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Could this be Canada’s best rebate site?
Did you know there’s a new rebate site that pays higher rebates on more categories than the other rebate sites? It’s called Shopper Army, and if you haven’t heard of it yet, you need to get on board!
In this review, I’ll compare Shopper Army to two other Canadian cashback rebate sites: Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten.
Bonus sign-up offer!
Sign up for Shopper Army through my link to receive $2.50 once you accumulate $10!
Why I love Shopper Army
While I still use Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten, Shopper Army has proven to be more lucrative most of the time. Here are the ways this new site has quickly earned my loyalty:
1. Shopper Army’s rebates are overall higher
Shopper Army’s rebates are often the same or higher than Rakuten and Great Canadian Rebates. Here’s a sampling of some top merchants for comparison:
| Merchant | Shopper Army | Great Canadian Rebates | Rakuten |
|---|---|---|---|
| Amazon.ca | Up to 8% | Up to 8% | Up to 3% |
| Booking.com | Up to 3% | Up to 2.5% | Up to 2% |
| Expedia | Up to 4% | Up to 3.25% | Up to 3% |
| Groupon | Up to 5% | Up to 6% | 0% |
| Hotels.com | Up to 6% | Up to 4.5% | Up to 4% |
| Indigo | Up to 4% | Up to 3.25% | Up to 4% |
| Joe Fresh | Up to 4% | Up to 3.3% | Up to 2% |
| Old Navy | Up to 3% | Up to 2.5% | Up to 2% |
| Well.ca | Up to 4% | Up to 1.25% | Up to 1% |
Note: Rebate amounts are based on regular, non-promotional rebates. These amounts are current as of the writing of this article and are subject to change at any time.
2. Shopper Army’s cashback categories are less restrictive
Some merchants break their rebates into categories. That means you earn more for some categories and less (or none) on others.
Shopper Army pays the same or more, and even offers cashback on categories that Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten pay nothing for! Let’s take a look at some examples:
Amazon.ca
| Amazon.ca category | Shopper Army | Great Canadian Rebates | Rakuten |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apparel | 8% | 8% | 2.5% |
| Beauty | 8% | 8% | 0% |
| Home | 8% | 8% | 0% |
| Jewellery | 8% | 8% | 0% |
| Luggage | 8% | 8% | 3% |
| Luxury beauty | 8% | 8% | 3% |
| Shoes | 8% | 8% | 0% |
| All other categories | 3% | 1.3% | 0–0.5% |
| Books (physical and digital) | 3% | 0% | 0% |
| Kitchen | 3% | 1.3% | 1.5% |
| Computers | 1% | 1.3% | 0% |
| Gift cards | 1% | 0% | 0% |
| Grocery | 1% | 1.3% | 0% |
| Video games | 1% | 1.3% | 0% |
As you can see, Shopper Army pays the same or more in almost every category. Notably, they also pay 1% on Amazon.ca gift cards and books. Contrast that with Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten, where you’d earn a big fat zero for these categories.
Note: Rebate amounts are based on regular, non-promotional rebates. These amounts are current as of the writing of this article and are subject to change at any time.
Other merchants
Other merchants, such as Hotels.com, also offer different earn rates for different categories. You’ll find that, for most merchants and most categories, Shopper Army comes out on top.
Tip: Always compare the rebate amounts on the three sites before you buy. Sometimes Great Canadian Rebates or Rakuten offer a higher rebate—especially if they’re running a promo.
3. Shopper Army’s payout system is simpler
One of the frustrations consumers have with rebate sites is their lengthy and complicated payout schedules. While Shopper Army’s payout schedule isn’t necessarily the fastest, I find it to be the simplest.
That’s because the payout can be triggered anytime I request one (once I hit the minimum payout amount). Unlike Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten, I don’t have to wait for a specific payout date to get my money.
Here’s a comparison of the three sites:
| Shopper Army | Great Canadian Rebates | Rakuten | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cashback validation | Within 35 days | 58 to 90 days | Within 48 hours |
| Payout minimum | $5 | $5 (eGift cards) $12 (PayPal) $50 (cheques) | $5.01 |
| Payout process | By request | Automatic (eGift cards) Automatic (PayPal) By request (cheques) | Automatic |
| Payout timeframe | Within 60 days | Monthly | Every three months |
4. Shopper Army makes it easy to estimate your Amazon.ca cashback
This is a really cool feature: if you’re not sure which Amazon.ca rebate category your purchase falls into, Shopper Army has a tool to help!
Go to Shopper Army’s Amazon.ca cashback details page, then enter your item name in the search box (see the red rectangle in the image below):
You’ll then be taken to a results page that gives you an estimate of the cashback you could receive for that product (see the red oval to the left):
While this cashback amount is an estimate and not guaranteed, it’s better than having no idea at all. (So far, it’s been accurate for me every time.) I love this feature and think it’s really useful.
5. Shopper Army’s site is well-designed
I like the clean, simple design of Shopper Army’s site. It’s easy to navigate and it’s relatively easy to find what I’m looking for:
Admittedly, Rakuten’s site is slightly easier to use thanks to the search bar right at the top of the home page:
But Shopper Army and Rakuten are both waaay better than Great Canadian Rebates’ site, which looks like it’s stuck in the 90s!
