Rakuten's top beauty rates
Rakuten currently publishes cashback on 20 of the beauty retailers we track on DealTrackr, with rates ranging from 2.1% on the lowest-paying brand up to 8.2% on Kiehls at the top of the list. The category-wide average rate at Rakuten right now is 4.61%, and the top 12 retailers below collectively account for the great majority of US online beauty spend tracked by mainstream affiliate networks.
| Rank | Retailer | Rakuten rate | Compare 8 portals |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Kiehls | 8.2% | Side by side → |
| #2 | Lancome | 7.9% | Side by side → |
| #3 | Abm Equipment | 7.9% | Side by side → |
| #4 | The Body Shop | 6.8% | Side by side → |
| #5 | Drunk Elephant | 6.7% | Side by side → |
| #6 | Acorns Early | 5.7% | Side by side → |
| #7 | Abcmouse | 5.5% | Side by side → |
| #8 | Bath & Body Works | 5% | Side by side → |
| #9 | Acceptable Use Policy | 4.7% | Side by side → |
| #10 | Tatcha | 4.3% | Side by side → |
| #11 | Active Dawg | 4% | Side by side → |
| #12 | Abcya | 3.5% | Side by side → |
Related reading on DealTrackr: the four-layer stacking method, Rakuten payout calendar, and how to file a missing-cashback claim.
Why Beauty rates vary so widely on Rakuten
Cashback portals do not set rates uniformly across a category — every published rate is a downstream pass-through of the affiliate commission the portal currently has negotiated with the individual merchant, minus the portal's revenue share. Within Beauty specifically, that commission is influenced by the brand's seasonal margin profile, the brand's current paid-marketing budget, and whether Rakuten is currently inside a contractual rate-boost window for that merchant. The result is that two beauty brands selling near-identical merchandise can publish materially different cashback rates at Rakuten on the same day, and the top of the list above is more useful than a single category-wide average for shopping decisions.
How to actually maximize beauty cashback
The two highest-leverage tactics are: first, before clicking through any beauty retailer, glance at the per-store comparison page to confirm Rakuten is in fact the highest-paying portal that day for the specific brand — see for example the Kiehls comparison, where Rakuten may or may not currently lead. Second, layer the order with a verified DealTrackr promo code from the retailer's Beauty deals page before submitting payment. The full per-category stacking walk-through is on the Beauty stacking guide.