I recently wrote a post about supermarket cashback apps and how they’re a great way to save you money on your weekly shop. So today I’m going to dive a little bit deeper into one of the most well-known Cashback Apps in the UK – Shopmium.
In my Shopmium review, I’ll explain how Shopmium works, what the cashback offers are like and if it’s worth installing on your phone.
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What are Cashback Apps?
If you’re not already familiar with Cashback Apps, they’re basically a more convenient alternative to coupons. So, no cutting coupons and carrying a bunch of them round in your purse or wallet. You simply redeem your cashback using the app. This is really handy if you’re rubbish at remembering to use coupons like I am!
What is Shopmium?
Shopmium is a free app that lets you get exclusive offers for everyday products that you buy at the supermarket. Shopmium originally started in France in 2011 and but now have a UK office in London as well as Paris.
How Does Shopmium Work?
Like most cashback apps, Shopmium works by giving you a rebate on your shopping. You simply need to download the Shopmium App for free from either Google Play or iTunes. Once you’ve got the app installed on your phone you can start browsing the offers.
You’ll need to register with Shopmium through to start claiming cashback. You can do this either by connecting your Facebook account or entering your details manually.
When you set your account up you also select how you want to receive your cashback. This is where Shopmium is pretty good as you have either the option to claim it via PayPal, or paid straight into your bank account.
PayPal’s quickest though as it gets paid into your account within 3 working days (usually quicker). Bank transfers, on the other hand, can take up to 7 working days.
Once you’re registered with Shopmium you can start getting your cashback – yay! Once you browse through the offers and spot something you want to buy, all you need to do is scan your receipt along with the barcode on the product.
How to Check Eligibility
It’s important to make sure that the product you’re buying is the right one though, as you don’t want to buy something expecting cashback, then be unable to claim it.
Fear not though, you can check eligibility in-store using Shopmiums’ handy eligibility checker in the app. This is especially important if you’re getting a Freebie that you might not usually buy…
Not sure if you’ve got the right product in-store? Check it with Shopmiums handy eligibility checker
The Shopmium website also recommends that you keep hold of your receipt until your cashback’s approved. This isn’t really a problem for me as I’ve usually got a wallet full of receipts (it drives my wife nuts!) but if you usually chuck yours straight away just hang on a couple of days.
How Long Does Shopmium Take to Payout?
Once you’ve uploaded your pictures using the Shopmium app, you’ll need to wait for the cashback to be approved. This takes 2 business days at the most, my experience so far has been that it usually takes about a day.
You’ll then receive the money in your PayPal account within 3 working days or 7 if you’re getting it paid into your bank account. You’ll also get an email from Shopmium confirming this.
What Type of Phone Do I need to use the Shopmium App?
To use the Shopmium App you’ll need either an iPhone5 or newer (using iOS 9 as a minimum), or if you’ve got an Android phone, you’ll need version 5 or after. You’ll also need an “autofocus” function on your smartphone as this feature is used to auto scan the barcode.
All iPhones have this feature, but some Android phones don’t, so this is something to check. If you don’t have a compatible device, you can use the Shopmium website instead though.
Where Can I Get Cashback with Shopmium?
Some Shopmium offers are available at multiple stores and some are limited to a few stores (or just one in quite a few cases), so you’ll need to check each offer to make sure.
There are always offers for the “Big 4” supermarkets (Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s), and you can filter the offers in the app depending on where your shopping.
Is there a Cash-Out limit?
A big positive for Shopmium is that there is no cash-out limit. You claim your cashback and get paid within a couple of days – it’s that simple!
Shopmium Offers
The number of offers in the app vary, and are updated weekly. They typically run for around a week or are ongoing with no set expiry.
The offers are for selected products from major brands. A lot of the offers are for new products that brands are trying to promote or get you to trial. That’s why there’s usually a couple of freebies on the Shopmium app each week where you can claim 100% of the cashback – SWEET…
Shopmium Club
Another nice feature of Shopmium is their loyalty scheme called Shopmium Club. It basically rewards you, the more you use the app. You start at Bronze level but as you claim more cashback, you move up through different Club levels to receive more rewards.
Silver Level
This is the first upgraded level you can reach. To get to Silver you need to add an offer in the app, make your first purchase and get your cashback approved.
Once you hit Silver level, you’re there for good and never drop back to the standard level.
What you get:
- Payments in less than 2 working days
- Customer Service support in less than 1 working day
- Access to Shopmium community life which lets you take surveys, choose referral gifts or challenges rewards
- Exclusive challenges
Gold Level (Shopmium Masterchef)
This is the top level you can reach in the app. To reach Gold level you need to submit at least 10 cashback requests in the app. You also need to submit at least 1 cashback request every 30 days, or you drop back down to the Silver level.