As a graphic designer and regular online shopper, I appreciate a well-designed website. It makes the experience that much more pleasant and friction-free (which helps to keep me coming back).
6. Shopper Army is more than just a rebate site
Shopper Army is unique in that it offers other ways to earn and save: you can opt-in to their ‘missions’ to try new products or fill out surveys. Here’s my experience with each type of mission:
Try new products for free
My family and I had fun trying out a new line of veggie-based Dr. Oetker pizzas. We had to buy the $6.99 pizza, but were rebated the full amount. All I had to do was fill out a review survey and submit photos of the box, product, and receipt.
While it wasn’t a huge payout, it was a fun experience. We also got to try a new product that we may not have otherwise—and we really liked it! If it ever goes on sale, we’d happily buy it. It’s a win-win for the product-maker and for us.
Fill out surveys for cashback and prizes
The payment for surveys is pretty low, but they don’t take long to do and are easy to fill out. You could also win one of the cash prizes—the two surveys I filled out were offering a chance to win cash prizes of up to $1,000!
What I don’t love about Shopper Army
There’s really not much to dislike about Shopper Army, but to make this a totally honest review, I’ll list my gripes here:
1. It’s a little hard to find the stores
Unlike Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten, Shopper Army doesn’t feature a quick search box on the homepage. To find a store, you have to first click on Stores > All categories to then get to a search box. This is really annoying when you’re in a rush!
2. Limited selection of stores
Though their merchant list is expanding all the time, Shopper Army currently features fewer merchants than the more-established Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten. For example, one of my favourite sites for kids’ shoes is Sport Chek. As of this writing, they’re not on Shopper Army yet.
3. Lowest referral bonuses
Compared to Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten, Shopper Army’s referral bonuses are pretty paltry. Here’s the comparison:
| Referral bonus | Shopper Army | Great Canadian Rebates | Rakuten |
|---|---|---|---|
| For you | $5 | 15% of all rebates earned by your friend for three years. | $25 |
| For your friend | $2.50 | $3 (with newsletter sign-up) | $5 |
The one good thing about this is that it proves how much I genuinely love Shopper Army, LOL! Clearly, I’m not in this for the ‘huge’ referral bonuses!
My final verdict
Of all the rebate sites I use, Shopper Army has quickly emerged as my favourite. In the four months since signing up, I’ve earned over $40 in cashback (with another $80 coming soon)!
Shopper Army offers higher rebates, more cashback categories, and a simpler payout system. It’s also fun to get free products and earn a bit of money by participating in new product trials and surveys. (These are things that the other rebate sites don’t offer.)
Should I ditch the other sites?
Definitely not! I still use Great Canadian Rebates and Rakuten because they sometimes have better offers, different merchants and better bonuses.
I always suggest checking all three sites before you make a purchase—especially if it’s a large one. An extra percent or more in rebates could make a huge difference!
Sign-up bonuses
Use my referral links below to sign up for all three Canadian cashback rebate sites (and one US one) and you’ll receive a bonus for each!
Sign up for Shopper Army through my link to receive $2.50 once you accumulate $10.
Sign up for Rakuten.ca through my link to receive $5 when you spend $25.
For US shopping: Sign up for Rakuten.com through my link to receive $10 when you spend $25. (Yes, Canadians can also join and earn USD cashback!)
Earn even more cashback
Once you’ve joined these sites, you can then refer your own friends and family to earn even more cashback!
Leave your feedback
Got questions? Feel free to ask away in the comments below. Also, let me know if there are other cashback sites that I haven’t listed. I’m always on the lookout for more ways to save money!
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6 Comments
Reverse The Crush
February 7, 2020 at 12:56 pmThanks for the review, Chrissy! Admittedly, I’ve never been much of a rebate seeker (maybe I should start). I do always try to shop for deals though. And I avoid paying higher prices as much as possible. Keep up the great work with your blog! 🙂
Chrissy
February 8, 2020 at 9:51 pmGraham—I think you’re pretty money savvy as it is. No need to add rebate sites to your life (unless you’re crazy like me and enjoy getting a few extra bucks in cashback)!
Maria @ Handful of Thoughts
February 7, 2020 at 2:23 pmThanks for introducing me to a new rebate site. I had never heard of Shopper’s army before but will definitely look into it. I’ve always been loyal to Great Canadian Rebates because their referral system is amazing. Might just have to share my purchases between the 2 sites now.
Chrissy
February 8, 2020 at 9:48 pmMaria—it does take some extra time to check two (or more) sites before making a purchase. I don’t blame you if you decide it’s not worth the effort!
I know that not everyone is into optimizing their cashback like me!
DGX Capital
February 7, 2020 at 4:29 pmNever heard of this one before but might be working looking into if they’re offering a better rebate. I’ve been using Rakuten so far, and it works pretty well.
Chrissy
February 8, 2020 at 9:57 pmDGX—I’ve been with Rakuten the longest and still use them frequently. As I’ve mentioned to other readers, you don’t need to add Shopper Army to your online shopping… unless you’re into squeezing every last dollar you can from your online purchases!
(That’s me—but I’m a little crazy that way, ha ha.)