ShopBack GO: How To Convert Any Debit Or Credit Card Into An F&B Cashback Machine
Most of you, financially-savvy Seedly Community members would already be using either a debit card or a credit card to maximise your savings either through cashback or miles earned.
If you are an average Singaporean who eats out at least once a week at any of Singapore’s plethora of malls or restaurants.
Then you’ll definitely want to read on to find out how you can turn your debit or credit card into an F&B cashback machine!
Because here at Seedly, we’re all about saving even while we spend (a little ironic, but hey, we want to spend money the smarter way right?)
TL;DR: How To Convert Any Debit Or Credit Card Into An F&B Cashback Card
Cashback/Miles Card + ShopBack GO = More Daily F&B Savings
ShopBack has launched an offline cashback programme, which allows users to earn cashback when they dine, on top of existing credit card discounts and promotions.
And it’s called ShopBack GO!
- Simply link your existing cashback or miles card ONE TIME ONLY (any debit, credit, or stored value credit card like YouTrip etc.)
- Automatically activates all the 600 F&B merchants in the app like Harry’s, Souperstar, Maki San (some of my favourite F&B brands)
- Pay using your linked cashback or miles card and you’ll automatically get between 5% to 10% cashback WITHOUT doing anything else
- Withdraw your cashback from your ShopBack account (once you have accrued a minimum of S$10)
Here’s my own story and perspective as a user who eats out maybe two or three times a week.
And I will also share some flaws or drawbacks.
Fun Fact: I Get A Total Of $8.91 Cashback Weekly Using This Simple Hack
Here’s a really simple table which details how my cashback breakdown looks like!
| Item | Cost | ShopBack GO | OCBC 365 F&B Cashback (6% weekday, 3% weekend) | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $5 Popiah Combo (3 times a week) | $16.20 | $0.81 (5%) | $0.99 (6%) | 11% |
| Harry's Holland Village (meal for 3) | $83 | $4.15 (5%) | $2.49 (3%) | 8% |
| TOTAL | $99.20 | $4.96 App Cashback | $3.48 Card Cashback | $8.44 Total Cashback |
And just in case you’re curious, here’s what my breakfast looks like almost every other morning…
It’s healthy and I get savings through cashback. That’s a pretty sweet deal, isn’t it?
Step 1: Get Cashback Via ShopBack GO
| Item | Cost | ShopBack GO Cashback (5%) |
|---|---|---|
| $5 Popiah Combo (3 times a week) | $16.20 | $0.81 |
| Harry's Holland Village (meal for 3) | $83 | $4.15 |
| TOTAL | $99.20 | $4.96 |
Here’s how I get my cashback through ShopBack GO in a week:
- I eat at Souperstar at least three mornings in a week and always order the Breakfast Popiah Combo ($5 daily; or $15 a week)
- I will usually have at least one dining experience outside with friends or family. For example, I recently had a meal with a couple of friends at Harry’s ($90 a week)
Step 2: Stack Your Cashback Or Miles Card For More!
| Item | Cost | OCBC 365 F&B Cashback (6% weekday, 3% weekend) |
|---|---|---|
| $5 Popiah Combo (3 times a week) | $16.20 | $0.99 (6%) |
| Harry's Holland Village (meal for 3) | $83 | $2.49 (3%) |
| TOTAL | $99.20 | $3.48 |
Here’s how I get even more cashback by stacking my credit cards on top of using ShopBack GO:
- I personally use the OCBC365 Cashback card and I get 6% cashback (weekday) or 3% cashback (weekday) on F&B spending on this card
- My fianceé, on the other hand, uses the Krisflyer AMEX card to collect miles – so it’s really up to you what kind of reward you would like to earn on top of using ShopBack GO
That’s my personal recommendation and we don’t get any referrals fees, so do read the community reviews of other cashback cards on Seedly to get a full picture!
Conclusion: A Simple Way To Setup ONCE And Save While You Spend!
We’re seated pretty near the ShopBack GO team, so we’ll occasionally give feedback on improvements which the community have brought up as well as things that we hope to see (since we’re paying diners as well).
Here are some improvements we would like:
- There is a need for more merchants to get on board so as to make it a TRULY seamless experience for the whole of Singapore’s F&B dining scene!
- It will be awesome if we can get food courts onboard (like FoodRepublic, Koufu etc)
But all in all, this is a really amazing piece of innovation that is constantly helping me to save more in my life. And it’s definitely a BIG welcome for any financially-savvy person living in Singapore!
The BIG Question: ShopBack GO vs FavePAY
To be honest this is the biggest question most Singaporean (at least those familiar with the F&B scene) would have. Because when you mention about F&B Cashback, the other player that comes to mind is… FavePay.
On the surface, it does look like you can only use one OR the other.
Conclusion: Why Not Use Both?
So after much hours spent researching, here’s my fact-based understanding of when you should use which product. And with this understanding, you can actually get the best of both worlds.
Use ShopBack GO when:
- You have a Cashback or miles card that gives you more for F&B dining deals (eg OCBC365)
- You want a seamless way to earn cashback automatically
- You really dislike having to whip out your phone to scan any QR codes or top up a mobile pay wallet
- You want to get cashback on all your F&B spending across many different food restaurants
Use FavePAY when:
- You want to stack with GrabPay Rewards points (the partnership was really quite a cool one)
- You want to keep returning back to the same spot as a regular patron (because your cashback is locked into the same spot)
- You want to buy things outside of F&B, there are deals which are offered like Spa, Activities etc where you can also get cashback on those merchants in the app
