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ShopSmarter

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Canada
1 review
10 helpful votes
Follow Lolade A.
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Big scam
September 22, 2020

I purchased stuff at Bed & Beyond and a message came that I was eligible to save $10. Apparently once you click these shopsmarter starts charging you some stupid fees. Anyhow I was able to quickly cancel it. Be vigilant. Scam!

Date of experience: September 22, 2020
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Lolade, I apologize for any confusion regarding the membership fee. If you need any further assistance please reach out directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com. Thanks

Michigan
1 review
3 helpful votes
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DO NOT USE.
April 14, 2021

Poor company customer service. I purchased an Item that's $500 and they gave me a welcome bonus of $10 instead of the suppose to be %10 of the purchase... called them and they said they can't do anything. What is a bonus anyway? Suppose to be on top of the rebate.

Did not even receive my other cash back for other purchases yet. I was told by one person that it's 7-10 business days... the management tells me up to 8 weeks.

What a joke

Do not use... what a scam.

Date of experience: April 14, 2021
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi J. C. please reach out directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com. We will be happy to look into the cash back for you.

Nebraska
1 review
11 helpful votes
Follow GERI s.
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Wow... after reading the reviews and (stupid on your part) your responses to your reviews it is 100% clear that you are ripping off your customers both in charging a monthly fee and by keeping rebates sent to you from retailers and not giving the rebates to your customers for what seem to be excuses you like to call "terms of service" which may be legal but absolutely not moral or ethical. Walmart and any other company that does business with you should be ashamed of themselves

Date of experience: December 23, 2016
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi there,

We're sorry you feel this way about our site and I'd love to help explain how our service works.

I can assure you that all members who use our service fairly receive a cash back check for their earnings every quarter. As a business, we have practices and guidelines in place to detect and eliminate fraudulent use of our service. Some of the things we consider fraudulent would be registering for multiple accounts or using our site for business purposes. We monitor this closely to ensure all of our members are abiding by our terms and not taking advantage of our service. We reserve the right to decline cash back to those who abuse our service through fraudulent use.

We are a subscription-based cash back website, which means we do charge a monthly fee to those who choose to become members. However, at sign up, we offer new users a 7-day free trial. On the sign up page, it is stated, directly above where users enter their credit card information, that if you do not cancel your membership within your 7-day trial period, you will be subject to our membership fee if you'd like to continue to use our service. The membership fee is also stated in our Terms of Use, which users must agreed to before successfully signing up with us.

If you have any other questions, please feel free to reach out to customerservice@shopsmarter.com at any time. Thank you!

Sincerely,

The ShopSmarter Team

Georgia
1 review
2 helpful votes
Follow Bruce N.
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Just buy online and have the order shipped and you get 10% in a check. Sometimes they have 20% off days. Twice as good. I love buying at Walmart and Target as I have their store cards that also pay 5% from the merchant. Yes you pay a fee of $10 a month but if you have a game plan you will win big! I hit close to $1000 in cash from this company this year PLUS my store brand discount.

Date of experience: December 17, 2019
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Bruce,

Thanks so much for taking the time to share this great feedback! We hope you continue to enjoy the savings with Shopsmarter.

Thanks!

Samantha
Customer Support Supervisor

Georgia
1 review
7 helpful votes
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I was also stolen out of $12.97 by this website via an online purchase at Walmart where I was promised a 10% discount.
But guess what Walmart, you stole $22.97 from me, I will steal it back in your store in 10 fold. For about $230.00. You can count on it!

Date of experience: March 7, 2017
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi John,

We're sorry to hear about the confusion regarding a membership with us. Walmart is simply one of the retailers in our network. Our members can earn cash back on their Walmart purchases when shopping through our site. The $12.97 membership fee comes from us, which all users agree to if they choose to stay with us past their 7-day trial period.

