MyPoints vs E-Rewards: Which Online Rewards Program is the Best?

While there are several options online for online rewards programs, the two that I use the most often are MyPoints and e-Rewards. If you are not familiar with either one, I will summarize the strengths and weaknesses of each program. MyPoints is a website that offers you points for which you can redeem for gift cards to a variety of places such as Red Lobster, Barnes and Noble, Marriott Hotels and Wal-Mart. E-Rewards is a website that offers rewards in the form of a dollar amount called 'e-rewards currency' in your e-rewards account that you redeem for gift cards.

Currently, I am a member of both rewards programs. I have been with MyPoints since 1999 and with e-Rewards since 2005. E-rewards provides its members with earning opportunities via surveys. Members of e-Rewards earn e-Rewards currency for every e-Rewards survey that they receive by email and try to access. The great thing about these surveys is that you will get some e-Rewards currency even if you do not qualify for the survey or if the survey is already closed by the time you access it. If you complete a survey then the payout is higher. It is free to join e-rewards, but the catch is that you must join through one of their sponsors, such as including American Airlines Advantage program, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hertz, Hilton HHonors, Northwest Airlines and US Airways. I joined through my American Airlines Advantage program. You can request an invitation from one of these partners of e-Rewards and become a member within 2 weeks time. When I joined, I was offered a 'thank you' reward, which was a $10 gift card of my choice. Since that time, I have not made enough in e-Rewards currency to get a decent reward. I have only accumulated roughly $47 in e-Rewards currency. This is mostly due to the fact that the email surveys are rather sparse. There are times when I will get three a week and then I can go three months with no surveys. Here is a current offering of the rewards available:

$5 Level

$5 off at Sally Beauty Supply

Save 10% on Noise Canceling Headphones MDR-NC50

$10 Level

Blender (one-year magazine subscription)

Stuff (one-year magazine subscription)

Save 10% on all Camcorders

Save 10% on all Digital Still Cameras

Save 10% on Nav-u Personal Navigation Systems

Sherman's Travel (one-year magazine subscription)

Working Mother (one-year magazine subscription)

$10 off a zagat.com subscription

$10 off at Sally Beauty Supply

$15 Level

Inc. (one-year magazine subscription)

Black Enterprise (one-year magazine subscription)

Caribbean Travel & Life (one-year magazine subscription) (Out of Stock)

Fast Company (one-year magazine subscription)

Premiere (one-year magazine subscription ) (Out of Stock)

Road & Track (one-year magazine subscription ) (Out of Stock)

Golf Digest (one-year magazine subscription)

Harper's Bazaar (one-year magazine subscription)

Lucky (one-year magazine subscription)

Maxim (one-year magazine subscription)

Outside Magazine (one-year magazine subscription)

Car and Driver (one-year magazine subscription ) (Out of Stock)

Redbook (one-year magazine subscription)

Save 10% on DVD Dream Systems

Seventeen (one-year magazine subscription)

Latina (one-year magazine subscription)

$15 off at Sally Beauty Supply

$15 in Borders Bucks added to your Borders Rewards account (Coming Soon)

$20 Level

Best Life (one-year magazine subscription)

Prevention (one-year magazine subscription)

Cruising World (two-year magazine subscription)

Bassmaster (one-year magazine subscription)

$20 off at Sally Beauty Supply

$20 off at Pier 1

$25 Level

500 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles

500 Northwest Airlines WorldPerks® Bonus Miles

$25 E-Cert for travel on Northwest Airlines (Out of Stock)

6 Free DVD or VHS Rentals from BLOCKBUSTER®

Save up to $25 at PizzaHut.com

Red Herring (one-year magazine subscription)

$25 off at Zales.com

Save 10% on DVD Home Theater

One year subscription to zagat.com

500 Continental Airlines OnePass Miles

500 Delta SkyMiles®

500 US Airways Dividend Miles

$25 off at eBags

$25 off at FORZIERI.com

$25 off at FTD.com

One Free Day on your next Hertz® Car Rental

1,000 Hilton HHonors® Bonus Points

$25 off at Levenger.com

Save up to $25 at Steak and Ale

$25 off a Single Day Lift Ticket at Snowbird

$25 off a Three-Day Adult Lift Ticket at Snowbird

$100 off at Universal Parks & Resorts VacationsSM

$30 Level

TV Guide (one-year magazine subscription)

Save 10% on TX, AR, SZ, and FE series VAIO® Notebooks

Saveur (two-year magazine subscription)

$40 Level

Save 10% on Sony Televisions (27" - 50")

The Wall Street Journal (26-week newspaper subscription)

$50 Level

1,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles

1,000 Northwest Airlines WorldPerks® Bonus Miles

$50 E-Cert for travel on Northwest Airlines (Out of Stock)

Save 10% on Sony Televisions (52" and larger)

Save 10% on Sony® VAIO® VGX-XL2 Digital Living System

One Free Day on your next Hertz® Fun Collection Car Rental

1,000 Continental Airlines OnePass Miles

1000 Delta SkyMiles®

1,000 US Airways Dividend Miles

$50 off at eBags

$50 off at FORZIERI.com

3,000 Hilton HHonors® Bonus Points

6 FREE Burgers, Chicken Breasts & Gourmet Franks (a $53 value) from Omaha Steaks

$50 off a Three-Day Adult Lift Ticket at Snowbird

$50 off at Zales.com

$75 Level

$75 off at eBags

Save $200 on a 4-night stay at Snowbird

$100 Level

2,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles

2000 Delta SkyMiles®

2,000 US Airways Dividend Miles

2,000 Northwest Airlines WorldPerks® Bonus Miles

$100 off at eBags

2,000 Continental Airlines OnePass Miles

MyPoints provides its members with more earning opportunities via emails, shopping rewards, onsite earning opportunities and special promotions. Members of e-Rewards earn rewards in the form of MyPoints points. With MyPoints, each email that they send to you has a point value of at least 5 MyPoints just for clicking on the link. Each email also has a different amount, which is specified in the email, for taking advantage of the offer. For instance, today I received a MyPoints email with an Office Depot offer. It was worth 5 points for the click-through as well as up to 4,000 MyPoints if I made a purchase of a certain dollar amount. I also got an email for Overstock.com where it was worth 5 points for the click-through and 10 points per dollar spent. Sometimes the MyPoints emails contain surveys also, which are usually worth 10 points if you do not qualify and 50 points if you do qualify and complete the survey. The great thing about MyPoints is that there is always a lot of point earning opportunities. MyPoints rewards its members for shopping through their site. By this I mean if I want to buy something at Buy.com, then I go to the MyPoints shopping page and use the Buy.com click-through for my purchase. By doing this, I end up earning MyPoints on every dollar that I spend. This part of MyPoints is similar to e-bates, except that you earn MyPoints instead of cash back. MyPoints also has mini surveys on their website frequently that are worth points, as well as several special point earning promotions throughout the year. And for the dedicated MyPoints member, MyPoints offers a MyPoints Visa credit card for additional point earning opportunities. It is free to join MyPoints as well.

In my experience with MyPoints it is extremely easy to rack up a substantial amount of points, even without making any purchases through the shopping link. I typically get anywhere from two to eight MyPoints emails a day. According to my current account statement, since December of 1999, I have earned over 43,000 MyPoints. Here is a sample of current items you can cash in your MyPoints for:

American Red Cross

500 Points = 500 Point Red Cross Donation

1,000 Points = 1,000 Point Red Cross Donation

2,000 Points = 2,000 Point Red Cross Donation

Baja Fresh

1,450 Points = $10 Baja Fresh Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Baja Fresh Gift Card

Barnes & Noble Booksellers

1,400 Points = $10 Barnes & Noble Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Barnes & Noble Gift Card

750 Points = $5 Barnes & Noble Online Gift Cert.

1,400 Points = $10 Barnes & Noble Online Gift Cert.

Bass Pro Shops

1,400 Points = $10 Bass Pro Gift Certificate

3,250 Points = $25 Bass Pro Gift Certificate

6,250 Points = $50 Bass Pro Gift Certificate

Bath & Body Works

1,400 Points = $10 Bath & Body Works Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Bath & Body Works Gift Card

Bloomingdales

3,250 Points = $25 Bloomingdale's Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Bloomingdale's Gift Card

Bon-Ton

3,250 Points = $25 Bon-Ton Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Bon-Ton Gift Card

12,000 Points = $100 Bon-Ton Gift Card

BP/SHELL

1,500 Points = $10 BP/SHELL Gift Card

3,750 Points = $25 BP/SHELL Gift Card

7,250 Points = $50 BP/SHELL Gift Card

Brinker

1,400 Points = $10 Brinker Restaurant Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Brinker Restaurant Gift Card

Brunswick Zone

1,400 Points = $10 Brunswick Bucks Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Brunswick Bucks Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Brunswick Bucks Gift Card

Burger King

800 Points = $5 Burger King Gift Card

1,450 Points = $10 Burger King Gift Card

California Pizza Kitchen

1,450 Points = $10 CPK Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 CPK Gift Card

Circuit City

3,500 Points = $25 Circuit City Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 Circuit City Gift Card

Cracker Barrel

1,450 Points = $10 Cracker Barrel Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Cracker Barrel Gift Card

CVS/pharmacy

1,450 Points = $10 CVS Pharmacy Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 CVS/pharmacy Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 CVS/pharmacy Gift Card

Finish Line

3,250 Points = $25 Finish Line Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Finish Line Gift Card

12,000 Points = $100 Finish Line Gift Card

Foot Locker

1,400 Points = $10 Foot Locker Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Foot Locker Gift Card

FTD

2,500 Points = $25 FTD Electronic Gift Code

Gap

1,400 Points = $10 Gap Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Gap Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Gap Gift Card

GiftCertificates.ca

2,750 Points = $25 GIFTPASS Code

Harry and David

3,250 Points = $25 Harry and David Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Harry and David Gift Card

