Kudos Extension Review: A Free Smart Wallet That Maximizes Savings

Online shopping is more popular than ever these days. In fact, according to Statista, global retail ecommerce sales passed $5.2 trillion in 2021 and is anticipated to reach $8.1 trillion by 2026.

This isn’t surprising when you consider how convenient and affordable online shopping can be. But, how can you ensure that you’re always getting the best deal and, more importantly, using the right card, when checking out?

That’s where Kudos, an exciting new shopping extension, comes in handy.

With Kudos, you can make sure you’re always shopping with the best credit card in your wallet to maximize your rewards. And this platform has some other nifty features to help you save more money.

In this Kudos review, I’m covering how this extension works, the pros and cons, and how to decide if it’s worth using.

Looking for more money-saving tips? Checkout:

• Capital One Shopping: Automatically apply available coupon codes at checkout to save!
• Swagbucks: Earn gift cards and PayPal cash by shopping online, answering surveys, and more!

What Is Kudos?

Kudos is a free shopping extension for Google Chrome and iOS that helps shoppers maximize their rewards and savings when checking out.

The company was founded by Tikue Anazodo and Ahmad Ismail, both of whom previously  worked at Google and Affirm. After noticing consistently poor user experience across payment gateways and checkout platforms, Anazodo and Ismail decided to build Kudos.

At its core, Kudos is a “smart wallet” where users can securely store all their credit cards to easily check out online. But this wallet also recommends the right card to use when shopping to help you save or earn as much as possible.

And since its launch, Kudos has raised $7 million in seed funding, so it’s certainly picking up steam. The company also says additional features like cashback boosts across its 12,000 partners are in the pipeline.

How Does Kudos Work?

Like other shopping extensions, using Kudos is fairly simple. There are only three main steps you have to follow:

1. Download the free Kudos extension for Google Chrome
2. Shop online at Kudos’ partners
3. Save money and find new credit cards

Time to cover how each of these steps works in a bit more detail.

1. Download The Kudos Extension

You can download Kudos on Google Chrome or on the iOS store for free. Once you download Kudos, you create an account and set up your digital wallet. This involves entering your:

• First and last name
• The credit cards you use

Off the bat, Kudos suggests several popular U.S. credit cards like the Blue Cash Everyday Card from American Express or the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. But you can search for your own card and add it manually to your wallet, and the platform supports over 3,000 cards.

That’s all there is to it. You also have the option to auto-fill your credit card information for each card so you can checkout faster. However, this isn’t a requirement to use Kudos, which I love.

Kudos’ main feature is that it helps you know which credit card to shop with to get the most rewards and savings. But you don’t have to give up your personal credit card info if you don’t want to.

To finish creating your wallet, just add a phone number and email address and you’re off to the races.

2. Shop Online

According to Kudos’ website, its smart wallet works with over 1 million merchants. And if you have the extension active, you don’t have to visit Kudos’ website and shop through some web portal; its extension is always looking to help you save.

For some context, other shopping extensions like Rakuten and Honey only work with a few tens of thousands of retailers or even less. In comparison, Kudos can help you save or earn more money at way more retailers.

This is because the process is simple yet effective. When you’re about to check out, Kudos tells you which of your saved cards you should use to get the most savings:

As you can see in the example above, Kudos is suggesting I use the American Express card over the Citi card since it pays 3% cash back and also includes up to $1,000 in purchase protection for 90 days.

This type of information is very helpful. Good credit cards have so many perks like cash back or extended warranties, but it can be hard to remember them all when it actually matters.

3. Find New Cards

Another feature Kudos has is its “Explore Cards” section. This is basically a database of thousands of cards that you can look through to find better cards if your wallet needs an upgrade.

Kudos also has information on a range of cards, including ones for categories like:

• Dining
• Entertainment
• Gas stations
• Grocery stores
• Online shopping
• Travel

You can also sort cards by sign up bonuses, annual fees, total earning potential, and other factors.

I also like that Kudos lets you directly compare credit cards against one another, so you can find the right card for different shopping scenarios and habits. The platform also recommends new cards based on your shopping history which can potentially help you save more money in the long-run.