At sign up, we offer all new users a 7-day free trial and a cash back bonus. Directly above where users enter their credit card information, it states that if you would not like to continue your membership with us, you must cancel your account within your trial period. Otherwise, you agree to pay the $12.97 monthly fee to access our savings benefits. These details are further explained in our terms of use, which must be agreed to before completing the sign up process. You can also view these terms on our site at any time.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to customerservice@shopsmarter.com for further assistance. Thank you!

Sincerely,

The ShopSmarter Team

Tennessee
2 reviews
15 helpful votes
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They wanted all but 1 digit of my credit card to locate my account!
Said they could not locate me in system- but they had no trouble locating me at billing time. Called last 2 billing cycles to cancel but kept billing. I had to request a new Credit Card to stop the charges.
I did not apply for this- I was told it automatically enrolled me when I ordered from Walmart or others online-- then after 30 day free trial it becomes a draft unless you cancel service. Very upset electronic thieves.

Date of experience: July 30, 2018
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Pamela,

I'd be happy to issue you a refund for the charges incurred as well as explain exactly how you joined ShopSmarter.com. Please contact me directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com and please reference Customer Loyalty #E730.

Thanks!

Mike
ShopSmarter.com
Customer Service Manager

Missouri
2 reviews
9 helpful votes
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We bought one item at Walmart.com and got charged $ 1.97 for the trial period.!
When we cancelled we never heard about the $ 10 refund again and can't get anything from the operators on the phone.!
Its a gimmick to fleece (legally, of course) the public of such a small amount that nobody will bother to go after.!

Date of experience: September 19, 2018
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Barbara,

I apologize for the confusion regarding your account. I would be more than happy to issue you the rebate as well as issue you a refund for the membership fee. Please contact me directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com and please reference Customer Loyalty #T91.

Thanks!

Mike
ShopSmarter.com
Customer Service Manager

Minnesota
1 review
18 helpful votes
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Purchased an item at Walmart thinking I would get $10 off if I signed up for shopsmarter (which I assumed was free). Shopsmarter did not make it clear that their is a $1.97 trial fee plus a $9.97 fee after the trial. Overall, I am extremely disappointed.

Date of experience: July 9, 2019
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Miranda,

Please reach out to me directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com. I will be happy to ensure you receive a refund.

Thanks,

Samantha
Customer Support Supervisor

North Dakota
10 reviews
64 helpful votes
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This is the second time I've changed a negative review to a positive one because the website later came through. When the check actually arrives, I will change the number of stars to five. I have changed it from one to three because the rebate for my second purchase showed up in my account as "pending" - possibly because I called Walmart support and asked them to report my purchase to shopsmarter.com, but show up it did, in less than a week.

They still say a purchase can take ten days to show up - and if it does, you won't get a rebate for it during a 7-day trial membership. That hasn't changed: you should make a second purchase only on the assumption that you might or might not get a rebate for it without paying $12.95 - that's ten percent of $129.50 in purchases per month just to break even! But they don't always take ten days; mine didn't, and I hope to receive a rebate around July 15 and come back to tell you so.

Date of experience: May 4, 2017
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Shirley,

Thank you for providing your feedback. Normally, it can take up to 7 days for your cash back to appear in your Savings Center, depending on how long it takes for the retailer to report the purchase back to us. However, we can promise you'll receive the cash back you earned on purchases made through ShopSmarter as long as you abide by our terms of use and double check the cash back restrictions implemented per retailer. If after seven days you do not see your cash back appear in your savings center please email customerservice@shopsmarter.com for assistance. Once they can confirm the purchase qualified for cash back, they can add it in for you manually!

If you have any other questions or concerns about how our service works, please feel free to email help@shopsmarter.com for more details. Thank you!

Sincerely,
The ShopSmarter Team

Texas
1 review
2 helpful votes
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In the initial months, they will pay as long as your reward is almost the same as the subscription fees. During quarantine time, I made a lot of purchases online and my last purchase was from best buy for a vacuum cleaner. They denied the transition citing that BestBuy did not accept the reward program. I had to cancel it promptly to make sure I am not in their scam anymore. I wonder what I was thinking when I added my credit card to this company. Anyways, I blocked the card and canceled the account. This company cannot do the business right and we should inform the consumer court regarding this crook company.

