Do you love to dine out, but hate the hole it leaves in your pocket? Luckily, there’s a way you can return some of the money you spend to your wallet.
All you need to do to get some of your moolah back is sign up for the Yelp Cash Back program. Team Clark tested it to show you how the process works.
What is Yelp Cash Back?
This program gives you a percentage back on the money you spend at participating merchants. Yelp Cash Back is mostly focused on restaurants, but you may be able to find other local businesses that participate.
To start earning you’ll have to enroll in the program on Yelp.com or the Yelp app.
How to Sign Up
To sign up for Yelp Cash Back, you must create a Yelp account. Once you have created an account, just click on the drop-down list next to your profile picture and select “Cash Back.”
You can also find the enrollment page by going to your profile and clicking the “Yelp Cash Back” button on the left-hand side.
To enroll, you must enter your Visa, Mastercard or American Express credit card information. The site is encrypted using bank-level encryption with Empyr, their cash back program partner. More on this partnership later.
Entering your card info allows Yelp to know when you spend at a participating business so that you can get your rebate!
The first card you enter will be your primary card that receives your cash back rewards. You can enter more cards and change the primary card later if you want to.
Once you input all of your info, just click “Link card and start earning” to finish your enrollment.
How to Use Yelp Cash Back
Now that you’ve signed up for the program, it’s time to find somewhere to eat and earn! Here are your steps to get cash back:
Filter businesses: Before you get your money, you’ll need to choose cash back offers to activate. The easiest way to find qualifying restaurants on Yelp is to use the “Cash Back” filter while searching or by typing “cash back” into the search bar. Then scroll through those results to find something you like. I’ve seen offers in the Atlanta area ranging from 3% to 15% cash back, but most of the deals are about 7% in my area.
Claim rewards: Once you find a business you’re interested in, click the “Claim this offer” or “Claim cash back here” button under the business name. When you click the button in the app, the offer activates immediately. However, on a computer, the claim button opens a new tab or window and you have to click the “Claim” button on the right-hand side. After you activate a deal, you’ll see a green cash back icon next to that restaurant in your search results.
Make a purchase: When you use a card you have registered with Yelp at a qualifying restaurant, your cash back earnings will appear in your Yelp account.
When Will I Get Paid?
You’ll receive money from any cash back transactions in the middle of the month following your purchases. For example, if you buy something in April, you’ll receive your cash back reward in May.
Your Yelp Cash Back dashboard within your profile tells you what your savings were last month, this month and your total earnings for the year. It also lists where your recent cash back activity took place.
Your dashboard also lists your linked credit cards and notes the primary card on your account. Any money you earn will be credited to your primary card. You can change your primary credit card here as well by clicking “Make Primary.”
What is Empyr?
The Yelp Cash Back program partners with Empyr, which is a company that facilitates linked credit card rewards programs.
This program claims to use 256-bit encryption to protect your information. Inputting your information here is as risky as sharing it anywhere else, but you have to decide whether you’re comfortable allowing access to your credit card info via this program.
Final Thought
Yelp Cash Back is a great way to earn money back on purchases you were already going to make. The cash back functions on the app and website are easy to use. However, I found it easier to check my Yelp dashboard on my computer.
As someone who likes to try new places to eat, this program is a great discovery tool for new places with good deals. If you dine at restaurants regularly, why not try a business on the list that will put some of the money you spend back in your pocket?
