Last updated on March 17th, 2025 at 10:27 pm
Shopkick is a very popular shopping rewards app that allows users to earn cash and electronic gift cards for:
- Scanning bar codes
- Uploading receipts
- Watching videos
- Taking pictures of store shelves
- Shopping online
It’s one of the most user-friendly apps of its kind and a must-have for anyone serious about earning and saving money while shopping.
Yes. Shopkick is a legitimate shopping rewards app, one that compensates users with cash and electronic gift cards. Shopkick has a 4.6 out of 5 star rating in the App store and a 3.7 out of 5 rating in Google Play.
No, Shopkick is free, and as one of the most popular shopping rewards apps, it’s a great way to earn money while shopping in stores, especially when used in conjunction with store auditing apps.
Yes! Shopkick was founded in 2009 and will celebrate its 16th anniversary in 2025. The Shopkick app has millions of devoted fans who use it to earn cash and gift cards while shopping.
Yes. According to Shopkick’s Terms of Service (updated March 13, 2025), you need to be at least 14 years old at time of registration. “If you’re under 18, you’ll need your parents’ consent since they’ll be responsible for your actions while using the Shopkick App,” notes the TOS.
According to Shopkick’s Terms of Service (updated March 13, 2025), you need to be a legal resident of the United States to use the app.
You can use Shopkick in-store at many major retail chains, including: WalMart, Sam’s Club, Costco, Target, Kroger, Publix, Food Lion, Aldi, Whole Foods, Walgreens, CVS, Rite Aid, PetSmart, Pet Supermarket, Pet Sense, Pet Supplies Plus, Pet Food Center and Dollar General.
You can also use Shopkick when shopping at upwards of 100 different online stores, including many of the brands listed immediately above.
Shopkick ‘kicks’ are rewards points. Generally speaking, 250 kicks are worth $1, though if you redeem kicks for cash they are worth a little less.
- 500 kicks are worth $2
- 1,250 kicks are worth $5
- 2,500 kicks are worth $10
- 3,750 kicks are worth $15
- 6,250 kicks are worth $25
However, if you redeem kicks for cash (instead of gift cards), they may be worth slightly less.
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You can earn kicks by:
- Scanning product barcodes of featured items while in-store
- Making in-store purchases of featured items and submitting a photo of your paper receipt
- Watching videos in the app
- Taking in-store pictures of product shelves that include featured items
- Walking into featured stores
In terms of scanning barcodes, kicks are awarded on a “first come, first served” basis. For example, if you are shopping with a friend or family member and you are both using Shopkick, only one of you may be able to scan the bar code for a particular product before reaching the limit for that particular store.
Also, there are sometimes limits on the number of times you can earn kicks within specific time periods (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.) for a particular product or action.
This is one of the easiest ways to earn kicks. Simply scan the bar code of featured products using Shopkick’s scanning feature and your device’s camera.
In general, this is fastest way to accumulate kicks. Simply use your device’s camera in conjunction with Shopkick’s receipt submission feature to submit receipts from purchases of select products at select retailers.
Yes. According to Shopkick’s Terms of Service, you can submit 20 receipts per month. Receipts must be submitted within 10 days of purchase.
Shopkick allows you to earn kicks by making purchases on specified merchant websites displayed within the app. Certain online-purchase transactions, or portions thereof, may not be eligible to receive kicks, including clearance items, gift cards, tax, and shipping & handling fees.
Rewards from online purchases may not be awarded or used until a specific time period has expired (for example, to account for returns associated with the participating merchant). Typically, this is between 30 and 45 days, but it can be longer.
To earn kicks for walking into a store, you need to be:
- Physically present at the location
- Have the Shopkick app open
- Have network reception while accessing the relevant screen in the app
Yes, at least in the sense that your account may be deemed inactive if you don’t use it for 180 days. According to Shopkick’s Terms of Service, once your account is considered inactive, it may be terminated and all kicks and rewards earned may be forfeited. Shopkick will try to notify you via your registered email address (if provided) to inform you that your kicks will be lost unless you log in to your account by a specified date.
Trying to return products after earning kicks (from submission of a receipt) is a violation of Shopkick’s Terms of Service. It can lead to deduction of kicks or the termination of your account.
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Yes, most definitely. Over the course of the past six-and-a-half years, this journalist has earned an average of $33 per month (approximately $400 per year). During that time, I’ve regularly received monthly emails from Shopkick informing me I’m in the Top 10% of Shopkick users.
As soon as you have collected enough kicks to earn a reward, kicks can be redeemed for cash or electronic gift cards. You can redeem kicks for cash via PayPal or Venmo. Electronic gift card options are numerous and include: Amazon, WalMart, Target, Starbucks, Walgreens, CVS, Lowe’s, Ulta Beauty, Best Buy, Home Depot, Kohl’s, Barnes & Noble, The Cheesecake Factory and many others.
Some rewards may require an account with the applicable reward provider (such as PayPal or Venmo) or a mailing address for shipping, or other requirements as set forth in the app.
There is no overall limit on the number of kicks you can earn, but there are limits on the number of times you can earn kicks within specific time periods (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.), or on the amount of times you can earn kicks for a particular product or action.
For a general frame of reference, if you earn more than 6,250 kicks ($25) in a month, that will likely put you in the top 10% of Shopkick earners. And if you can consistently earn 6,250 kicks per month, that’s worth $300 a year in cash or gift cards.
- Tap your total kick amount at the top center of the app’s homepage.
- Tap “Reward Options”
- Tap the reward you want.
- Tap the denomination for the reward you want.
- Tap “Redeem Kicks”
According to Shopkick’s ‘Taxes’ page, the company is required to report payments to a single individual where the total value of payments is $600. If you earn more than $600 in kicks through Shopkick rewards during any one year, you may be subject to additional personal tax reporting requirements.
If Shopkick determines it needs to file a 1099 to the IRS, the company will reach out to your via email and via the app’s message center to ask for additional information (SSN or TIN) from you. From there you will be directed to submit the required info via a secure form.
Note: Shopick advises that “(t)he $600 threshold applies to payments received for goods and services transactions. It does not apply to kicks earned for purchases. It only applies to kicks earned for non-purchase redemptions such as ‘Kicks for Scans’, ‘Kicks for Walk-ins’ and kicks earned for activities such as viewing videos….”
That said, only a very small percentage of Shopkick users earn enough to trigger the need for a 1099-MISC.
Disclaimer: This information is not intended to constitute or replace formal tax advice for your income tax reporting obligations. You should obtain advice from a qualified or licensed tax advisor in relation to your individual tax reporting requirements.
It’s not clear that there is a best alternative; Shopkick is almost unique in terms of its combination of great user experience and heavy emphasis on scanning barcodes for points. But there are many other shopping apps that complement Shopkick well, including Ibotta and Fetch.
It also makes sense to use Shopkick whenever you are utilizing store auditing tools like Field Agent, BeMyEye, Observa, Mobee and FotoPay.
Yes! You can invite friends to join Shopkick by sharing your personal invite link via text or email. You and your friend will both receive 500 kicks (equivalent to $2) when your friend earns 50 kicks in-store within 7 days.
Download the app from Shopkick’s site and start earning today!
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