Are you familiar with the gift card technique? This is a well-known strategy of the Milesopedia community members. It consists of using a credit card offering more points at some stores to buy gift cards for other stores.
For example, buying a Walmart gift card at Couche-Tard to earn 5 points per dollar (instead of using your credit card directly at Walmart, which would have earned only one point per dollar).
The best credit cards to use in Canada for this purpose, offering 5 points per dollar are :
However, 5 points per dollar do not necessarily have the same value depending on the program!
So, with the American Express Cobalt® Card, you’ll earn a 5% return by using your points for any purchase on the card (not just travel).
With the Scotiabank Gold American Express® Card, you’ll earn 5% back by using your points for any travel purchase charged to the card. In addition, you get 6% for spending at IGA grocery stores, Voilà by IGA, Rachelle Béry, Les Marchés Tradition, Sobeys, Safeway, Foodland, etc.
With the National Bank World Elite Mastercard, you’ll get 5% back when you use your points for travel with Voyage À La Carte. Aim for a 4.16% return when you use your points for any travel booked with the Card or for À la carte Extras (RRSP, TFSA or mortgage payment). Or 2% for a statement credit for any purchase.
With the BMO CashBack® World Elite®* Mastercard®*, you get 5% cash back on your grocery purchases. But beware: the rebate rate drops to 1% after $500 in grocery purchases in a month.
And finally, with the BMO eclipse Visa Infinite* Card, you’ll get a return equivalent to 3.5% when you use your points to book a trip on the BMO Rewards platform. The return will be the same for investing in your BMO Investment Account. Or 1.65% for a statement credit for any purchase.
To use the gift card technique you need to:
With the American Express Cobalt® Card, you can earn 5x points for these purchase categories:
5x the points = 5 points per dollar. That’s the equivalent of a 5% return if you use your points for any purchase. You can even transfer your points to airline partners (Aeroplan, British Airways Executive Club, etc.) or hotel partners (Marriott Bonvoy, Hilton Honors) to get even more value!
Note that you earn 5x the points up to a maximum of $30,000 in Card purchases per year at businesses offering 5x the points (that’s an average of $2,500 per month). That’s up to 150,000 points per year!
Here, the categories we’re interested in are grocery stores and convenience stores: these are places where we can buy gift cards for many other stores.
Here is a partial list of grocery and convenience stores in Canada where you can earn 5x points for gift card purchases:
There are countless gift cards available in these stores! There is something for every taste and need. Here are some examples of gift cards available. For each of these gift cards, you can earn 5x the points by purchasing them in grocery stores (Metro, Super C, IGA, Safeway, etc.) or convenience stores (Couche-Tard, Circle K, 7Eleven, etc.):
Finally, all you have to do is use your gift card at the checkout.
Like at the SAQ, for example: what could be better than getting 5x points for your next bottle of wine (rather than 1x points by paying directly with your credit card at the SAQ)?
Don’t make the mistake of using the “wrong” credit card at your next checkout. Consider buying gift cards at stores offering 5x points!
You will be able to get:
And if you don’t have the American Express Cobalt® Card, don’t waste any time getting it. See our tip for earning up to 60,000 points in your first year!
You can buy gift cards from a variety of retailers, including grocery stores, drugstores, convenience stores, gas stations and online.
All you have to do is visit an online sales platform offering a variety of gift cards, or the website of the brand you’re interested in.
To get free gift cards, keep an eye out for retailer sweepstakes or hotel promotions.
The Rakuten site offers cash rebates with different percentages on gift cards from several brands.
Savings are here:
