Redeeming your points and miles for high-end international flights and luxury hotels may seem like the most beneficial option, but not everyone is interested in luxury travel. For those who like to save money, redeeming points and miles to cover everyday expenses may be more attractive.
If you’re planning to take advantage of Prime Day deals, consider using your points and miles for Amazon purchases. If you’re unsure how to do this — or whether you should — we’ll cover all your options below.
Related: Who Knew? Amazon has a travel deals page for Prime Day, and there are some great options
Redeeming Credit Card Rewards for Amazon Purchases
Before we dive in, you should understand that redeeming points for Amazon purchases generally won’t yield a high redemption value. The tricky part is that most programs offer less favorable rates when you redeem your points directly for Amazon purchases than when you redeem them for Amazon gift cards.
Let’s look at the options provided by the most popular programs.
Chase Ultimate Rewards: 0.8 to 1.5 cents per point
However, you only get a nominal value of 0.8 cents per point when you redeem Ultimate Rewards points for Amazon purchases. This redemption rate is 2.05 cents each below TPG’s July 2024 Ultimate Rewards point valuation.
Chase also allows you to redeem your points for Amazon gift cards directly on the Chase site. In your Ultimate Rewards account, click “Redeem for Gift Cards” under “Shopping & Experiences,” then search for Amazon.
Even if you bought a gift card with points on Amazon, your points will still be worth 0.8 cents. Buying through Chase gives you a marginally better rate of 1 percent per point.
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Perhaps the best option is to charge Amazon purchases to your Chase card and redeem Ultimate Rewards points for a statement credit. Not only will you get 1 percent value per point, but you’ll earn more points on purchases and benefit from purchase protection and extended warranties if your card offers those benefits.
Alternatively, you can use points to cover an Amazon gift card using Chase’s Pay Yourself Back feature. Not all purchases qualify, and most will give you a rate of 1 cent per point — but sometimes Chase runs promotions where you’ll get 25% or 50% more value on select merchandise categories. If your card offers a 50% bonus at the grocery store, for example, you can buy an Amazon gift card at the grocery store and use Pay Yourself Back to offset the purchase at a rate of 1.5 cents per point.
Related: Best Credit Cards for Amazon Purchases
Amex Membership Rewards: 0.7 to 1 percent per point
If you have a card that earns American Express Membership Rewards points, eg Platinum Card® from American Express Or American Express® Gold Card, you can link your Amazon account and redeem points at checkout. But the redemption rate is worse at 0.7 cents per point (compared to TPG’s July 2024 estimate of 2 cents per Membership Rewards point).
Or, if you have a cash-back Amex card eg Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express Or Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American ExpressYou’ll get 1 cent per point worth on Amazon purchases, the same value you’ll get if you redeem your points for statement credit to cover an Amazon gift card.
Occasionally, American Express runs targeted promotions that allow you to save on Amazon purchases by redeeming just 1 Membership Rewards point.
Citi ThankYou Rewards: 0.8 cents per point
Citi ThankYou Rewards follows a similar script, allowing you to link your Amazon account and redeem at checkout at a rate of 0.8 cents per point.
Capital One: 0.8 to 1 cent per mile
Capital One also offers the ability to shop with rewards on Amazon. However, with mile-earning cards like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card, you’ll only get 0.8 cents of value per mile.
On cash-back Capital One cards like the Capital One SaverOne Cash Rewards Credit Card, your miles are worth 1 cent each, the same value you’d get from a statement credit.
Related: Ways to Save Money on Amazon Orders
Redeeming Hotel Points for Amazon purchases
Some hotel rewards programs allow you to use your points toward Amazon purchases, but redemption rates are more disappointing.
Hilton Honors: 0.2 cents per point
For example, 60,000 Hilton Honors points will cover just $120 in Amazon purchases — or you can use them for a night at the Hilton Garden Inn Kauai Wailua Bay in Hawaii, worth at least $500.
IHG One Rewards: 0.2 cents per point
IHG One Rewards allows you to redeem 49,000 points for a $100 Amazon gift card through IHG One Rewards. Online catalog, providing a value of approximately 0.2 cents per point. Through July 2024, TPG values each IHG point at 0.5 cents, and you can usually get better value when you redeem IHG points for hotel stays.
Marriott Bonvoy: 0.25 to 0.33 cents per point
Finally, you can log into your Marriott Bonvoy account to redeem Amazon gift cards at a rate of 0.25 to 0.33 cents per point.
That’s well below TPG’s July 2024 valuation of 0.85 cents each, so you’re generally better off redeeming Bonvoy points for hotel stays. For example, instead of a $100 Amazon gift card, you can redeem 30,000 Bonvoy points for a night at AC Hotel New York Downtown, where cash rates range from $200 to $600 per night.
Other ways to save
If you decide to pay for Amazon purchases with cash instead of points, there are a few strategies to help maximize your rewards. Buying Amazon gift cards from stores that offer a category bonus and then using them to make your Amazon purchases.
It’s important to note that using an Amazon gift card may have some trade-offs. Using a gift card may mean giving up certain benefits your credit card offers, such as extended warranties and purchase protection.
Some card issuers offer additional opportunities to earn bonus points or save money. American Express regularly runs Amex offers, which provide bonus points for select card members. For example, we’ve seen an offer of 2 bonus Membership Rewards points per dollar spent on Amazon, with a maximum of 1,000 bonus points.
Amazon often offers targeted discounts for redeeming points on your orders. For example, some Chase cardholders have saved $60 by redeeming just 1 Ultimate Rewards point on their Amazon purchase.
To ensure you receive any available targeted offers, it’s recommended to link all of your cards that earn Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards and CitiThankYou Rewards points to your Amazon account. You can find instructions on how to link each type of card on the respective websites.
Related: The secret to getting more (and sometimes better) Amex offers on your card
Bottom line
At TPG, our primary focus is on travel rewards because they offer the most value. However, there are several other options for redeeming your rewards, including Amazon purchases. If you’re planning to redeem points on Amazon this Prime Day, be sure to weigh the pros and cons of each option before making an informed decision.