Banana Republic Visa Spending Offer March 2016
I have written a few times about the Banana Republic Visa card. After hearing about some of the great spending offers others had received, I decided to bite the bullet and apply for the card late last year. While there isn’t a sign-up bonus, I was pleasantly surprised when I received the card and they offered me $30 in credit for using the card once outside of their brands.
Then last month I was very happy to receive an offer giving 5% back at gas stations, grocery stores and on dining. With the demise of my Serve cards and local grocery stores tightening, I wasn’t able to go as big as I probably would have in the past in these categories, but I did rack up a nice chunk of credit.
Now for March, they have sent me another great offer. Unlike last month’s offer this one is capped, but it is still a great deal. Let’s take a look.
The Spending Offer
As you can see, I can earn 100 bonus points on up to 20 transactions outside of their brands. 2,000 points is worth $20 in credit at their stores. Very nice. I will still earn the normal 1% in credit as well for my purchases. I could of course put the card in my wallet and use it for normal day to day purchases, but I have other cards which might be better for higher dollar amount spend.
A Strategy to Maximize
While I haven’t done this yet and am not sure if I will, I could theoretically purchase 20 X $.50 Amazon gift cards to satisfy the requirements. For these purchases I would earn a total of $20.10 in Gap Brands credit. Some would argue I could buy a $10 Amazon gift card at Staples to earn 5X with Ink and they are right. Of course, I’ll take $20+ in credit over 50 Ultimate Rewards points any day.
This Card Is Paying Off
This card is really paying off so far. In just a couple of months I have received $30 in free credit, 5% cashback in certain categories and now $20 back with minimal effort. In total, I have received about $200 worth of “free” rewards in just three months. Considering this is a no annual fee card, I consider that to be an amazing value.
Conclusion
Yes I know that Gap/Banana Republic credit isn’t as good as cash and I am fully aware that I could purchase gift cards at 20% off, etc. In the end, even if I only value these rewards at 70-80% of face value, I am still getting a very good value for little effort. If these types of campaigns hold up, this may become the most valuable no annual fee card in my wallet and that is saying a lot.
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Are you getting these an emails or physical letters? I have yet to receive a spending bonus on my card and have (not so patiently!!) been waiting.
I was target for that offer last month. This month I got x5 everywhere with no cap, which is essentially 6% with the bonus for being a luxe member. Still figuring out how much I want to spend and the best/easiest route.
Plus you have to like their clothes.
True!