Saving money on Christmas presents isn’t always easy, but with this little “trick” you can save your family hundreds of dollars (and no, it doesn’t involve buying gifts ahead of time or doing a savings plan all year long!) In fact, while the holidays are certainly on my mind, this is a tip that works whenever you’re buying gifts!

The Best Way to Save Money at Christmas

Save money on Christmas by implementing this one smart trick that can literally save you hundreds of dollars, even after the holiday season!

This is actually something you can implement all year long, but goodness knows saving money around the holidays is exceptionally important.

First, make sure you’ve signed up for Rakuten. If you don’t yet have an account, sign up via my referral link and you’ll earn an automatic $10. That’s right, step one of this post and you’re already $10 ahead!!

Not sure what Rakuten is? Check out what happened to Ebates!

Next, sign up for an account with Raise.

New Customers! Save $5 off your first order of $25+ when you purchase already discounted gift cards at Raise! Code NEW5RAISEAF

Raise is a website through which you can buy and sell gift cards. Meaning not only can you pick up gift cards at a discounted price, but if Aunt Helen sends you a gift card you’ll never use, you can sell it and use the money toward something else!

Raise is also great in that if you know you’ll shop somewhere on a regular basis (like a specific gas station) you can buy a higher priced gift card and save even more! When you sign up through my Raise referral, you’ll also get $5 off your first purchase. Yep,. that’s right – we’re now $15 ahead!

So now we’re going to use both of these platforms together and really make some magic:

For this purchase, let’s assume your kid has been buggin’ you all year long for a bear from Build-A-Bear – what a perfect gift for Christmas Eve cuddles!

Assuming you’re new to both, here’s how your first purchase could break down:

  1. First, go through Rakuten to Raise so you’ll earn 1%+ back on your purchase.
  2. Search for “Build-A-Bear” and you’ll see gift cards selling at a 24% discount.
  3. Snag a $25 gift card for $19.
  4. Already, you’ve saved $6, but remember you also earned $15 by signing up for Rakuten and Raise.
  5. Oooh but it doesn’t stop there! You’ll earn earn 1% back from your Raise purchase and around 3% back should you make your Build-A-Bear purchase through Rakuten online (only .94 cents, but hey those pennies add up quick!)

Earning with Rakuten + Raise

So your final total?

$19 spent, $21.94 earned.

Yes, you’re reading that rightyou just made money while buying your daughter’s Build-A-Bear!!

Now obviously after that first purchase, you won’t have that extra $15 to count on, but even without it, you’d still only be out $18.06 instead of the $25 you would’ve spent without this trick. So on just one present, you’ve saved nearly $7! And while this process might seem just a bit tedious at first, once you see those savings stacking up, you’ll be happy to spend the extra minute earning back money from your holiday shopping!

Get $40 from Rakuten Now

Get Discounted Gift Cards

 

Be sure to leave me a comment below to let me know what YOU’LL be saving money on this year!

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