash back with your first purchase of $25. Or if you have an Amex Membership Rewards earning card, such as the American Express® Gold Card, you can get 1,500 bonus Membership Rewards points after you spend $25, if you choose to earn points instead of cash back on your purchases.
Since TPG values Membership Rewards points at 2 cents each, that’s like earning $30 in points with a $25 purchase, which is the better deal. Additionally, your ongoing Ebates earnings can become more valuable if you choose Membership Rewards points instead of cash, since 10% cash back would be the same as earning 10 valuable Membership Rewards points per dollar.
Stack Your Savings
If you want to earn hotel points, get cash back from Ebates and stack extra savings, be sure to check your American Express cards for Amex Offers and Chase cards for Chase Offers. If a relevant one is available, you can add the offer to the card you intend to pay with and stack on the savings. If you don’t have any offers, use a card that maximizes your spending on travel (return based on TPG valuations):
- Chase Sapphire Reserve (3x on travel, 6% return)
- Citi Prestige Card (3x on hotels, 5.1% return)
- Citi Premier® Card (3x on hotels, 5.1% return)
- Chase Sapphire Preferred Card (2x on travel, 4% return)
Featured image courtesy of the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort
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WELCOME OFFER: Earn a $300 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first six months of card membership.
CARD HIGHLIGHTS: Earn 6% cash back on select U.S. streaming services and 3% cash back on transit. Plus earn 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%) and 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations. Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed for statement credits.
- Earn a $300 statement credit after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card within the first 6 months.
- $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95.
- Buy Now, Pay Later: Enjoy $0 plan fees when you use Plan It® to split up large purchases into monthly installments. Pay $0 plan fees on plans created during the first 12 months after account opening. Plans created after that will have a plan fee up to 1.33% of each purchase amount moved into a plan based on the plan duration, the APR that would otherwise apply to the purchase, and other factors.
- Low intro APR: 0% for 12 months on purchases from the date of account opening, then a variable rate, 13.99% to 23.99%
- 6% Cash Back at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%).
- 6% Cash Back on select U.S. streaming subscriptions.
- 3% Cash Back at U.S. gas stations and on transit (including taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more).
- 1% Cash Back on other purchases.
- Cash Back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit.
- Terms Apply.
- See Rates & Fees
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Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.