Editor’s note: This post has been updated with the latest information.
While Rakuten reached up to 15 Membership Rewards points per dollar (or 15% cash back) on Black Friday, Cyber Monday looks like it’s even better for some Rakuten members.
Right now, targeted members can stack cash back savings of up to 20% cash back (or 20 American Express Membership Rewards points per dollar) onto Cyber Monday prices and get even better deals on the things you are already shopping for at hundreds of stores.
If you’re not doing your online shopping by first clicking through Rakuten or another similar site, you are ignoring one of the easiest (and most effective) tools for getting even better deals on everyday purchases.
Rakuten is an online shopping portal that allows you to earn either cash back or Amex Membership Rewards points at more than 3,500 popular retailers such as Target, Walmart, Best Buy, Home Depot, Saks, ShopDisney and thousands more.
Just begin your online shopping trip on the Rakuten website, and search for the store at which you plan to shop. You’ll be redirected to the actual merchant website. After you make your purchase, Rakuten will dump bonus rewards into your online account.
Better yet, you can also earn a $40 (or 4,000 Membership Rewards) bonus when you spend $40 through Rakuten if you’re a new Rakuten shopper.
Here’s what you need to know about this deal.
Increased cash back with Rakuten
The ability to earn up to 20% (or more) cash back is certainly newsworthy, but earning up to 20 Amex Membership Rewards points per dollar can be even better for those who like to travel using their Amex Membership Rewards points.
TPG values Amex points at 2 cents each, on average, when used toward travel. That means you’ll get an effective return of up to 40% toward travel when making purchases during this promotion. So if you’re getting your credit cards ready for holiday purchases, this is the deal for you.
Related: How to use Rakuten to earn bonus cash back or Amex points on your purchases
Examples of stores that are participating in this promotion of 20% cash back/20 points or more per dollar include:
- ShopDisney.
- Saks Fifth Avenue.
- Backcountry.
- Macy’s.
- Under Armor.
- Gap.
- Adidas.
- Dell Technologies.
- Neiman Marcus.
- Bloomingdale’s.
- Academy Sports and Outdoors.
- Lego.
If you have any big holiday purchases on the horizon, these bonus rewards could single-handedly fund your next vacation. After all, with Amex points you can do things like:
- Fly one-way from Chicago to Dublin by transferring 13,000 points to Aer Lingus — requiring as little as $650 in purchases during this promotion.
- Fly United Airlines from Washington, D.C., to Honolulu by transferring 19,500 points to Singapore Airlines — requiring as little as $975 in purchases during this promotion.
- Fly on ANA to Japan by transferring 22,500 points to Virgin Atlantic — requiring as little as $1,125 in purchases during this promotion.
Related: How to redeem American Express Membership Rewards for maximum value
Stack your Saks Fifth Avenue credit
On top of all that bonus cash back or extra points, remember that The Platinum Card® from American Express offers a ton of different perks including a statement credit of up to $100 per year at Saks Fifth Avenue.
The credit is divided into two $50 statement credits, one valid from January through June and the other from July through December. Enrollment is required.
If you haven’t used your $50 credit through the end of December 2022, this presents a wonderful opportunity to do so. This allows you to “double or triple-dip” because you can use your $50 statement credit and also earn bonus rewards for the purchase. You can also stack the $50 off every $200 you spend with Saks using promo code CYBER22SF.
Related: Best credit cards for online shopping
Bottom line
Today only, Rakuten is allowing members to earn up to 20% cash back — or even better, up to 20 Amex Membership Rewards points per dollar spent.
Between this excellent earning rate and the increased $40 (4,000-Amex point) refer-a-friend bonus, you could conceivably earn enough points for free flights to your next vacation spot with surprisingly little effort.
Additional reporting by Ehsan Haque, Summer Hull and Kyle Olsen.
