Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
Make money from your receipts
Hanna Duggal
10th Feb 2020
Most of us are into the habit of throwing away our receipts. In fact most of us may not even bother to request or take them from the cashier. Surprisingly, there’s easy money to be made from holding onto receipts, and most of it can be done with ease from your phone.
So what is this magical way to make money from receipts? Well it involves uploading them to certain apps.
- Get cash for uploading your receipts
- Start collecting receipts at supermarkets
- Claim cashback on receipts
- Take advantage of back-of-receipt offers
- Hold onto receipts after large purchases
Get cash for uploading your receipts
Holding onto receipts and then uploading them onto these apps is a quick and simple way to make money. It also doesn’t matter where they’re from.
How do I sell my receipts?
Download apps such as Receipt Hog on your phone and take a photo of any receipts you may have. After uploading, you will receive tokens which can be redeemed for Amazon vouchers or PayPal credits.
Once you’ve earned 1,000 credits you can choose to receive a PayPal transaction, an Amazon e-gift card, or even a Visa/MasterCard code. You could also make money from winning spins, which allows you to play on a virtual slot machine for a chance to win credits worth the total amount of your last shopping transaction.
Now this could be very lucrative when you consider you can upload up to 20 receipts a week on Receipt Hog.
What else do I need to think about?
Apps such as Receipt Hog work on the premise of collecting data and doing market research on your purchases, so this may not be for you if you’re concerned about privacy. But remember this is anonymous, those buying the data know what you’re buying, but they don’t know who you are.
How much could I make by selling receipts?
For every 1,000 points, you will earn a £5 Amazon voucher and 1,500 points will credit you £5 on PayPal. It’s not megabucks but it’s a simple way to earn a little bit of extra cash for not a lot of work.
Start collecting receipts at supermarkets
How do I do it?
The best place to find abandoned receipts is in supermarkets, where they are often discarded at self-check-out machines and on the floors. Just like uploading your own receipts onto mobile apps, you can then upload the ones you have collected. In much the same way, you can earn money and vouchers by taking a photo of the receipts and submitting it to apps such as Shopprize UK, Checkoutsmart, and Greenjinn. You could also make money from nectar card points and price guarantees from supermarkets like Asda.
What else do I need to think about?
While picking up and using other peoples receipts isn’t illegal, some companies may have stipulations on which ones they can approve. However most people have enough receipts just form going about their daily lives.
How much could I make?
According to other money saving sites, those who make the effort to sell plenty of receipts in a week could earn an average of £250 a month. Remember this really does depend on your level of commitment, but it’s possible.
Claim cashback on receipts
Claiming cashback on your groceries doesn’t have to be done in-store, in fact, there are now many cashback websites where you can take advantage of offers.
How do I do it?
Apps such as Shopmium allow you to get cashback on certain products listed on their website. You simply have to download their app and create an account. Then search for offers and find the item in your local store, after purchasing said item, make sure you keep your receipt and upload it onto the app. You will then be able to receive money back via PayPal or a bank transfer. Other sites such as Topcashback and Quidco work in a similar way.
What else do I need to think about?
Cashback sites do often take time to put money into your account, so if you’re expecting money quickly you’ll need to be patient. It can be monthly so don’t forget to check.
How much could I make?
This will depend on the products you are purchasing and the retailer you are purchasing from. It’s tough to give an average from this sort of endeavour.
Take advantage of back-of-receipt offers
One of the best ways to save money on purchases is to keep receipts which have offers listed on the back.
How do I do it?
Simply keep your receipts and check if there are any offers listed on it which you can take advantage of next time you buy something from that particular store. These are more common than most people know.
We think the best way to avoid missing out on these offers is to stick these receipts on your fridge every time you get one, then collate them all periodically for use.
What else do I need to think about?
Usually offers will be valid within certain time frames, so make sure you don’t miss out on them. Some may not be worth your time but others could be very helpful.
How much could I make?
It’s better to consider this as a money-saving venture rather than money-making. There are all sorts of offers promoted by different retailers. Always keep your eyes peeled.
Hold onto receipts after Large Purchases
Most large purchases include warranties for a certain period of time, usually a year. Therefore, holding onto the receipt for your could prove to be useful at some point down the line.
How do I do it?
It’s best to keep receipts of electrical goods etc. with their manual, that way you will be able to locate them quicker. Or have a place in your home specifically for this. It may be a drawer or folder.
If you ever have a faulty item, take it into the store you purchased it from and present your proof of purchase to them. Usually, you will receive a replacement item if you have brought back the item within the warranty period.
What else do I need to think about?
Even if your warranty period runs out you may still be able to claim back on a faulty good under The Sale of Goods Act. This could be anywhere of up to six years.
How much money could I make?
It will vary depending on the item. Let’s just say your £200 hoover has failed long before you expected it to, you could receive a new hoover for free (providing you kept hold of your receipt).
Always keep receipts for large items.
Picking up discarded receipts stops litter too.