The rebate and cash-back app Ibotta makes couponing easy, and Walmart makes using Ibotta easy. It’s a match made in heaven. Even after all the recent Ibotta coupon policy changes and the integration of Walmart Cash rewards with Ibotta, you can still save a lot when you scan your Walmart receipt barcodes with the Ibotta app. And while couponing is never an option with grocery pickup at Walmart, you can still get Ibotta rebates when you use Walmart grocery pickup.
Here’s everything you need to know about how to coupon with Ibotta at Walmart and save the most.
Don’t forget to download The Krazy Coupon Lady app for more tips about how to save, or check out our favorite Ibotta deals available now.
1. First, decide if you’re going to redeem with Ibotta or Walmart Cash rewards.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty of how Ibotta works at Walmart, you’ll first need to decide if you’re going to use Ibotta or Walmart Cash rewards to get your rebates. Because the new Walmart rewards program is a partnership between Ibotta and Walmart, it won’t let you double up and redeem offers for the same product in both apps. You’ll have to pick one or the other.
Unlike the Ibotta app, the Walmart Cash rewards program is not free. You’ll need a Walmart Plus membership ($98 per year) in order to access Walmart rewards. If you don’t have a Walmart Plus membership or are on a free trial, you’ll want to stick to using just your Ibotta app at Walmart and not fiddling with Walmart rewards offers at all.
Note: If you add an offer for the same product to your Ibotta account and to your Walmart account, the rebate will only go to your Walmart account by default. But other third-party rebate apps like Fetch Rewards may still let you double up on rebates, creating a coupon stacking opportunity.
2. Link your Walmart account to Ibotta for automatic rebates.
Linking your Walmart.com account in Ibotta still works and makes it easy to get automatic rebates.
Here’s all you have to do:
- Open the Ibotta app and search “Walmart.”
- A pop-up will appear and ask you to link your Walmart account.
- When you link your accounts, use the payment method saved to your Walmart account or Walmart Pay to receive credit digitally within minutes.
Or skip this process and choose to submit with receipts instead.
3. Look for high-value offers you can only use at Walmart.
I’m not saying Ibotta likes Walmart the best. But Walmart does get offers other grocery stores don’t.
These offers are usually available only at Walmart and won’t work with a Target receipt. And they can bring in big money, too. For example, I saw an offer for $3 cash back when you purchased Downy Fabric Enhancers at Walmart. If you purchased it at Target, you only got $1.
Also, brands often run bonuses that you can only earn when you redeem offers at Walmart. This same Downy Fabric Enhancers rebate was tied to a $5 bonus offer, too. That means you got a total of $8 back for buying it at Walmart. You may find that Walmart is the prime place to work your Ibotta magic and earn all the money!
Related: Here’s how to use Ibotta at Target and get fast rebates.
4. Earn more bonuses at Walmart because there are more total offers.
An Ibotta “bonus” happens when you redeem certain offers within a designated time frame and Ibotta gives you free money.
Since so many of the bonus offers need to be completed within a certain time frame, Walmart is your best bet for earning bonuses because there are more offers overall.
For example, I was just doing my regular grocery shopping at Walmart and didn’t even realize that I’d qualified for a bonus — until I got the extra cash back!
5. Check Walmart’s “New Offers” in the Ibotta app and stack ’em with coupons.
Depending on the Ibotta offer, you can sometimes pair them with coupons. You’ll need to look at the offer details to see if that specific Ibotta offer allows coupon stacking. Some Ibotta rebates may have restrictions that don’t allow you to pair them with other coupons. If this is the case, you’ll see fine print that says you can’t get a rebate if you use manufacturer coupons, paper coupons, digital coupon codes, or digital rewards.
I’ve gotten some of my best deals by pairing Ibotta offers with coupons. Just be sure to check the fine print for each offer.
6. Go ahead and redeem some offers up to five times per receipt. (Stockpile opportunity!)
This is the part where you clear out a shelf (or five) in your house to make room for your stockpile of canned food, sauces, body wash, shampoo, and more.
Ibotta offers that allow multiple redemptions per receipt will have the gray square and dollar sign icon on them. For example, you might see an offer that’ll give you $1 off each Newman’s Own frozen pizza when you buy five.
The important thing to note: you can’t buy three items now and then two tomorrow and redeem the offer twice. Once you scan your receipt with three of the five pizzas, the offer will disappear.
Moral of the story: buy all five on one receipt!
Related: We answered all the most popular questions we get asked about Ibotta.
7. Buy your produce at Walmart based on the Ibotta offers you see.
Nothing gives me excitement quite like getting dirt cheap produce. And Ibotta frequently offers cash rewards on produce items like pears, avocados, oranges, tomatoes, and other fresh items that are tough to find coupons for.
You can redeem some of these offers up to five times, and you totally should. But some of them are only available for a one-time redemption per receipt. These offers may reset after a week or so, and if that’s the case, you can redeem the offer again.
Related: We compared prices at major stores and came up with the best ways to save on fresh produce.
8. Scan an item’s barcode to see if there’s an Ibotta offer for it.
If you’re not super extreme about couponing, that’s okay. There’s a lazy way to save, too.
You can quickly scan everything on your list when you put it into your shopping cart just to see if there’s any extra money to be had. How do you do this, you may ask?
Inside the Walmart section of the Ibotta app, tap the “Search” icon in the upper right-hand corner. Where you’d normally type a product name, you’ll also see a barcode icon. Tap that icon and scan your product’s barcode to see if there’s an Ibotta offer for it.
You might nab an extra couple of dollars you didn’t expect to save that day.
9. Add offers even if you’re not sure you’ll use them.
If you think there’s even a slight chance you’ll redeem that offer for Toaster Strudel (hey, we all have moments of weakness), tap the “+” icon in Ibotta to add it to “My Offers.” This way, you’ll have time to talk yourself off the ledge while also having access to the offer until it expires.
You’ll also need to tap the offer in order to see when it expires.
10. Redeem Ibotta offers for clearance items at Walmart.
As long as the item itself qualifies for the Ibotta offer, Ibotta doesn’t care if it’s on clearance at your local Walmart.
Is this a good enough reason to put your 7-year-old to work scanning every single freaking clearance item on a Walmart endcap looking for Ibotta rebates? I think yes.
11. Say adios to scanning product barcodes to prove you bought items.
If you’re a veteran Ibotta user, you remember the days of scanning each item’s barcode after you bought it as proof of purchase. Barcodes had to line up exactly with the items on your receipt.
At some stores (like Walmart), this is no more. As receipts are more readable, Ibotta doesn’t need barcode scans in order to verify your purchases.
The only time Ibotta even asks you to verify something is when you need to enter the number of items you purchased for a multiple-offer redemption. For example, I had to indicate that I bought three bags of Cara Cara oranges in order to get my $1 off cash reward for each bag.
12. Earn with ease by scanning the barcode or QR code on your Walmart receipt.
It’s so easy to do this that you can scan your receipt as you leave the store with one hand! Which is great if you’re wrangling a tired toddler with the other hand.
Walmart is the only major grocery store that doesn’t require you to snap a picture of your receipt. (Walmart, I love you.)
There are a few smaller, more regional grocery chains where you link your loyalty card to Ibotta in order to redeem offers. On this list are Giant Eagle, Food Lion, Ridley’s, Raley’s, Hannaford, and Pick ‘n Save. Offers at other grocery stores still require you to take a picture of your receipt, although Ibotta is working hard to make it easier.