Upside is a cashback app that claims to offer lucrative cashback bonuses when you purchase gas or shop at select grocery stores or restaurants across the United States. It markets itself as an effective method of saving money, and hires influencers to promote the app across the web.
However, many customers have expressed frustration with Upside paying out significantly less than promised, leading to lower earnings than what Upside advertises. In short, Upside is a poor way to earn money.
If you want to make some extra income without the headache, I recommend capitalizing on the signup bonuses from these apps instead:
- Cash App ($35+ bonus when using my Cash App referral code)
- TopCashback ($25 bonus when using my TopCashback referral code)
- Fetch Rewards (3,000 points when using my Fetch Rewards referral code)
Five Reasons I Don’t Recommend Upside
There are many reasons I don’t recommend Upside, but the primary issue is that you won’t earn nearly as much as you think you will. Here are a few more specific reasons that dig into what you can truly expect from Upside:
#1 Users Not Getting Paid Out
Here are some Reddit threads that show the reality for many Upside users:
#2 Disappearing Merchants
Here are a few threads pointing out where Upside is no longer being offered:
#3 Glitchy App
#4 Upside Collects Tons Of Customer Data
In Upside's Privacy Policy the company states, “When you interact with us through the Services, we collect Personal Information and other data from and about you in order to provide the Services”. Then it goes on to break down the type of personal data it collects and/or uses, which may include any or all of these items, depending on how a user interacts with the app:
- Your email address and password
- The specific locations where each of the transactions you upload to Upside took place
- The exact timestamps of each of the transactions you upload to Upside
- Any credit card receipts you upload to Upside
- The first six and last four digits of any credit cards you input into your Upside wallet
- Your geolocation information, including when you're not actively using the Upside app
- A record of your touch screen interactions inside the Upside app
- A list of your contacts (including names and email addresses) that you upload to Upside
- The name of your financial institution(s) and your bank account number(s)
- Your PayPal login email address
- Your mailing address
Just below the list of data points that Upside collects, the company says this:
“Upside may store such information itself and/or share such information with the following types of affiliates, agents or service providers: advertising networks, data analytics providers, productivity application providers, payment platforms, cloud storage providers, customer service platforms, and personnel management vendors.”
In layman's terms, this means that Upside has the right to collect and share (or sell) your personal data. This is a big red flag for me, and should be the sort of thing that makes you think twice before using Upside.
#5 Pushing Users To Expensive Merchants—And Then Not Paying Out
It's not hard to find cases of users filling up at expensive gas stations specifically to capitalize on an Upside promotion, but when they tried to get their cashback, Upside refused to pay it. Still others are only receiving very low offers (think 1¢ per gallon), which makes it very hard to earn anything substantial.
Cases like these have been reported on Reddit and elsewhere quite frequently, and some users have stopped using Upside altogether as a result.
How To Get Your Cash App Bonus (The Easy Way)
- Download Cash App and enter the Cash App promo code 737GWQC.
- Have a friend also download the app using the same code.
- Link your bank account or debit card and deposit at least $5.
- Send $5 to your friend, and then have them send it back. You'll both receive the signup bonus immediately.
How To Use Your Upside Promo Code
Upside has a referral program for new users: if you sign up with Upside using the referral code WPCODE, you'll receive a cashback bonus of 20¢ per gallon of gas. Plus, you can already earn up to 25¢ per gallon when you buy gas at select gas station locations, bringing your total cash back to up to 45¢ per gallon.
Here's how to use the Upside promo code:
- Visit Upside‘s website and use the code WPCODE when prompted
- If you're on Desktop, click on Get The App button in the top-right and sign up using an email address and password or your Google/Facebook/Apple account.
- Download the app.
- Fill in your basic information and you're ready to go!
What Is Upside?
Founded in 2016, Upside is a cashback app that boasts over 30 million users across all 50 states. Upside recently partnered with more than 1,500 restaurants to offer a wider range of cashback options, on top of its longstanding partnerships with gas stations. Select groceries stores also offer cashback through the Upside app, and Upside plans to expand to more establishments soon.
By using the Upside app, you'll receive personalized offers based on your transaction history to help you save even more money. Unlike Fetch, where you simply scan receipts for points, and TopCashback, where you're required to navigate through their website before making a purchase, Upside's model is unique in the industry.
Upside Features
Some of Upside’s top features include:
- Up to 45¢ per gallon cashback on gas station purchases when using the promo code WPCODE.
- Cashback on select restaurants and grocery stores.
- Special offers every 1-4 weeks.
Upside Fees
There are no fees for using Upside.
How To Sign Up With Upside
#1 Visit Upside‘s website and enter the promo code WPCODE when prompted.
#2 If you're on Desktop, click on Get The App button in the top-right and sign up using an email address and password or your Google/Facebook/Apple account.
#3 Download the app and fill in your basic account information.
Upside’s Referral Program
After creating your Upside account and signing in to the app, you'll find your referral link by navigating to your profile and clicking Free Gas. Click the Share button. After you receive your referral code, you can:
- Share your code via text, email, or with your social media audience.
- Once a referee purchases gas, you'll get $0.01 per gallon plus half that amount from the friends they refer.
- There’s no limit to how many people you can invite.
In Summary
Upside is a cashback app that claims to offer cashback when you purchase gas or shop at select grocery stores or restaurants across the United States. It markets itself as a lucrative way to save money, and hires influencers to promote the app across the web.
However, many customers have expressed frustration with Upside paying out significantly less than they should have, leading to far lower earnings than what Upside advertises. In short, Upside is a poor way to earn money.
I strongly recommend capitalizing on the signup bonuses from these apps instead:
- Cash App ($35+ bonus when using my Cash App referral code)
- TopCashback ($25 bonus when using my TopCashback referral code)
- Fetch Rewards (3,000 points bonus when using my Fetch Rewards referral code)