Dollar General announced in January 2023 that they’re joining up with the cash-back and rebate app Ibotta to help stretch your shopping budget a little further at the dollar store. The partnership involves integrating Dollar General rebate offers right into the Dollar General app and website, which means you’ll access your cash-back rewards within the DG app.
This type of partnership between a retailer and Ibotta isn’t new, as we saw Walmart join forces with Ibotta to launch Walmart Cash rewards. But Dollar General is the first of the dollar store bunch to join the fray. And the partnership between Dollar General and Ibotta seems quite different from Walmart’s.
So what does this change mean for you? Will Dollar General rebates make you pay to play like Walmart Cash does? Let’s break it all down.
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1. Ibotta-powered rebates are starting to roll out in the DG app and website.
Dollar General said by the spring of 2023, we should see new Ibotta offers pop up on the Dollar General app and online. Now it’s summer time and rebates are beginning to slowly roll out to some store locations. (Better late than never!)
The good news is the program will be available to all DG shoppers — not just to those who pay a subscription fee like with the Ibotta-powered Walmart Cash rewards program. Unlocking Ibotta rebates through Walmart Cash requires you to pay for Walmart Plus, but so far that’s not the case with Dollar General rewards.
2. Dollar General offers are still available in the Ibotta app … for now.
Even if you don’t see any rebates listed in the Rebates section of the DG app, you can still redeem items purchased at Dollar General through the Ibotta app. We can expect the Ibotta-powered Dollar General app to be fully up and running before the end of 2023, which probably means you won’t see DG offers in the Ibotta app before too long. For now, keep submitting your paper receipts to Ibotta for all your DG purchases.
3. You can already get a sneak peek of Dollar General rebates in your DG app.
You can already see some of what’s to come in the latest version of the DG app. You’ll see separate tabs under the Deals menu for Coupons, Weekly Ads, Rewards, and Rebates.
It’s not yet clear if the Ibotta offers will get grouped in the Rewards or Rebates sections or in a new category entirely. This might work like the cash-back rewards offered at Kroger-owned stores, where they are treated separately from digital coupons.
TIP: At Dollar General, Rewards are earned when you purchase a certain amount of a product, like “Spend $10 on Proctor & Gamble products, earn $3 back.”
4. You have to link your PayPal account before clipping Dollar General rebates.
You won’t be able to start clipping rebates until you link your Dollar General app with PayPal. To access rebates, head to the DG app, click “deals” and you’ll see a tab for rebates. Once you click that, you’ll see at the top to connect your PayPal with DG Rebates. Once you do that, you’ll be able to redeem rebates.
As of now, there are only a few rebates but I’m sure more is to come. To use it after you’ve earned it, it has to be entered as a gift card at checkout. It can take up to 48 hours to load in your wallet.
5. Newbies and lazy couponers might LOVE the Dollar General + Ibotta collab.
These days, my focus is on convenient couponing. While some may view it as lazy, I see it as a smarter way to save. If I’ll be able to get an Ibotta rebate by simply “clipping it” in the Dollar General app, count me in!
Combining Ibotta rebates with DG offers in one place could simplify the whole process. This is especially helpful if you’re a person who typically wouldn’t bother submitting your receipts to the Ibotta app at all. This may make couponing at Dollar General that much easier.
6. But Krazy couponers might not like this change.
It’s unclear whether or not the DG digital coupons and Ibotta rebates will be stackable. Currently, you can use a digital coupon from Dollar General and then submit your paper receipt to Ibotta to get a rebate. But ever since the Ibotta-Walmart partnership began, many offers have had restrictions that prevented them from stacking with other coupons or promotions.
If you’re worried at all about the DG–Ibotta partnership going the way of Walmart Cash, though, there are some key differences to note. Dollar General has digital coupons, whereas Walmart does not. And so far, it doesn’t sound like Dollar General rebates will make you pay to access these offers like you do with Walmart Cash rewards.
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