The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Advertiser disclosure
The Points Guy believes that credit cards can transform lives, helping you leverage everyday spending for cash back or travel experiences that might otherwise be out of reach. That's why we publish a variety of editorial content and card comparisons: to help you find a great card to turn your goals into reality.
Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Guides
Are non-travel statement credit redemptions worthwhile?
Madison Blancaflor is the managing editor for TPG's content operations team. She focuses on helping TPG's broader editorial team bring news, features and advice to readers. She has nearly six years of experience covering the credit cards and travel industries.
June 2, 2020 • 8 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
Related stories
Quick summary
Redeeming travel rewards points for non-travel statement credits is possible, but often yields lower value than travel redemptions.
Some cards offer temporary or category-specific bonuses that improve the value of non-travel redemptions, particularly for groceries, dining or home improvement.
Fixed-value cards provide consistent redemption rates regardless of how points are used, making them appealing for everyday expenses.
Redemptions below one cent per point are generally not recommended unless necessary, as travel redemptions typically offer higher value.
What to consider
Temporary bonuses for non-travel redemptions may have eligibility windows or category restrictions.
Redemption rates can vary significantly, with some programs offering as little as 0.5 to 0.6 cents per point for statement credits.
Holding points for future travel is usually more valuable, especially if transfer partners are available.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed comparison of redemption rates and guidance on when it makes sense to use points for non-travel expenses.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Typically speaking, redeeming your points as a statement credit isn’t your best option because of subpar redemption rates. However, with so many currently unable or unwilling to travel, a lot of cardholders are considering alternative redemption options for points besides travel.
The good news is that some issuers have adjusted their redemption options to account for this. With more non-travel redemption options than ever, does it makes sense to redeem your points for a statement credit rather than waiting for travel to return to a state of normalcy?
Below are the top points-earning cards that currently allow you to redeem your points as a statement credit for expenses other than travel, along with how much value you’ll get by going that route.
Card
Category restrictions for non-travel statement credits
Redemption rate
Worth considering?
Chase Sapphire Reserve
Grocery, dining and home improvement stores
1.5 cents/point
Yes
Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
Grocery, dining and home improvement stores
1.25 cents/point
Yes
Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
Food delivery, takeout
1 cent/mile
Yes
Capital One Spark Miles for Business
Food delivery, takeout
1 cent/mile
Yes
Citi Prestige® Card
Anything
1 cent/point
Yes
Citi Premier® Card
Anything
0.5 cents/point
No
Citi Rewards+® Card
Anything
0.5 cents/point
No
Wells Fargo Propel American Express® card (no longer available for new applicants)
(The information about Citi Prestige and Wells Fargo Propel has been collected independently by TPG. The card details on this page have not be provided by or approved by the issuer.)
When does it make sense to redeem for purchases other than travel?
While no one can make that choice for you, we can provide you with insight into which cards offer the best value on non-travel statement credits right now. The best redemption options will still continue to be travel, especially on cards with transfer partners. But if you’re looking at a choice between carrying a balance on your card or redeeming points for a statement credit, it’s worth considering using your points — especially if you’ll get at least one cent per point or mile on that redemption.
Chase Sapphire Reserve’s temporary 50% redemption bonus on groceries, dining and home improvement purchases is one example of a solid non-travel statement credit option. Through the end of Sept. 2020, cardholders can redeem points at the same rate for these eligible non-travel purchases as they could through the Ultimate Rewards travel portal.
While it’s still possible to get a higher value per point by transferring them to airlines for premium cabin flights or excellent hotel deals (TPG values Chase points at 2 cents each for this reason), this is still a valuable option to have in your back pocket if you don’t plan on booking premium-cabin trips in the near future.
(Photo by John Gribben for The Points Guy)
Fixed-value cards
The Bank of America Premium Rewards credit card and the Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card are both what we call fixed-value credit cards, meaning their points are worth the same no matter what you redeem them for. In these cases, it makes just as much sense to redeem those points for your everyday expenses for a statement credit as it does to use them on travel.
That’s one of the reasons we tend to recommend these types of cards year-round for beginners and occasional travelers — while there aren’t opportunities to maximize redemption value, you also don’t have to worry about subpar redemptions if you don’t want to use your rewards for travel every time.
Any time you’re getting less than one cent per point, you should seriously consider holding off on using your rewards as a statement credit.
With Amex and Citi cards, you're almost always better off saving your points to use on future travel rather than a statement credit. (Photo by Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
The American Express Membership Rewards program is probably the most notably bad option when looking at statement credit redemptions. You’re only getting 0.6 cents per point when you redeem for a statement credit across any of its Membership Rewards cards. Considering you can potentially get more than triple that value if you utilize Amex transfer partners, you’d be better off saving your points.
Citi is another example. While you’ll get 1 cent per point on the Prestige, that’s still significantly less than you could get if you utilize transfer partners. If you’ll otherwise have to carry a balance, of course you should do what you have to do to prevent that. But unless in extreme circumstances, it’ll be better to save those points for future travel.
This is doubly true for the Citi Premier and Citi Rewards+, both of which offer only a 0.5 cents per point redemption rate on statement credits.
Bottom line
At the end of the day, choosing the best redemption option comes down to your priorities and the specific situation. During normal circumstances, we’d almost never recommend using points for anything not travel-related. But these are certainly not normal circumstances, and there are currently some decent non-travel redemptions available across some travel cards.
If you have upcoming trips planned that you’ll soon start to book (especially premium-cabin flights), it might be best to go ahead and save those points for that redemption to get the absolute best value.
However, if you know travel is off the table for you until 2021 and you could utilize those points for a solid (even if not stellar) non-travel redemption, I’d say it’s worth looking into when you have a Chase Ultimate Rewards, Venture miles or fixed-value credit card with a stash of points.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
