An occupational hazard of writing a deals newsletter is that, every now and then, I find an offer that completely derails my workflow. That happened this time with Yves Rocher*: I clicked in to check the deal details, and 20 minutes later I had a full cart myself. Not ideal for my writing schedule, but I did end up with a frankly unreasonable number of products for €21, so no regrets there.
Also in this issue: a case for buying things off-season, a €200 bank bonus loved by our readers, a deal on my favorite phone, the usual round of supermarket freebies and more.
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Note: this article contains affiliate links, which are marked with *.
💡 Tip Of The Week: Why It Pays To Shop Off-Season
The sun is back after months of darkness, and it’s completely understandable if you’d rather not think about winter for a while – but actually, this is a good time to do exactly that. There’s a proverb in my mother tongue that roughly translates to: prepare your sledge in summer, and your farm cart in winter – in other words, get ready for a season before it starts.
That’s the basic logic behind buying off-season. While everyone else is looking at garden furniture and bucket hats, you can go hunting for a warm coat, ski boots, thermal underwear, or whatever else future-you is likely to need when the winter inevitably comes again. What I’m personally planning to shop for? A daylight lamp* for those grey winter mornings.
The same goes for second-hand shopping too: once a season is over, people often decide to sell seasonal items right after they’ve gotten their use out of them for the year – which is your chance to snag it for less. Kleinanzeigen and Vinted are good for that.
Another example of this is smart heating devices: they’re most useful when it’s cold, but often cheaper when it isn’t. One example is the tado° sale* running now: until March 25, you get 20% off every order, 30% off from €150, and 40% off from €250. With the 20% discount, for example, the Smart Radiator Thermostat X Starter Kit costs €127.99 (instead of €159.99), and the single Smart Radiator Thermostat X costs €79.99 (instead of €99.99). If you buy several items (ask a friend if they want to order together!), the price per item drops further as you reach higher discount thresholds.
The main takeaway here is that seasonal things are often cheapest when they feel least relevant. Furthermore, prices have a habit of going up over time – so if you already know you’ll need something next year, buying it off-season now can save you money in more than one way.
🔥 Hot Deals
🧴 Yves Rocher: First Item In Your Cart Free + Free Eye Cream on Top
This is the deal that derailed my writing this week. Yves Rocher* is currently running one of those promotions that requires a bit of strategy, but rewards it rather generously: until March 29, you can get the first item in your cart for free with code EASTER26 (advertisement). The offer excludes sets and limited editions, and shipping is free from €20; otherwise it’s €3.99. Officially, the minimum order value is €20, but when I entered the code, the discount applied on a much smaller order as well – it's worth testing.
What makes this offer so good is that the first item is free regardless of its price. So the trick is to add the expensive thing first (that can mean a perfume at €69.90 or a skincare product at €49.90), and only then fill up the rest of the basket.
On top of that, there’s another offer: on selected skincare items, Yves Rocher is also giving away a free eye cream, and both promos can be combined. So the best strategy would be to start with the most expensive item you want (most likely either perfume* or skincare*) as the first product in the cart, then add one of the skincare items that qualify for the eye cream promo*, choose a free eye cream and then add a couple of lower-cost basics (shower gel, hand cream, soap) to get to free shipping. That way, you’re not just getting one free product, but potentially two, while still keeping the total reasonable. Yves Rocher products also make nice gifts, so if you don’t need anything yourself, this could be a good opportunity to stock up on a present or two ahead of time.
When I tested this deal (purely in the name of research, of course) I came away with 5 products for €20.97 (see image below) – including a moisturiser* that normally costs €49, and an eye cream* selling for €15.99. I’m also super excited to try the SPF hand cream* and the coffee-scented shower gel* that I got. Needless to say, I think this deal is great. Shop the Yves Rocher offer here*.
5 quality products for €20.97 is a jackpot as far as I’m concerned.
💶 €200 Welcome Bonus from Berliner Volksbank
Berliner Volksbank* is offering a €200 bonus for new customers who open an account online by April 29. To get the bonus, you need at least one incoming payment of €700 per month for 5 months starting from month 2, and you also need to give marketing consent within the first 4 weeks and keep it until the bonus is paid. Despite the name, the bank is not exclusively for Berliners – it accepts customers across Germany.
The standard account costs €3.95 per month and includes both a girocard and a credit card. If you’re under 30, the Blue Orange account* is free and comes with the same €200 bonus, but with a lower incoming-payment requirement of €400 per month for 5 months. Many of our readers have already signed up for this one, and for good reason – it’s one of the best bank bonuses currently available. Open your account here.*
🛜 Vodafone Home Internet With Cashback up to €250
If you’ve been thinking about switching your home internet, Vodafone* has a promotion on two of its most popular cable tariffs: you can get €250 cashback on the GigaZuhause 150 Kabel plan, or €200 cashback on GigaZuhause 300 Kabel.
