Amazon Shop with Points is a free program available to Amazon shoppers who want to use their credit card rewards points to pay for Amazon purchases. (Try saying that five times fast.)
As Amazon has become almost an essential part of shopping for many consumers, the option to use your rewards points at checkout can be tempting. But what is the program? And is it worth it? Well, that depends on the rewards program you’re a part of.
What Is the Amazon Shop With Points Program?
The Amazon Shop with Points Program is just that: It’s a program that lets you link your rewards credit card to your Amazon account so you can use your rewards points to pay for Amazon purchases.
You may have already seen the opportunity to pay with points if you have an Amazon card, as the account is automatically set up to allow you to pay with your rewards.
You can even redeem your points to pay for your Prime membership. You can also use points to make Kindle, Prime Video and Amazon Music Unlimited purchases.
What Credit Card Rewards Programs Can You Use to Shop with Points?
Depending on what rewards credit card you have and what rewards program you’re a part of, your points are going to have different values.
Listed below are all the rewards programs accepted under Shop with Points and their point valuation.
| Credit Card Rewards Program | Point Value in Cents |
| Amazon Visa Rewards | 1 |
| Amazon Store Card Rewards | 1 |
| Amazon Business Card Rewards | 1 |
| American Express Membership Rewards | 0.7 |
| American Express Reward Dollars | 1 |
| Bank of America Rewards | 1 |
| Bilt Points | 0.7 |
| Capital One Miles | 0.8 |
| Chase Ultimate Rewards | 0.8 |
| Citi ThankYou Points | 0.8 |
| Discover Rewards | 1 |
| Elan Financial Services-Issued Credit Card Rewards | 1 |
| Hilton Honors Points | 0.7 |
| HSBC Rewards | 0.8 |
| Mercury Rewards Points | 1 |
| uChoose Rewards | 0.9 |
| U.S. Bank Rewards | 1 |
| Robinhood Gold Card Rewards | 0.7 |
| Wings Member Rewards | 0.8 |
It’s worth noting that while this program makes it easy to make purchases with points, it’s not always the best way to use your points. This is due to the redemption value. As listed above, not all credit card rewards programs will offer you a 1-to-1 redemption.
[Read: Best Cash Back Credit Cards.]
How Does Shop with Points Work?
The process is actually pretty simple. I even signed up just to see how the process worked. All you have to do is link your rewards credit card to your account and select which rewards you want to use at checkout.
If you’re unsure if your rewards card is under the umbrella of approved cards, just go to Amazon’s Shop with Points page and select the rewards program you’re a part of. Once you do that, you’ll see all the credit cards eligible for use with the program.
I added my Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card and my American Express® Gold Card. All you have to do is log in to your Amazon account and add your card details after selecting the appropriate rewards program. Once you do, you’ll see how much you have available in points.
For example, my Capital One VentureOne card has about $23 in available rewards while my AmEx Gold has a little over $130. So I can use either to help pay for my Amazon purchases.
Unfortunately, like in my case, you cannot combine rewards points from multiple programs to pay for an order. So even if you’re only a few dollars short and have those rewards in another program, you can’t use them.
Also, since I have American Express Membership Rewards points, I’m actually losing value if I use them to pay for my Amazon purchases. This is because Membership Rewards points are worth 0.7 cent on Amazon. This means 1,000 Membership Rewards points are worth $7 at checkout.
So, if you’re planning on using the program, make sure it makes sense for you and you’re not throwing away rewards.
[Read: Best Airline Credit Cards.]
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Guide to Amazon Shop With Points Program originally appeared on usnews.com
