[Update 2 — 2023.3] Hardbody protein powder had its Shopify account shut down some time ago (about a month earlier), which forced it to move to a new store and resulted in a new merchant category. However, it is important to point out that after a Shopify account is shut down, the funds will be held by Shopify for 120 days. In other words, Hardbody may face significant cash-flow pressure in the near term (reportedly involving a fairly large amount). If you buy heavily during this period, there is very high financial risk. Therefore, for the next three months (through June 2023), we will not recommend buying protein powder, and all related alerts will be paused temporarily. Thank you for your understanding.

[Update — 2023.3] The protein powder store has changed again and now only supports PayPal/Venmo, showing as Dinning. For Visa/Mastercard/Discover, those two payment methods code as dining. The coding keeps changing, which is a bit frustrating. Note: shipping may appear during purchase, but it will be automatically removed at checkout), and the category becomes dining again. The good news is that AMEX is now supported, but based on the latest DP, AMEX purchases do not code as dining. Still, it can be used toward meeting an AMEX welcome bonus spending requirement.

The most interesting protein powder deal is back, and this time there are 3 options.

Before You Start

RebateKey has actually been around for many years. The blog author Wangbo, along with many readers, really likes this site, and generating over $10,000 in annual volume is completely normal. The appeal of this site includes:

  • There are 100% rebate items, with values up to $200
  • It supports many different credit cards (almost all types except AMEX)
  • Taxes are not rebated, but there are often high-value tax-free products, such as the $200 protein powder. In addition, the merchant offering the protein powder may code as grocery on the credit card side, which can trigger bonus multipliers
  • Similarly, you can keep exploring other “100% + tax-free + bonus multiplier” opportunities

With these features combined, it becomes easier to meet credit card welcome bonus requirements, do online MS, and earn rewards on foreign transactions. The screenshot below shows rebate activity from WeChat reader 山上雪:

RebateKey Signup

RebateKey signup usually does not come with a bonus (a site this interesting no longer needs a signup incentive to attract users). Feel free to use our referral link to register:

Note: RebateKey now requires address verification before your first withdrawal. A letter will be mailed to your billing address with a code inside; just enter the code under Verify Account.

About RebateKey

RebateKey’s main function is rebates. Merchants list products on the site for promotion and subsidize buyers to encourage purchases, which also helps increase merchant sales volume. These products come from Amazon, Target, Walmart, Shopify, etc. Unlike many review-buying programs, RebateKey only requires that you make the purchase; you are not allowed to review the product.

There are some genuinely solid products with strong discounts here. That said, in my personal view, merchants also understand what people are here for: most buyers are mainly after the 100% rebate deals. Since that is the case, merchants, buyers, and the platform are basically all cooperating together (the merchant pays some card processing fees plus shipping costs to drive volume). As a result, there are many interesting deals. Especially for these 100% rebate deals, merchants often cut costs, so you can imagine the quality of what gets shipped; buyers know it, and the platform knows it too. Readers also want to learn about the 100% rebate opportunities, so let’s get into it.

How to Find 100% Rebates

After registering for RebateKey, simply select Biggest Saving on the left side of the webpage.

Then you will be able to see all 100% rebate items (friendly reminder: don’t consume them... don’t worry about the quality... just buy for the experience).

The most recommended play is the protein powder deals (from hardbodynutritional and others). You can buy up to $200 per transaction, with a daily limit of $2,000. To make things easier, here is the search link:

  • Protein powder 100% rebate search link (friendly reminder: don’t consume it)
  • You can also favorite the “flavors” you like for later (red heart in the upper-right corner)
  • The protein powder is tax-free. For each flavor, you can only buy one order at a time, but you can place consecutive orders for multiple flavors in one session
  • Note: when the product arrives, don’t take it too seriously. This protein powder may be very small in quantity, and it’s best not to consume it.
  • Hardbodynutritional return policy: We have a 30 Day return policy + FREE RETURNS (returnable within 30 days)

It is important to note that there are requirements for triggering the 100% rebate, so you must follow the rules of the game. For example:

  • Do not use discounts; you must purchase at full price
  • Each item/type can only be purchased once per cycle; for the same flavor, avoid multiple purchases under one billing in the same cycle, etc.
  • Please read the merchant’s rules carefully for other details

Purchase Flow

After finding the item you want:

  • RebateKey will generate a specific link to help track your purchase record
  • You will then be redirected to the corresponding website to buy the item, similar to using a shopping portal (at this point, do not click other cashback extensions or portals, or tracking may be lost)
  • After completing the purchase, enter the website Order ID in RebateKey [note the time limit: generally you must complete the purchase within one hour]
  • RebateKey will verify your purchase and settle with the merchant

This RebateKey model ensures that you did in fact click through from the site’s link to make the purchase, while the buyer can also be sure the tracked link was used and the order was placed. You can enter the Order ID here:

  • On the previous webpage

Basically, once you enter the Order ID and the merchant confirms it, the rebate will be issued.