Over the 24-month contract, that puts the GigaZuhause 150 tariff at an effective cost of €27.28 per month after cashback. If you’re under 28, Vodafone also offers a €200 BestChoice voucher, which brings the effective cost down to €18.95 per month. And if you have an eligible Vodafone mobile plan, GigaKombi (bundle discount) gives you another €10 off per month, which brings the effective price down further to €17.28 per month – or just €8.95 if you qualify for both.
The GigaZuhause 300 tariff works out to €32.49 per month after cashback. With the under-28 voucher, that comes down to €24.16 per month; with GigaKombi, €22.49; and with both, €14.16.
Vodafone also offers a switching service: they can cancel your old contract for you and, if you’re still locked in with another provider, waive your Vodafone fee for up to 12 months so you don’t pay twice. I’m with Vodafone myself, and it’s the most stable home internet I’ve ever had, so this one gets a thumbs-up from me. View the Vodafone plans here*.
💰 More Deals
Le Closet First Month For €9.99: Le Closet is a clothing rental subscription that lets you wear six pieces for a month, then send them back when you’re done. Right now, you can try the first month for €9.99 instead of €89.99 with code LOOOOKS (advertisement). Cleaning and returns are included, and there’s no need to commit beyond the first box, so this is an affordable and sustainable way to wear something new this spring. Try it here*.
iPhone 16 Klarmobil Deal: When a new phone model comes out, you can often get the best value for money by buying the previous one. In this case, it’s the iPhone 16 – the new Klarmobil promo gives you the 128 GB model for a one-off payment of €79.99, plus a 40 GB plan for €29.99 per month over 24 months, with no connection fee. That brings the total cost to €799.75 for a phone and a two-year phone plan, which is a very good price. Check the deal here*. And if you’re already set for a phone plan, Amazon* currently has the device on its own for €719, which is also a great price.
AmEx Gold with With 50,000 Points Welcome Bonus: If you want to collect air miles, you can't do better than the American Express Gold card – and you get a 50,000 Membership Rewards points welcome bonus if you apply by March 25 and spend €5,000 within the first six months. Depending on how you redeem them, that bonus can easily be enough for a transcontinental flight. The card costs €20 per month, so it won’t make sense for everyone, but if you want to collect miles, this is the way to go. Sign up here* or read my full review.
Podimo 60-Day Free Trial: Looking for something new to listen to? The podcast and audiobook app Podimo is offering a 60-day free trial until March 24. Most audiobooks are in German, but their podcast library includes plenty of popular English-language shows, and there are also good options for German learners. If you mostly use Spotify for podcasts, this could save you a couple of months’ worth of fees. Sign up here*.
I like this card a lot – my recent flights to South America were covered by the points I collected.
🎁 Freebies
Nescafé Frappé iced coffee: Buy the 275 g can, then upload your receipt here to get your money back. The nice thing about this one is that online purchases count too, so you do not have to go hunting for it in shops for once – you can even order it on Amazon* and claim the refund. Buy by June 30 and upload your receipt by July 15. Limited while redemptions last.
Tony’s Chocolonely chocolate bars: Buy one eligible bar, then upload your receipt here to get refunded. This is one of my favorite chocolate brands, so I’m super excited for this one. Most 90 g and 180 g bars are included – you can find the full list here. Buy by June 14 and upload by June 30. Weekly redemptions are limited, and the counter resets on Mondays at 9 am.
Activia Kefir: Buy up to two bottles and upload your receipt here to get your money back. Kefir, which I was force-fed when I was a child, has somehow become trendy among health-conscious adults, and now it has made its way into brands like Activia too. Both the natural and strawberry versions are included, so you can try both for free. Buy by May 15 and upload by May 16. Limited while redemptions last.
Netto App freebies: If you download the Netto app, you’ll find coupons for one free pack of Haribo or Tabaluga snack carrots (valid until March 21), plus another coupon for a free pack of Fröhliche Osterzeit Eggcellent Cookies. When I downloaded it, I also got a coupon for €5 off a €20 purchase, so you can also get some shopping done with a good discount while you're picking up your freebies.
Money-back grocery and household product promos are one of the easiest ways to cut everyday costs. A lot of promotions from previous issues are still active – you can find them all here if you’d like to try more (there is a Kinder freebie in the previous issue, just saying). For more free grocery products, Rewe product tests are worth a look as well.
I absolutely love Tony’s chocolate, so I'm definitely going to take advantage of this deal.
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