Rakuten Review 2021: Is It legit and Worth It?

Rakuten is Japan’s largest e-commerce company, which offers a wide range of services including online shopping, banking, travel and more. The company has been the subject of controversy in recent years with some alleging that it is an illegal pyramid scheme.

Rakuten is a Japanese company that offers e-commerce services. The company was founded in 1997 and has been listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since 2003.

It’s possible that some of the links in this article are affiliate links. For additional information, please see my disclosure.

You’ve most likely arrived here in search of a Rakuten review. While there are legitimate methods to obtain free money, some people may be wary. Based on my investigation, I’ve discovered that there are platforms who really want to help you save money when you buy their goods or services. 

As a mother of three sons on the path to financial independence with my husband, we are always looking for new ways to earn more money and save money. That’s why the Rakuten app is one of our favorites! We’ve made over $200 since joining, and it’s certainly a service worth checking out if you’re seeking to save money or get money back on your everyday purchases.

We’ll go over Rakuten in this tutorial, which is an online cashback and reward service that allows you to earn cashback and incentives by buying on their marketplace. 

Continue reading to discover how Rakuten works and how you can save a lot of money by shopping on the site. 

What Is Rakuten and How Does It Work? 

Rakuten is a platform with over 12 million members in the United States that rewards loyal customers with cash-back and promotional offers. It is jokingly referred to as Japan’s Amazon. eBates was the previous name for the website. 

Users may shop from over 2500 brands on Rakuten’s website using the browser extension. 

As long as you’re 18 or older, you may earn anything from 1% to 40% cash back when you check out. 

Amazon, Sephora, Walmart, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Target, Nordstrom, and others are among the well-known brands available on Rakuten’s platform. 

In comparison to most other sites, Rakuten’s qualifying criterion for earning cash-back rewards is far more straightforward. 

Review by Rakuten: Is Rakuten a Scam or a Legit Company? 

There has been a lot of discussion over whether Rakuten is legitimate or not. I discovered that it is not a scam after doing a hands-on review. This is why. I have acquaintances that utilize the site on a daily basis and have yet to encounter any issues. 

When you look at Rakuten’s history, you’ll see that it first opened its doors in 1997. 

Its business concept was created to function as an online marketplace with benefits and listings that would provide prospective consumers with a good deal.

Rakuten has approximately 120 million consumers who have shopped there so far. 

It seems legitimate in the eyes of prospective customers since they are not required to submit their payment information with the website. Later in this tutorial, we’ll go further into its security features. 

What Is Rakuten’s Catch-22? 

From a shopper’s perspective, there didn’t seem to be any worrisome blindspots. While there is a technicality that makes the site seem to be a fraud, there is no catch. I’ll dispel the myth so you may buy and earn rewards on Rakuten with confidence. What may seem to be a catch at first sight is that you can only get a reward if you buy directly on the Rakuten website. 

If you join up for VIPKid via my affiliate link, for example, I will get a commission. Rakuten is in the same boat. Typically, a cookie is stored on your computer that identifies you as one of my customers. 

You will not get credit from Rakuten for buying an item or service after you have been designated as my shopper. The ripple effect trickles down to the consumer if Rakuten is not paid a commission. 

You won’t get any benefits from the platform if you go to a website without going via their affiliate link. 

What Sets Rakuten Apart From Amazon?

Rakuten’s approach varies significantly from that of Amazon. Rakuten is for consumers searching for the simplest way to recover cashback on purchases, while Amazon’s strengths are in logistics. 

While Amazon has the sense of an online marketplace, Rakuten has the feel of a shopping mall. 

What makes Rakuten stand out is its loyalty-based business model. In addition, the site does not intend to compete with listed vendors. 

How much does it cost to become a member of Rakuten? 

Joining Rakuten is completely free. Another noteworthy benefit is that the site does not charge its customers any fees or hidden costs. 

As a consumer, there are no fees associated with making a purchase since merchants pay Rakuten in advance to be featured on the site. 

Earning cashback offers through this site is simple since there are no fees to pay. Instead, Rakuten places a greater emphasis on the benefits that loyal customers may be eligible for. 

The amount of cashback customers may earn varies depending on the retail partner and the kind of goods they want to buy. However, you may expect to earn anything from 1% to 40% on average. 

Rakuten gives you cashback on purchases for a reason. 

While it may seem like getting discounts and incentives by buying online is a bit far-fetched, the concept really works. Rakuten has established itself as one of the few sites that makes it simple to earn cash back on purchases. 

