9 Ways to Get Free Gift Cards That Actually Work

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Whoever says cash is king probably hasn’t been taking advantage of all the ways there are to get free gift cards.

Here’s How to Get Free Gift Cards

In this article, I’m going to show you how to get free gift cards by using apps, taking surveys or by signing up for an offer or service.

All of the ways to get free gift cards listed here are legitimate and have been used by members of Team Clark.

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Shop & Earn Gift Cards With These Apps

There are several apps that help you get free gift cards just by shopping at your favorite stores. We’re going to talk about four of them.

You’ll see that with these apps, all you have to do is buy the things you normally would and technology will take care of the rest. These apps let you earn gift cards or rewards that you can convert into gift cards as you shop.

Ibotta

How to get free gift cards from Ibotta

Ibotta offers cash back rewards in exchange for shopping at stores. Once you download the app, you can pick from among your favorite merchants, including grocery stores, pharmacies, electronics retailers and more.

You simply redeem offers and upload your receipts to the app to earn cash back or gift cards. You can withdraw once you’ve earned $20.

Drop

How to get free gift cards with Drop app

The Drop app lets you accumulate points when you shop at your favorite places, as well. You can then redeem those points for gift cards.

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What I like about Drop is that instead of just food and groceries, they have a pretty robust list of merchants in categories like eyewear and education.

With Drop, you need to reach a minimum 2,000 points (worth $2) to earn a free gift card.

Fetch Rewards

How to get free gift cards from Fetch Rewards

Fetch Rewards is an app that turns your grocery receipts into points that can be redeemed for free gift cards.

By earning just 3,000 points ($3) you can get a Target or Amazon gift card. With 5,000 ($5), you can get a Best Buy gift card — and there are many other retailers to choose from.

All you have to do is scan a photo of your grocery receipt with the app. The receipt can’t be older than 14 days.

Rakuten

How to get free gift cards with Rakuten

New members of Rakuten (formerly eBates) earn a free $10 Walmart gift card, but there’s a catch. You have to make minimum qualifying purchases of at least $25 within 90 days of signing up.

This e-commerce site allows you to get plenty of rewards and cash back from making everyday purchases.

Get Gift Cards From Taking Surveys & More

Another way to get free gift cards is by completing surveys and other tasks online. For doing small jobs, these websites reward you with gift cards or points that you can turn into gift cards.

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We’ve tried out four of these sites as well and we’re going to start out with one of the most popular ones:

MTurk

How to get free gift cards with Amazon Mechanical Turk or MTurk

MTurk is one of the most prominent sites that lets you earn points that you can convert into Amazon gift cards or cash. Some of the tasks include transcribing audio files and taking surveys.

Read our review of how to make money online with MTurk.

Swagbucks

How to get free gift cards with Swagbucks

On Swagbucks.com, you can earn points for completing surveys, browsing the web, watching videos and more.

With each completed task, you earn “Swagbucks,” which you can redeem for Amazon, Target and Walmart gift cards among others.

Swagbucks even offers a discount when you redeem for Amazon gift cards.

Survey Junkie

How to get free gift cards with Survey Junkie

Survey Junkie is another site that lets you earn points toward free gift cards by completing surveys.

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Here’s the thing: Survey Junkie is not as well known as some of the other sites — but it’s legit. To cash out, you have to earn a minimum of 1,000 points ($10 value), which you can turn into a free gift card!

Inbox Dollars

How to get free gift cards with Inbox Dollars

Inbox Dollars is an online rewards club that pays you for completing activities like the other sites. You get a $5 reward just for signing up and work your way to cash rewards that you can redeem for gift cards.

You earn rewards for watching TV, shopping and other tasks, including taking surveys. The thing to know about Inbox Dollars is that you have to earn $30 to request payment.

Credit Card Rewards

Finally, credit cards that offer rewards are yet another way to earn gift cards. Here’s how credit card rewards can equal free gift cards…

How to get free gift cards from credit card reward programs
Credit cards

Many credit cards let you earn points from the purchases you make. Often, your points may not be enough for a plane ticket or hotel stay, so what do you do? Turn those reward points into gift cards.

But before you cash out your reward points, credit card expert Jason Steele advises that you proceed with caution.

“I’m not a big fan of redeeming credit card rewards for gift cards, as I find that this option rarely offers as much value as others,” Jason says. “And even when you can get the same value from a gift card as you do from cash back, you’re always better off with the cash back.”

Jason says that if you can get gift cards for a bargain, it’s a deal you should take:

“However, there are some times when credit card issuers will offer gift cards for a discounted amount of points,” he says. “When this happens, it can make sense to redeem points for a gift card, but only when you’re sure that you can redeem it for something you were going to buy anyway.”

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Conclusion

As great as free gift cards are, there is a need to be careful: Gift card scams are plentiful, especially during the holidays.

Scammers often entice unsuspecting shoppers into buying gift cards for them in exchange for cash. If you suspect that a gift card you have has been used in a scam, report it at ftc.gov/complaint.

Know of any other ways you can earn free gift cards? Tell us about them in the comments below.

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