Credit Card Checkout

RebateKey supports multiple payment methods, and the card category depends on the merchant (for example, merchants such as Amazon and Walmart support all types of credit cards).

Next, let’s talk about this protein powder merchant. The merchant supports the following checkout methods:

Pay directly with a credit card

If you pay directly by card, it supports most credit cards except AMEX, such as Visa, Master, Discover, JCB, and others. You can also link PayPal Key. It can also work with Visa gift cards, Mastercard gift cards, Privacy, etc. Overall, it’s pretty nice.

For example, Chase/Citi/Discover may recognize the protein powder supplier website as a grocery purchase:

Google Pay

Google Pay only supports non-AMEX credit cards here. Note that once the transaction is processed through Google Pay, it will no longer post under the grocery category.

Shop Pay

Shop Pay is an intermediary app launched by Spotify. Only when using Shop Pay does it show that AMEX cards can be used, but in practice they still do not work. The only advantage is that it lets you track your purchases.

Category conversion

AMEX credit cards are not supported directly, but you can buy Visa gift cards or Mastercard gift cards with an AMEX card, then use those gift cards to pay. That is supported, so it provides an indirect way to use AMEX.

Cashing out

It takes 35 days from purchase completion to withdrawal. RebateKey now requires address verification for your first withdrawal. They will mail a letter to your billing address with a code; just enter that code under Verify Account.

Withdrawal options include:

  • Third-party gift cards: Amazon gift card, Wmt gift card, Apple gift card, Visa gift card, Mastercard gift card, and more
  • PayPal: $0.5/time【Starting in 2022, PayPal withdrawals over $600 may result in a 1099-K】
  • Check: $1/time【Recommended】

Purchase limits

RebateKey has some purchase restrictions to keep people from going too hard on it. The main ones are:

  • Limit on multiple accounts: in theory, one billing can currently register only one account
  • Purchase limit: 10 orders per day, 150 orders per month

Where the value is

The main angle is that the “protein powder 100%” rebate model is a bit bug-like:

  • Combined with PayPal Key, it can help trigger bonus earnings on PayPal transactions, such as quarterly 5x, online shopping bonuses, etc.
  • It can also pair with online shopping bonus categories, such as BOA123, Citi 2x/3x TYP, etc.
  • Useful for meeting credit card signup bonus spending requirements
  • Useful for grocery bonus credit cards, such as Citi Premier or limited-time cards with elevated grocery rewards

Beyond the “protein powder” setup, different states may also have different tax-free products, and merchants may code under different categories. If you’re interested, feel free to explore and share your findings in the comments.

Also, you can Cash Out Amazon gift cards too—you probably thought of that already, right?

Is there risk?

Note: the return window is usually shorter than the payout window, which creates some risk. For example, the merchant selling the protein powder has a 30-day return policy (most merchants have a 30-day return period), while RebateKte takes 35 days for the rebate to post. There is a timing gap in between. That said, any high-profit model comes with risk, so you need to weigh it for yourself. Here are a few thoughts:

First, RebateKey has been around for a long time and has remained popular. Its model is designed to help with card rewards while merchants boost sales volume.

Second, don’t take 100% rebate items too seriously—the point is mainly participating in the purchase process. If something goes wrong, you can still return the item, though of course the rebate would then become 0%. If there is a serious dispute and the merchant cannot resolve it, you can also file a Dispute.

Finally, RebateKey’s model is mainly about extracting value from the banks (while merchants pay a bit to generate volume), and one day banks may eventually ban it. If you’re interested, give it a try and see how it feels.

My suggestion: when you first register, don’t rush into buying protein powder. Start with a few small-dollar 100% tax-free Deals to test the waters, and get familiar with the ordering and rebate process first. Once you know the flow well, then move on to the “protein powder” play. In addition, many of RebateKey’s partner sites also support other Shopping Portals. If you use various browser extensions, be careful not to click the wrong one when making a purchase and lose tracking.

Personally, I’d suggest using it for signup bonuses or quarterly bonuses, then stopping there. Manage the risk reasonably.

Doc has also written about RebaeKey and shared his own views here:

RebateKey registration

RebateKey registration usually does not come with a bonus (a site this interesting no longer needs a signup incentive to attract users). Feel free to register through our referral link: