Amex BCP vs BCE rewards

[_NERD]

How do I get 6% with AMEX on non grocery? If it’s taboo on the forum, dm me please.

[Anonymous]

You can't, where did you get the idea that you can? Second time you asked in this thread, neither KDM nor I have suggested you can, we were saying the prices in regular Amex approved "grocery stores" can be higher, even with 6% discount with BCP, than some of the superstores/wholesale clubs.

[longtimelurker]

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@_NERD wrote:
How do I get 6% with AMEX on non grocery? If it’s taboo on the forum, dm me please.

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One interpretation of this is that you buy gift cards at a supermarket.    For example, one of my local supermarkets has gift cards to say REI and Bed Bath and Beyond.   I don't have any card that gets anything like 6% at these places.   So, if I don't really need all my $6K per year on "real" groceries, I can buy these cards effectively at a 6% discount and use them at those stores.   So, for example, I buy $100 worth of goods at REI with a $100 gift card, but that card only cost me $94 (ignoring the AF).

Apart from inconvenience, the major thing to look out for is that stuff bought with gift cards doesn't have credit card protection.   So if your supermarket has BestBuy gift cards, probably best NOT to get $3000 worth and buy expensive electronics with them!

[UpperNwGuy]

If you buy gift cards for other retailers at grocery stores, those gift cards count against your $6,000 a year grocery cap, so you're not making any more money than if you just bought $6,000 of groceries.

[Anonymous]

My bad, I thought OP meant using BCP at other Super Grocery Stores.

[longtimelurker]

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@UpperNwGuy wrote:

If you buy gift cards for other retailers at grocery stores, those gift cards count against your $6,000 a year grocery cap, so you're not making any more money than if you just bought $6,000 of groceries.

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Right, hence my "So, if I don't really need all my $6K per year on "real" groceries, "     Some people spend a lot less than $6K on groceries, so they have some room to spend some of  the $6K on other things and that might tilt the BCE/BCP decision.   But if you mean that the max you can get before AF is still $360, I agree.

[_NERD]

Thank you that was my interpretation of this. I thought we couldn’t pay for gift cards with CCs. This is great. I thought years ago at a CVS I tried to buy a GC and they required cash payment.

Anyway thank you all for confirming this. I think BCP is the best course of action for me.

[longtimelurker]

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@_NERD wrote:
Thank you that was my interpretation of this. I thought we couldn’t pay for gift cards with CCs. This is great. I thought years ago at a CVS I tried to buy a GC and they required cash payment.

Anyway thank you all for confirming this. I think BCP is the best course of action for me.

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There are sometimes different rules for different types of gift cards.   "Retail" gift cards, which are to stores like HomeDepot, REI, Lowes (or to gas, restaurants, Amazon etc) are usually fine, and can be bought with a credit card.   There can be some limit beyond which a supervisor is needed, at a local store anything above $300 needs a manager.  Generally, retail gift cards are "free", a $200 gift card costs $200.    Often, these cards cannot be bought with another gift card, e.g. with a CVS gift card  you may not be able to go to CVS and buy a Lowes gift card with it.

Cash-equivalent gift cards, i.e. Visa/Amex/Mastercard, may be harder to purchase with a credit card.   Outside of specials, there is a fee for such cards, typically a variable card ($20-$500) will have a fee of $6-7.  Note: the credit card Terms of Service will usually state that you will not receive rewards for purchases of cash equivalents. 

[_NERD]

Thanks so much for clarifying. I’ll avoid cash equivalents. Store GCs only.

[UncleB]

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@_NERD wrote:
Thank you that was my interpretation of this. I thought we couldn’t pay for gift cards with CCs. This is great. I thought years ago at a CVS I tried to buy a GC and they required cash payment.

Anyway thank you all for confirming this. I think BCP is the best course of action for me.

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You've received some really good info and data points... lots to think about!

I'll just add a few things from my own experience as a modest user of a BCP (for the record, I'll probably be downgrading this summer since my grocery spend has been steadily declining).

I use my BCP primarily at Kroger and Publix, with the vast majority of my spending being done at Kroger.  My local Kroger is competitive, so there's little concern about over-paying as long as you know how to shop.

Until I got my Chase Amazon Visa, I would 'stock up' on Amazon GCs at Kroger both for the 6% cash back and the fuel points.  Now that I have the Amazon Visa I still often find my self getting some Amazon GCs at Kroger when they have fuel point promos, but I try to stick to eBay GCs, since I don't have a better option for those purchases (less opportunity cost to be concerned about).  My Kroger has no issues with using a credit card to pay for any GC they sell, including MV/V (w/ fee, of course).  There might be a daily limit, but my spend is modest so I've never had to find out.

Many Walmart stores (and most supercenters) do not code as grocery on the Amex network, however Walmart Grocery does, even when at a supercenter (as in, using the WM Grocery app where you pick-up the groceries outside).  The charge is processed out of Bentonville, AR, regardless of where you are and you will earn the 6%.  (I supposed this could always change, but there's no reason to believe a change is imminent.)  Anyway, this may or may not be helpful to you.

Finally, if you want a visual representation of where the BCP and BCE cash-back compares and intersects, you can see a cool graph here:  https://www.wolframalpha.com/input/?i=0.06x-95%3D0.03x

As you can see, the cut-off is $3166/year.  (Shout-out to @Anonymous for posting the WolframAlpha link.)

The graph assumes all spend is on grocery, and does not take into account any spend at department stores, gas, or on non-category purchases (1%).  (The department store cash-back benefit is said to no longer be applicable for new account holders, so it might not apply to your upgrade anyway.)

It's a bit to digest, but as long as you have a good feel for your own spending habits it shouldn't be too hard to figure out which you're better off with long-term, and of course the upgrade bonus comes into play as well! 

Hope this helps a bit!