Money Saving Apps for Specialty Foods
Eating gluten free can be expensive, but there are some ways to save money. Checkout these money saving apps with savings for specialty foods.
Note: This post contains affiliate links that you can use to support me. Feel free to to navigate to the websites on your own. I am a Whole Foods team member, but the opinions in the post below are my own.
Gluten Free Food is Expensive
Buying gluten free, vegetarian, and vegan products can be expensive. Sometimes, things are optional treats, but some staples like bread can start to add up. I have found a few money saving apps that have a great selection of specialty products that can help you save some money.
Just a note, I am not expert in the couponing and budget world. I have not had much luck with clipping coupons for 2 reasons. One, I’m really bad at planning, and I lost count of how many times I would be at the store and realize the coupon I wanted to use was at home. The other reason is that often coupons that come in the newspaper are for foods I can’t eat. I had very few coupons for gluten free food. So, I’ll share with you what has worked best for me, and how I’ve actually managed to save some money.
Store Apps and Coupons
Store Specific Coupons
The first category is store-specific coupons and apps. For example, look out for coupons that can save you a good amount of money with little effort. For me, I’d rather bring one $5 off coupon than cut out 15 coupons that will add up to the same amount. You can also look out for the coupons that print out at the register for items that you always buy. For example, when I was regularly buying Quorn at Kroger, it would usually print off a coupon I could use the next trip.
Whole Foods
If you are an Amazon prime member who shops at Whole Foods, then downloading the Whole Foods app can help you save an extra 10% on sale items which can sometimes make the items cheaper than they would be at other stores. Don’t miss out on these savings if you have an account, but I don’t think it’s worth joining just for the Whole Foods savings.
Target Circle
The best store app I’ve used is Target! The Circle section of the app is their revamped Cartwheel offers if you heard about that. The Cirlce offers sections can help you save money throughout the store but especially on grocery items. You can save on 5% and up on products, and you don’t need to cut out any coupons. You simply add them in the app and then scan your barcode at checkout. I get the best price on the Cup4Cup flour here (learn more about the best GF flours) and occasionally there are offers in the app for GF four.
Money Saving Rebate Apps
Rebate apps are a little different than the store apps that are out there because you don’t have to do anything at the store! I have had so much more luck using these apps because you don’t have to plan ahead. When you get home, you scan your receipt and get money back on your purchases. These apps work by conducting market research like asking you what flavor of a product sounds best or showing a short advertisement in exchange for cash back.
Ibotta
Ibotta is my favorite rebate app because it’s really easy to use, and it has a lot of product offers. You can search by store or by products. Once you reach $20 dollars in rebates, you can withdraw the money to a Paypal account. I often get money back for brands like Canyon Bakehouse, Quorn, and Beyond. You can even get a browser extension for online shopping, but I haven’t fully explored that! You can use my code ijipvod to get $10 when you sign up if you want to help me and get closer to withdrawing money!
Checkout 51
Checkout 51 works similar to Ibotta, but they are not store specific. Again, once you have at least $20 dollars you can withdraw the money you earned. There isn’t as much variety of offers that are offered in this app, so for me, it takes a while to reach $20 dollars.
Fetch Rewards
Fetch Rewards is a bit different than the other apps because it’s more about scanning receipts than it is finding specific offers. You earn points, and when 5,000 points equates to $5. You can get gift cards for a bunch of different stores with the points you earn. I’ve redeemed a couple a gift cards, and it was easy to do. Again if you want to get bonus points when you sign up you can use my referral code Q79HR to say thanks 🙂
Stacking Offers
The best way to get the most bang for your buck is to combine offers. For example, you can use a store coupon at checkout, and then scan your receipt for a rebate as well. If you are at Target, you can use cartwheel offers, manufacture coupons, Ibotta and Fetch and they all stack. Of course this takes some planning, but I usually just try to skim through the apps before I shop to see if there are any good items that have multiple offers.
Are they worth it?
Short answer: Maybe? Long answer: These apps have worked great for me to save a couple dollars here and there with minimal effort. I’d recommend trying them out of a month and seeing which ones work best for you. In 4 years, I’ve casually used Ibotta and saved almost $600. That breaks down to an average savings of $2.88 per weekly shopping trip. Nothing spectacular, but I used those savings on food I would have purchased for full price and then I can use that money in my Paypal account to make donations or treat myself. I’ve only used Fetch for about 1 year and I’ve redeemed a few $5 gift cards to save some money on purchases. Overall, if you got to buy expensive foods out of necessity, it helps to save a few dollars every time in my opinion.