Note that Kudos often receives compensation if it refers new users to sign up for a credit card. This means it has a vested interest in you signing up, although the interface isn’t too salesy or pushy which I like. And it’s a useful database for comparing popular cards.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• The extension is completely free
• Kudos works with 1+ million merchants and 3,000+ cards
• You don’t have to add credit card information to add cards to your wallet if you don’t want to
• Helpful section to find new cards to potentially earn more rewards
• You can convert points to dollars to make comparing cards and rewards even easier

Cons:

• You can’t currently earn cash-back rewards directly from Kudos
• Not useful if you only have one credit card

For serious shoppers with several cards, I think Kudos is a simple, fast way to ensure you maximize rewards. But if you don’t shop online very often or only have one card, this extension isn’t for you.

Other Kudos Reviews

I think Kudos is a promising platform that’s a bit different from a lot of the shopping extensions out there that focus on coupons and cash back. And if you have several credit cards, I think it’s quite useful.

But it’s always good to hear from other users about their experiences with an app or program before using it. And, this Kudos review from YouTuber Calby Ng provides an excellent overview of how Kudos works and what its best use-cases are.

In this review, Calby explains how Kudos is very helpful when shopping for expensive products, like an Apple MacBook. This is a good point, since for expensive products, even small differences in rewards can make a large difference in how much you save or earn in cash back.

Right now, Kudos also has a five star review on the Google Chrome extension store. There’s only 31 reviews so far, but here’s what some users say:

• Thomas J Schriber says: “This extension is awesome. In addition to knowing which credit card to use and seeing my real-time rewards, the auto fill feature is rad and super useful. Curious to see what Kudos comes up with next.”
• Justin Chan says: “Love this extension. I have way too many cards but Kudos helps me decide which to use instantly to maximize points. Good stuff y'all!”
• Eric Brunts says: “Great product! Super useful to help me spend wisely and maximize the rewards on my purchases. Use this for everything!”

As you can see, most users seem pretty happy with Kudos. And the platform also keeps improving, with new features being added regularly and more in the pipeline.

Is Kudos Safe?

When you use reward apps or shopping extensions, privacy and security are always important factors to consider. After all, if you’re adding personal or financial information into some software, you need to trust that it’s secure.

According to Kudos’ website, it keeps your data safe by using bank-level encryption (256-bit encryption.) It’s also completed security compliance following an audit, and it keeps all of your data secure and doesn’t share it with third parties.

These measures are in-line with what many other FinTech companies and apps use. And again, you don’t have to add your actual credit card information to your smart wallet if you don’t want to; this just helps you check out faster.

If you’re not comfortable sharing your purchasing data or which credit cards you use, extensions like Kudos aren’t for you. But if you are comfortable, it seems like a safe and secure way to find the right card to use for your next shopping trip.

The Best Kudos Alternatives

Kudos is an excellent way to maximize credit card rewards when you shop online. And I think anyone with a few cards in their wallet should give it a try.

However, there are plenty of other ways to save money and get paid to shop online, including:

• Capital One Shopping: This free extension automatically applies available coupon codes at checkout at thousands of stores.
• Hoopla Doopla: A fun and easy way to earn cash back rewards at 5,000+ brands!
• Rakuten: Another leading cash back rewards website that also has a $10 sign up $10 sign up bonus.
• Drop: This mobile shopping app lets you make money by shopping and playing games on your phone.
• DollarSprout Rewards: Another cashback extension with 15,000+ merchant partners.

Ultimately, all of these apps and sites can help you save a bit more money while also enjoying some free cash and gift cards.

Extra Reading – The Best Apps That Pay You Money Instantly.

Note: Capital One Shopping compensates us when you sign up using the links provided.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Does Kudos Make Money?

According to its website, Kudos makes money when you purchase something online through one of its partner merchants. Credit card companies can also pay Kudos if it refers new customers.

Does Kudo Sell Your Data?

Kudos says that it never sells or shares your data with any third parties and that it aggregates and anonymizes all data that’s used for internal analytics and business purposes.

Final Thoughts

According to the 2019 Experian Consumer Credit Review, the average American has four credit cards. This is excellent news if people are spending responsibly and maximizing their rewards. But if you have several cards, keeping track of which ones to use for different purposes can be tricky.

Solutions like Kudos provide an effective, free solution to this problem. And I like that there are features like cash-back rewards in the pipeline as well.

If you have some upcoming shopping trips, consider giving Kudos a try to make sure you’re maximizing every dollar you spend. Hopefully, this free extension helps you keep more of your hard-earned money in your wallet the next time you shop.

Thanks so much for reading!

Looking for even more money-saving ideas? Checkout:

• The Best Apps Like Fetch Rewards To Save Money.
• How Does Capital One Shopping Work?
• Rakuten vs. Honey – Which Shopping Extension Is Best?