Affiliate businesses representing both large and mid-sized retail brands work with the cashback platform. Rakuten may negotiate a portion of the purchase price in cash-back by recommending new customers. 

Some of it is given to the customer, while the remainder is kept by the website. As a consequence, even after paying loyal customers with rebates, Rakuten can remain afloat. 

Which Stores Are Rakuten’s Partners? 

The list goes on and on. Over 2500 retail shops have collaborated with Rakuten. Clothing, food, entertainment, literature, health, travel, sports, outdoor, technology, and many more categories are available for purchase. 

The following are some of the popular retail shops and brands featured on the site: 

1. Kohl’s
2. Best Buy
3. Expedia
4. Michael Kors is a designer that is well-known for
5. Nike
6. H&M
7. ASOS
8. Verizon
9. Macy’s
10. Ted Baker is a well-known figure in the

You may explore each category to stay up to date on the newest discounts on purchases from the different brands and retail shops mentioned. 

Rakuten Review: What Is Rakuten and How Does It Work? 

What’s great about this site is that there’s no discernible learning curve. Rakuten is a reward and cash-back site, so keep that in mind. To receive cashback, just make a purchase from a shop using a Rakuten link. 

As previously stated, buying straight via a brand’s website eliminates the possibility of earning cashback through the platform. The payback % will vary over time, based on the discounts and incentives that a business is prepared to provide its loyal customers. Rakuten’s website has a ‘Double Cashback Stores’ option where you may discover unique deals. 

The welcome bonus is part of Rakuten’s business strategy, although the amount of payback varies from one shop to the next. 

The site will give you the amount you earned while purchasing once every three months. 

You may choose between receiving payment in cash or receiving a deposit into your PayPal account. Rakuten keeps track of all accessible discount codes on the internet so you can save even more money. 

How Do I Get Started With Rakuten? Rakuten Review: How Do I Get Started With Rakuten? 

Signing up with Rakuten is, once again, simple. If you want to receive rebates for purchasing, there are three options. 

You may utilize the browser extension, go to the Rakuten official website, or download the Rakuten mobile app, which is available for iOS and Android. 

The simple steps to get started with the cashback and rewards program are outlined below. 

Sign Up

All you have to do now is fill in the blanks with basic information. Rakuten requires your email address as well as a strong password in order to create a safe account. Rakuten may also be accessed via your Google or Facebook account. 

If you find the procedure difficult during the initial trial, you may continue shopping and sign up when you check out. Typically, all new members get a $10 welcome bonus, which seems to be a bright incentive to join up.

 Another perk is that you may earn a bonus by introducing friends to Rakuten. However, in order to receive the welcome incentive, you must make a minimum purchase of $25 within 90 days after joining. 

 Button for Cash-back 

If you like to buy for goods from online marketplaces on your computer, Rakuten’s ‘Cashback Button’ will make your life much simpler. 

It’s a Google Chrome browser addon. The browser plugin enhances the user experience by allowing Rakuten to keep track of all retail partners’ websites you’ve visited. 

When you are qualified for cashback benefits, you will receive a pop-up at checkout that will notify you. 

After completing a purchase, the consumer may receive cashback simply by pressing the button. At the same time, you’ll be notified of all the most recent discount offers, as well as coupon codes. 

Furthermore, the plugin preserves Rakuten cashback percentages in your Google search results. The ultimate aim is to show consumers which companies provide the greatest cashback offers. 

If a shop isn’t currently giving cash back, Rakuten will try to refer you to a comparable product or service that is now offering a discount. 

The addon is very helpful since it notifies prospective customers when a comparable product is on sale at a reduced price. For example, if I add some outdoor gear to my basket at Kohl’s, the button will recommend that I activate a 5% reward while I’m still on the site. 

After I make a purchase, the cashback will be immediately applied to my account. It is typical for the balance to reflect after a few days in other cases. 

This is by far the easiest method to navigate through Rakuten’s offers, particularly if you’re new to the site. 

If you have an ad blocker installed in your Google browser, the addon may act strangely. So, if you’re using the Rakuten button to shop, you may want to turn it off.

 Cash-back in-store

While Rakuten is most known for giving cashback on online purchases, the company’s in-store cashback program seems to be gaining popularity as well. 

The in-store backlink may be found on the Rakuten website. Your cashback offer will be connected to your credit card in real-time when you click the link. 

