I’ve always liked entering competitions. Over the past few years I’ve won some pretty decent prizes – the best one was a new washing machine, tumble dryer and vaccuum a couple of years ago through my blog.

I don’t have a lot of time these days, so when I do enter something where there’s a pretty decent chance of winning something. The UK cashback website Boom 25 gives you a one in 25 chance of winning your full purchase price back. up to the value of £20k.

How does it work?

Boom 25 is an online shopping portal with hundreds (887!) of popular retailers, including Tesco, Boohoo, Asda and Moonpig, amongst many others. Every 25th purchase made through the website, whether it’s a sofa or a saucepan, is refunded in full. Not through vouchers or store credit, but through cash, paid directly into your PayPal account. There are always plenty of other deals as well – for example, at the time of writing, every 15th purchase from Groupon is refunded.

If, like me, you often worry about whether things are legit and above board, fear not – this one is. It works because Boom25 is an affiliate of the shops and retailers that they feature. That means for every purchase you make, they earn a small amount. They use a bit of that commission to fund the website, and the rest is put into a pot to pay out to users of the website.

It’s free and simple to use

 No one wants to use something faffy and complicated, and Boom25 have made sure that signing up and using the site is pain-free and easy. Set up your account by entering your name and email address and a password of your choice. You will need a PayPal account to claim any winnings, so make sure you have one of those set up as well. Once you’ve signed up, you’ll have access to a personal dashboard which shows your shopping activity, details of your winnings and any bonuses. Shopping is simple – click on the retailer, and you’ll be taken through to their website, where you just shop as usual.

How will I know if I’ve won?

Boom25 will send you an email with an opportunity to Spin the Wheel, which will reveal who was the lucky 25th purchaser. 
Your winnings will be paid to your Paypal account, less any transaction fees charged by Paypal.

Whether it will replace my normal cashback websites, I don’t know, but I really like the idea of this and I really wish I had discovered this before I did my Christmas shopping!

*Boom25 paid me to tell you all about their website and how it works. They didn’t tell me what to write, or try to influence what I thought about it in any way. I’m always honest, and I’ll always tell you if I don’t like something.