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How to Use Credit Card Points on Amazon to Pay for Purchases

CREDIT CARDS - CREDIT CARD REWARDS
Shop on Amazon? Here’s how to use credit card points to your maximum benefit.
Miranda Marquit
By Miranda Marquit
Becca Borawski Jenkins
Edited by Becca Borawski Jenkins
Updated May 1, 2024
Fact checked
Couple Using Credit Card Points on Amazon to Pay for Purchases

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Credit card points are an increasingly popular way to make the most out of your money. It’s possible to earn credit card rewards and redeem them for all sorts of items. In fact, it’s even possible to use credit card points to make Amazon purchases using a feature known as “Shop with Points.”

In this article, we’ll show you how to use your credit card points on Amazon and which cards, ranked in order, are the best to use for Shop with Points.

Our analysis of the best use of your credit card points on Amazon

Many credit card programs allow you to use your points to shop on Amazon. Here are some of the best programs to consider as you determine how to use your credit card points.

Amazon Visa

If you apply for the Amazon Visa, which is co-branded with Chase, you can earn 3% cash back at Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market, and on Chase Travel purchases; 2% cash back at restaurants and gas stations, and on local transit and commuting; and 1% cash back on all other purchases. 

If you have an eligible Prime membership, then you can apply for the Prime Visa, which allows you to earn 5% cash back at Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market, and on Chase Travel purchases; 2% cash back at restaurants and gas stations, and on local transit and commuting; 1% cash back on all other purchases. 

This cash back is translated into points that can be used to pay at checkout on Amazon. In general, each point is worth one cent.

Discover

With Discover, you can pay for Amazon purchases with your card’s Cashback Bonus® rewards or your miles. If you use miles, 100 miles equals $1 at Amazon.com checkout. Eligible cards include:

To use credit card points from Discover on Amazon, you just need to link your eligible Discover card to your Amazon account and enroll in Shop with Points. You can leave using your cashback bonus as one of your payment options, or you can make your Discover card your default when paying so whenever you have a cashback bonus, it will automatically apply it toward your purchase.

Citi ThankYou

Cards that earn Citi ThankYou points include:

And, as with the programs from some of the best rewards credit cards, it’s possible to link your eligible Citi card and use ThankYou points directly to pay for Amazon purchases. You just need to follow the steps on the Citi-branded page on Amazon to get started. Then just select Shop with Points at check-out and indicate you want to use your ThankYou points. It’s fairly straightforward.

Citi ThankYou points are worth different amounts, depending on how you redeem them. For example, if you decide to redeem $50 cash back, you’ll pay 10,000 points, making a point worth 0.5 cents. On the other hand, redeeming at Amazon gets you an $80 purchase for that same 10,000 points, making them worth 0.8 cents per point.

Your best value with ThankYou points comes from redeeming for flights, where each point is worth one cent. But if you don’t have any travel plans, they aren’t a bad option for Amazon shopping.

American Express Membership Rewards

In order to use your Membership Rewards on Amazon, you just need to link your card. If your particular American Express card isn’t eligible for Membership Rewards, then this feature won’t be available to you.

Here are some of the American Express cards that automatically enroll you in Membership Rewards:

All information about Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card has been collected independently by FinanceBuzz.

All information about Amex EveryDay® Credit Card has been collected independently by FinanceBuzz.

All information about Business Green Rewards Card from American Express has been collected independently by FinanceBuzz.

All information about American Express® Green Card has been collected independently by FinanceBuzz.

There are also some corporate and co-branded cards, like those offered for Ameriprise Financial and Charles Schwab, that come with enrollment in Membership Rewards. Many of the co-branded airline cards aren’t eligible, since you’re earning airline miles instead of Membership Rewards.

Once you’ve linked your eligible American Express card to Amazon, you’ll be able to use Shop with Points when you check out. Depending on the card you have, you can use the American Express rewards calculator to see what points are worth.

For example, with the American Express® Gold Card, 10,000 points are worth $70 when you Shop with Points at Amazon. However, if you use those same 10,000 points on American Express Travel, they’re worth $100. So, if you have travel in your future, it might be a better deal to book travel with your points instead of shopping on Amazon with them.

Chase Ultimate Rewards

You can link your Chase Ultimate Rewards Points to Amazon and pay with points. Note that this is different from using the Chase-branded Amazon credit cards for points. With this process, you link your cards, much as you would with other credit cards. Eligible cards include:

It’s important to understand that your Chase Ultimate Rewards points won’t go as far if you use them on Amazon. It takes 125 points to be equal to $1 when you shop this way. So, if you use your Chase Freedom Unlimited to make a purchase, you’ll get less value using your points to pay on Amazon.

You’re better off saving your Chase Ultimate Rewards points and using them to book travel through the Chase portal. This is especially true if you have a Chase Sapphire Reserve® card, where points are worth 1.5 cents when you book travel through the portal.

Hilton Honors

With Hilton Honors, you don’t link a specific credit card to Amazon. Instead, you link your Hilton Honors account so you can use Shop with Points. As long as your Hilton Honors account is connected, all the credit cards you use to earn points will contribute to your ability to use the Shop with Points program.

One thing to keep in mind, though, is that it takes 500 Hilton Honors points to equal $1 using Amazon Shop with Points. As a result, each point is only worth 0.2 cents. You might be better off using your Hilton Honors points to book a hotel room.

What can I buy on Amazon using credit card points?

In general, most things on Amazon can be purchased when you use Shop with Points. However, there are some exceptions. The main exceptions include:

  • Amazon Kindle downloads
  • Digital music
  • Amazon video
  • Amazon Appstore
  • Subscribe and Save items
  • Prime memberships
  • AmazonFresh items
  • Gift cards
  • Textbook rentals

Additionally, if you’re buying using One-Click, you won’t have the option to use Shop with Points. Otherwise, when making most regular, non-digital, or non-special purchases, you should be able to choose to use points to pay when you check out.

Is shopping on Amazon a good use of my rewards points?

It really depends on the situation as to whether or not shopping on Amazon is a good use of your reward points. You’d have to compare the dollar value of your Amazon purchase with the other options you have available for using your points.

For every 100 points you redeem using Amazon, you get a dollar toward your purchase, so that works out to a value of one cent per point. But with some credit card redemption programs, you might actually end up with a redemption value of less than one cent when you use Shop with Points, so it’s important to compare what you’re getting.

Run a couple of scenarios and compare the numbers if you want to be sure you’re getting the best value for your point redemption.

How to remove your credit card from Amazon

If you decide you don’t want to use your card for Shop with Points anymore, all you have to do is go into Your Account on Amazon. You’ll see a Shop with Points option, and then you can see all of your enrolled credit cards. Choose the card you don’t want to be enrolled any longer, and Amazon will unlink it from the program. You’ll still be able to use the credit card to pay for purchases — you just won’t have the option to use your points anymore.

Once you know how to use credit card points on Amazon, you have a few more purchasing options — and can even save money on Amazon. You can decide what’s likely to work best for you and give you the most value for your money.

Seriously Powerful Cashback Card

Chase Freedom Flex℠
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Chase Freedom Flex℠

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Current Offer

Earn a $200 Bonus after you spend $500 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening

Annual Fee

$0

Rewards Rate

5% cash back on rotating quarterly categories you activate (on up to $1,500 spent) and travel purchased through the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal; 3% cash back on drugstore purchases and dining at restaurants (including takeout and eligible delivery service); and 1% cash back on all other purchases

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