Date of experience: October 11, 2020
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Stanley,

I see we sent an inquiry to the merchant to determine why the cash back did not report automatically for your purchase. We obtain all cash back data through an affiliate network when you shop through the links on our site. I apologize for any confusion, if you have any questions please reach out directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com.

Thanks

Illinois
1 review
6 helpful votes
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Made me a believer
August 20, 2017

I knowingly signed on because I READ. For those crying about scams they should try it. I got a $10 rebate and was going to cancel but decided to buy what I normally would from Walmart since I get back 20% and I got my cash back as claimed. I'm making a lot more than what I'm paying. Smart shopper membership is legitimate and worth it.

Date of experience: August 19, 2017
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi, I am so happy to hear that you are enjoying your membership. If you shop online often, than ShopSmarter.com is certainly well worth the membership. Thanks!

Maryland
1 review
11 helpful votes
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They are liars
November 15, 2017

Got some rebate on small purchases, but they refused to pay rebate for a big item ($1500) that we bought from Home Depot. We picked up the items FROM the store but ShopSmarter said they can not pay for 'Items Shipped to Store'. Although my first language is not English, but anyone can understand 'picking up something from store' and 'ordering something not readily available at the store but will eventually be shipped to the store' are completely different things. These liars contradicted themselves as they offered cash back for small items that we actually picked up from the store before. Awe full experience. Wish I could take the one star away. Stay away from them.

Date of experience: November 15, 2017
Texas
1 review
6 helpful votes
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A scam!
October 3, 2017

I called the number that appeared in my bank account *******6355... the lady asked for my name and last name. Impressed that she asked to provide my zip code and she replied with my address for verification! How did they get my address? Anyways, after 5 business days I received a credit for the same amount they had charged me. Good luck! Oh and I also purchased something from wal-Mart. Coincidence? I don't know... be careful, always check your account for charges you didn't do.

Date of experience: October 3, 2017
Canada
1 review
25 helpful votes
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SCAM
October 3, 2019

Made a purchase at Bed Bath Beyond online. My online invoice had a link that said claim $10 cash back on this purchase. I clicked it. I was taken to the Shop Smart site where I could "claim" the 10.00 by purchasing something. I exited. I did not join or provide any of my information, especially my credit card. I then found out my credit card was charged for membership to Smart Shop. I contacted Bed and Bath and they claim it was out of their control but Smart Shop could only have received my information from them. I have contacted both companies and demanded the charge be reversed. Still waiting but I will never shop at Bed Bath and Beyond again and will be making this known to anyone who will listen. This is fraud and it must be illegal for a vendor to share my credit card information with any other company.

Date of experience: October 3, 2019
California
1 review
4 helpful votes
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My story starts out similar to most other reviews. An unidentifiable transaction, and then a call to my CC company to get some clarification. In the end it was a simple matter of disputing the charge and it was removed immediately. I have done this on several occasions when deemed necessary and in most cases your creditor will side with you and remove the charge.

Date of experience: August 8, 2017
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Rob,

We're sorry about the confusion. Our monthly membership fee is required for all members in order to access our online savings benefits. At sign up, you were offered a 7-day free trial and the chance to claim your introductory bonus. Every member has the option to cancel their membership at any time during their trial period without any charges from us. Since you did not cancel your membership with us before the end of your trial period, you were charged for continuing your access to our online savings benefits. These specific details about the free trial offer were displayed to you on the sign up page, directly above where you inserted your credit card details and checked the box to confirm you agreed with our terms of use.

If you'd like to know more about our site or what some of our current members are saying, please feel free to read the below links:

FAQs: https://www.shopsmarter.com/faq
Reviews: https://www.shopsmarter.com/reviews

If you have any other questions or concerns, please contact help@shopsmarter.com via email for further assistance. Thank you!

