Fetch vs Ibotta comes down to how much work you want to do before you shop. Fetch takes almost any receipt and pays you in points you trade for gift cards. Ibotta pays real cash, but only on offers you add before you buy.
Pick Fetch if you want zero planning and you’re fine getting paid in gift cards. Pick Ibotta if you already plan grocery trips around deals and want cash in your bank account. And if most of your money goes to gas and eating out, Upside beats both, since it pays at the pump and at restaurants on top of your card rewards.
You don’t really have to choose, either. Fetch takes nearly any receipt, so it can ride along with whichever cash app you end up using.
Fetch vs Ibotta vs Upside, side by side
Here’s the quick version. Every figure comes from each company’s own site.
| App | Best for | How you earn | How you get paid | Next step |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 UpsideGas, groceries, dining | Gas and eating out | Claim an offer, then pay with your card at that location | Cash to your bank, or gift cards | Get UpsideFree app |
 FetchLeast effort | Snapping every receipt | Scan almost any receipt, or link your email for eReceipts | Points for gift cards | Get FetchFree app, US only |
 Ibotta | Planned grocery trips | Add offers first, then submit your receipt or shop in the app | Cash or gift cards once you hit $20 | How Ibotta works |
Ratings, if you care: Fetch says it holds 4.9 stars, Ibotta shows 4.7 on the App Store and Upside shows 4.8 from 550,000 ratings. All three are free.
How Fetch works
Fetch is the lazy one, and that’s a compliment.
You buy whatever you were going to buy, then snap the receipt. Groceries, takeout, gas, games, it doesn’t much matter. It’ll scan just about anything other than return receipts, utility and medical bills, tickets, ATM slips and a few other odd ones, so you don’t have to think about which store you went to.
A few rules to know. Paper receipts have to be snapped within 14 days, and you can do up to 35 receipts in a rolling 7 days. Online orders count too if you connect your email or Amazon account for eReceipts.
Every receipt earns points. The extra points come from brand offers in the app, which is how Fetch makes its money.
So how do you get paid? You trade points for gift cards. Most rewards need at least 3,000 points, and your first one has to be a $10, $25 or $50 card. After that, $3 and $5 cards open up. A reward can take up to 72 hours to process, so don’t expect the card the second you tap redeem.
One catch. If your account sits for 90 days with no receipts or redemptions, your points expire. Snap one receipt now and then and you’re fine.
Fetch is US only and runs on iPhone and Android.
Want the no-planning option? Get Fetch and snap your next grocery receipt.
Get Fetch →How Ibotta works
Ibotta flips the order. You find offers first, then shop.
In the app, you tap the plus sign on the offers you want, which adds them to your list. After you shop in store, you go to that retailer’s page in the app and submit your receipt. You can also earn when you shop online through the app, at retailers like Walmart, Kohl’s and Home Depot.
The payoff is real cash, not points. Once you reach $20 you can send it to your bank account or take a gift card.
Ibotta says its savers earn $218 a year on average, across more than 2,600 retailers.
The catch is the work. Buy something that isn’t on your list and it doesn’t earn. If you’d rather not check an app before every trip, Ibotta will feel like homework.
Ibotta vs Fetch: which one pays more?
Ibotta, if you put in the time. It pays cash on specific products, so a planned trip can earn more than a handful of points on the same cart.
But Fetch pays on trips where Ibotta pays nothing. A gas station run, a fast food receipt, a pharmacy stop with no offers loaded. Those still earn points on Fetch.
Fetch doesn’t publish an average yearly payout, so there’s no clean number to put next to Ibotta’s $218.
Bottom line: if you plan your groceries, Ibotta. If you won’t, Fetch. And since Fetch takes nearly any receipt, there’s not much reason to skip it either way.
Spend more on gas than groceries? Try Upside
Claim an offer, pay with your card and get cash back on top of your card rewards. Upside says frequent users average $255 in their first year.
Get the Upside App →Free to downloadIbotta vs Upside
These two don’t really compete. Ibotta pays on products. Upside pays on places.
With Upside, you open the app, claim a cash back offer at a gas station, grocery store or restaurant near you, then pay there with a credit or debit card. Upside says grocery and dining offers average 8% back. Gas offers pay per gallon.
It also stacks on top of your credit card, debit card and loyalty rewards, so you’re not giving anything up. Cash goes straight to your bank account, or you can pick a gift card.
I’ve been using Upside for years.
Ibotta is better for a big grocery haul on brands that have offers that week. Upside is better for gas and restaurant meals, where Ibotta has little to offer, and its frequent users average $255 in their first year by Upside’s own count.
So which one first? If you drive a lot, start with Upside. If your big spending is the weekly grocery run, Ibotta.
Fetch vs Upside
Fetch vs Upside is an easier call, because they work together.
Upside pays cash on the purchases you claim ahead of time at specific locations. Fetch pays points on the receipt afterward. Fuel receipts are on Fetch’s list of things it rewards.
The difference is what you walk away with. Upside is cash in your bank account. Fetch is gift cards, and your first one has to be at least $10.
If you only want one, pick Upside for the cash and the gas savings. Add Fetch if you want points on everything else.
Who should pick which
Get Fetch if
- You won’t plan a shopping trip around an app
- Gift cards work fine for you
- You want points on gas, takeout and online orders too
Get Upside if
- You buy gas every week
- You eat out or pick up food a lot
- You want cash in your bank account
Ibotta fits the person who already clips coupons and doesn’t mind adding offers before every trip. If that’s you, it’s worth having on your phone. If it isn’t, it’s easy to stop opening it.
The bottom line
Bottom line: Fetch is the easiest, Ibotta pays the most on planned grocery trips and Upside is the one to get if you drive or eat out a lot.
Start with Upside for gas and dining, then add Fetch for every receipt Upside doesn’t cover. More reading: our Upside review, the Fetch Rewards review, apps like Ibotta and the best rebate apps.
Fetch vs Ibotta FAQs
Ibotta pays more if you plan your shopping, since it pays cash on offers you add before you buy, and you can cash out at $20. Fetch is better if you want no planning at all: you snap almost any receipt and trade points for gift cards.
Yes. They’re separate apps. Fetch’s FAQ only rules out a short list of receipts, like return receipts, bills and tickets, so a grocery receipt can still go into Fetch after you use Ibotta’s offers on it.
No. Fetch pays in points that you redeem for gift cards and other rewards. Most rewards need at least 3,000 points, and your first redemption has to be a $10, $25 or $50 reward.
Ibotta says its savers earn $218 a year on average. You can withdraw to a bank account or a gift card once you reach $20.
For gas and restaurants, yes. Upside pays cash back on gas, groceries and dining at participating locations, and says grocery and dining offers average 8% back. Ibotta is better for product offers on a planned grocery trip.
Yes, if your account is inactive for 90 days. Snapping a receipt or redeeming a reward keeps it active.
