How to Use Gift Cards Smartly for Best Cash Savings

Use this tool to calculate the highest cash reward from using credit cards with the highest cashback and buying gift cards in supermarkets.

This tool helps answer :

  1. Should I swipe a general credit card (for example, 2% cash back for every purchase), or apply for each store's credit card (such as Amazon, Target, Macy's) to get the cash back? Is there a better choice that I can save even more?

  2. How can I receive the most monetary rewards from the spending by using credit card and gift card combined?

How to Maximize Cash by Using Gift Cards

Choose the credit card with the highest cash back % on grocery
to buy gift card at a supermarket, In general, the discount store, such as Walmart, Target, Fred Meyer, and Costco, does not belong to the definition of "supermarket", or "grocery store" by credit card issuers.
which offers X reward points. Safeway and Kroger stores usually provide at least 2X reward year round, and sometimes 4X ~ 12X reward for specific gift cards. Please carefully check each store's program before purchase.
You earn credit card cash back (Ⅰ)
and reward points (Ⅱ).
Next, choose how to redeem your reward points:
Plan A: Redeem reward points to fuel discount
Gallons per filling (tank size)
Savings per filling dollars
Number of fillings
You save on fuel (Ⅲ)
Total savings (Ⅰ+Ⅲ)
Equivalent to cash back
 
Plan B: Redeem reward points to grocery discount Not all stores' reward programs provide grocery discount. According to our survey, Albertsons (including Safeway, Shaw's, Vons, and other chains) provides the grocery discount by redeeming reward points.
Conversion rate at per 100 points
You save on grocery (Ⅳ)
Total savings (Ⅰ+Ⅳ)
Equivalent to cash back

Best Credit Cards for Groceries

Card
Grocery cash back
Year-round max cash back
Restriction on max cash back
Sign up bonus
Annual fee
Cash back after annual fee
0% APR for

Note: Opesway regularly checks if the card issuer's term and policy change, but the timeliness of update is not guaranteed. Please carefully read the contractual term at the issuer's website before applying. To be approved for these credit cards, you normally need a credit score of 680 or higher.

to know more Reminder :

  • Don't buy gift cards if the applicable purchase is not immediately needed. It can trigger unnecessary spending, or lose the interest of savings when letting these cards unused.

  • To protect yourself from gift card-draining scam, make sure that gift cards come with a protective, untemperred seal and tape covering the PIN

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Content created by

AlexCFA, FSA, FRM, MBA

Alex is a seasoned finance professional with over 15 years of experience in investment management, consulting, and financial technology. He began his career as a financial advisor and later led large-scale budgeting and risk management initiatives as an actuary and manager at KPMG and global insurance firms. He also brings extensive experience as both an investment analyst and a software engineer. Alex is a CFA® charterholder, Fellow of the Society of Actuaries (FSA), and Financial Risk Manager (FRM®). He holds an MBA from the Simon Business School at the University of Rochester.

Content published on 2024-08-01. Last reviewed and updated on 2025-11-02.