Shopping for groceries feels like a task we just can’t avoid. Most homes need this done week after week. We walk through aisles and fill carts every time. Then, we pay for the food our families eat. This spending is a big part of many budgets. Finding ways to save money here helps a lot.
But a smart strategy many people miss exists. It is using a credit card for supermarket buying. Having a card that rewards grocery spending works. It earns cash back or points over time.
Consider your yearly grocery costs. Even a small percentage back saves quite a bit. CNBC Select looked at credit cards for this. They found good options for grocery shoppers.
These cards give great perks for smart spenders. High cash back and travel rewards await. Let’s look at some top contenders next. We can see how they compare for value.
1. **Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express**: High cash back is this card’s focus. Especially at U.S. supermarkets, it stands out.
It offers 6% back on up to $6,000 a year. That’s for purchases at U.S. supermarkets. After $6,000, you still earn a good 1%. The 6% rate is very high here. You might get up to $360 back each year. That’s just from eligible grocery trips you make.
This card also rewards streaming subscriptions. Select U.S. services earn 6% cash back. For transit and gas, it gives 3% back. This includes U.S. gas stations and rideshare. Other transit like parking and tolls are included too. Trains and buses also earn 3% cash back.
All other spending gets 1% cash back for you. Rewards come as Reward Dollars, for redemption ease. Redeem them as statement credits on your bill. Or, use them directly at Amazon.com when checking out.
A welcome bonus is available for new members. Earn a $250 credit after spending $3,000. This spending must be within the first six months duration. The annual fee is $0 for the first year. Then, it costs $95 each year after. You can try the card before paying.
An $84 Disney Bundle Credit is also offered. Receive $7 back monthly with spending. Spend $9.99+ on an enrolled bundle subscription. This requires auto-renewing service enrollment.
2. **American Express® Gold Card**: Ideal for food lovers and frequent shoppers. It delivers strong rewards at U.S. supermarkets—perfect for big grocery spenders—while offering valuable bonus rates in other key categories.
Earn 4X points at restaurants around the world. That’s including takeout and delivery in the U.S. This rate applies up to $50,000 in spending yearly. Grocery shopping also earns 4X points per dollar spent.
U.S. supermarkets give 4X points too. That’s up to $25,000 per year in purchases. Once limits are met, both earn a 1X points rate. Membership Rewards points are quite valuable and flexible.
Transfer them to various airline partners or hotels. Delta or Hyatt are just some choices you have. Often, this gives greater value for travel. You can also redeem points for gift cards easily.
Statement credits or travel through the Amex Travel Portal work too. Beyond points, Amex Gold gives statement credits. These help pay for the $325 annual fee cost. Up to $120 yearly dining credit is included.
That’s up to $10 per month of use. Use it at places like Grubhub or Cheesecake Factory. Enrollment is needed first. Also get up to $120 yearly in Uber Cash. Use this for U.S. Uber rides or Eats orders. Add your card to the Uber account initially. Again, this perk requires enrollment by the cardholder.
3. **Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card**: A standout for frequent travelers who love dining out. You’ll get a $100 Resy credit plus $84 in annual Dunkin’ credits (that’s $7/month!). It charges no foreign transaction fees—perfect for trips abroad. Ideal for foodies who order groceries online regularly, especially if you prefer clicking over cart-pushing.
This card shines for online grocery buys made. It gives 3X points per dollar spent online. This excludes stores like Target or Walmart. Wholesale clubs are also not included here. It’s not the highest grocery rate total. But it’s strong for online delivery or pickup orders.
Chase Sapphire Preferred also rewards travel spending. Dining earns points well on this card. Earn 5X points on travel via the Chase Travel℠ platform. Dining earns 3X points too. Select streaming services and Lyft rides also earn 3X points. That Lyft rate lasts until the September 30, 2027 date.
All other travel purchases earn 2X points. All other spending receives 1X point value. Cardholders get a generous welcome bonus points offer. Get 75,000 points after spending $5,000. Complete this spending within the first three months timeframe. The card has a low $95 annual fee cost.
Benefits can easily cover that total fee. Receive an annual hotel credit of up to $50. Book your stays through the Chase Travel℠ required platform. Get a 10% anniversary points boost also.
This boost is based on your previous year’s spending amount. Excellent travel and shopping protection is included. Primary rental car insurance is provided with this card. Trip cancellation and delay insurance protects you.
Baggage insurance covers lost items. Purchase protection and extended warranty are handy. Transfer points to 14 different partners for use. This offers potentially high value for travel booked. If online groceries are your style, consider this. If you value flexible travel rewards, it works well.
4. **Prime Visa**: This card is made just for loyal shoppers. Specifically, those at a big grocery and retail place. Do you shop often at Whole Foods Market? Or use Amazon.com and Amazon Fresh? Are you already an Amazon Prime member always? The Prime Visa gives great rewards there.
