As a consumer, I prefer to work with ethical companies that share my values. One of the best that I’ve tried recently is Giving Assistant—a simple, free, and secure cash back community for shopping responsibly. They believe that if society works towards building a better world through everyday purchases, companies will naturally evolve to become more socially aware. By allowing shoppers to give back while they earn, they help to empower everyone! (Giving Assistant is paid by its retailer partners for sending them business and in return, passes the savings back to consumers.)

Why Shop with Giving Assistant? Here are my top 5 reasons:

1. Savings

Since most of us are buying online regularly anyway, why not earn rewards for those purchases? According to their site, the average user saves $705 per year using. If you shop a lot, you could be even more.

2. Large Selection

Do you buy food, clothing, pet supplies, flowers, beauty, or home/garden supplies? With 1,280 stores participating, the odds are very good your favorite store is included. All of the big names we know and love like Staples, Kohl’s, Sephora, Lowe’s, Starbucks, and Target, plus many others.

3. Lowest Minimum Payout

Other cashback sites I’ve worked with in the past required earning $20.00 or more before you could redeem. With Giving Assistant you only need to earn $5.01 to get paid—very doable even if you don’t shop often.

4. Fastest Turnaround

Instead of waiting a loooooong time to receive what you’ve earned, Giving Assistant pays in days once you’re verified. Cashback can be sent directly to  PayPal (my preferred method) or by quarterly-issued check. Both methods are fee-free.

5. Helping Others

Talk about stumbling onto a good deal. While I was shopping at PetSmart for unrelated items, I found a huge bin of clearance pet food at the front of the store. Because the food is expiring or discontinued, the savings were huge!

Check out this grain-free lamb food, reduced by 50% for quick sale. That lowered the price to $7.49 and I had a $4.00 coupon. Total: $3.49!

There were also many bags of Hill’s Ideal Balance. I bought 2 bags of dog food and 1 for cats. There were all priced $9.99 and I used 3 $5.00 manufacturer’s coupons. Total: $14.97.

Because PetSmart will accept competitor’s coupons, the deal got even better. I used a $5.00 off any $15.00 purchase. Grand total: $13.46 for 4, making it $3.37 a bag!

Clearance varies by location, but I was told by an employee that it’s nationwide, so I’d definitely check if you have a PetSmart close by.

One of the biggest ways that I save on the cost of meat is by taking advantage of BOGO sales. Whenever Shaw’s supermarket offers these—and it’s been quite a lot recently—I always check to see what’s available. The options vary but I look for steak, roasts, and chicken. (The only item I skip is pork because we don’t eat it. If for some unusual reason I could get it totally free, I would pick it up and donate.)

Most meat is priced by the pound or less commonly by the package. The store will always give you the cheaper package for free, so it’s best to purchase pairs as close in price as possible. For example, if you pick up a package that is $8.00 and one that is $6.00, you will get $6.00 off your total. But if you pick up a package that is $7.90 to go along with your $8.00 package, you will get $7.90 off your total. 

That’s a good savings right there, but when you can add a coupon, it gets even better. Personally, I print every single meat coupon I can find. You never know when you’ll find an unexpected deal and it’s better to print and have, rather than need and want.

Recently, I was able to do this with Perdue chicken, paying only $1.88 per bag. I bought 6 and stocked my freezer for very little upfront cost. Another great type of coupon to look for are Manager’s mark down stickers. Sometimes I can even do a triple stack (BOGO price, store coupon, manufacturer’s coupon) which makes for an insanely low price.

While it may not seem like a few dollars matter, it truly does add up over time and if you only buy meat on sale, you can take a huge chunk out of your grocery budget.

Free tea alert! Twinings is offering 3 samples of their popular tea. Pick your favorite flavors (there are 50 available). I chose Pure Green, Pomegranate Delight, and Winter Spice Herbal.