The Cash-Back App for Healthy Groceries You'll Wish You Knew About Sooner

I've been couponing long enough to make peace with a lot of things. The fine print. The time it takes to clip coupons (in multiple apps). 

What I've never made peace with is that, a lot of times, there are no coupons for the groceries I'm actually buying. There's $2 off the cereal with three kinds of dye in it or a BOGO on sugary beverages. Nothing for the organic yogurt, the clean-label snacks, or the chicken with no antibiotics. I’m left paying full price for those, or hoping for a sale or storewide coupon at the specialty grocery stores I like to shop at.

So Merryfield got my attention. It's a free cash-back app that rewards you for buying better-for-you brands like Rao's, Chobani, LesserEvil, Goodles, Applegate, and Back to Nature.

When you buy those brands (and many more) at any store, you can scan in your receipt and earn rewards that you can then cash in for gift cards. No hunting and clipping. Just scanning a receipt. 

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Shop Anywhere, Yes Anywhere

Merryfield used to be available only for Whole Foods purchases. But you can use the app at any store now. After you shop, just submit a paper receipt from any brick-and-mortar store. You can also connect your Merryfield account to your accounts at participating retailers so that your online grocery delivery orders earn you points, too.  

For me, that means the little local specialty grocery store earns me rewards. So does Target. So does the co-op. So does my online grocery order from Amazon, Instacart, or Sprouts.

You do have to make sure your receipt has eligible products, and that’s actually a good thing if you’re trying to shop better-for-you brands. Because products get vetted by Merryfield's Clean Council against a banned-ingredient list: artificial colors, artificial preservatives, high-fructose corn syrup, hydrogenated oils. If a brand you love isn't in the app, it either hasn't been evaluated yet or didn't clear the standard.

3 Ways You Earn

• Everyday Rewards are always on. Buy a participating brand, earn points from every single receipt, no clipping, no activating. For example: 8% back on any Back to Nature crackers, whenever you buy them. You also earn on fresh produce and eligible eggs, which are categories that rarely have coupons.

• Special Offers rotate weekly and carry the bigger numbers, like $1.25 off Applegate hot dogs. They refresh every Wednesday, so midweek is when to check. No activation needed. Popular ones can run out before their posted end date, so don't sit on a good one.

• Brand Bundles combine products from several brands into one higher-value offer, and you can finish a bundle across multiple receipts instead of cramming it into one shopping trip.

What the Points Are Worth

1,000 points = $1. And 5,000 points is a $5 gift card, which is the lowest redemption level Merryfield currently has. Here’s a point-earning rundown:

• 1 to 100 points per dollar on participating brands and limited-time offers

• 1 point per dollar on produce and eligible eggs 

• 50 points for your first paper receipt

• A 2,000-point bonus if you sign up for Merryfield with a friend’s referral code, once your first qualifying receipt clears. Just make sure you enter the code during signup.

How You’ll Submit Your Receipts

Submitting paper receipts: Photograph it with the store name, items, prices, total, and date all legible. You have 90 days from the purchase date to get your receipt in. Most process instantly, and if anything is sent to review, expect it to take 72 hours. You can submit up to 200 receipts a week, with no cap on points. I like to snap an image of the receipt right after I get into my car, so I don't forget.

Linking accounts instead: If you prefer ordering grocery delivery, you don’t have to start shopping in person. You can connect a retailer account once, and eligible purchases earn points automatically. Amazon, Publix, Costco, Sprouts, and more are connectable. Check the app to see the full list of stores. Linking looks back at up to 90 days of past orders. 

Redeem for Gift Cards or Charitable Donations

You’ve got two options when it comes to cashing in your points: gift cards and charitable donations. 

Gift card options include Amazon, Target, Sephora, and a rotating lineup. To redeem, open the Merryfield app and tap the Rewards tab in the bottom right corner to see which gift cards are available. Once you have enough points, select a reward and tap Redeem.

Once you redeem, your gift card will be emailed to you and stored in the app's Wallet. 

You can also donate points to charities vetted through Charity Navigator, including Girls Who Code, Project Hero, Special Olympics, and more. Charity redemptions start at 5,000 points (a $5 donation). 

3 Things to Know First

• It's gift cards, not cash. No PayPal or bank transfer. But if you’re spending $25 at Amazon anyway, a gift card is essentially the same thing.

• Points expire after six months of inactivity. Don’t worry, though. Scanning a receipt or redeeming resets the clock.

• Mobile only. There's no desktop login.

The Bottom Line

Merryfield fills a gap in my couponing and rewards strategy – and also boosts it. 

1. It gives me rewards on the clean-label brands I buy that normally fall through the couponing cracks. And you don’t have to clip offers beforehand; if the brand on the receipt matches a reward Merryfield has, you get that reward.

2. It’s an easy-to-use receipt scanning app. Like many couponers, I use Fetch and Ibotta. I’m already in the habit of scanning my receipts after every purchase. And, by spending just 10 more seconds by scanning with Merryfield, I’m triple dipping and collecting rewards for more gift cards.

3. And speaking of gift cards, while you can’t get actual cash through PayPal or bank transfer, with the holidays coming up, a gift card at a major retailer is just as good. My grocery shopping is helping to feed my gift-giving budget.  

Download Merryfield and scan the receipt that's in your bag right now. 

You May Also Be Interested In:

• 55 Companies That'll Send You Free High-Value Coupons if You Write to Them

• Stores That Mark Down Food Near the Best-By Date

• Is Amazon's Saver Grocery Brand a Good Deal?