The Best Apps and Websites to Score Free Stuff

The Best Apps and Websites to Score Free Stuff

The following post is a guest post by Alanna Abramsky from The Budget Babes.

Over at The Budget Babes, I’m constantly on the lookout for apps and websites that will allow me to save even more money while living in Toronto.  Thanks to Mark’s site today, I’ve come up with a list of my top 5 apps and websites that are free, and give me rewards just for using them. I hope you benefit from the list below as much as I have. I’ve saved a lot of money with very little effort.

1. Biko – This is for all the cyclists out there! The Biko app is available for Android or iPhone and rewards you for improving your health, the environment, and your city. Once you’ve turned on the app and start your activity, the GPS will track every kilometer you ride, and you’ll receive one Biko per kilometer. And once you’ve hit 5 kilometers (or 5 Bikos) you can start to redeem them!  Rewards include free coffee, brewery tours, beer flights, food deliveries, and discounts at Toronto restaurants, workout classes, bike shops, online stores, and so much more.
2. Ebates.ca (Note: referral link for Alanna) – Big into online shopping? This is the website for you. With over 750 stores to choose from why wouldn’t you use this website to get some cash back on everything you buy? You were going to make those purchases anyways, right? Might as well save some money if you can. From stores such as Apple, GAP, Sephora, eBay, Amazon, along with so many others, you’ll see your cash back add up quickly. And if you sign up using my referral code, you get $5 cash back as a starter sign up bonus.

(Editors’ Note – My wife and I are also users of Ebates.ca although we don’t do a ton of online shopping.)

3. Minicard Toronto – This is my newest go-to site for finding information and discounts for fun things to do around the GTA (Greater Toronto Area). Minicards are small, credit-card sized informational guides that provide tourists and locals with discounts for museums, attractions, restaurants, retail stores, transportation (10% off of Via), and so much more. Heading to Second City or the Ripley’s Aquarium in Toronto? Hitting up Salad King for some yummy Thai food? Head over to Minicard Toronto to download your discount card and start saving. You can also find the physical Minicards in tons of downtown hotel lobbies, condos, apartments, tourism centers, universities, ESL centers, and airport terminals.
4. Checkout 51 – Hello? Any coupon collectors out there? Since we’re already buying toiletries, household items, and groceries, we might as well start saving some money on it. Checkout 51 is a mobile coupon app that provides users with a new list of offers every week. When you buy a product on offer, take a picture of your receipt, tick off the coupon that you are claiming, and your account will be credited with the offer amount. It’s that easy. And you’ll see your savings add up fast. Once you’ve collected $20 worth of savings, you can request a cheque in the mail!
5. Drop – Launched in 2015, this new Toronto startup will supercharge your credit and debit cards just by linking them to the Drop app. You’ll collect drop points when you buy your morning coffee, head to your favourite restaurant, or hit up the coolest events in the city. And it does it for you automatically so you don’t have to do a thing besides register. You can build your own Drop program with personalized offers that will get you more points when you spend at those stores. And when you’ve collected enough Drop points, you can redeem them towards all rewards across the Drop program. High fives all around for Drop.

So there you have it! Those apps and websites have been helping me save more money while living in the big city.

Thanks for this Alanna.  Mark here – I’ll add a couple of our own for extra measure although they may not necessarily give you free stuff all the time but they will help you save money.

6. Flipp – A buddy of mine in Toronto told me about this app a few years ago and we’ve been using it ever since. The free Flipp app is a great shopping comparison tool for Android or iPhone.  As the app promotes, it makes weekly shopping easy by providing the most current digital circulars right to your phone, including coupons.
7. Great Canadian Rebates (Note: referral link for Mark) – Didn’t get enough online shopping yet?  Well, if you have to shop online try Great Canadian Rebates.  GCR for short, works in partnership with over 500 well known merchants.  Some of these outlets already offer great deals and savings but you save even more money when you shop online as a member.  Once you register, you can save an average of 5% more through cash back rebates and even more money using GCR coupons, deals, discounts and sales links.

Do you have a favourite app or website that you use for discounts and coupons?  Leave a comment below.

Alanna is a fan of My Own Advisor. She is also a travel junkie who loves being surrounded by great food, friends and family, and amazing adventures big or small. When she’s not working on The Budget Babes, she can be found freelancing in the live events industry, or working on various side hustles.  Keep up with The Budget Babes on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.