No one minds getting gift cards for Christmas, birthdays or for any other occassion. That’s because gift cards really rock! Gift cards give you the freedom to buy what you want, so you get exactly what you need. It\u2019s fun when you narrow a choice down to a certain store, but then have the opportunity to get whatever you want in that store.<\/p>\n

Waiting for someone to give you your next gift card for a special occasion? Don\u2019t wait until someone buys you one. You can take control and grab gift cards all on your own. No need to wait all year to check your Christmas stocking to see if you get one.\u00a0Earn your own gift cards quickly by checking out these 12 ways to earn gift cards online fast.<\/p>\n

1. Use Swagbucks<\/strong><\/p>\n

Swagbucks is one of the ultimate ways you can earn gift cards – and fast.<\/p>\n

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This app makes it easy for you to earn points that go toward gift cards you can use to shop your favorite brands. Swagbucks lets you watch videos, shop, and surf the web while getting paid to do it. This task-based gift card reward program is one of the easiest ways to earn virtually free gift cards without going to a regular job.<\/p>\n

Swagbucks has apparently paid their members almost 300 million dollars, which is pretty nuts. You can use these gift cards for yourself, or save them for great stocking stuffers for friends and family during the holiday season! Swagbucks has been seen on sites like BuzzFeed and ABC, so you know it\u2019s legit.<\/p>\n

2. Sign up with instaGC<\/strong><\/p>\n

Next on our list is instaGC, a website that allows you to earn gift cards online fast with little effort needed.Earn points towards your gift cards at a quick pace by doing the activities you usually do online anyway. Fill out surveys, watch entertaining videos, shop your usual brands, and spend time researching on the internet – only now, do it and get paid with gift cards!<\/p>\n

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You can choose from 350 different gift cards from Flowers.com to Abercrombie & Fitch to AMC Theaters. There\u2019s all different types of stores, depending on what you got your eye on at the moment.Over a million gift cards have been redeemed at instaGC, so it\u2019s time for you to sign up and earn!<\/p>\n

3. Discover the right credit card program<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sign up with a credit card company that rewards your favorite hobby – shopping! For example, you can earn points with Banner Bank and you can turn in those points for gift cards. Of course, you don\u2019t want to go overboard with this option and you want to thoroughly research the bank before you choose it.<\/p>\n

One example of a bank with a gift card benefit is Banner Bank. Join Banner Rewards\u2019 TruRewards program (their loyalty program) and earn points that turn into gift cards.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s a million banks out there, why not sign up with a credit card company that will reward you for using them? Sign up with a credit card that\u2019ll earn you points as you shop. Put your shopping trips to good use and earn gift cards as you go!<\/p>\n

4. Take surveys<\/strong><\/p>\n

Keep it simple and fill out easy-to-follow-along surveys and earn gift cards while you do it. Amazon gift cards are available to redeem when you sign up with MySurvey and start filling out answers that\u2019ll lead you to gift cards online fast.<\/p>\n

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MySurvey says, \u201cDiscover the power of your opinion.\u201d You\u2019re going to feel pretty powerful after you\u2019ve earned yourself some free money to spend at Amazon. Fill out surveys by using basically any of your devices. It\u2019s so easy!It\u2019s not only Amazon gift cards that you can earn with MySurvey. Get paid through PayPal for quick cash or choose other available brand gift cards, too!<\/p>\n

5. Keep your receipt<\/strong>s<\/p>\n

Ask for a receipt and get paid! With sites like Receipt Hog, you\u2019ll be able to trade your receipt\u00a0 in for gift cards.It might seem too good to be true, but it\u2019s that simple. Shop any of your favorite go-to brands and take a photo of your receipt. Send it into Receipt Hog and earn gift cards online fast.<\/p>\n

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Receipt Hog describes their process as \u201cfeeding a hog receipts\u201d and watching it get \u201cfatter.\u201d The fatter the hog gets, the fatter your wallet gets! You can also play their online game called Hog Slots and earn coins that go towards gift cards. According to Receipt Hog, they\u2019ve paid out over 2.5 million dollars to people who\u2019ve signed up with their website!<\/p>\n

The reason why Receipt Hog finds the receipts you have so valuable is because they\u2019re used in market research. Market research is a powerful tool for companies who want to better their brand and learn what consumers want. Brands will pay top dollar to get a hand on the receipts you\u2019d normally just toss in the recycling bin!Help brands get better and earn gift cards simultaneously. It\u2019s a win-win!<\/p>\n

6. Test out apps<\/strong><\/p>\n

Are you into apps? Well, then you\u2019re in luck. Sites like Feature Points will let you earn gift cards by trying out apps and testing out how they work. This is important for app companies because they can have people test out their app before they launch it to the public.<\/p>\n

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Try out free apps and see what\u2019s new on the market. You\u2019ll be in touch with the latest in the app world, so you\u2019ll know what\u2019s next in app development. Pretty cool!<\/p>\n

Feature Points works both iPhone and Android, so there\u2019s no excuse not to sign up and start earning points for having fun with apps. With Feature Points, you\u2019re not limited to one type of gift card. Get plenty of choices through Feature Points and choose what works for you.<\/p>\n

7. Join the National Consumer Panel<\/strong><\/p>\n

This next one combines market research with scanning barcodes. The National Consumer Panel (or, the NPC) is a company that makes it easy for manufacturers to know what consumers buy. In turn, consumers get better products and more accuracy in delivering exactly what they need.<\/p>\n

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The NCP rewards people that sign up with gift cards. Input on services, products, and general information on what the public wants is so valuable in today\u2019s economy. Get paid to give your opinions. Who could say no to that?<\/p>\n

