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Earn Free Money for Your Child's College Education

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College Savings

Upromise can help!  Do you purchase baby food at the grocery store, pump your gas at the local Exxon Mobil station or shop online? If you do, why not earn FREE money for college in the process? 

Upromise is a free service that helps you save money for college while doing the things you normally do - shopping, dining, filling your gas tank,  buying groceries, etc.   They do this by partnering up with 100's of companies that pay 1%-25% towards your college savings when you purchase their products.  You can even invite Family & Friends (a grandparent, Aunt, Friend, etc.) to help contribute towards your child's college savings by joining Upromise.  

I have been a member of Upromise since 2002 and have saved over $2,100!  Keep in mind, this amount does not include the interest that has accumulated on these contributions since I have deposited it into my kid's 529 accounts.   The college savings is actually much higher!  I am constantly telling all of my friends about this service because it is something I truly believe in.  My feeling is that if you are going to spend the money on a certain product and that company is willing to PAY YOU to purchase it, why not take them up on it?  

Upromise is a fantastic way to supplement your child's college savings. Every little bit counts!  For many parents who had not yet set up college savings account for their child, joining Upromise helped them get on the right track and start saving even more!

Oh, and did I tell you it was FREE.

Upromise.com

College Savings Poll

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Getting Started!

It is very simple to get started saving! First, you need to enroll with Upromise.

Then, since commissions are earned using a registered credit, debit, grocery or drugstore card, you need to register your cards.

It is 100% secure and very simple to do. It generally takes Upromise up to 10 days to validate your cards so be sure to register them right away so you can start saving! Below are screenshots from Upromise of the card registration forms.
college savings

upromise

Participating Grocery & Drug Stores:

Shop Rite
Stop & Shop
Price Chopper
A & P
Hannaford
Redners
Weis Supermarkets
CVS
Net Grocer
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Online Shopping Rewards

There are 550+ online retailers that will contribute to your Upromise college savings account if you make a purchase via their online website. These include:

Gap, Netflix, Oriental Trading, PetSmart, Target, JC Penny, Land's End, LL Bean, Kohls, Best Buy, Lillian Vernon, Ebay, Disney Shopping, Avon, Barnes & Noble, Best Buy, Home Depot, Staples, Old Navy, Office Depot, PetSmart, Hallmark, plus many more!

To view all of the companies, visit Upromise and Click on 'Earn' and then click 'Online Shopping' on the drop down menu.

How Does it Work?
  • Login to Upromise
  • Search for your online store and click the link to visit the store website
  • Once at the site, make your purchase with a registered Upromise credit or debit card
  • *IMPORTANT*: You must go through the Upromise link to get to the store website in order to get your savings!

    If you think you may forget to go through the Upromise link, Upromise also offers a program that you can install on you computer called RemindU. This program automatically gives you Upromise college savings when you purchase from most participating online retailers. So if you forget to start your shopping at Upromise.com, you wil still get your savings!

    • Grocery & Drug Store Savings


    Upromise.com
    I love getting commissions on my groceries! It may only be a few cents here and a few cents there, but it does add up. And, as I already said, you are spending the money anyway.

    There are many participating companies including Cottenelle, Snyders Pretzels, Nestle, Tylenol, Beechnut, Florida's Natural Juices, plus many more!

    To view all of the participating products, visit Upromise, click on the 'Earn' link and then click on 'Grocery & Drug Stores' in the drop down menu.

    The list does change regularly, so it is a good idea to use the 'Print Out' function to print the list out. I do this every so often and just keep it in my purse to have on hand at the store. Below is an partial screenshot from my account.

    Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

    *Be sure you have registered your grocery card!

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    Dining Out Savings

    There are also many local restaurants that participate in the program. Visit Upromise, click 'Earn' and then click on 'Dining' in the drop down menu.

    You can earn up to 8% savings on the total bill - including tax AND tip!

    The site enables you to search for restaurants using a Zip Code, City, Metro/Neighborhood or an Address. So, even if you are traveling, you can check out any participating restaurants in the area you will be staying.

    You can also earn contributions on McDonalds gift certificates/coupons. You need to purhcase the gift cerificate/books at McDonalds and then visit Upromise to enter in the codes located on the booklets to receive a 3% contribution. If you frequent McDonalds, you may want to purchase a bunch of books, enter in the codes on Upromise and then keep them in your wallet to use whenever you eat there.

    Citibank Upromise Card

    We have saved the most college money so far with our Citibank Upromise credit card. We use our Upromise credit card for my husband's business credit card since he uses it a lot and we can get the most contributions that way.

    I would definately look into getting one. If you already have a Citibank credit card, you can contact Citibank to change it over to a Upromise card. Or, you can just apply for the card.

    What are the benefits of having a Citibank Upromise credit card?

  • You will receive a 1% contribution on all purchases made on your Citibank Upromise card. If your monthly spending on the card is $1,000, you will receive $10!

  • Receive an Extra 10% on Grocery purchases made with your Citibank Upromise card. Therefore, if a grocery product is offering a 4% contribution, you are actually receiving 14% if you put this purchase on your Upromise card! I personally use my credit card for ALL my grocery shopping to get these additional college savings. (we pay this balance off every month).

  • Receive an Extra 2% on all eligible gas purchases at Exxon and Mobil locations.
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    Earn College Savings When You Travel

    Planning a vacation?

    There are many participating companies that will contribute to your college savings along the way!

    Budget, Avis, Priceline, Travelocity, Orbitz, Mobil/Exxon, Radisson, Southwest Airlines, Sheraton, United Airlines, Comfort Inn, Econo Lodge, Expedia, Fairmont Hotels, plus many more!

    More Services

    You can also earn contributions from many Financial Services, Auto Services, Home Products, Real Estate/Moving & Personal Services.

    Some of the companies include:
    Terminix, Bed, Bath & Beyond (including in-store purchases), Sharper Image (including in-store services), Capital One Auto Finance, Pep Boys, Bank of America, New York Life Insurance, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, ERA Realty, Chase, Wachovia, Allied Van Lines, Atlas Van Lines, plus more.
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    529 Accounts & Contribution Withdrawals

    Upromise provides direct college savings deposits into the following 529 accounts: I am a New York resident and I have New York's 529 College Savings Program Direct Plan.

    New York's 529 College Savings Program Direct Plan
    College Savings Iowa 529 Plan
    CollegeInvest Direct Portfolio College Savings Plan Account (Colorado)
    CollegeSense 529 Higher Education Savings Plan (New Mexico)
    Columbia 529 Plan (Nevada)
    Iowa Advisor 529 Plan
    MOST-Missouri's 529 Advisor Plan
    MOST-Missouri's 529 College Savings Plan
    New York's 529 College Savings Program Advisor Plan
    North Carolina's National College Savings Program
    North Dakota's College SAVE Plan
    Pennsylvania 529 Direct Investment Plan
    Pennsylvania's TAP 529 Guaranteed Savings Plan
    The GIFT College Investing Plan (Arkansas)
    USAA College Savings Plan (Nevada)
    Upromise College Fund
    Vanguard 529 College Savings Plan (Nevada)

  • If you currently have one of the 529 accounts listed above, you can simply link it to your Upromise account. Transfers are made quarterly into your 529 account once the required $25/per student savings are met.


  • If you already have a college account set up for your child and chose not to use one of the above, then you can complete a Upromise Withdrawal Request Form and have the money mailed to you. Then, you can deposit these earnings into your college savings account.


  • If you do not have a college account set up yet for your child, you can chose from one of the above or select another college savings plan.

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