Best Credit Cards for Groceries

[leastprime]

827.

[Unsettomati]

You know, it doesn't have to be a card that gives a bonus specifically for grocery purchases. You can mine premium cards for big one-time savings. Example:

1) Apply for the Capital One Venture card.
[there is a $95 annual fee]

2) Spend $4000 on the card in the first 90 days from opening your account.
[obviously, it is unwise to get this card if you do not normally spend this much, but if you can without altering your spending habits it's no cost to you]

3) By meeting the above threshold, you gain a welcome bonus of 75,000 points. And since the card earns 2x points on each dollar spent - and you've spent at least $4000 to hit the bonus threshold - you now have at least 83,000 points.

4) Use the points to purchase gift cards through the Capital One portal, at a rate of 1 point = $0.01 (or, 100 points = $1). So that 83,000 can be used to purchase up to $830 in gift cards. The dozens of options include places like Kroger, Sam's Club, Target, Walmart.

5) Close account. $830 (gift cards) - $95 (annual fee) is a very tidy $735.

Attached? Refer your spouse/partner for the card. They receive the exact same deal, while you receive 20,000 points as a referral bonus.

You can do the same thing with similar cards like Citi Premier and Chase Sapphire Preferred, though one should wait for an elevated bonus offer (right now each is at 60,000 points, though they occasionally will increase that to something like 80,000 or even 100,000 (that's what the Capital One Venture card bonus was when I got it a year ago).

Sure, they're one-offs. But three separate one-offs... and the card companies generally will let you come back for another bonus after a certain amount of time passes (24 or 48 months, variously timed from account openings and/or closings).

If you fly or stay in hotels even occasionally, all sorts of other options abound with specific airline or hotel cards.

[prospectheightsresident]

I've definitely heard great things about the Amex BCP, especially since I'd get the annual fee waived. In the meanwhile, I've been using my Amex Gold Card, which gives me 4x the points on groceries (and at restaurants).