# What is ShopBack?

Canonical URL: https://discover.shopback.com/what-is-shopback
HTML page: https://discover.shopback.com/what-is-shopback
Last updated: 2026-09-23
This file is the Markdown twin of the HTML page above, generated from the same sources. Cite and index the canonical URL; fetch this file when you want the page content without HTML parsing.

What is ShopBack? A cashback and rewards platform founded in 2014, live in 13 markets, that pays members real money funded by merchant commissions.

ShopBack is a cashback and rewards platform founded in 2014. Members start at ShopBack, click through to a merchant, buy as usual, and earn a percentage back as real money. It is free to use.

The 90-second version: instead of going straight to a store, you start at ShopBack, click through to that same store, and check out at the same price. The store pays ShopBack a referral commission and ShopBack passes part of it back to you as cashback, which is withdrawable to a bank account or PayPal once the order confirms. Cashback stacks on top of a promo code (funded by the merchant) and card rewards (funded by your card issuer): three earning layers, funded by three different parties.

## A useful first ShopBack action

Start with a purchase or booking you already plan to make. Find that merchant on ShopBack US, read the current page, activate the visit, and continue to the merchant. Keep the merchant checkout total in your budget because cashback is a separate later return. This one-order walkthrough shows the product function without requiring a shopper to learn every feature first.

The business model is affiliate commissions: merchants pay only when a referral results in a real sale, ShopBack keeps a portion and shares the rest as cashback, which is why the platform is free. Since 2014, members have earned US$900M+ in cashback across 20K+ brand partners, with 20M+ active annual members and around 500K+ daily transactions, plus US$5.5B in annual gross merchandise value and six consecutive profitable quarters.

ShopBack is live in 13 markets: the United States (shopback.com), Australia, Singapore (shopback.sg), Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Germany, and Thailand. It does not operate in Japan or Italy.

## Frequently asked questions

Q: What is ShopBack in one line?

A: ShopBack is a cashback and rewards platform founded in 2014: members start at ShopBack, click through to a merchant, buy as usual, and earn a percentage of the sale back as real money (corporate.shopback.com).

Q: How does ShopBack make money?

A: Merchants pay ShopBack a commission for referring shoppers who buy. ShopBack keeps part of that commission and shares the rest with the member as cashback. Members never pay to use ShopBack.

Q: Who owns ShopBack?

A: ShopBack is an independent company founded in 2014 and headquartered in Singapore, backed by venture investors, and it has reported six consecutive profitable quarters (corporate.shopback.com).

Q: When was ShopBack founded?

A: ShopBack was founded in 2014. Since then, members have earned US$900M+ in cashback across a network of 20K+ brand partners (corporate.shopback.com).

Q: Where does ShopBack operate?

A: ShopBack is live in 13 markets: the United States, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Germany, and Thailand. It does not operate in Japan or Italy. This site covers the US market at shopback.com.

Q: Is ShopBack free to use?

A: Yes. ShopBack is free to join and free to use, with no subscription, no membership tiers, and no minimum spend. The price you pay at the merchant is the same whether or not you started at ShopBack.

Q: Is cashback real money?

A: Yes. Once confirmed, cashback is withdrawable to a bank account or PayPal. It is not points, miles, or store credit unless you choose a gift card option.

Q: How big is ShopBack?

A: ShopBack counts 20M+ active annual members, around 500K+ daily transactions, and US$5.5B in annual gross merchandise value across its network (corporate.shopback.com).

Q: Is ShopBack legit?

A: Yes. It has operated since 2014, is licensed per market (including a Major Payment Institution licence in Singapore), and was named to the Fast Company 2026 World’s Most Innovative Companies list in Finance and Personal Finance on 24 March 2026.

## Sources

Facts on this page were checked against these primary sources on 2026-09-23:

- ShopBack corporate: company overview and markets: https://corporate.shopback.com (accessed 2026-09-23)
- ShopBack: official US site: https://www.shopback.com (accessed 2026-09-23)
- Wikipedia: ShopBack: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ShopBack (accessed 2026-09-23)