Blog
The blog is maintained by one person, reviewing all portals' data - so you don't have to. Posts about shopping portals more broadly, including news, best practices, and stacking opportunities.
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Shopping portal vs travel portal: what's the difference?
Portal means two different things: one pays you cashback or miles for shopping, the other is your bank's booking site. Here's how to tell which one you need.
August 26, 2026
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Cashback Monitor alternative: is today's rate good?
Cashback Monitor shows you today's rate across dozens of portals. Here's what it does well, where it stops, and how a rate-history tool fills the gap.
August 25, 2026
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Black Friday cashback: does the rate spike actually happen?
Black Friday cashback rates really do jump, but not everywhere. Here's what's verified, why it's uneven, and how to watch this year's spike live.
August 17, 2026
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The best cashback portals in 2026, ranked by how they pay
TopCashback, BeFrugal, and Rakuten lead on rate and reliability; Capital One Shopping and the airline portals cover what they don't.
August 12, 2026
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BeFrugal vs TopCashback: which pays more?
Neither wins outright: BeFrugal and TopCashback trade the lead store by store. Here's how to check which pays more right now, plus how their payouts differ.
August 5, 2026
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The shopping-portal glossary: every term decoded
Click-through, up-to, pending, stacking, mi/$: every piece of shopping-portal jargon, defined in plain English.
August 3, 2026
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Are cashback portals safe? What to check first
Yes, the established cashback portals are legitimate. Here's how they make money, what data they need, and how to vet a new one before you trust it.
August 2, 2026
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Rate Watch #1: the biggest portal moves right now
The first in a monthly series tracking where cashback and mileage rates jumped, which stores hit new highs, and what's worth acting on.
July 27, 2026
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How long does cashback take? The real payout timeline
Most cashback takes 3 to 14 weeks to confirm, then a portal-dependent wait to withdraw. Here's the real timeline for Rakuten, TopCashback, and BeFrugal.
July 23, 2026
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Do airline shopping portals share the same platform?
Some do and some don't. American, United, Delta, Southwest and Alaska share one platform; JetBlue and the international programs share another.
July 12, 2026
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Is 10% cashback actually good? How to tell in ten seconds
10% is a 'good' rate only if you're able to compare it to what a store's rate typically is. The ten second test tells you if today's rate is a steal, average, or not great.
July 12, 2026
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Why I built CheckBeforeYouShop (and how the tracking works)
I got tired of not knowing whether a cashback portal's rate was actually good, so I built a tracker that compares today's rates to historical rates. Here's how it works.
July 12, 2026