With the Gold Level you get access to all the perks of the Silver level as well as:
- Extra exclusive challenges
- Previews of new offers before they go live
- A special gift on your birthday. This is an especially nice touch where an exclusive offer appears in the app on your birthday. You then get 14 days to redeem it.
Adding Loyalty Cards to the Shopmium App
Tired of carrying tons of loyalty cards around with you? Well, the Shopmium app can help with that… It’s got a handy feature that lets you add loyalty cards to the app.
Once you click on the “Add Loyalty Card” button you just need to scan your loyalty cards barcode or QR code. Once it’s scanned you select the retailer from the list in the app. Then confirm you’ve selected the right one.
Once you added them you can access the cards in the “Cards” Section of the app.
Then when you click on your store card the app displays the barcode which you can then scan in-store.
New Shopmium Online Cashback
A brand-new feature in the Shopmium app is online cashback. This has only been launched in the last month or so, as the app moves into the online cashback space. So, now at the top of the app you’ll see a little slider that lets you switch between in-store and online cashback.
Like most cashback sites, you can search for an individual retailer using the search box or by category. It works in the same way as cashback sites, but you need to click through using the app. You then get part of the commission paid by the retailer, so you don’t get 100% cashback as you would with TopCashback for example.
You also have to reach £10 before you can request payment which is a bit disappointing as you don’t have a payment threshold with TopCashback and Quidco’s is only £1.
The other frustrating thing I found with the online cashback is the lack of details on the first page. For example, on the offer below it states “upto £20 cashback” at Carphone Warehouse.
To get full details of the rates though, you have to click on the offer which then automatically sends you to the retailer. You only see the rates in the split second you’re being transferred which is a bit sneaky, I think.
If you’re anything like me, you probably like to compare cashback rates, and this makes it harder to do. Personally, I’m going to stick to TopCashback* and Quidco* for my online cashback, so nice try Shopmium, but not quite good enough!
Is Shopmium Worth It?
I think so yes, although you need to be careful you don’t get carried away. Only buy stuff you actually want and not just because you can get a discount on it using the app.
I tend to just treat it like any other promo offer – if it’s something I need or want, and the promo makes it the best buy I grab the deal. I also usually get the freebies when I can as you can’t beat a good freebie.
You do need to be careful though to make sure you get the discount. You need to make sure you’ve got the right product and you’ve bought it at the right shop as sometimes the offers are limited to a specific supermarket.
Refer a Friend
Shopmium also has a great refer a friend scheme. For every friend you introduce to Shopmium you get a £3 referral credit and your friend gets a freebie – currently a free jar of Nutella. free tub of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream. To claim your sign up bonus you can use my Shopmium referral code 66s9i.
Pros
- Quick Payment. The quick hassle-free payment is a big plus in my book. Granted it’s not instant like a traditional coupon but it’s a lot less hassle. Plus, you’re likely to be able to access more deals using Shopmium than if you had to hunt around for coupons. Having a handy little app like this is far less time-consuming.
- Easy to Use. Using an app to get cashback is a lot less hassle than collecting coupons in my view. It’s really simple to use too – you just have to take a quick snap of your receipt and the product you bought to claim your cashback. Being able to check eligibility before you buy is also really useful.
- Free Stuff – Need I say more? I mean who doesn’t love free stuff?! At the moment you can get a
FREE Jar of NutellaFREE Tub of Ben and Jerry’s Ice Cream when you use my Shopmium referral code 66s9i
Cons
- The details of the offer aren’t shown to you on the main page of the app. You have to click into the offer to see the deal. This gets pretty annoying as I personally just want to see what the deal is straight away.
- The offers are slightly limited so you’re not going to save a ton of money each month. Plus, it’s often new products that are getting a bit of a push from the manufacturer so you may find yourself being tempted to buy stuff you wouldn’t normally.
Other Apps Like Shopmium
There are several other apps like Shopmium available – GreenJinn, ClickSnap and CheckoutSmart to name a few. You can read my guide on supermarket cashback apps for more info.
Shopmium Review
4
My Verdict
Shopmium is a fantastic little app that should help you save a few quid each month on your supermarket shopping. It’s much less hassle than clipping coupons and relatively hassle-free. Payment is quick and I haven’t had any issues so far with non-payment.
Overall I give it solid 4/5.
So, if you want to save money on your weekly supermarket shop then why not give Shopmium a go. You can download the app on Google Play or the app store. And remember, sign up using my referral code 66s9i and you’ll get a FREE Tub of Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream…
I hope you enjoyed this review and found it useful. Are you going to give Shopmium a try? Or if you’re already using it, I’d love to hear how much you’ve saved in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