As a result, whenever you use your credit card to make a purchase at a real retail shop, you will instantly receive cash-back after the transaction is connected to it.

So, before you can save money by shopping at a physical store, you must first discover an offer and then connect it to your card. For most first-time buyers, this choice may seem to be a bit confusing at first. Utilizing the browser extension is more convenient than using the in-store shopping option unless you want to maximize your discounts. 

The App

It’s far more easy to use the Rakuten mobile app, especially if you’re always on the move. If you prefer to make online purchases using your phone rather than a computer, you may save a lot of money and get cash back without having to sit in front of a computer. When compared to utilizing the browser extension, it is simpler to view mobile alerts quickly. 

Additionally, there’s a possibility you’ll notice promos and mobile-only offers that you wouldn’t see on the internet cashback button. For regular Lyft users, the app is a big bonus since it allows you to earn cashback. 

How can I get my $10 Rakuten welcome bonus?

It’s very easy to use your $10 welcome bonus. To begin, sign up with your email address, Facebook account, or Google account. Within the first 90 days after joining up, you must make a minimum purchase of $25. Once you’ve met the requirements, you’ll be able to claim your welcome bonus, which will be credited to your Rakuten account balance. 

Rakuten Review

Is Rakuten a secure site? 

Rakuten is a safe and secure online marketplace that partners with reputable retailers and brands. 

The business has a TRUSTe accreditation and an A+ rating from the Better Business Bureau, just to digress a little. It also collaborates with McAfee to conduct daily security checks on all visitors to the site. 

There would be no need to worry about your payment information being leaked to unscrupulous people since all you need to join up on the site is an email address. Rakuten adheres to the rules of the Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council (PCI) all year to maintain strong security standards. 

While the entity may seem ambiguous to the untrained eye, it is crucial in regulating how to secure and encrypt sensitive data such as credit card numbers. Before joining up, read the small print to understand how the platform intends to safeguard and utilize your personal information. 

Overall, I found Rakuen to be quite open about how it plans to utilize the information it collects from its customers. Rakuten admits that it utilizes location monitoring to collect marketing data that are subsequently sold to a third party in the small print. 

Even if certain functions on the site are restricted, you may still earn cashback by delinking location tracking. While the concept of collecting and selling marketing data is not new, consumers have the right to know how their data is used by third-party businesses. 

With over 2500 well-known retail companies on board, it’s difficult to overlook the fact that Rakuten is one of the few secure places to get cash back on online purchases. 

Is Rakuten a free service? 

Rakuten is a completely free service. You do not need to use your credit card to register. In fact, joining up for the site earns you a welcome bonus. 

Rakuten Customer Service Review

While the cheques are only given out once a quarter, the staff is very dependable and never misses or delays payments. 

The majority of customers seem to be pleased with the site’s services, according to BBB evaluations. Its live assistance, on the other hand, is relatively restricted. A ticket mechanism is also used on their ‘contact us’ website. If you have an urgent question, Rakuten’s staff may take some time to respond. 

Meanwhile, you may check out their frequently-asked-questions (FAQ) section, which is located under the knowledge center, to see if you can obtain any real help. 

Pros and Cons of Rakuten

Rakuten Advantages

1. Refunds

The main reason we all joined up for Rakuten is to get cash back without having to deal with any obstacles. When buying online, it’s a great method to save money. Even a 1% cashback is something you should take advantage of. Apart from purchasing via affiliate hyperlinks on the site, there isn’t much else to do. 

2. Rakuten offers a large number of stores to choose from.

Rakuten has collaborated with almost all of the most popular retail companies. Travel cash-back is available from companies like Tripadvisor, Priceline, and Hotwire. This isn’t the end of the list. Target, Macy’s, and Best Buy are just a few of the shops that feature a lot of deals.

3. Program for referrals

You may utilize the Rakuten referral program to earn money in addition to the welcome bonus by referring your relatives and friends to buy from the site’s businesses. You may earn a $30 incentive for each client you recommend to Rakuten. 

4. Customer Support

While the contact area utilizes a ticketing system, the commonly asked questions section may help you obtain answers and learn more about Rakuten. 

5. It’s Very Simple To Use

Even if you are a novice, you will find it simple to browse the site. When it comes to searching through available cashback offers, you have three choices. For example, the browser extension 

Rakuten’s Negatives

1. Payments are made every three months.

If you’re short on cash, redeeming Rakuten points may not be the most practical solution. Rakuten compensates its customers every three months. If this time seems too lengthy, some prospective users may abandon the site. 

