Use Upside Every Time You Buy Gas

Updated: Jun 12, 2024

For those that must drive to work, school or somewhere on a daily basis, gas prices are likely always on your mind. I stumbled upon the Upside app which:

Helps you save on gas, restaurant, grocery and convenience store purchases.
Is a localized app that identifies your location, then shows you which merchants/companies are partners with Upside and willing to give you cashback and rewards.
Offers anywhere from 5 cents to 25 cents back per gallon purchased, depending on the offer.
Offers savings on top of the other discount programs you may take advantage of now like gas station loyalty programs and credit card rewards.

I’ve only been using the app for a few months and I’ve saved $49.16 just by buying things I normally do. I work remotely and don’t drive very often.

So, imagine the savings for someone who goes into the office daily or 3 times a week? Imagine someone who constantly fills up their tank on a weekly basis?

LIVE EXAMPLE

Here is a recent example of a gas purchase I made and the easy process involved in downloading the Upside app:

Step 1:

Open the app, search for the real-time gas price results and select a gas station by clicking on “Claim”:

You will see a map that shows where you are in relation to gas stations, restaurants, grocery and convenience stores that have partnered with Upside. I typically select:

One that is on the way to my next destination.
An option that has the lowest gas price on regular fuel with the highest cent/gallon return.

Step 2:

Click on “Got it” to let Upside know you plan on taking advantage of the savings at that location:

You can also get directions straight from the app which is connected to your preferred map app.

Step 3:

Make your purchase and let Upside know by clicking on “I've paid”. The offer expires 4 hours after you click on “Claim”. After some time and you have yet to click on “I’ve paid”, they send a convenient ping to let you know they’re waiting for you to confirm your purchase.

Step 4:

Wait to receive confirmation from Upside via email that you’ve received cash back on your gas purchase:

MORE SAVINGS FOR HEAVY DRIVERS AND BIG FAMILIES

In the example above, I received $2.31 back from my gas purchase. For someone who fills up their tank 4 times per month and receives the same per gallon savings back at the same price/gallon, that’s $9.24 per month and $110.88 per year. $100+ that’s going back to you vs the gas station companies! I have a midsize car, so imagine:

Savings for those that have bigger cars/tanks?
Someone who fills up at the gas station would also be able to take advantage of the monthly promotions when they will give you extra money per gallon on a fill-up.

You can add more savings to this tally if you consider the credit card points or miles you may or may not already be receiving with gas purchases as well.

Before this simple 4-step process, you have to let Upside know which card you are planning on using at the pump. This way, they can confirm with your card company vs you having to take a picture of the receipt. Often, I forget to get my receipts for the apps that give cash back for receipts, so I appreciate this! I’m sure this also protects Upside from fraudulent transactions people submit too.

PAY WITH APP AT CHECKOUT

They also have a feature called “Pay with App”:

You let Upside know the exact price at checkout via the app.
A barcode will come up and the merchant/store will scan a barcode on your phone during checkout.

Here is an example of savings using the Pay with App feature after shopping at a restaurant on Upside - Jersey Mike’s: