MyPoints Review

Here's the bottom line -- With MyPoints, you can earn gift certificates and other prizes simply for reading e-mail and doing your normal online shopping. No catch. No surprises. Just earn points, then redeem them. It's amazing that something this simple actually exists.

Of course, the amount and frequency of rewards you earn depends on how much you actually do. If you simply wait for e-mails to read, read them and look forward to collecting your reward, you're in for a long wait. Typically, you get 5 points for reading an e-mail, and it takes a good 750-800 points for even a $5 gift certificate. That's at least 250 e-mails worth of points.

However, many e-mails come with offers worth more points. Offers range from signing up for mailing lists (usually worth 25-50 points) to buying products from major online retailers (Omaha Steaks, PeoplePC, Columbia House -- with points ranging from 50 to well over 1,000 points). If you're not interested or worried about giving your e-mail out dozens of times, then accept the five points for visiting the site and move on.

But the real points come from online shopping. MyPoints partners with many very popular Web sites (Barnes & Noble, Snapfish, Lands End, Target, among dozens of others). If you're already going to be buying something online, first stop at MyPoints. By clicking through your MyPoints account, you can earn anywhere from 2 to 10 points per dollar you spend. So, if you're already going to make a $50 purchase at one of these stores, then why not let it earn you 100-500 points toward a gift certificate?

Over the past couple of years, I've earned plenty of $10 and $25 gift certificates, simply for doing the normal online shopping I do. It doesn't cost anything, the points never expire, and it's ridiculously easy. There's really no reason not to sign up.