Thursday, July 30, 2015

Get Cash Back at Supermarkets Using Discover

I have written before about getting cash back when using a Discover card at the supermarket, but same information still applies. I am not referring to the Discover Card Cashback bonus that you earn for making purchases on a Discover Card. Rather, I'm talking about using the Discover Card in a supermarket, and then choosing cash back as a option during checkout. Discover card refers to this checkout option as "cash over". In Silicon Valley, California, I usually get my cash back from Safeway. While Discover Card limits you to $120 in "cash over" per day, Safeway only allows you get up to $60 per transaction.

This cashover works out to be a nice interest free loan since I pay off the card every month. It also saves me a trip to the ATM. It used to be that you would also earn cashback on the cash over amount. But now, Discover Card separates out the "cash over" part from the "purchases" part of your transaction, and you no longer earn a cashback bonus on the cash over amount.

Warning: I do not recommend this strategy to people who run a balance on their credit card, and end up paying interest charges on the money.

PFS