Showcase of How Shopping Portals Have Been Very Lucrative For Me – Outsized Value with Travel!

You work hard for your money and it should work as hard, if not harder for you! So how exactly does one accomplish that? One way is to maximize one’s spend.

For me, this is putting everything that I can on a credit card to earn points/miles plus being strategic with getting sign on/welcome bonuses for credit cards. While I have been accumulating and spending miles/points for a couple of decades now, it is only within the last few years that I have started using shopping portals. And boy, have these have paid off handsomely for me – let me show you how.

What Even is a Shopping Portal?

You shop with one small difference being that you do it through a business structured as a shopping portal. Essentially a shopping portal gets paid by merchants for directing traffic and the corresponding sales to their sites. In turn, a shopping portal pays you a portion of that money in either cashback or miles/points (depending on which one you use).

The two that I predominately use are Rakuten and AA eshopping – more on why as we dive in…

Here’s my in-depth how to guide on Rakuten which includes my own shopping example with a big payoff, showcase of places and things you didn’t think you could earn cashback on (bank accounts, dining at participating restaurants!), payment info and so much more!

Are These Legit? And sounds like a pain, can this seriously be worth it? Take a Look at My Rakuten Account

I am sure that there are some of you that were asking yourselves the above question. Maybe it seems a little too good to be true or maybe a little sketchy? Or is this even worth my time to do?

This is my account and I have earned $2,418 since June 30, 2023 and February 15, 2026 and remember that I primarily use the American Airlines shopping portal! This is the amount that has been paid AKA how much I have received in cold hard cash (well technically I opt for AMEX Membership Rewards and BILT points) – showing that Rakuten really does work as I have received the cashback as promised and advertised!

What Am I Earning My Cashback From? AKA quick Peek at my spending/earnings

It’s really easy to use Rakuten because I do most things on the app and the tracking is typically seamless. And if I do need to inquire re missing cashback, Rakuten has been very responsive and quick to add the cashback to my account)

So I do use primarily the AA shopping portal (since I am able to get both AA miles and AA elite status) but will also use Rakuten if there are any good opportunities (the Chime and SoFi Plus are two examples of that) or if the % is significantly higher (Groupon and PacSun). So bummed that World of Hyatt’s presence was so short lived on the app but definitely took advantage of that while it was there.

And very appreciative of those that are using my referrals as we both are rewarded for that!

Join Rakuten and Earn an Extra $50!

Simply use my referral link to sign up and place qualifying orders (that have been confirmed) totaling a minimum of $50 within 90 days of becoming a member! Note that you must be new to Rakuten and must be located in the 50 United States, D.C., or Canada to qualify.

Why am I opting for Amex or Bilt Points Instead of Cashback with Rakuten?

And one of the things that I am most excited about is that the $464.35 shown as confirmed will be converted to 46,435 Bilt points on May 15! I choose points because the value that I get from these is significantly higher than just getting cash back. This is what makes shopping portals so lucrative for me.

Case in point – I can transfer my Amex Membership Reward Points to Air Canada and book a business class seat on Singapore Airlines for 60,000 miles and 79 CAD for a flight that is worth over $2,000! And yes, this is really one of the flights I have booked with miles myself, for more on what my Singapore Airlines 777-300 Business Class (JFK – FRA) flight was like, read this

Or for those that would rather spend their time luxuriating at a posh hotel, you can transfer Bilt points to Hyatt. I was able to snag nights at the Park Hyatt Paris Vendôme during the Paris2024 Olympics! Instead of spending $5,500+ for a room, I opted to use 90,000 points – here’s what my stay was like

But Why Do I Use the AA eshopping Portal More?

For me, even with earning a smaller % of miles vs Rakuten cashback, it is worth it for me as American Airlines’ loyalty program allows me to earn valuable AA miles as well as elite status. This is now the third year in a row that I will have high elite status. The first year, I had the highest earned status of Executive Platinum but Platinum Pro also offers so very nice perks and was attainable for the past two years.

I started using it when I planned the big family cruise and booked almost all of our excursions via Viator and on this portal to earn over 118K loyalty points the first year I joined the portal. And still continue to use Viator and the shopping portals to book activities and excursions now!

Why I think it’s worth it – but also why it might not be as convenient for others.

For me the ROI (return on investment), or the slight inconvenience of not being able to use an app and having to use chrome to make purchases is completely worth it. Tracking is finickier for the AA eshopping portal and I have had to submit many more inquiries than with Rakuten (along with having a spreadsheet to keep track of purchases but you know that I love spreadsheets so that’s not a negative for me!)

I have seen in some of my travel groups that others have complained that they found this portal to be too much of a pain and opted for Rakuten instead.

Why I value AA Platinum Pro (and Executive Platinum) Elite Status

And the status along with AA miles is why I am willing to spend a little bit more time for this portal (honestly it is only a few more minutes at most with AA shopping but I do also have my system down pat now).

With these two statuses, I can choose Main Cabin Extra seats at booking (for myself as well as up to eight companions on the same reservation). And I (along with one companion) are eligible for complimentary upgrades within North America. I have been upgraded about 80% of the time when I fly with AA (but I don’t live in a hub so that is why this # is so high) – but even flying into a hub like Miami, I have scored upgrades (the photos on the left are from my flight from Anguilla).

And probably my favorite perk of having Platinum Pro status is that it gives me oneworld emerald status including lounge access! I have been able to visit some really incredible lounges including the British Airways Galleries First Lounge – London/LHR Terminal 5 when flying on a $120 economy ticket (here’s what my experience was like) because there’s nothing like a champagne bar available for an 8 AM flight. I have also been able to access the Cathay Pacific First Class and Business Class Lounge at LHR, FinnAir Platinum Wing at HEL, Saga Lounge at KEF with my status when flying economy!

For those that check bags, having Platinum Pro status gives you a three bag allowance (and up to 70 lbs) each as well as being able to use dedicated elite lanes for check-in.

One of my top redemptions was due to AA Executive Platinum status and being able to apply a SWU (system-wide upgrade) at the time of booking to a $500 basic economy ticket. I was able to fly business class from Copenhagen and visit the Cathay Pacific First Class and Business Class Lounge at LHR and then fly AA’s flagship business class on a transatlantic AA flight (here’s what that experience was like)

Okay, So What Does It Really Cost to Use These Portals? Why Should You Do This?

There’s no difference in what you are paying when using shopping portals! You simply start on the shopping portal but click through to the merchant and shop on their website (and there’s no cost to use the shopping portals!) You pay the exact same thing but you are rewarded for taking one extra step and I would argue that it can be rewarded handsomely…and simply if you are willing to spend a few more minutes!