There are many different ways to earn credit card rewards, airline miles and other rewards points. One way is by signing up for new credit cards. The welcome bonus offers that come with new credit card signups can give a great boost to your miles and points balance. But if you’re holding off on signing up for a new rewards card (like to get under 5/24), you’ll also want to make sure that you’re maximizing the points you get from your everyday purchases.
Some credit cards, like the Chase Freedom Unlimited, give a flat amount of bonus points for every dollar you spend on eligible purchases, regardless of where you are spending. Other rewards cards give different amounts for eligible purchases in each different bonus category. And since grocery purchases are one of the biggest expenditures of many people’s budgets, you’ll want to make sure to maximize the bonus category points you earn on grocery purchases.
(READ MORE: Activate your 5% categories for the new year now!)
Best ways to use a travel card on your groceries
There are many types of credit cards out there, and they earn different types of points. If you’re a frequent flier, you may want to focus on earning travel rewards like Chase Ultimate Rewards points or American Express Membership Rewards points. Earning cash back or a reward of a statement credit can also be good options.
If you’re wondering what the benefits are of using your travel rewards credit card on groceries, you can get lots of bonus points by using a travel rewards card. In many cases, you can earn more than enough rewards points to offset the cost of a credit card’s annual fee.
With travel being way down in 2020 and beyond, many credit card issuers are finding new ways for you to use your travel rewards points. One credit card issuer that is giving a different option to redeem your rewards points for something other than a travel reward is Chase’s Pay Yourself Back, which is a feature that lets you use Ultimate Rewards points in another category like grocery purchases.
How to maximize earning opportunities for travel points when buying groceries
Most people’s biggest category of spending is grocery spending, so it makes sense to pay extra attention to maximizing your earning opportunities when buying groceries. Keeping a travel rewards credit card that gives a bonus on grocery purchases can be a great way to earn extra rewards points when you’re grocery shopping.
Another idea is buying a gift card while you’re grocery shopping. Many grocery stores offer a wide variety of gift cards for different merchants. If you have a travel rewards credit card that offers an extra bonus in the grocery category, you can buy a gift card to a home improvement store, for example. Then instead of using your credit card at the home improvement store, you use your gift card that you purchased. That can be a good trick to getting some extra travel rewards points on your everyday spending purchases.
(READ MORE: The best reward cards for groceries and restaurants)
How to find the right travel card for you to earn points buying groceries
Finding the right travel card in order to earn points when buying groceries depends on which types of cash back, statement credits or rewards points are most valuable to you. One strategy that works well for many people is to concentrate on flexible points, like American Express Membership Rewards points or Chase Ultimate Rewards points. These points are called “flexible points” because they are not tied down to one specific hotel or airline.
There are two reasons that flexible points are so useful. First of all, because you’re not tied to one specific hotel or airline, you have a lot more options when you’re looking to book your travel. Secondly, you’re somewhat protected against devaluations. Because each type of flexible points currency has multiple different transfer partners, if one goes through a devaluation, you still have many other options for your rewards points.
And of course, cash is always king and can be used for travel, a statement credit or just about anything!
Best travel credit cards to use at grocery stores
Here are some of the different travel rewards credit cards that give good grocery rewards. Some offer travel rewards points and others offer cash back or a statement credit as a travel reward. If you’re wondering which cards offer higher rewards on everyday spending like groceries, check out some of these credit cards:
- American Express Gold Card – 4x Membership Rewards points on U.S. supermarket purchases on up to $25,000 per calendar year and 4x at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery. $250 annual fee
- US Bank Altitude Go – 4% back on takeout, food delivery and dining. You can also get 25,000 points (which is worth $250 bonus cash) by spending $1000 in net eligible purchases in the first three months of having the card
- American Express Hilton Surpass – a rewards credit card 6x Hilton points at US supermarkets and at US restaurants. $95 annual fee
- Chase Freedom Unlimited – 1.5% back on when you make any purchase but currently there is a limited time signup bonus offer where you get 5% back on grocery shopping purchases (excluding Walmart and Target) for the first year of having the card, with a limit of $12,000.
- Chase Freedom Flex – the Freedom Flex gets 3% cash back on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services, and like the Freedom Unlimited, the Chase Freedom Flex has the same signup bonus offer where you get 5% back on grocery shopping purchases (excluding Walmart and Target) for the first year of having the card, with a limit of $12,000.
- American Express Blue Cash Preferred – $250 statement credit after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months. 6% cash back on the first $6,000 in spending each year at U.S. supermarkets.
It’s up to you to decide how many cards you want to manage — personally I have … a lot.
(READ MORE: Getting a handle on my 43 credit cards)
If you’re looking for a grocery credit card that isn’t listed here, check out some of our top credit card offers.
What’s your go-to guide for the best travel credit card for groceries? Leave it in the comments …
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Dan Miller travels with his wife and 6 (SIX!) children. He loves to help families travel for free / cheap, especially larger families. If you are looking for help, drop him an email at 
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