How it works:
You purchase gift cards for retailers you already shop at such as Target, Meijer, Speedway, Home Depot...etc.
Each retailer gives a percent of your purchase back into your account (2%, 3%, 16%...etc)
You use the gift card at the retailer just like you would normally use cash or a credit/debit card while shopping.
For Example: Meijer gives 3% so for every $100 gift card I get from Meijer, I get $3 in my student's account. Since I shop at Meijer frequently, This starts to add up. If you add in other retailers like Target, your favorite gas station, restaurants, etc. It adds up even faster.
It's true, it is easiest to use SCRIP if you have some amount of flexible cash flow to play with. However, with some careful saving you will be amazed at how quickly $ can add up in your account. While some of the more frequently used retailers have relatively low percent returns, other companies offer more (Aeropostale 10%, Land's End 16%, Starbucks 7%, Cabela's 11% to name a few).
There are a few ways to get SCRIP:
1, Drop off your order at the SCRIP table on a Monday night, then pick it up the following Monday night.
2. Place your SCRIP order online at www.shopwithscrip.com by 8pm Monday night and pick it up the following Monday night.
3. Place a SCRIP Now! order online and have access to the gift card electronically almost immediately (only available for some retailers). I use this whenever I can...I'm standing in line at Old Navy, I check on my phone to see if Old Navy has SCRIP Now! available and then I purchase it right there in line and it's available at the cashier through my phone. Viola!
4, Some retailers (like Meijer) have reloadable cards. You can reload these online and the $ is typically available within about 24 hours.
There are hundreds of retailers to choose from. Check out the website below to find all of the retailers available and to see if saving with SCRIP might be right for you.
https://www.shopwithscrip.com
For more details on how SCRIP works: https://www.shopwithscrip.com/Learn