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How to earn frequent flyer points with gift cards

Give a present and score points for yourself! But watch out for the pitfalls.

Angus Kidman
Angus Kidman

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Gift cards at supermarket

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Gift cards are a good option for a present when you're not sure what the recipient would really like. They also offer an easy way to earn extra frequent flyer points.

Both Coles' Flybuys and Woolworths' Everyday Rewards regularly offer bonus points when you buy gift cards at those supermarkets. Gift cards for the offers span fashion, entertainment, travel, food and more.

A typical deal offers 1,000 or 2,000 bonus points with a gift card purchase. Often the deal will also be tied to a specific card value. $50 or $100 are the most common options.

2,000 Flybuys points convert to 870 Velocity Points, while 2,000 Everyday Rewards points convert to 1,000 Qantas Frequent Flyer points.

Gift cards tied to a specific store usually don't have a fee (unlike generic gift credit cards, which often do). They're generally more flexible than single purpose cards such as Netflix, Google Play or Uber, because they can be used for a wider range of gift purchases.

Which store gift cards offer bonus frequent flyer points?

Supermarkets sell a huge range of gift cards. Here's a list of the brands we've seen featuring bonus points offers. (That doesn't guarantee that they'll do so again, but it's fairly likely.)

We've also broken out the different stores included in the "Ultimate" gift card range, which can be used at multiple retailers and which often feature in bonus point deals. Indeed, this is the main way you can score bonus gift card points for shopping at some major retailers, including JB Hi-Fi and David Jones.

Want to keep up with the latest gift card offers from Australian supermarkets? Sign up for our Points Finder newsletter or follow Points Finder on Facebook. We'll keep you regularly updated on the latest deals.

Traps to watch out for

Make sure you're earning maximum points when buying gift cards by following these tips:

      • Don't buy a gift card just to earn the points. If cousin Gina really is a movie nut, then a Hoyts card will be welcome. But giving a Gourmet Traveller to Aunt Ethel when she refuses to visit restaurants is poor form. Equally, if you're going to use the card yourself, make sure it's for a purchase you were planning anyway.
      • Your gift card purchases won't earn Everyday Rewards or Flybuys points based on their dollar value. One trap people often don't realise: gift card purchases don't earn supermarket reward points from their dollar value. So if you spend $50 on a gift card, you don't earn 50 points. That's why you'll only want to buy them when a bonus offer is running.
      • You can't score extra points by buying multiple cards. Gift credit card offers at supermarkets will always limit the bonus points offer to a single offer per household. Even if more than one gift card brand is on offer, you can only take advantage of the bonus points once.
      • Don't spend more than you need to qualify. If you have the choice of a $50 or $100 gift card and the points earned are the same, then you may as well go for the cheaper card.
      • Make sure the recipient can use the card. Seems obvious, but sending a card to someone who can't use it because there's no branch of that store/cinema/restaurant in their area is very poor form.
      • Remember to scan your loyalty card. No scan? No points! It's almost impossible to get this fixed after the fact, so make sure you scan in store. Speaking of which...
      • Self-serve checkouts are not your friend. In Woolworths, you can't buy gift cards at a self-serve checkout. You can in Coles, but a staff member usually still has to authorise your purchase. So head for the express or regular checkouts.
      • Convert your points to frequent flyer points. You'll get far more value from your supermarket points if you move them into your frequent flyer scheme of choice. For Woolworths/Qantas, you can opt in to have your points automatically converted each time you reach 2,000 Everyday Rewards points. With Flybuys, you need to log in and manually convert your points to Velocity. To get the most points, do that when Velocity bonus offers are running.

THE POINTS FINDER TAKE

Getting double value from gift cards through bonus points makes them an appealing option for building your points total.

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