For many, Amazon gift cards are the holy grail for deal seekers.
They are easy to use across the various Amazon verticals, and Amazon has just about everything you want to buy online. Also, free Amazon gift cards are received without having to pay income taxes, so they are a great way to supplement your income.
Now when we say “free”, we mean with minimal effort. Some of these ideas require a one time set up and others require that you do things you are already doing, but not getting paid for it.
Ways to Earn Free Amazon Gift Cards
Shop Online
Shopping online has become a significant part of our spending, but most people are missing out on rebates they could be getting on almost every purchase.
Cashback rebate websites allow you to get a percentage back on purchases at most online retailers. For example, instead of going directly to Target to buy something, you go to TopCashBack.com, click on their Target.com link, and get a 2% rebate on anything you purchase into your account.
You can even choose to pick up in-store and still get the rebate. The top cashback websites include:
Play Video Games
If you enjoy playing somewhat simple online games, then you can get paid for it. These are not going to be high-end games, but if you ever spent time playing Farmville, then you should feel right at home.
The best sites that use free Amazon gift cards pay you to play video games are:
Buy Gasoline
If you have a car, then gasoline can make up a significant part of your monthly spending. Instead of filling up at any gas station, you can get cash back for every gallon you pump with GetUpside.
The GetUpside app shows you local gas stations that participate in their rewards and how much you get back when you claim and redeem the rewards at a specific station. The rewards can range from 1¢ to 25¢ per gallon.
They also have a referral program where you get 1¢ per gallon for every gallon your referrals by using the app. I have been earning enough to easily pay for my Amazon Prime subscription by redeeming my rewards for Amazon gift cards.
Sell Your Data
Nielsen Computer and Mobile Panel will pay you to let them track your data usage. I know this feels a bit creepy, but when you think about all the companies that are tracking you (Facebook, Google, etc.) and not paying you, it makes sense.
Nielsen uses your data to do market research for various companies and governments. All you have to do is install the app on your phone or computer and let it run.
You get paid for each device you have running the Nielsen app.
Read Email
Companies started paying people to read advertising emails way back in the late 1990s. You get an email, click on the link to verify that you got it, and boom points in your account.
These points can be traded in for free gift cards to Amazon and other online retailers. The top get paid to read email programs include:
Get Rebates on Groceries
Clipping coupons has become less popular in recent years, and grocery coupon apps are the reason why. Instead of clipping or printing your coupons, you can select them from one of the coupon apps before you go shopping.
These apps will sync with your customer loyalty card, or you can upload the receipt directly to the app to verify that you made the purchase. The top grocery coupon apps are:
- Ibotta
- Checkout 51
Search the Internet
Instead of heading to Google for every search you make, you can do your internet searches with sites that pay you for them.
These sites take the ad revenue that Google keeps all to themselves and shares it with the users. The best places that pay you to search are:
Take Surveys
Paid surveys are an easy way to earn Amazon gift cards. Market research companies are always looking for people to answer questions about current events, products they use, and their perception of companies.
These surveys can be done while you are watching television, so the requirement of your attention is pretty low. The top survey sites include:
Credit Card Cash Back
There are a ton of cashback credit cards out there. I know I use two personally.
What most people do not realize is that you do not have to take that money as cash or an account credit. Instead, you can cash your rewards in for free Amazon gift cards.
Just use your cards regularly and make sure to select the gift card cash-out option.
Trade-In your stuff
The Amazon trade-in program targets Amazon products that are outdated and rewards you greatly for updating to the latest Amazon devices.
You can choose to receive the gift cards directly, but you will usually get extra discounts on Kindles, FireTV, smart speakers, and home security.
Along with all the Amazon devices, you can also trade-in cell phones, video games, game consoles, and books.
Price Match Purchases
Whenever you make a purchase, you can monitor the internet for a better price and then get it price matched at your original store, or you can have Paribus do all the work for you.
Simply link your credit card to Paribus, and they will monitor the items you purchase, looking for a better price. When they find one, they work with the store to get your refund.
In return, they keep 25% of the money they find for you. All cashback can be exchanged for Amazon gift cards, and you get paid for doing nothing.
Strategies for Getting Free Amazon Gift Cards
There are several things you want to consider when trying to maximize getting free gift cards.
The first is that you want to bundle the cashback you get as much as you can. For example, I use GetUpside whenever I fill up my car with gasoline. I also use a cashback credit card that has extra rewards for gas station purchases.
Together I am getting about 10% cash back on gasoline purchases directly into Amazon e-gift cards. You can also use this method when you shop using TopCashBack.com.
Second, I made sure to sign up for anything that requires no effort after sign up. So Paribus and Nielsen CMP were immediate wins. Just sign up and earn.
Finally, I made sure not to sign up for too many of the programs that require a little effort (playing video games, taking surveys, etc.). You can go overboard with these and then end up getting frustrated and not using them at all.
Final Thoughts on Earning Gift Cards to Amazon
No matter which of the ways to earn Amazon gift cards you use, you can be sure to earn a few each month by trying a few of these ideas.
If you are careful with how you use these different ideas, you can make sure to supplement your income with a few of these gift cards each month.
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