With Prime, earn a total of unlimited 5% cash backl. That’s at Amazon.com, Amazon Fresh, and Whole Foods Market, plus travel booked. Travel purchases must be through the Chase Travel℠ portal. This 5% back rate is very high. Especially for these specific shopping spots you use. It’s hard to beat if they are your main places.
Also earn unlimited 2% back at gas stations nearby. Restaurants also give a 2% back rate. Local transit and commuting get 2% back. This includes rideshare services too. All other purchases earn a simple unlimited 1% back . The welcome bonus is very attractive right now.
You get a $200 Amazon Gift Card quickly. This happens instantly upon approval success. No spending requirement is needed for this gift card. The card itself has no annual fee charged. But it needs an active Amazon Prime membership always. That costs $139 yearly or $14.99 monthly.
Factor in that membership cost in when considering it. One good benefit is redeeming rewards fast. Redeem daily rewards at Amazon.com the next day if possible. You can use points for travel booking too.
Book travel through the Chase Travel℠ site. Cash or gift cards are redemption options. The card also offers a “Prime Card Bonus” often. Earn 10% back or more sometimes.
This is on select rotating items or categories seen. Various shopping and travel perks are included. Purchase protection and extended warranty apply. Baggage delay or lost luggage help exists.
5. **PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card**: This card combines rewards well. It gives rewards on gas and groceries often.
It’s a valuable tool for your everyday spending. Earn 5X points on gas purchases at the pump. Electric vehicle charging stations also earn 5X points. This is a high rate for fuel fill-ups.
For your supermarket runs, earn 3X points. This is on purchases at the supermarket stores. Most Target and Walmart locations are included here. It also earns 3X points at restaurants. TV, radio, cable, and streaming services give 3X. These cover common household expenses you pay.
All other purchases earn 1X point value total. A great advantage is no bonus category activation needed. Earn bonus rates automatically on eligible spending made. It comes with a welcome bonus points offer.
Get 15,000 points after spending the required amount of $1,500. This must be in the first 90-days timeframe. Another big plus is the $0 annual fee cost. This is excellent for maximizing reward value easily. The PenFed Platinum Rewards Visa Signature® Card is only for members. It’s exclusive to PenFed Credit Union members.
Anyone can join the credit union, though. It needs opening a savings account with a $5 deposit. This adds a minor extra step for application. For debt consolidation, 0% intro APR is offered.
It lasts 12 months on balance transfers made. Transfers must happen within the first 60 days of the date. A 3% balance transfer fee applies here always. After the intro period, a variable 17.99% APR applies. That’s for purchases you make typically. A non-variable 17.99% APR applies to balance transfers.
Beyond rewards, cell phone protection is offered. Travel accident insurance provides safety. Visa concierge access is available also. It’s a smart choice for gas and grocery rewards.
6. **Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express**: Want strong cash back on everyday spending? This card delivers—with no annual fee. It’s also ideal if you prefer banking with a credit union.
It offers 3% cash back at U.S. supermarkets easily. This is on up to $6,000 yearly spending. After that, it drops to a 1% rate. The cap matches its preferred sibling card’s cap.
The rate is slightly lower here always. But remember, this card has no annual fee cost. Beyond groceries, earn 3% back at U.S. gas stations. U.S. online retail purchases also earn 3%.
Each of these categories has a $6,000 yearly cap limit. Then the rate becomes 1% back. All other spending gets 1% cash back, simple. Cash back comes as Reward Dollars available.
Redeemable as a statement credit on your account. New cardholders earn a $200 credit total. Spend $2,000 on the new card required amount. This must be within the first six months time.
This welcome bonus adds value right from the start. This card also provides useful statement credits. These credits can add up to extra savings in total. Receive up to $84 back yearly for the Disney Bundle. That’s $7 back monthly after a $9.99+ spend. Enrollment in the service is required first.
Up to $180 back yearly for Home Chef delivery exists. That’s up to $15 monthly available. Enrollment is needed for this perk too. The card features a 0% intro APR offer.
It is on purchases and balance transfers made. This lasts for the first 15 months always. This helps manage large purchases or existing debt total. A balance transfer fee does apply. It includes purchase protection benefits. Secondary rental car insurance is provided also.
It is a simple card for popular spending categories. It gives rewards without an annual fee cost.
Okay, we’ve seen how picking some smart cards boosts grocery rewards. But your options for savings don’t just stop right there. What you like most in a card is important for finding it. Maybe a huge welcome bonus is your priority for spending. Or points tailored for stores like those warehouse clubs could be good. There are still more cards to explore that could really fit your wallet. We will look at a couple more rewarding options now to complete our list. Each one offers a unique way to save money on grocery trips.
7. **Chase Freedom Flex®**: If chasing good welcome bonuses appeals to you, this card is a contender. Earning high cash back in rotating categories is also a feature. It offers many benefits without asking for an annual fee. This makes it a valuable choice for spending each day. It works great for necessary grocery trips.
