Maximise your cashback — get paid on everything you spend.
Cashback isn't one app — it's layers you stack so the same spend pays you two or three times. Online shopping, everyday card spend, gift cards, and even the bills you can't avoid.
One golden rule before you start
Cashback only makes you money if you'd have spent the cash anyway. Never spend more to chase a reward — 5% back on something you didn't need is a 95% loss. Everything below is about earning on spending you were already going to do.
The 5 layers of cashback
Each layer earns on a different part of your spending. Run a single purchase through more than one and the rewards add up.
Online shopping (cashback sites)
Click through TopCashback or Quidco before you buy online — rates run from ~1% to 15%+, biggest on insurance, broadband and holidays. Don't use a discount code unless it's listed there, or you can void the tracking.
Heavy online shoppers can pay for a premium tier (e.g. TopCashback Plus / Quidco Premium) for boosted rates — only worth it if your cashback clears the small annual fee.
Everyday card spend
Pick a card that pays you back on day-to-day spending.
| Card | Cashback | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| iFAST Global Bank | 2% | Up to ~£40/month. Already listed on our site. |
| Trading 212 card | 1.5% | Promo end keeps getting extended (currently 31 Jul 2026); meant to drop to 0.5% but rarely does. Already on our site. |
| Uphold | 1% (GBP) | Crypto-capable wallet — usable purely as a cashback card. |
| Zilch | 0.5% (up to 5%) | Buy-Now-Pay-Later = a credit product. Clear it in full. |
| Chase | ~1%, cut in 2025 | Now limited categories + a monthly pay-in. De-prioritise. |
Rates and caps change often — confirm on the provider's site before signing up.
App cashback: gift cards & card-linked offers
The highest everyday rates live in apps. Two flavours — and both stack on top of your card and a cashback site.
Gift-card apps — buy a gift card at a discount, pay with it, earn instantly
- Jam Doughnut — typically 3–8% back (some boosted to 10–24%), credited instantly (100 points = £1), withdraw from £10. Best rates via the Instant Bank Transfer option. £5 first-purchase bonus.
- EverUp — same idea, and often the better rate on supermarkets. Worth having both and using whichever pays more for that retailer on the day.
Typical supermarket rates: Sainsbury's ~5%, Tesco ~4%, M&S ~3.5%, Asda ~3% — they move, so check the app before you buy.
Card-linked offers — register a card, cashback lands automatically
- Airtime Rewards — link up to 10 Visa/Mastercards; auto-detects spend at 200+ retailers and pays 1–15% (avg ~5%). Comes off your phone bill at £10. Zero effort once linked.
- Amex Offers — if you hold an American Express card, activate the offers in your account for "spend £X get £Y" deals at big-name retailers. Free, and stacks with gift-card and cashback-site cashback.
Cashback on your bills (the bit most people miss)
A) Cashback current accounts — Santander Edge, Club Lloyds and NatWest/RBS Reward pay you for household direct debits (a small monthly fee, worth it only if your bills clear it).
B) Pay bills on a cashback card — the £1 direct-debit trick, below.
Stacking (run spend through several layers at once)
Curve is the "middle layer" — you pay with Curve, Curve charges your cashback card, so you keep that card's cashback and add another layer.
Caveats: Curve has fair-use limits and rules on what counts as "debit"; Zilch is BNPL (credit) so always clear it in full. Layers 1–3 alone are great returns for little admin if stacking feels fiddly.
The "£1 direct-debit trick" for bills
Most energy and water suppliers charge two prices: a cheaper rate for paying by direct debit, and a dearer rate for paying each bill on receipt. This keeps you on the cheap rate and earns cashback on the money.
- 1Set your direct debit to just £1/monthA direct debit is still in place, so you stay on the supplier's cheaper direct-debit rate.
- 2Pay the actual bill manually on a cashback cardWhen a £300 bill lands, the £1 goes out by direct debit and you pay the remaining £299 on a cashback card.
- 3Pocket the cashbackOn a 1% card, that £299 earns you ~£2.99 back every month — on a bill you had to pay anyway.
Paying Octopus Energy and Thames Water with the Uphold card (1% cashback) works in practice — both accept it and you keep the cheaper direct-debit rate. You'll need to test which cashback card your own suppliers accept — not every provider works with every card.
Before you try it — check all of these
- Confirm the supplier keeps the direct-debit rate on a reduced £1 direct debit (most do — but verify).
- Check the card payment goes through with no surcharge — a processing fee can wipe out the cashback.
- Make sure your chosen cashback card is actually accepted by that supplier (this is why testing matters).
- Never let the account fall into arrears — pay the manual balance on time, every time.
- Watch your annual balance so the £1 direct debit doesn't leave you accidentally underpaying.
Bonus: receipt-scanning apps
Free apps that pay you for snapping a photo of your grocery receipt — money back on specific products (sometimes any shop). They stack on top of everything else.
- Shopmium — cashback on featured products; some items end up effectively free.
- CheckoutSmart & GreenJinn — money back on selected supermarket items each week.
- Google Opinion Rewards — short surveys (sometimes triggered by your shops) that pay Play Store or PayPal credit.
Make sure it actually tracks
- Find the cheapest price first, then check for cashback — a guaranteed lower price beats a cashback that might not track.
- Click the cashback link before adding anything to your basket (tracking is cookie-based).
- Use a fresh or incognito tab so old cookies don't steal the tracking.
- Turn OFF coupon-finder extensions like Honey at checkout — they overwrite the cashback site's tracking link.
- Test a small purchase before a big one, and withdraw your balance promptly rather than leaving it sitting.
Golden rules & pitfalls
Never overspend to earn cashback
5% on something you didn't need is a 95% loss. Earn on spending you were already doing.
BNPL and credit cards are credit
Zilch and cashback credit cards must be cleared in full, on time. Interest beats any cashback.
Watch fees & minimum thresholds
Withdrawal fees and £10 minimums quietly eat small balances. Factor them in.
Rates change constantly
Providers move cashback rates and caps often — re-check before signing up. We keep the live offers updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
Put it to work
Start with the cashback cards and apps already live on the site, then stack them up. Pairs well with bank switching and the full free-money roadmap.