It’s no secret that shopping at the grocery store has become significantly more expensive in recent years. But if you use the right credit card and pay your balance in full each month, it could provide some much-needed relief.
To be sure, there are some cards that offer a high rate of rewards at grocery stores sometimes through spending categories that rotate. But here are three excellent cards that offer high grocery store rewards 12 months a year that you may want to take a closer look at.
1. Amex Blue Cash Preferred
The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express has a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95. (see rates and fees). But it also has some excellent perks – including a best-in-class rewards rate on grocery stores. Card members get 6% cash back at grocery stores in the United States on as much as $6,000 in spending per year. Terms apply
In addition, the card offers an intro APR of 0%, 12 months on purchases, after which the go-to APR of 19.24%-29.99% Variable applies, and it has some interesting statement credit opportunities (terms apply). If you spend $9.99 or more on an eligible streaming subscription on the card, you’ll get a $7 monthly statement credit, and there’s also $120 per year toward an Equinox+ fitness membership.
2. Citi Custom Cash Card
Instead of allowing the cardholder to choose their best rewards category, the Citi Custom Cash® Card simply applies its top rewards rate of 5% to the top spending category in each billing cycle, up to a maximum of $500. Grocery stores are on the list, so this means that you could potentially earn 5% back on as much as $6,000 of grocery store spending each year.
In addition, the Citi Custom Cash® Card has a $0 annual fee and offers a 0% intro APR for 15 months on purchases and balance transfers. It has a generous welcome bonus offer as well: 20,000 ThankYou® Points after you spend $1,500 in the first 6 months.
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3. Citi Premier
The Citi Premier® Card has a $95 annual fee, and unlike the Amex product discussed earlier, it cannot be waived in the first year. But it has an excellent rewards program that provides 3X at restaurants, supermarkets, at gas stations, for air travel, and on hotels. There’s a generous welcome offer of 60,000 ThankYou® Points worth $600 after $4,000 in spending within 3 months, as well as an annual $100 savings on a $500 hotel stay that can justify the annual fee all by itself.
What can these rewards mean for you?
As long as you pay your bill in full before its due date, using a rewards credit card with a high rate of cash back on grocery store purchases can help reduce the sting of inflation on your grocery budget.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, the average family of four spends $11,908 on groceries — or just under $1,000 per month. Assuming a 3% rewards rate, this means the average family could save $357 per year just by using the right credit card. And that’s on top of any savings that results from using coupons, shopping sales, and other strategies to save money.
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