A welcome bonus comes with the **Chase Freedom Flex®**. New cardholders can earn a good bonus after meeting a spending rule. That must happen within the first few months from opening. Besides the first boost, you can earn five percent cash back on grocery buys. This applies for the first year with a cap on the spending amount. Big retailers like Target and Walmart are not included here. It helps maximize rewards on spending you do anyway. Your grocery budget gets a nice break that first year this way. After one year, this card shines with its quarterly bonus categories that rotate. You can get five percent cash back up to a spending limit. Categories change every few months simply by activating the bonus. Often these categories include popular spending locations. Sometimes, grocery stores might even show up again. This adds a new layer of potential rewards down the line.
But rewards don’t end with just categories rotating or the grocery bonus. The **Chase Freedom Flex®** gives steady cash back rates elsewhere else you spend often. You will earn five percent back on travel booked using the Chase Travel℠ portal. That makes planning trips useful too. Dining out and shopping at drugstores gets a consistent three percent cash back rate. All your other purchases outside bonus spots earn a simple one percent cash back. This tiered structure makes this card flexible for many things. You earn rewards across wide parts of your everyday expenses easily. Plus, it has no annual fee, so every dollar of cash back saves cash. Pure savings adds extra value to each swipe.
Adding appeal, the **Chase Freedom Flex®** has a competitive introductory APR offer. New cardholders get a zero percent intro APR on new purchases. Balance transfers also get zero percent APR. This lasts for a good length of time from account opening.
This feature is helpful if planning large purchases. It also assists if you need to consolidate existing debt too. It gives you a window to pay it down interest-free before the variable APR starts. A balance transfer fee applies, but the intro period saves lot of interest.
It helps compared to cards with higher APRs later. The card offers helpful built-in protections beyond money flexibility. This includes cell phone insurance protecting your phone. It covers against damage or when theft paying the monthly bill with a card. Rental car insurance is included too, secondary here in the U.S.
You also get purchase protection added on. Extended warranty coverage applies to eligible things. This gives peace of mind for purchases you make. Trip cancellation/interruption insurance adds security when travel booking occurs. It’s a well-rounded card offering strong earnings plus useful benefits.
8. **Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi**: If your grocery shopping is mostly at one specific warehouse club, this card is needed. It was designed thinking about the loyal member you might be. Elevated rewards are specifically for spending at Costco locations. This includes services linked to it. It also gives strong earning rates elsewhere, complementing a member’s life.
One major draw of the **Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi** is how it works with a Costco membership. The credit card itself has no extra annual fee. You only pay for your Costco membership, which already had by many. This makes it a cheap way to earn rewards on spending at Costco. Cardholders earn a steady two percent cash back on all purchases made there. This counts for shopping at Costco warehouses and Costco.com. Every time you buy groceries, household goods, or electronics, you get money back. While two percent sounds less than other cards’ top rates, maybe, it applies to everything inside Costco. This adds up to lots over a year for shoppers there. It is a simple way ensuring you get rewarded for core shopping at Costco.
This card is strong in key areas too, beyond Costco rewards. That makes it a valuable card for use every day. It stands out as excellent for gas purchases. It gives an impressive five percent cash back at Costco gas stations. You also earn four percent cash back on other gas eligible. Electric vehicle (EV) charging purchases get four percent too. This counts for the first $7,000 spent each year combined. Then it changes to one percent after that. This is a top rate for fuel costs, a big expense for many drivers. The card also offers three percent cash back at restaurants. Eligible travel purchases also get three percent. This includes travel booked through Costco Travel options. This covers eating out, vacations, and leisure spending too. These are areas where people spend much money. For other purchases not in bonus categories, you still earn one percent. This reward comprehensive structure ensures valuable cashback earnings. It covers a wide range of your spending habits, not only at the warehouse.
How you receive cash back is different with this Costco card. It works not like many other rewards cards you see. You don’t get rewards whenever you want to use them. You get a single credit card reward certificate once a year. This happens typically after your February billing statement comes.
You can redeem this certificate until December 31st of the year it was given. It must be used for cash or merchandise at U.S. Costco warehouses.
Puerto Rico is included here also. It has to be used in one transaction you make. This annual payout needs some patience and also planning sometimes. But it can mean a nice big sum of savings all at once.
A significant perk of this card is no foreign transaction fees applied. That makes it good for traveling internationally, which you might do. It saves money on buys made abroad while visiting. If you are a dedicated Costco member wanting maximum rewards, this card provides benefits. It works well for shopping, gas, dining, and also travel.
It offers a package of compelling benefits if the annual redemption process is okay by you.
Finding the perfect grocery rewards card requires careful comparison. It’s not about one single feature, but weighing multiple factors like high rewards rates on supermarket purchases against potential annual fees, sign-up bonuses, and specific store eligibility. Choose one tailored to your actual spending and preferred stores.
