Best Gift Card

[Pitt_10]

Hey fellas,


I've had my student CC for a little over 2 years now and I have the chance to redeem a $100 gift card in exchange for Reward points, they have some solid stores on here and I was wondering where you thought I'd get the best value for the dollar...the stores I'm considering are: Amazon.com, GAP brands, Lands End, Macy's, Marshalls , Brook's Brothers, and Nike....I'm thinking Amazon may be the best bet b/c of how much they sell, but I was wondering what some of you guys thought too

[LesserBlackDog]

I'd probably go for Amazon, too. They don't carry much by way of clothes but they definitely carry everything else - appliances, watches, books, music. If nothing else you can save yourself some money next semester and use it to buy some used textbooks.

[Tat]

I'd use it at Nordstrom. U can use it towards a new pair of shoes during their big sales, or it can also be used at Nordstrom rack towards any purchase. That's usually where I choose my gift cards.

[chern]

I would probably use Amazon just because of the variety of options - unless you have the need for a purchase that needs to be tried on in store (suit, jacket, etc).

[nicholascrawford]

Amazon seems more practical, but a store like Nordstrom seems more like a "reward" use. Hehe...good work spending all that money! lol If you've put money away for retirement this year, pay off your credit card every month, etc...why not reward yourself. If you have some big expenses coming up, have some important places to put the money, it's best to be practical.

[jose_jackson]

Hmm. I'm in a similar position. I was either gonna redeem it at a clothing store or get a Chili's giftcard and pay for everyone's drinks for one night.


Or I could, you know, just take the cash and pay bills, but that is so boring.

[Pitt_10]

Thanks for the suggestions guys! I would consider Nordstrom but unfortunately the only Nordstrom Rack I can go to is the one back home away from school, but I do my best to pay off the balance each time so I'm thinking of rewarding myself a little.


@ Jose I don't know if yours works like mine, but if I opt for just cash back then I can only get $50, I guess to entice you to get a gift card haha

[jose_jackson]

Yeah. You get 25% more if you redeem it as a giftcard. So, yeah, $80 of cash back equals $100 to BR, LEC, etc. I think it's something similar if you use it at Amazon. Just had the idea to maybe look into getting some sunglasses on amazon, not that I need another pair.

[hornsup84]

When I used my Discover card more, I used to use my cashback to get Brooks Bros gift cards almost exclusively. Not sure how your CC does it, but I could get a $50 GC for $40 of cashback rewards, so I was spending $80 for $100 for the GC, then would use the GC to buy BB slim fit shirts, which fit me almost perfectly off the rack.


With my BB credit card, I can get 20% off on top, so it was like layering 20% off on 20% off. Mind you this was back when their Brooks Buy on them was 3 for $180/$200 vs the now 3 for $220. I was in the process of building up a dress shirt collection, which was important for me, as I wear dress shirts to the office 5 days a week.

[alan]

I always save up enough points to redeem for cash on a 1-to-1 ratio. It means redeeming less often for me, but it's the ultimate reward. I can redeem 25,000 points for a $250 deposit directly into my checking account. With any fewer points, though, I get less than a 1-to-1 reward. (Of course, maybe not every program even offers that option.)

[jessy_diamond]

The best I can get with mine is a Gap gift card. Better than nothing.

[alan]

@Jessy Diamond: FWIW, I'm pretty sure you can use a GAP gift card at Banana Republic, too.

[tomservo]

Unless you have a specific purchase in mind go with an Amazon gift card or better yet redeem for cash as Alan suggested.

[jose_jackson]

I think that's the twist, though. I can always get cash 1-to-1 at any level. But if I wait and redeem it as a gift card I get more. The trade-off is more cash but only one place to spend it.


So, like, if there was a BR blazer or Lowe's grill that I really wanted, it would make more sense to redeem it as a gift card.