Drop Cash Back APP Review

Drop is a new app through which you earn cash back in addition to the cash or points you earn through your credit card. Drop’s greatest selling point is that after its initial setup, you do not need to do anything else; you simply earn cash back every time you spend. For this reason, we feel that Drop is worth telling you about. Of course, since this app is still very new, those using it for manufactured spend have continued to run into issues with it. We will address these issues at the end of the article. How long will the app be around? It’s not clear – we’re just going to use it for as long as we can.

How to register

Registration steps are as follows:

  1. Open our download link with your phone to download the Drop app. Registration is then completed within the app (it cannot be completed on Drop’s website).
  2. Afterwards, you must link a credit card from one of the major banks. To do so, you must enter your bank login information into the app; you can’t just enter your credit card number.
  3. Finally, you must choose five stores at which you will earn your points. Note that once these stores are selected, they cannot be changed, so you should select the stores at which you spend the most money. Note that at many of these stores you may get more value from making purchases using gift cards if you can get them at a discount (through Amex Offers, for instance). However, if you use a gift card, you cannot earn points through Drop. The stores available to select are based on your location. If you are outside the U.S., you may not be able to select any stores (the store selection screen will be blank).

How to use the app

Drop works as follows: as long as you use your credit cards from the banks you linked to the app at the five stores you chose, you will earn points. These points can be exchanged for gift cards. The most valuable of these are Amazon gift cards – 1,000 points can be exchanged for one dollar (points must be converted in increments of 10,000). Using such gift cards at these stores will not accrue points. You must complete at least one transaction in order to be able to convert points. To give an example, the point accrual ratio for Uber is 15 points earned per dollar, in other words a 1.5% return. Drop tracks the cash you earn back quickly after you earn it – while it’s supposed to take five days, typically it displays in a few hours.

Which stores can I earn points from?

Drop offers cash back at a variety of stores, though the specific stores and the points-earning ratios are constantly updated. Check the app for the latest list of stores and ratios. Here is a list from DoC:

  • Walmart – 2 points per $1 (.2%)
  • Lyft – 10 points per $1 (1%)
  • Seamless – 16 points per $1 (1.6%)
  • HEB – 10 points per $1 (1%)
  • Fred Meyers – 12 points per $1 (1.2%)
  • Trader Joe’s – 12 points per $1 (1.2%)
  • Peets – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Blue Bottle – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Macy’s – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Dunkin Donuts – 14 points per $1 (1.4%)
  • Target – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Urban Outfitters – 15 points per $1 (1.5%)
  • Bath Body Works – 15 points per $1 (1.5%)
  • Whole Foods – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Safeway – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • 7-Eleven – 16 points per $1 (1.6%)
  • Walgreens – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Starbucks – 12 points per $1 (1.2%)
  • Uber – 10 points per $1 (1%)
  • McDonalds – 8 points per $1 (.8%)
  • Chipotle – 12 points per $1 (1.2%)

Other than set cash back rates at certain stores, Drop will also often feature one-time bonus point offers as well, such as those from Nike, Whole Foods, and Sephora in the screenshot below.

The Drop app also offers extra points for completing certain tasks, such as linking a second bank account, completing your first points-earning transaction, clicking on a notification within the app, etc. Obviously the number of points one earns through completing these tasks is very small.

A final note

Finally, one thing to note: since Drop was first released, many have used it excessively for manufactured spend. This has caused a series of problems, such as the inability to track spending, customer service not responding to emails, and problems with exchanging points for gift cards. We have not encountered these issues ourselves, as none of our spending has been manufactured spending. Drop added a clause within their terms of use prohibiting manufactured spending:

“certain manufactured spending including, but not limited to, repeat purchases, high-value purchases, purchases of gift cards, and purchases made for business or corporate purposes.”

It seems to us that as long as your spending is legitimate, you shouldn’t run into any problems with using it. Try it out!

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