Hilton HHonors

5,000 Points = 5,000 Hilton HHonors Points

Home Depot

1,500 Points = $10 Gift Card to The Home Depot

3,750 Points = $25 Gift Card to The Home Depot

7,250 Points = $50 Gift Card to The Home Depot

Hyatt

3,750 Points = $25 Hyatt Certificate

6,500 Points = $50 Hyatt Certificate

9,500 Points = $75 Hyatt Certificate

JCPenney

1,450 Points = $10 JCPenney Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 JCPenney Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 JCPenney Gift Card

KBtoys

2,000 Points = $15 KBtoys Gift Card

4,000 Points = $30 KBtoys Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 KBtoys Gift Card

Kmart

800 Points = $5 Kmart Gift Card

1,500 Points = $10 Kmart Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Kmart Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 Kmart Gift Card

Kohl's

1,450 Points = $10 Kohl's Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Kohl's Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 Kohl's Gift Card

Lids.com

3,250 Points = $25 Lids Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Lids Gift Card

Linens'n Things

1,400 Points = $10 Linens'n Things Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Linens'n Things Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Linens'n Things Gift Card

Macy*s

3,250 Points = $25 Macy's Gift Certificate

6,250 Points = $50 Macy's Gift Certificate

Marriott

3,250 Points = $25 Marriott Cheque

6,250 Points = $50 Marriott Cheque

9,000 Points = $75 Marriott Cheque

12,000 Points = $100 Marriott Cheque

Metromedia Restaurants

1,400 Points = $10 Metromedia Restaurants Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Metromedia Restaurants Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Metromedia Restaurants Gift Card

Motherhood Maternity

3,250 Points = $25 Motherhood Maternity Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Motherhood Maternity Gift Card

12,000 Points = $100 Motherhood Maternity Gift Card

Old Navy

1,400 Points = $10 Old Navy Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Old Navy Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Old Navy Gift Card

Omaha Steaks

3,250 Points = $25 Omaha Steaks Gift Certificate

6,250 Points = $50 Omaha Steaks Gift Certificate

8,750 Points = $75 Omaha Steaks Gift Certificate

11,500 Points = $100 Omaha Steaks Gift Certificate

Overstock

3,250 Points = $25 Overstock.com Gift Card

Panera Bread

750 Points = $5 Panera Bread Gift Card

1,400 Points = $10 Panera Bread Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Panera Bread Gift Card

Pier 1 Imports

1,400 Points = $10 Pier 1 Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Pier 1 Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Pier 1 Gift Card

Pizza Hut

1,450 Points = $10 Pizza Hut Gift Card

Quiznos

750 Points = $5 Quiznos Gift Card

1,450 Points = $10 Quiznos Gift Card

Rainforest Cafe

3,500 Points = $25 Rainforest Cafe Gift Card

Red Lobster-Olive Garden

750 Points = $5 Red Lobster/Olive Garden Gift Card

1,400 Points = $10 Red Lobster/Olive Garden Gift Card

3,250 Points = $25 Red Lobster/Olive Garden Gift Card

REI.com

1,400 Points = $10 REI Gift Certificate

3,500 Points = $25 REI Gift Certificate

Restaurant.com

1,250 Points = $25 Restaurant.com Gift Card

1,250 Points = $25 Restaurant.com Electronic Code

The Ritz-Carlton

3,250 Points = $25 Ritz-Carlton Currency

6,250 Points = $50 Ritz-Carlton Currency

11,500 Points = $100 Ritz-Carlton Currency

Sally Beauty Supply

3,250 Points = $25 Sally Beauty Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Sally Beauty Gift Card

Sears

1,450 Points = $10 Sears Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Sears Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 Sears Gift Card

13,000 Points = $100 Sears Gift Card

SpaWish

3,500 Points = $25 SpaWish Gift Certificate

6,500 Points = $50 SpaWish Gift Certificate

12,000 Points = $100 SpaWish Gift Certificate

Staples

3,250 Points = $25 Staples Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Staples Gift Card

12,000 Points = $100 Staples Gift Card

Starbucks

800 Points = $5 Starbucks Card

1,450 Points = $10 Starbucks Card

Stuart Anderson's

1,400 Points = $10 Stuart Anderson's Gift Certificate

3,250 Points = $25 Stuart Anderson's Gift Certificate

6,250 Points = $50 Stuart Anderson's Gift Certificate

Target

1,500 Points = $10 Target GiftCard

3,750 Points = $25 Target GiftCard

7,500 Points = $50 Target GiftCard

Timberland

3,250 Points = $25 Timberland Gift Card

6,250 Points = $50 Timberland Gift Card

12,000 Points = $100 Timberland Gift Card

T.J. Maxx

1,450 Points = $10 T.J. Maxx Gift Certificate

3,500 Points = $25 T.J. Maxx Gift Certificate

6,750 Points = $50 T.J. Maxx Gift Certificate

United Mileage Plus

5,000 Points = 2,500 Mileage Plus Miles

10,000 Points = 5,000 Mileage Plus Miles

Walgreens

1,500 Points = $10 Walgreens Gift Card

3,500 Points = $25 Walgreens Gift Card

6,750 Points = $50 Walgreens Gift Card

Wal-Mart

1,500 Points = $10 Wal-Mart Gift Card

3,750 Points = $25 Wal-Mart Gift Card

7,500 Points = $50 Wal-Mart Gift Card