Rakuten Rewards

What Rakuten Rewards does

Rakuten Rewards is a consumer cash-back and affiliate commerce platform operated by Ebates Performance Marketing Inc. as part of Rakuten Group Inc. The platform serves individual shoppers who want cash back, coupons, and rewards on purchases, while generating revenue from merchant partners that pay affiliate commissions when Rakuten members transact through its channels. The company reports scale across over 17 million members, more than 3,500 partner brands, and cash-back activity spanning online retail, in-store purchases, dining, travel, and financial services offers.

The core product is a cash-back marketplace accessed through rakuten.com, a mobile app, and a browser extension. The browser extension activates eligible cash back and coupons during online checkout; the mobile app supports deal discovery, notifications, in-store offers, and dining rewards; and card-linking capabilities enable in-store and restaurant rewards through eligible American Express, Mastercard, or Visa cards. Adjacent products include Rakuten Dining, which offers 5% cash back at 22,000+ participating restaurants, a Rakuten American Express Card, Rakuten+ premium membership, and an influencer referral program.

Rakuten Rewards is free for consumers, with revenue coming from merchant commissions that are shared with members as cash back while Rakuten retains a portion. Its go-to-market motion is primarily direct-to-consumer, supported by referral bonuses, influencer programs, content marketing, email, social, owned app/browser distribution, and merchant partnerships. The 2026 alliance with impact.com indicates a shift toward a broader performance marketing ecosystem that combines Rakuten Rewards' consumer demand and shopping signals with advertiser tracking, contracting, and payment infrastructure.

Name

Rakuten Rewards

Legal name

Ebates Performance Marketing Inc.

Website

https://rakuten.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

Rakuten Rewards is a cash-back affiliate platform serving consumers and merchant partners, enabling shoppers to earn rewards across 3,500+ brands via website, app, browser extension, card-linked in-store offers, dining, and co-branded payment products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cash-Back Rewards Platform

akta.pro primary industry

Price Comparison, Deals, Cashback & Loyalty Shopping Platforms (BPAMAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Rewards Marketplace & Redemption Platforms (Merchandise, Gift Cards, Experiences) (THALAKAC), Rewards & Loyalty Credit Cards (FSAKABAH)

Keywords

• Cash back rewards
• Affiliate marketing platform
• Online shopping rewards
• Consumer savings platform
• Shopping referral network

Headquarters

HQ city

San Francisco

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Affiliate Commissions: Rakuten earns commissions from merchant partners when members make purchases through the platform. These commissions are shared with members as cash back while the company retains a portion as revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Rakuten Rewards operates a consumer-facing cash-back shopping platform that allows members to earn money back on purchases made at over 3,500 partner brands. Members shop through the Rakuten website, browser extension, or mobile app, and the company earns affiliate commissions from merchants, sharing a portion of those commissions back to members as cash-back rewards paid quarterly via PayPal, check, or gift cards.

Product overview

Rakuten Rewards operates a unified cash-back shopping platform combining multiple access points and reward mechanisms. The core Rakuten Cash Back Platform serves as the central hub where members earn money back from over 3,500 partner brands. This core platform is extended through the Rakuten Browser Extension (which auto-activates cash back and applies coupons during online shopping), the Rakuten Mobile App (providing on-the-go access, push notifications, and in-store/dining functionality), and specialized features including Rakuten In-Store Cash Back (credit card-linked rewards at physical retailers), Rakuten Dining (5% back at 22,000+ restaurants), and Rakuten+ premium membership. The Rakuten American Express Card provides an additional reward-earning vehicle. The Rakuten Influencer Program enables affiliate partners to earn by referrals. All these products feed into the quarterly payment system where members receive cash back via PayPal, check, Bilt Points, or American Express Membership Rewards points.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rakuten Rewards: The primary operating brand for the cash-back shopping platform, rewards program, and affiliate marketing services operated by Ebates Performance Marketing Inc.
• Rakuten Cash Back
• Rakuten Dining
• Rakuten American Express Card

