Dosh App Review – Helping You Save at the Grocery Store
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Dosh can help you save money on everyday things like shopping, dining out, and even hotel bookings.
7.5/10
Cost
7.5/10
Ease of Use
8/10
Features
8/10
Add-ons
7.5/10
Picture yourself in the grocery aisle. You need to buy the essentials, like food. But your budget is already hurting, thanks to rising inflation. Saving some extra money, even if it’s just a few dollars, would really help your mood right now.
Well, with Dosh, there just might be a way to do that. Here’s some useful financial advice on boosting your personal finance game plan.
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What is Dosh?
Is there such a thing as free money? With Dosh, sort of. I’ll break it down.
Dosh is a free cash-back app available for both iOS and Android. It can help you save money on everyday things like shopping, dining out, and even hotel bookings. According to Dosh’s official website, its mission statement is:
“To positively impact people’s lives by moving billions of dollars to millions of people.”
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How does Dosh work?
First, simply download Dosh onto your phone (it’s free), and create a Dosh account.
Once in the Dosh app, you can start looking for rewards.
To start earning automatic cash back, you’ll need to link your debit or credit card. For online shopping, you can tap through different offers within the app.
Earned rewards, or “Dosh cash,” will be deposited into your Dosh wallet.
Altogether, there is a cash-out limit of $15.00. Once you reach this point, transferring to your bank account typically takes 3 to 5 business days. Or, if you aren’t comfortable sharing your banking information online, you can transfer money directly to your Venmo or PayPal account.
How much does Dosh cost?
Dosh is free to download and use. Cashing out is also free with no additional fees. However, keep in mind there is a $4.99 account maintenance fee if your account has been inactive for over 12 months.
Dosh features
Automatic cash back
One of the best things about Dosh is there’s no need to upload receipts. Unlike other apps, you can earn cash-back rewards automatically. Both in-store and online purchases are accepted. This helps cut down on any hassle and makes budgeting that much easier.
Hotel booking rewards
Unlike other cash-back apps, Dosh stands out by offering hotel booking offers. With 60,000 global hotel options available, you can earn a great base rate and cash-back rewards. Saving rates of up to 40% are possible!
Many retailer options
Dosh partners with various popular and local retailers, including Walmart, Disney+, and Pizza Hut. No need to worry about shopping limitations here. Depending on the retailer, cash-back offers will vary. Many participating stores offer around 2 to 3% on any qualifying purchase. However, you can also find offers as high as 10 to 15%. The lowest I’ve seen is a rate of 1.5%, but even this is better than nothing.
Flexible payout
There are multiple choices for cashing out, including:
- Debit card
- Venmo
- PayPal
- Gift cards
There is also an additional payout option to donate all your rewards to charity.
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Who is Dosh best for?
Card users
For those who prefer using their cards over cash, Dosh is an excellent choice. Dosh works through linked cards to earn cash back automatically. This means you’ll be able to shop just like you normally would. No changes are needed.
People who travel
Dosh is unique thanks to its hotel booking offers. For those who love traveling and travel often, these rewards are bound to come in handy. As a bonus, there are rewards credit card options that can help you earn points and miles, too.
Charity-givers
Dosh offers many payout options, including charity. This is great for people looking to give back or simply wanting to do a good deed.
Who shouldn’t use Dosh?
Cash spenders
For those who prefer using cash over cards, Dosh is not the best fit. Since you can’t upload receipts as proof of purchase, you can’t earn rewards by spending cash.
Casual users
Dosh starts charging account maintenance fees ($4.99 monthly) after 12 months of inactivity. Other cash-back apps might be a better option for those who just like to hop on when they feel like it and not worry about any potential fees.
International users
At press time, Dosh is only available in the United States.
Pros and cons
Pros
- All rewards earned through Dosh are automatic.
- There are a variety of flexible payout methods such as PayPal, Venmo, gift cards, and bank transfers.
- There is a unique opportunity to earn cash back for hotel bookings.
Cons
- Maintenance fees ($4.99 per month) will be applied to any account inactive for more than 12 months.
- Rewards can only be gained through using cards. Cash spenders cannot earn rewards.
- Anyone living outside the United States cannot use Dosh at this time.
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Dosh vs. competitors
App | Receipts Needed | Payout | Fees | Payout Methods |
Dosh | Automatic rewards. Good for card users. | $15 cash-out limit. | $4.99 account maintenance fees per month if inactive longer than 12 months | PayPal, Venmo, bank account, gift cards, and charity |
Rakuten | Receipts needed. Good for cash spenders | Payout occurs only 4 times per year on a quarterly schedule | No account maintenance fees | Big Fat Check or PayPal |
Ibotta | Receipts needed. Good for cash spenders | $20 cash-out limit | $3.99 account maintenance fees per month if inactive longer than 180 days (6 months) | PayPal, bank account, and gift cards |
Rakuten
Rakuten is the Japanese word for “optimize.” It is an e-commerce and affiliate marketing company that aims to do many of the same things as Dosh. With Rakuten, you can earn cash-back rewards for grocery and non-grocery products. Unlike Dosh and Ibotta, it does not have any account maintenance fees.
Rakuten especially shines in its partnership with Walmart. In December 2018, Rakuten and Walmart opened their first e-commerce store. This quickly made Walmart one of the most popular retailers for Rakuten shoppers. If you shop at Walmart, Rakuten might be worth exploring. If you do a lot of food delivery, Rakuten has unique cash-back rewards, too.
Dosh beats out Rakuten with its automatic rewards, flexible payout options, and ease of use. Most notably, Rakuten offers payout options quarterly only. This means you’ll only be able to cash out on the rewards you collect four times yearly. Compare this to Dosh, where you can cash out at any time after earning just $15 in rewards.
Also, with Rakuten, you will have to upload receipts to earn rewards. If you are a cash spender, this might be a good thing. But if you prefer linking cards and consider uploading receipts a hassle, then Dosh is the app you’ll want to choose.
Ibotta
Many people think Ibotta is the best money-saving app. It offers many popular retailers (more than Dosh) and is the go-to app for all your grocery shopping needs.
Like Dosh, payout options with Ibotta are varied and flexible. The good thing about Dosh is the $15 cash-out limit, which is a whole $5 dollars less than Ibotta. That doesn’t sound like a big difference, but if you consider the long-term difference, it could beef up your earnings. But Ibotta sets itself apart with the beefy welcome bonus of $15 to $20. This means you’ll get to that first payout a lot faster just by signing up.
Like Dosh, Ibotta has account maintenance fees. It’s a dollar less than Dosh at just $3.99 per month. However, Dosh allows your account to remain inactive twice the time. Compare Dosh’s 12-month limit to Ibotta’s 180-day limit (6 months).
Where Dosh truly shines over Ibotta is its automatic cash-back feature. Like Rakuten, Ibotta requires receipts to earn rewards. There is also the additional hassle of barcode scanning that double-checks whether a product is a qualifying purchase. A lot of “reading the fine print” comes with this, and it can be frustrating if a product you thought was eligible turns out to be ineligible. With Dosh, there’s no need to worry about any of that. No receipts. No barcode scanning. Just link a card, and you’re ready to go.
FAQs
Is Dosh a scam?
Dosh is a legit free app that helps you get some extra cash. It’s not a scam.
Is Dosh safe to use?
Yes. Dosh does not store your card information. Instead it uses the Braintree vaulting system, powered by PayPal. On Dosh’s official website, you can find even more helpful details about how your personal information is secured and protected.
Is Dosh free?
Yes, Dosh is completely free to use. Just keep in mind that $4.99 account maintenance fee if your account stays inactive for more than 12 months.
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The bottom line
Overall, Dosh is a good place to save some extra money. With its automatic cash-back rewards, it’s a great alternative for those who want to avoid the hassle of barcode scanning and uploading receipts. It’s great for travel, too, by offering unique rewards with 60,000 global hotels to choose from. Not to mention the flexible payout options and variety of retailers.
I say go for it. Have fun! Try Dosh out for yourself, and see how much you can save.
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Writer
A veteran wordsmith and research nerd, Brittany Wren spent a decade working in higher education where she helped people overcome challenges to chart a path forward. These days, she writes about personal finance, careers, parenting and education. Her content has been published by a wide variety of brands including T-Mobile, Intuit, LifeLock, Reliant Fund Administration and CURO Financial Technologies Corp.
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