Sincerely,
The ShopSmarter Team

Minnesota
1 review
14 helpful votes
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Thieves
April 10, 2017

They don't help save anything.If not anything they took money. They didn't even mention they had a membership fee. I just saw this pop in my bank account and finally investigated and found this! RUN away! Figure something else out my friend

Date of experience: April 10, 2017
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Amy,

We're so sorry to hear about the misunderstanding. Our monthly membership fee is stated on the sign up page, directly above where users enter their credit card information required to sign up. The details here state that if you choose to continue using our site past your trial, you agree to the monthly membership fee. If you do not want to continue your membership, you must cancel your account within your trial period. Information regarding the membership fee is also stated in our terms of use, which must be agreed to before completing the sign up process. I hope this information helps! Please feel free to reach out to help@shopsmarter.com with any further questions or concerns. Thanks!

Sincerely,

The ShopSmarter Team

New York
4 reviews
14 helpful votes
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A legal scam?
August 24, 2019

As all cash back programs, IC Shop Smart is designed to profit from any unsuspecting buyer who incurs into using an online coupon for a percentage discount. The program snatches the buyer's personal and credit information with automatic enrollment. The program purports to warm in small letters that the buyers are being enrolled in a monthly charge. But truth be told, the company's interest can well exceed the buyer's benefits. Obviously how else can a cash program sustain its own operation if not by sequestering the information from unsuspecting buyers at the tune of over $120 a year?. Most people who follow their bank information eventually catches on their disadvantage early enough, and fortunately IC Shop Smart does acknowledge, for their own security, any one wishing to cancel the service and getting their money reimbursed. However, the legality of the cash back program remains unchallenged until a class action suit is delivered on behalf of unsuspecting clients.

Date of experience: August 24, 2019
Oregon
1 review
4 helpful votes
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I somehow got subscribed, most probably through Walmart, and after that they charged me everymonth, and they never send you any email or notification, like a sneaky snake, taking away your money without letting you know. Called them multiple time, and their agents are always helping other callers (!). The fraud company.

Date of experience: November 3, 2022
New York
1 review
7 helpful votes
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After purchasing at Bed, Bath, Beyond I was offered 10$ cash back. I start filling in the details until I was asked for a credit card number. That's when I stopped! I figured if I'm
Getting money back it should be in the form of a gift card that I can use, like most other rebates I've gotten before.

After reading all these reviews I'm glad I didn't fall for this scam!

Date of experience: December 6, 2019
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Julissa,

The offer was a $10.00 bonus for trying Shopsmarter. After the free trial there is a monthly membership fee. Sorry for any confusion, if you have any questions please feel free to reach out directly at Help@Shopsmarter.com.

Thanks,

Samantha
Customer Support Supervisor

Kansas
2 reviews
15 helpful votes
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Didn't know this company even existed til a couple days ago. While looking at transactions on my card, I saw the name. They did an unauthorized withdrawal of 9.97 & a couple days later another 9.97. WTF! $19.94. I got hard copies for the yr. Found they've been doing this since April. For a total of just under $90. I keep a close eye for anomalies. But I was looking for large transactions only. This showed me id got to look 1 x 1 who's taking what. Beware people! I'm disabled veteran & have a tight fixed budget so it hurts bigtime!

Date of experience: October 30, 2020
ShopSmarter R. ShopSmarter Rep
over a year old

Hi Randy, we're sorry for any confusion regarding the monthly membership fee. Please reach out directly at Help@ShopSmarter.com, we will be happy to help.

Overview

ShopSmarter has a rating of 1.5 stars from 331 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally dissatisfied with their purchases. Reviewers dissatisfied with ShopSmarter most frequently mention credit card, customer service and bed bath. ShopSmarter ranks 689th among Discount Shopping sites.

service
52
value
50
shipping
30
returns
33
quality
39