Save 20% On Your Gift Card Purchases
Want to find out how to save 20% on your gift card purchases?
In my previous post I shared how you can get 14% off your gift cards by shopping at Kroger. In this post I’ll be showing you how to take that 14% savings and turn it into 20%. I won’t go into details about the 14% savings here, so if you need to, go back and read that post first.
Once you have an understanding of how to get 14% off your gift cards, let’s take that up a notch and learn how to turn that into a 20% savings.
The American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card offers 6% cash back at grocery stores. Any gift cards that you purchase at Kroger will get you 6% cash back. So even if you don’t want to mess with the gas rewards for the 14% off, you can still get 6% off all of your gift card purchases just by paying with the American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card.
So simple. And who doesn’t like getting cash back on purchases you’re going to make anyway?
Here’s how it works. If I’m getting ready to spend $200 at Amazon on Christmas gifts and $50 for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, why not go to Kroger first and buy the gift cards during the 4X fuel rewards points event and pay $250 up front and get $35 off gas and get $15 cash back? That’s 20% savings – it’s like getting my $250 gift cards for $210. I’ll take that $40 and save it for my next trip.
If you’re thinking that there’s not really any places you would use gift cards, let me encourage you to just go to Kroger and peruse their gift card section. I think you’d be surprised at how many of these gift cards you would use every month without changing your current spending habits.
Do you already have a Netflix or Hulu account – then get those gift cards and 20% cash back!
Planning a trip? There’s Hotels.com, Airbnb, Disney, Southwest Airlines, Uber, Delta Airlines, Carnival Cruise Line…I could go on and on. Buy them and get 20% back.
How many times a month do you go out to eat? Kroger has an endless supply of sit down restaurant and fast food restaurant gift cards. Why not get 20% cash back if you’re going to spend the money anyway?
Need to buy clothes? Craft supplies? Have a home improvement project or gardening plans? A 20% discount would come in handy.
Be honest – how many times have you been to Lowe’s or The Home Depot during quarantine? Think of all the money you could have saved if you had been buying gift cards from Kroger with your American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card!! So, now that you know, don’t miss out on any more savings!
Kroger even carries gift cards for when you need to buy a gift for someone and you’re not sure what places they like to shop at. These are called “Happy” gift cards and they can be used at multiple stores.
You are bound to find a gift card for any occasion.
Have I convinced you that there are PLENTY of gift cards for you to buy at Kroger? If so, what are you waiting for? Sign up for the American Express Blue Cash Preferred card and start earning cash back today.
Now I must give a little clarification here. As I’ve said in previous posts, we are Dave Ramsey fans. We used his baby steps to pay off over $250,000 worth of debt (student loans and a house) in 9 years.
We went for several years without credit cards. In 2019 we sat down and looked at our spending and saw how much money we could actually save by using a credit card. So when American Express was offering a $250 sign up bonus we jumped on it. (Disclaimer – ALWAYS pay off all of your card balance each month – don’t lose all of your savings by paying interest to the credit card company!!)
Right now they are offering a $250 sign up bonus when you spend $1,000 in 3 months.
The American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card does have an annual fee of $95. BUT you can apply the $250 sign up bonus towards the $95 annual fee, so it’s essentially free.
We are in year two now, but with 6% cash back at grocery stores, 3% cash back on gas, and 1% cash back on everything else, we get more than enough cash back to cover the cost of the $95 yearly fee, and still come out way ahead. With the Blue Cash Preferred Card you can also earn 6% cash back on select streaming services, and 3% cash back on transit such as taxis/rideshare, parking, tolls, trains, buses and more.
Try it for a year and see if it works out for you. With the $250 sign up bonus your first year would be paid for and you’ll still be $155 ahead plus whatever cash back you earn. Sounds like a win-win to me.
Sign up for the American Express Blue Cash Preferred Card and let me know what you plan on doing with all of the cash back you’re going to earn!
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50 Comments
Alexis
There are some great tips in this post. I will definitely take advantage. Thank you!
Sara W
You’re welcome. Hope you can save lots of money!
Ramae Hamrin
That’s actually a really good deal if you can make wise use of the gift cards. Thanks for the info. I’ve never heard of this before! And congrats for paying off all that debt!!
Sara W
We make sure we have a plan for our gift cards before purchasing them, otherwise you can easily end up spending money you never intended to spend.
Tricia Snow
I need to do this stuff more but I so rarely eat or shop with big corps that I am not sure it would be beneficial. But I am envious of your gift card game! lol
Sara W
I used to think the same thing until I actually went to Kroger and perused their gift card selection. Now I know how much cash back I missed out on all those years.
Jen
This is amazing! I never even realized this was a thing!
Sara W
It’s a simple thing to do, too.
Holly
WOW.. thank you for sharing another great way to save money!
Sara W
My pleasure.
Kristin
We love the gift cards at Kroger and have used some of your suggestions. When we have a big home improvement project, we stock up on those Lowe’s or Home Depot cards to get the gas points. It works out well!
Sara W
Home improvement projects are a great category to save money on. We’ve purchased several Lowe’s gift cards at Kroger this year!
Debbie
You are so good at staying on top of all of your dollars coming and going! Good job!
Sara W
Thank you. My husband and I try to be intentional with our money.
Lisa Manderino
I love getting good deals. Especially on vacations. This is a great way to save money!
Sara W
We have used this method for a lot of Airbnb gift cards this year!
heather J jandrue
I love savings post like this. It always helps to save a few bucks.
Sara W
Every little bit can add up to a big difference.
Sabrina DeWalt
What a great idea. I’ve never thought of that.
Sara W
I love seeing how much I can save!
Kate
Thanks for the tips.
Sara W
Anytime!
Rachel
Thanks for sharing, these are great deals to potentially save a lot of money for our family!
Sara W
I love tracking how much money our family saves, and watching our travel fund grow.
Laura Lee
Hmmmmm! Brilliant!
Sara W
And it’s so simple!
Erica C Pittenger
GOOD IDEA! I loved your Kroger post and now this one is even smarter! I try to do this when I think about it. I have to make it a habit, there is no reason not too! Thank you
Sara W
Glad to help.
Alexis Farmer
Here I thought I had enough cards but might have to add one more to the list 😏
Sara W
We have two cards and we use them in different ways to maximize our cash back.
Sandi
Good work, rewards are great, and put cash in your pocket.
Sara W
I love seeing our cash back balance each month!
Douglas Jasper
That looks like a great deal.
Sara W
We love saving money in easy ways.
leeandra
Thanks for the information.
Sara W
You’re welcome
Kendra
Such a great way to save!
Sara W
And it’s so easy!
Bonnie
I didn’t know anything about this until now. Thanks for sharing.
Sara W
You’re welcome!
Danielle Ardizzone
These are great tips! I sometimes forget about the cash rewards programs my Amex offers.
Sara W
Having an AmEx can be very beneficial – if you pay your bill in full every month and don’t accrue any interest fees.
Alice
Thanks for the tips! We don’t have Krogers up here in the northwoods, but they did when we lived elsewhere. I miss Kroger.
Sara W
I think Kroger needs to look into expanding into other states.
Eva Keller
Great tips! My dad found out how to do this and it basically pays for his vacations at this point. It’s a great system.
Sara W
We’ve been putting our savings towards travel as well.
Cindy
Great way to save money! I just don’t have a Kroger’s.
Sara W
I think Kroger needs to expand into some new areas!
Annette @ The Digital Teacher Blog
Gift cards are great for yourself and/or loved ones – especially when you can get on some fab deals like you’ve shared!!
Sara W
We love giving (and receiving!) gift cards for gifts.