Products and services

• Rakuten Cash Back Platform The core cash-back shopping platform that enables members to earn money back from purchases at over 3,500 partner brands. Members shop through the website, mobile app, or browser extension and receive quarterly payments via PayPal, check, or alternative reward options.
• Rakuten Browser Extension A Google Chrome browser extension that automatically activates Cash Back when members shop at partner stores, applies eligible coupons at checkout, and displays Cash Back rates when searching for stores on Google.
• Rakuten Mobile App Mobile application available for iOS and Android that allows members to shop, browse deals, receive push notifications for exclusive offers, and access In-Store and Dining Cash Back features on the go.
• Rakuten In-Store Cash Back A feature offering members the ability to link eligible American Express, Mastercard, or Visa credit cards to their Rakuten account to earn Cash Back when shopping in-person at participating local retail stores by paying with their linked card.
• Rakuten Dining A dining rewards program offering 5% Cash Back at 22,000+ participating restaurants. Cash back applies to the entire bill including tax, tip, and drinks when paying with a linked credit card.
• Rakuten American Express Card A co-branded credit card issued by First Electronic Bank, powered by Imprint Payments, Inc., offering cash-back rewards and special benefits for Rakuten members. Eligible card members can earn American Express Membership Rewards points instead of Cash Back.
• Rakuten Influencer Program A partner program enabling influencers and content creators to earn money by referring new members to Rakuten. Participants receive a flat bonus per new member sign-up and a $50 bonus after 10 qualified referrals, along with access to best practices and promotional insights.

Named customers12 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• impact.comflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 28 April 2026Rakuten International and impact.com formed a strategic alliance merging Rakuten Advertising's global partner relationships, managed services, and Rakuten Rewards' Cash Back shopping platform with impact.com's technology infrastructure for tracking, contracting, and payments. The collaboration creates a unified performance marketing ecosystem providing advertisers with greater campaign control, improved measurement, and access to direct consumer signals. Publishers and creators gain access to expanded monetization opportunities across affiliate, creator, and commerce channels.
• Hotels.comcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHotels.com is a travel partner offering up to 3% cash back on bookings through the Rakuten platform.
• ExpediacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExpedia is a travel partner offering up to 10% cash back on bookings through the Rakuten platform.
• Booking.comcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBooking.com is a travel partner offering up to 8% cash back on reservations through the Rakuten platform.
• PricelinecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPriceline is a travel partner offering up to 8% cash back on bookings through the Rakuten platform.
• Rakuten AdvertisingcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPart of the Rakuten Group, Rakuten Advertising provides global partner relationships and managed services as part of the strategic alliance with impact.com.
• First Electronic BankcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFirst Electronic Bank is the issuing bank for the Rakuten American Express Card, which is powered by Imprint Payments, Inc.
• American ExpresscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAmerican Express partnership enables Rakuten members to earn Membership Rewards points instead of cash back, and powers the Rakuten American Express Card.

Scale indicators11 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Emerging players

• Slickdeals: Community-driven deals aggregation platform that has expanded into cash-back and coupons. Indirect competitor that funnels deal-seeking shoppers who may also use Rakuten, with partial overlap on affiliate monetization.
• BeFrugal: Smaller cash-back shopping platform with high commission pass-through messaging. Competes with Rakuten for price-sensitive shoppers and offers a comparable browser-extension experience.

Direct peers

• TopCashback: Direct cash-back competitor offering 100% commission pass-through to members. Operates internationally across the US, UK, and other markets, competing head-to-head with Rakuten on retailer relationships and member sign-ups.
• Mr. Rebates: Smaller direct cash-back competitor with a similar merchant-commission model. Operates primarily in the US and competes with Rakuten on retailer depth and member payouts.
• Swagbucks (Prodege): Rewards platform offering cash back, gift cards, and survey-based earnings. Overlaps with Rakuten on the cash-back shopping core while differentiating on multi-activity rewards earning.
• CouponCabin: Cash-back and coupon platform with comparable online-shopping affiliate model. Competes with Rakuten for both consumer mindshare and merchant partnerships in the US market.
• Capital One Shopping: Capital One's free browser-based shopping assistant offering coupons, price comparison, and cash-back rewards. Directly competes with Rakuten for online-shopping affiliate commissions and shares the same browser-extension activation model.
• RetailMeNot: Long-standing coupon and cash-back platform with a similar merchant-affiliate model. Owned by Harland Clarke, it competes directly with Rakuten on online couponing and retailer cash-back offers.
• Ibotta: Cash-back rewards platform with strong focus on grocery and in-store rebates. Public company (NYSE: IBTA) competing with Rakuten's In-Store Cash Back and Dining products for share of in-person consumer spend.
• Honey (PayPal): Direct competitor in browser-based coupon and cash-back shopping, acquired by PayPal in 2020 for ~$4B. Both platforms automatically apply coupons and offer cash back through partner retailers, directly competing for the same online-shopper use case.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Rakuten
• Facebookfacebook.com/rakuten
• Instagraminstagram.com/Rakuten

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A8 records

Investments2 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rakuten Rewards