From grabbing weekend brunch to enjoying a nice meal after a long work week, dining out offers a fun break in routine.
Thanks to a growing number of restaurant cash back apps, frequent diners can now effortlessly earn monetary rewards that can be applied toward future dining purchases simply by attending a participating location that offers rewards for the occasion.
This article will explore the ease and benefits behind this popular category of apps that helps users earn money while they enjoy their dining activities outside.
How Restaurant Cash Back Apps Work?
Restaurant and dining out cash back apps typically prompt users to link their credit or debit cards to reward them by giving them back a percentage of their restaurant invoice as a cash rebate. Apps usually partner with major chains across casual dining, fast food, coffee shops, bakeries, and other similar establishments to offer a wide variety of alternatives for diners.
Users connect the payment cards they use for restaurant transactions to the app. When visiting a partner dining spot, no pre-planning is needed. Simply use the linked card to pay for the meal normally and the app will quickly identify the establishment and generate the reward accordingly.
The corresponding amount gets credited to users’ account balances, with some apps even offering instant discounts on the spot or for future visits. All of these cash deposits can be withdrawn to an electronic wallet like PayPal or as a gift card once they reach a minimum threshold – usually $10 to $20.
Rewarding Users for Everyday Purchases
Unlike credit card points that require hitting high spending targets, the beauty of dining rebate apps is how they turn routine purchases into earnings that anyone can reap. Daily habits like grabbing your usual morning coffee, taking a lunch break at the neighborhood deli, or enjoying Saturday dinner with the family can effortlessly return some money to the user’s pocket and make the visit much more affordable.
Diners typically earn up to 10% back on sit-down restaurant spending and up to 5% on quick service through cash back platforms. Meanwhile, certain apps offer even higher percentages for trying or sharing feedback on new menu offerings at certain participating restaurants that are seeking to attract additional attendees to give their new dishes a try.
The Pros and Cons of Restaurant Cash Back Apps
Restaurant cash back apps provide some nice advantages for regular diners that far outweigh the few cons that come with using them. Here’s a summary of the benefits that they provide.
Pros:
- Earn Rewards on Top of Credit Card Points: Apps provide an additional layer of rebates on restaurant purchases beyond just credit card rewards programs alone.
- Requires No Receipt Organization: Unlike traditional rebates, users don’t need to hold on to or manage paper receipts as most apps nowadays use linked cards to track restaurant spending and generate the corresponding rewards automatically.
- Automatic Rewards Accrual: Cash back rewards are credited instantly without requiring any special codes, coupons, or pre-planning before dining out.
- Wide Range of Participating Chains: Popular casual dining locations often participate in these rewards programs, which extends the availability of locations that diners can visit.
Cons:
- Inconsistent Partner Availability: Remote towns and rural areas tend to have fewer eligible dining options that generate rewards via restaurant cash back apps.
Strategies for Maximizing Dining Rewards
With many busy consumers already reaching for their phones to split checks or research nearby locations to eat out, strategically tapping into multiple dining rebate apps takes only a few seconds but can result in attractive earnings.
Here are a few strategies that diners may want to consider to make the most out of restaurant cash back apps:
- Enable Location Services: This allows apps to identify and display nearby offers and automatically notify users as they arrive at or make a reservation at a partner restaurant.
- Stack Multiple Apps: Cross-compare cash back rates and available bonuses across 2 or 3 different platforms that can be applied toward your purchases for compound earnings.
- Refer Friends for Bonus Rewards: Grow your dining rewards balance quicker through new user and friend referral promotions. Most apps integrate this feature in their sign-up process. However, referral links and promo codes can be sent after completing the registration process as well.
- Set Periodic Benefit Reminders: Scheduling calendar reminders to routinely review and activate new app promotions prevents users from losing out on limited-time bonuses.
Bottom line
Even though initially signing up for restaurant cash back apps requires linking a debit or credit card and enabling certain phone permissions, the process becomes effortless for diners once these few steps are completed. Simply paying the restaurant bill as they normally would will automatically result in earnings when a user visits a participating restaurant.
Strategically enabling location notifications and stacking a few specialized apps can quickly accelerate dining cash back earnings for dedicated foodies and casual visitors alike. Considering that over 220 million U.S. consumers dine out regularly, installing and using these apps can significantly reduce the dining out budget every month.
So, next time you grab a bite at your go-to taqueria or venture out for an exquisite anniversary dinner, make sure you plan ahead to visit an establishment that offers a rebate with your preferred restaurant cash app.
Those mealtime memories will now come with helpful cash rewards towards your next dining excursion courtesy of these practical mobile solutions.