I consider myself pretty late to jump onto the Google Pay bandwagon (already launched in Singapore for some time), but as the saying goes, better late than never. That is because I just realised how effortless it was to earn cash rewards from Google Pay (‘G Pay’). Within a day of downloading the mobile app and signing up, I already earned almost $20 cash. All this with just a few clicks and swipes while sitting from the comfort of my couch! Therefore, you may also want to download Google Pay to transfer money, make payment and earn cash rewards.
What Is Google Pay?
Google Pay helps you do more with your money. Transfer money to friends, pay in a snap, and earn rewards- all in one place. (Source: Google Pay) To paraphrase this, I find that Google Pay is another formidable digital platform to have in your phone. It is fast, secure, contactless and a hassle-free way to pay for almost everything in your life. For instance, a user can:
- Pay for your public transport on MRT and bus (add a credit card and tap away just like your EZ-link card)
- Order food and discover new restaurants
- Buy movie tickets
I have yet to try any of these services but I am truly excited by the potential that Google Pay holds. What I did try was to send money to another GooglePay user which set me on my way to accumulate up to $20 in cash rewards. Let me explain more in detail on the 3 methods that you can receive free monies and benefits from Google Pay.
1. Transfer And Receive Money
With Google Pay, you are able to transfer and receive money instantaneously. You can send money to anyone via PayNow once you have linked your bank account to G Pay. This allows the monies to be deducted from your bank account and credited to the designated PayNow account of the recipient. As shown in Diagram 1, the participating banks are:
- DBS PayLah! (supports DBS/POSB) as well as non-DBS/POSB bank accounts)
- OCBC bank account
- Standard Chartered Bank account
Simply by transferring and receiving money via G Pay, you are able to earn up to 2 scratch cards per week*. To earn a scratch card, note that your recipient must also be a Google Pay user under this method. The value of the scratch card ranges from $0 to $10 as shown in Diagram 2.
That is right, if you are unlucky, you may get $0! The cash reward was deposited into my designated bank account immediately which greatly fuelled my desire to unlock more scratch cards. Cue methods 2 and 3.
*A week is defined as Monday 8.30 a.m to the following Monday 8.29 a.m. Cannot be same friend in the same calendar month.
2. Scan & Pay
The second way of earning more scratch cards (cash rewards) is to use Google Pay to Scan and Pay. This is limited to 2 scratch cards per week, and 1 scratch card for each unique merchant with transaction of at least $3. (Used to be 4X per week in Dec 2020) Stretch your imagination further because Scan & Pay is another way to top up your other digital wallets. Here are the digital wallets that I have topped-up.
Singtel DASH
I started using Singtel DASH as I purchased Dash EasyEarn to earn 2% p.a. on $20,000. Singtel Dash is useful as I can triple dipped via the combination of DASH-FAVEPAY-GRABPAY. Here is how you can top up to Singtel Dash by following these steps:
- Click “New Payment”
- Pay to UEN
- Dash UEN is 198904636G101
- Enter at least $3 (or a higher amount if you desire)
- Under Ref, please key in DASH65XXXXXXXX (where X is your mobile phone number)
Once you have completed all 5 steps, it should look like Diagram 3.
Grab
Grab is SEA’s mega app and I am certain topping up your Grab wallet will come in handy in the future. Follow the steps to earn a free scratch card from G Pay.
- Open your Grab Pay mobile app and select “top-up”
- Select Banking App as the top-up method
- A QR code will appear and click “Save to Photos”
- Open your Google Pay App and tap the scan icon at the top left
- Upload your saved photo by clicking the upload image option as circled in red at the top right as shown in Diagram 4.
- Select your photo showing the saved QR code and make a payment of at least $3
Besides topping-up my active digital wallets, I also made payments to participating merchants via GooglePay.
IRAS
One such merchant was IRAS which would definitely be applicable to most people since we all have personal income tax or property tax to pay. Similar to how I topped up Singtel Dash, I made a payment to IRAS by following the same steps and changing only the following details:
UEN: T08GB0020KTAX
REF: DICNPNIXXXXXXXXXXXXXX (Unique number to each individual or account)
M1
As a M1 mobile phone user, my M1 bill is paid via GIRO using my UOB One Credit Card. However, that does not stop me from making a $3 payment to my bill to earn me another scratch card on Google Pay. Similar to how I topped up Singtel Dash, I made a payment to M1 by following the same steps and changing only the following details:
M1 UEN: 199206031W
Ref: Your 9-digit account number
By now, I am sure you would have gotten the drift. I personally tried all the above top-ups and payments and they worked like a treat. I also read on forums that other ways include making top-ups and payments to the following merchants including CPF:
Starhub
UEN: 199802208C
Ref: (Starhub account number)
MyRepublic
UEN: 201117683C
Ref: RAxxxxxxx or ENxxxxxx (account number)
Zero1
UEN: 201705239R
Ref: 3XXXXXXX (account number)
iFAST Financial
UEN: 200000231RAIY (entity name is displayed as IFAST FINANCIAL PL- CT SUB)
Ref: PXXXXXXX (account number)
3. Referral Bonus
The third way of earning a guaranteed cash reward is via the generous referral bonus given out by Google Pay. If you fulfill all 3 conditions below, here is how both of us can receive $3 each (reduced from $8 in Dec):
- Sign up via my referral link by downloading the app on your mobile phone
- Opt in to Googly Pay offers and rewards (you absolutely should so that you can also earn the cash rewards!), and
- Make your first payment (min amount of $10). Eg: transferring $10 to a family member/loved one
This is a win-win arrangement. When you refer a friend, both of you will get awarded once the friend fulfills the aforementioned conditions.
Download Google Pay (works on both iOS and Android)
That sums up my review of Google Pay and how to utilise the generous cash giveaways. The current set of promotions expire on 24 Jan 2021 but be sure to Tap “Offers” from the home screen as promotions are updated weekly! Who knows what will be in store in the future? Just be extra diligent to read the terms and conditions to ensure that you qualify for all these giveaways! During CNY, they also ran the viral promotion of collecting Google Pay Huat Pals (BB Loh)
Sign up via my referral/promo code to set you way to a guaranteed $3 and easy cashback!
Thanks for the referral, used it to set up Google Pay.
Alas, G-Pay can’t link to PayLah! (as Bank account) on my phone.
The G-Pay app said only need to link once, I did it for more than 20x….
Anyhow, a very happy 2021 to you.