2. You cannot cancel or change an order after it has been placed.

There is no way to cancel orders after they have been placed. If Rakuten enables you to modify or cancel an order, your cashback incentive is immediately invalid. 

3. You may overspend since everything is on sale.

Rakuten has a reputation for encouraging impulsive purchases. You may find yourself spending money on something you don’t actually need. While receiving cashback may seem appealing, you must first buy an item or service with your hard-earned money in order to receive the benefits. 

Rakuten Review: Frequently Asked Questions

Rakuten or Honey: Which Is Better? 

Honey is a good substitute for Rakuten. However, there are a few things to consider before deciding on the best option for you. Both systems can assist you in making financial savings. 

In comparison to Rakuten, Honey claims to partner with over 40,000 shops, giving you a wider range of choices. When it comes to earning incentives, both provide discount coupons, making it a tie. 

Rakuten, on the other hand, does not devote much time to providing discounts but is well-known for its lucrative cash-back offers. Honey’s discount coupons are automatically generated, and the system does not provide any obstacles to prospective customers. 

Fixed cash-back rates are available on Rakuten, however the ‘Honey Gold’ option provides a random range. If we examine this aspect, Rakuten comes out on top since you can be assured of the percentage that will be deposited into your account. 

For fast and simple checkout, both offer browser extensions and a responsive mobile app. It’s tough to be both a judge and a jury when deciding which platform is the best for earning cash-back. Honey’s app is a better choice if you want to keep track of all your discounts and purchases in one place. It’s important to utilize both sites when making online purchases so you can see which one has the greatest chance of rewarding you. 

Rakuten allows you to scan receipts. 

Rakuten’s website and mobile app now include a receipt reader. You may now use your camera to photograph your receipt. The function scans the price and the goods purchased, and then sends them to the Rakuten mobile app. 

A budgeting feature is included in the app, in addition to the receipt scanner, to help you monitor and manage your monthly expenditure. 

Is Rakuten just available online or in stores?

Rakuten is currently only accessible online and in physical locations. You may use the mobile app or the browser extension to access its online presence.

Is it Possible to Make Money on Rakuten? 

While it is difficult to make a fortune pursuing cashback offers, Rakuten is a good place to start if you want to save money on little purchases. From the mentioned shops, you may earn anything from 0.5 percent to 15 percent cashback.

You’ll also get quick alerts whenever your favorite retailers offer special deals. 

How can I get the most out of my Rakuten cashback? 

There are a few methods for doing so. The Rakuten mobile app is a handy way to keep up to date on the newest retail brand offers. You should also keep an eye out for special incentives that are only available for a short period. 

For example, a 10% cashback on travel-related reservations may be a lucrative method to increase your prospective cashback earnings. Rakuten’s browser plugin may also keep you informed about which retailers are providing huge discounts on purchases.

You may earn money in addition to the welcome bonus by introducing your friends to the site. 

Rakuten pays you in a variety of ways. 

You may be paid in cash or by check, both of which will be transferred to your PayPal account. You will not be charged any additional costs in order to collect your accumulated cashback rewards. 

Is There a Rakuten Membership Fee? 

Rakuten does not charge a membership fee. Joining this site is easy and free. One of my favorite aspects about Rakuten is that it is completely free to join. 

Rakuten Review: Last Words

Is Rakuten a good fit for you? Using the platform to earn cash back on online purchases, on the other hand, is a perfect experience. To utilize their services, you must be at least 18 years old. 

When it comes to enrolling and utilizing Rakuten, there is no learning curve. If you’ve used Ebates previously, Rakuten operates in a similar way. You just need to be concerned about how you will be informed when new offers become available. Fortunately, a browser extension and a mobile app are available to assist you in navigating among the listed retail brands. 

Most importantly, the cashback platform is accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), so you don’t have to worry about being taken advantage of.  

You can establish an account and start saving money on purchases right away if you’re searching for a simple method to take advantage of cash-back offers. Stay tuned because I’ll update this tutorial as soon as Rakuten introduces a new function. 

The is rakuten safe reddit is a question that many people are asking. Rakuten has been known to be a scam, but it is also one of the best places for shopping online.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the downside to Rakuten?

Rakuten is a Japanese company that has been in business for over 300 years. They have a wide variety of services, including online shopping and financial services.

Can you really make money on Rakuten?

Yes, Rakuten is a great place to make money.

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