Earn bonus points and miles: How to make the most of shopping portals’ Black Friday deals
One of our favorite things about the holidays is the sales: Black Friday cruise deals, Travel Tuesday hotel deals, and of course, tons of discounts at a variety of retailers. If you’re considering taking advantage of any holiday sales, don’t forget that you can use shopping portals to earn extra points, miles, or cash back on your purchases.
For the uninitiated, shopping portals are online hubs affiliated with loyalty programs that allow you to earn rewards when shopping at various retailers. Here’s what you need to know about making the most of your shopping portal this holiday season.
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How to use the shopping portal
The shopping portal is very easy to use. Simply sign up for each portal with your loyalty account, and when you’re ready to shop, click through the portal to the retailer’s website before purchasing. You can earn points and miles through the portal, in addition to any rewards you normally earn through the credit card you use to make purchases.
You can simplify this process by downloading each portal’s browser extension. This automatically notifies you when the site you’re shopping at becomes eligible for rewards, so you don’t even have to click through the portal to activate them.
You may find that the most difficult thing about shopping portals is choosing which portal to use for a specific purchase, since rewards vary from portal to portal and often change on a daily or even hourly basis. Shopping portal aggregators such as Cashback Monitor can help you search for the stores you want and quickly compare the rewards offered by all portals.
RELATED: Beginner’s Guide to Airline Shopping Portals: How to Earn Reward Points and Miles
Popular shopping portals
Nearly every major airline has a shopping portal, as well as some issuers of rewards credit cards, and there are third-party sites that let you earn rewards. Here are some of the most popular among TPG employees:
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How to evaluate a quote
When evaluating offers on shopping portals, you’ll notice that payments tend to vary widely. For example, TrueBlue Shopping currently earns 9 points for every $1 spent at Lululemon. Since we value JetBlue points at 1.45 cents each in our November 2025 valuation, that’s a return of about 13%, which you can stack with regular earnings and statement points on a rewards credit card. However, United MileagePlus Shopping, Rakuten and Shop Through Chase only offer 2 points or miles per $1 spent at Lululemon.
Also, keep in mind that shopping portals occasionally offer bonuses to further reward you – especially during the holidays. These often award a large number of bonus points or miles when you spend a certain amount. Minimum spends from participating retailers on any portal are usually cumulative, so you can use multiple purchases within the promotional window to earn bonuses. Even if a portal doesn’t offer many points or miles per dollar spent, the bonuses may make it the most profitable option.
While most shopping portals focus on online purchases, some allow you to earn reward points and miles for in-store shopping at specific retailers. To earn rewards in-store, you must link your credit card to the portal and activate in-store offers separately.
To further maximize your purchase, check your American Express offers and Chase offers. These programs offer cardholders discounts and other rewards when they shop at specific merchants. Since offers vary by cardholder and credit card, log into your online account to see which offers you qualify for.
For example, here are some current (targeted) Chase deals that might come in handy during Black Friday and Cyber Monday shopping:
- Adidas: Through November 30, earn 10% cash back on Adidas purchases, up to $50 back.
- Sony Electronics: Through December 6, earn 5% cash back on Sony Electronics products, up to $50 back.
- Lululemon: Through December 7, get 10% back on Lululemon purchases, up to $30 back.
Choose the best credit card for your purchases
In addition to getting the best deals and earning reward points through shopping portals, using the right credit card is also crucial to maximizing your money savings and earning rewards. Not only can it help you get the most points and miles on your purchases, but some cards can even protect you in the event of a price drop, theft, or damage.
Generally speaking, you want to choose a credit card based on where you spend the most and what type of protection you value most. Here are some of TPG’s top recommendations for Black Friday and holiday deals:
Information for the Discover it Cash Back Card and Citi Prestige Card is independently collected by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
bottom line
There are many ways to double or even triple your income during Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales, and using a shopping portal is one of the easiest. The extra points and miles can add up in the long run, especially when the portal offers bonus rewards at your preferred retailers or holiday bonuses when you spend a certain amount. In addition to increasing your rewards balance, using the shopping portal is an easy way to prevent your points and miles from expiring.
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