Finding the right credit card for groceries can quietly turn your weekly shopping into one of the easiest ways to earn points.
Imagine standing in the aisle with your usual haul for the week, produce, snacks, school lunch stuff, and the random things that somehow end up in the cart every single time. Your total comes to a little over $400.
Now imagine that same $400 quietly earning you 2,400 Chase Ultimate Rewards points before you even reach the checkout.
That is not a flight or a hotel stay earning those points, it is groceries.
I cannot believe it has taken me this long to spell it out for you, because this is one of the easiest ways our family turns a normal grocery run into points toward our next trip, quietly, every single month.
Here is exactly how it works.
The Simple Truth About Grocery Spending
Most families spend well over $1,000 a month on food. That is over $12,000 a year walking out the door on a purchase that happens whether you like it or not. And most of that money earns absolutely nothing in return.
The right card stack changes that completely. At $1,000 a month in grocery spending, the methods I am about to share earn our family at least 72,000 Chase points a year from nothing more than feeding ourselves. Those are points that transfer to Hyatt, United, Flying Blue, and more, points that have funded business class upgrades and Park Hyatt stays that most people assume are completely out of reach.
Three ways to turn the right credit card for groceries into serious points, from highest to lowest earning rate.
Method 1: 6x Using the Staples Gift Card Strategy
This is the one I use most and the one that earns the most.
Before I place an Instacart order I go to Staples and buy an Instacart gift card using my Chase Ink Business Cash card. The Ink Business Cash earns 5% at office supply stores, so that gift card purchase earns me 5x points right at the register. I load the gift card to my Instacart account and shop as normal.
Then before I place the order I click through Rakuten, a free shopping portal, which stacks an extra 1x on top of what my card already earned.
5x from the Ink Business Cash plus 1x from Rakuten equals 6x on every grocery dollar. On $1,000 in monthly grocery spending that is 6,000 Chase points a month and 72,000 points a year from Instacart orders alone.
It helps to know that those points are not plain cash back, the Ink Business Cash earns what looks like cash back but is actually Chase Ultimate Rewards points in disguise, and pairing it with a Chase Sapphire Preferred or Reserve turns that cash back into fully transferable travel points, the same ones that move to Hyatt, United, Flying Blue, and Virgin Atlantic at 1:1.
You do not need a registered business to apply. Any side income qualifies: freelancing, consulting, tutoring, selling online, or any hustle where you intend to make money.
Learn More About the Chase Ink Business Cash
Method 2: 4x Using the Chase Sapphire Preferred and Rakuten
For grocery orders, I place directly through Instacart without the gift card route, I use my Chase Sapphire Preferred instead. It earns 3x on all online grocery purchases including Instacart. Before placing the order I click through Rakuten and earn an extra 1x on top, bringing the total to 4x automatically.
This method skips the trip to Staples entirely. Just open Rakuten, click through to Instacart, place your order, and pay with your Sapphire Preferred, and both earning layers land in your accounts at the same time.
Learn More About the Chase Sapphire Preferred
Method 3: 2x at Costco Using the Capital One Venture X
Costco does not fall into standard grocery bonus categories on most credit cards even though it is where a lot of families do their biggest shop every week. For every Costco run I use my Capital One Venture X which earns a flat 2x on every purchase regardless of category with no exceptions and no caps. It is also a Visa, which matters because Costco only accepts Visa in store.
Those miles transfer to Flying Blue, Japan Airlines, Turkish Airlines, Aeroplan, and more so they are genuinely useful toward real travel redemptions.
Learn More About the Capital One Venture X
The Tool Behind All Three Methods: Rakuten
Rakuten is a free shopping portal that earns you points on top of whatever your credit card is already earning on the same purchase, with no coupons and no promo codes involved. You just click through Rakuten before you shop, place your order as normal, and the points stack automatically.
Sign up through our referral link and you get a $50 bonus when you join and spend $50, on top of whatever you earn from that first purchase.
The one setting worth changing when you sign up is your payout preference. Switch it from cash to Chase Ultimate Rewards points or Amex Membership Rewards points and every Rakuten earning goes directly toward travel instead of sitting in a PayPal account.
Set it up once and it runs in the background every time you shop online. It is genuinely the easiest extra earning layer available and it costs nothing.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need a formal business to apply for the Chase Ink Business Cash?
No. Any income-generating activity qualifies: freelancing, selling online, tutoring, consulting, or any side hustle where you intend to make a profit. You apply as a sole proprietor using your Social Security number.
Why does the Chase Sapphire Preferred not earn 3x at Costco and Walmart?
Card issuers code Costco and Walmart as superstores or wholesale clubs rather than supermarkets in their merchant category systems even though you are buying groceries there. That is exactly why a flat rate card like the Capital One Venture X is the smarter choice for those stores.
When does Rakuten pay out?
Rakuten earnings are confirmed within a few days of your purchase and paid out quarterly. Switch your payout preference to Chase Ultimate Rewards or Amex Membership Rewards points in your account settings to get the most travel value from every Rakuten earning.
What is the best credit card for groceries?
For most families, the strongest stack is the Chase Ink Business Cash for the Staples gift card method, the Chase Sapphire Preferred for direct Instacart orders, and the Capital One Venture X for Costco runs, all layered with Rakuten.
What credit card for groceries earns the most points?
The Chase Ink Business Cash, when used to buy an Instacart gift card at Staples and stacked with Rakuten, earns the highest rate at 6x.
The Bottom Line
Groceries are going to leave your account every single month no matter what. The only question is whether that money earns anything when it does.
The Chase Ink Business Cash at Staples plus Rakuten gives you 6x on Instacart orders. The Chase Sapphire Preferred plus Rakuten gives you 4x on online grocery orders. The Capital One Venture X covers Costco at a reliable 2x.
Done consistently, having the right credit card for groceries in your wallet earns tens of thousands of points every year from purchases your family was always going to make.
This post contains affiliate links. All opinions are our own. Card offers and earning rates are subject to change. Always verify current terms directly with the card issuer before applying.
