How to get free food from supermarkets [Guide]
There are loads of ways to get free food from supermarkets in the UK every day!
New product launches often offer products for free, in order to build a market presence. Here are the ‘must have’ apps that you should use to get free food / drinks from your local supermarket. (Local physical store and in most cases can be online too) via cashback.
What is cashback?
Cashback in simple terms means that you receive a cash refund after making the purchase. If the item is listed as free/100% cashback you will receive a 100% refund of whatever you spent on it. So the item is technically free, except you initially paid for it. With the cashback offers mentioned here, the cashback is not an automatic refund to your original payment method, but instead is paid to you via Bank Transfer or PayPal (you choose) after you upload a picture of your receipt. – So make sure to always get a receipt!
How to get an item free via cashback
Follow the instructions on the cashback app (e.g. Shopmium) to buy whichever listed product(s) within the offer time frame (it has to be the exact the same size and product as named on the app). You need to buy it from specific supermarket(s) chains as mentioned on the cashback app (the app will specify if online purchases are allowed too).
You need to retain your receipt. You’ll be credited with your cashback after you take a picture of your receipt on the cashback app and it has been verified. Some cashback services (like Shopmium) will also require you to scan the product’s barcode using their app after taking a picture of your receipt too.
The cashback service will then verify the purchase and issue you with the cashback. (You can set your preferred payment method usually between PayPal and Bank Transfer within the cashback service’s account settings page).
The top 3 best cashback apps
1) Shopmium
The location pin icon lets you locate which store near you should have the product. – You’ll see a list of ‘Verified shops’ (where users have already found the offer in this store) and ‘Eligible shops’ (stores which should be able to have the item) (see video below).
There’s also the barcode icon which is super handy, if you’re not sure that the product you’re looking at in the supermarket is the same as the one in the app and is eligible for free cashback you can tap this icon and scan the products barcode and Shopmium will tell you if that product is eligible for cashback!
Another reason Shopmium has topped our list as the best cashback app is because there is no minimum payout or fees. You get paid the money as soon as your cashback claims have been processed.
New Shopmium users can enter the promo/referral code iu5b2 on sign up to get a free Cadbury chocolate buttons offer (redeemable at any supermarket)
iu5b2
2) GreenJinn
GreenJinn is another great cashback app that’s very easy to use. The app is categorised clearly by supermarket/stores and you can immediately see how much cashback you can claim for each product and the free ones are labelled ‘Try for Free’.
It works much the same as Shopmium in that you buy the exact product listed from the named supermarket and then upload your receipt to receive your cashback (you do not need to scan the product barcodes with GreenJinn).
When you tap into a product you’re able to see a map that will show you the nearby supermarkets that could be stocking the item. You also have a button there to ‘Add Coupon’ this allows you to claim cashback for this item. – You can tap Add coupon on whichever items you are claiming cashback for.
You can then tap the basket icon to add the receipt to claim the cashback. (See image below)
Once they’ve processed your cashback claim you’ll see the cashback available in the Savings tab of the app. You can then tap CLAIM when you have at least £1.50 ready to be paid out in order to receive the cashback.
New GreenJinn users can use the referral code starfreebies to get a free £1 bonus (payable with your first cashback claim)
starfreebies
3) CheckoutSmart
CheckoutSmart is run by Quidco (the popular cashback site) and has a website and an app. The app gives you access to more products and is easier to navigate so definitely worth downloading.
The layout differs slightly from Shopmium in that you can see the amount of cashback that each product offers straight away without having to click into each product.
You can also filter by retailers (as you can with Shopmium) but you can additionally filter by the products list too by cashback %, offer dates and more which can save some valuable time.
The mechanism of CheckoutSmart is much the same, except you do not need the additional step of scanning any product barcodes.
When claiming cashback you just need to tap the Claim cashback button (big red button with a hand in the middle of the screen). It’ll then ask you what supermarket you went to, when you went (the date) and then allow you to either scan the product barcodes of the items you want to claim cashback for or just select them from a list (which is convenient in case you have already consumed the product and disposed of the wrapping).
When it comes to receiving your cashback money, they’re not as good as Shopmium. They do not automatically pay you every time you make a cashback claim. Instead you’ll see your balance in the balance tab and be able to withdraw the money when your balance reaches £5.
However you might want to wait until you accumulate £20, as Checkoutsmart charge a 5% transfer fee if your withdrawal amount is less than £20.
Additional things to be aware of
Not all supermarkets will stock the free product you’re after, especially when they’re new products, – some supermarkets have delays in getting the new items on their shelves (you can usually ask the store manager when they’re expecting an item(s) and if they’re helpful they should be able to tell you).
Some apps like Shopmium have a handy feature to help you locate which store near you should have the product – where you can see a list of Verified shops (where users have already found the offer in this store) and Eligible shops (stores which should be able to have the item) (see video below)
More Free Food Sources
Clicksnap is another popular cashback site for supermarket discounts/freebies. It’s pretty easy to use too as it’s part of the Quidco website.
However as both ClickSnap and CheckoutSmart are owned by Quidco you cannot use the same offer on both sites. Also the offers and interface isn’t as good as CheckoutSmart and the other cashback apps mentioned here (that’s why it didn’t make our list!).
Topcashback have their own supermarket cashback service too called Snap and Save. – it’s very good, the only problem is that they’ve suspended the service, so it only gets updated once in a year.
The only time of the year when they have an offer available is Halloween. During which you can get a free Pumpkin worth £2 from any supermarket when you upload a pic of your receipt on Snap and Save!
This article focuses on cashback opportunities from big brands, but you can also get food for free from some shops and individuals too using community sharing apps.
The best app for free food from your local neighborhood is Olio.
There’s also other similar services worth checking out like Too Good To Go.
If you’re struggling financially, make sure to check out this guide on finding Free Food from Food Banks
We’ll also add more articles soon on more ways to pick up free stuff locally, so look our for that!
Did you know that all of your supermarket receipts are worth money? Keep your eyes peeled for that guide, it’ll be coming to StarFreebies soon! – Make sure you’re subscribed to our updates, (Telegram is best) so that you never miss a freebie!