8. Watch videos<\/strong><\/p>\n

Watching tv is probably the easiest thing on the planet to do, right? Well thanks to websites that will pay you to watch tv, it just got even sweeter. Earn points in order to get free gift cards by signing up with sites like Viggle.<\/p>\n

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Viggle has television or streaming programs waiting for you to watch that\u2019ll earn you gift cards. Choose from more than 800 gift cards and pick the ones that work for you. You\u2019ll earn your way towards gift cards by collecting “Perk Points\u201d that\u2019ll allow you to get your gift cards quickly.<\/p>\n

Another video payment company is GrabPoints. This site offers their clients engagement, which is what you, the user, will provide for them. Get engaged, and help GrabPoints make advertisers happy by simply watching videos.<\/p>\n

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9. Work with Microsoft<\/strong><\/p>\n

If you\u2019ve never heard of Microsoft Rewards, listen up. By earning gift cards through Microsoft, you know you\u2019ll be getting paid by a reputable company. It\u2019s pretty straight forward. Use the search engine called Bing and \u201clevel up\u201d to achieve gift card rewards. You basically want to be signed into your Microsoft account while you do things you normally would on the web.<\/p>\n

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It doesn\u2019t take a lot of brain power. Watch your rewards increase as you go and look forward to that spending spree once you\u2019ve reached a certain amount of points.<\/p>\n

10. Buy pre-owned gift cards<\/strong><\/p>\n

As the old saying goes, one man\u2019s trash is another man\u2019s treasure. Your journey to discounted gift cards starts with someone who wants to get rid of their gift card. Believe it or not, some people choose to get rid of their valuable gift cards. Maybe they got it as a gift. Maybe they aren\u2019t into the brand anymore. Whatever the reasoning is, you\u2019ll get to benefit on their decision to let that precious gift card go.<\/p>\n

Their gift cards turn into discounted gift cards sold on sites that offer to buy them. That site then turns around and sells it to customers waiting to get their hands on a new gift card. Buying discounted gift cards is definitely an interesting way to earn gift cards online fast.<\/p>\n

Gift Card Granny is a place where you can buy discount gift cards and totally score on stores you love. Gift Card Granny makes sure the gift cards they sell are verified and guaranteed to work. After the verification process, it\u2019s sold to customers like you who are hunting for a serious deal.<\/p>\n

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Cardpool is another company that lets people buy previously owned gift cards for a fraction of the price it\u2019s worth. You can buy gift cards for up to 35% off!<\/p>\n

These companies probably sound too awesome to work, but they really do! Cardpool has been featured on trusted network programs like Rachel Ray, CNN, NPR, and even The New York Times. How\u2019s that for proof?<\/p>\n

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11. Get a free $10 gift card by joining Ebates<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ebates<\/a> is a popular cash back focused discount opportunity website that lets you earn money while you shop. Brands pay Ebate to feature them on the Ebates website. That money goes straight to you. It\u2019s a pretty beneficial business model for the shopper!<\/p>\n

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Join Ebates and get a free $10 gift card instantly. This is a one-time-only thing, but you\u2019ll get your gift card quick by barely doing anything.There\u2019s not much thinking that goes into this. Join Ebates and grab a free $10 gift card. It\u2019s that simple!<\/p>\n

12. Share deals with others who want to save big<\/strong><\/p>\n

Our final option is the ability to earn gift cards by sharing the coupons and promo codes you come across every day with the online deal hunting community at Dealstpor.<\/p>\n

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Dealspotr<\/a> is a coupon and promo code website that\u2019s known for offering codes that actually work. There are a lot of coupon sites out there, and they\u2019re not all made equally. Dealspotr\u2019s main focus is not only to bring you good coupon promo codes, but to make sure that they work at checkout.<\/p>\n

Now for the gift cards! Join the community at Dealspotr and you\u2019ll be surrounded by people who are just like you \u2014 people who love a good discount. These deal hunters play a major role at Dealspotr and help the promo code database grow by sharing deals they\u2019ve found on the web. You probably have some pretty great deals sitting in your email inbox right now that you aren\u2019t planning on using. Why not share the wealth?<\/p>\n

When you create an account with Dealspotr, you\u2019ll then have the ability to add deals to the thousands of other fantastic saving opportunities available on Dealspotr already. The interface is user-friendly, so posting a deal is a no-brainer. When you\u2019re logged in, simply find the bright green \u201cAdd a new deal\u201d button on the top left side of the page. You can\u2019t miss it!<\/p>\n

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After you click on that, you\u2019ll be taken to a screen that looks like the one below:<\/p>\n

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Start typing the store name that your deal is for and it\u2019ll ask you what type of deal you\u2019re posting for. You\u2019ll be asked a few more questions before you post in minutes. Easy-peasy.<\/p>\n

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Post your findings on Dealspotr and you\u2019ll not only help out your fellow bargain lovers, but you\u2019ll get paid for it in gift cards! Plus, just by signing up you\u2019ll get a 500 point head start.<\/p>\n

Try It For Yourself<\/strong><\/p>\n

There\u2019s no right way to earn gift cards online fast. As you can see, there are more ways than one! Fill out surveys, help market research, watch videos, and shop. There are so many activities you can do and they\u2019re all available in the palm of your hand.<\/p>\n

Pick the gift card acquiring strategy that best fits your lifestyle and go for it. With so many gift cards to gain and nothing to lose, there\u2019s no reason not to try it out.<\/p>\n

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This is a collaborative guest post. The views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of Mommy Ramblings.<\/p>\n