Best grocery credit cards of April 2024

Unfortunately, not all purchases at grocery stores or supermarkets will earn rewards across every card. Each card has specific restrictions on what will classify as a grocery or supermarket expense. 

For example, bulk stores such as Costco and Sam’s Club are frequently excluded from the definition of a grocery store across rewards credit cards. Additionally, stores like Walmart and Target are also often excluded. So if you’re doing most of your shopping at one of these stores, you may not earn rewards on your grocery expenses. 

Most credit card issuers will have a list of examples that will count as a grocery store or supermarket on their website (you can see Amex’s here), as well as any major exclusions (such as Walmart or Target). Before applying for a card you hope you use for groceries, make sure the card you want will earn rewards where you shop. 

There are many great options when looking for a card that earns rewards on grocery expenses, but make sure you’re choosing a card that earns the best type of rewards for your lifestyle and financial goals. 

If your goal is to use your credit card rewards to fund your next vacation, choosing a card that earns valuable transferable rewards (such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or American Express® Gold Card) will be most helpful toward reaching that goal. However, if you don’t travel often and are more concerned with saving money on everyday expenses, a cash-back card will likely be a better choice. 

Online grocery shopping — from meal delivery kits to grocery delivery services like Instacart to curbside pickup at brick-and-mortar stores — has risen in popularity in recent years. If you shop for your groceries online, make sure you’re checking online shopping portals before you buy. 

For example, let’s say you use Instacart to order groceries and have them delivered to your door. If you use a shopping portal like Rakuten, you can earn cash back or American Express Membership Rewards points on your grocery purchase. And if you also use a credit card that earns rewards on Instacart grocery purchases, you’ll earn rewards from your card on top of whatever you earn from the shopping portal — double the rewards without double the spending. 

There are shopping portal aggregators and easy-to-use browser extensions that can help make using shopping portals to stack your rewards a seamless process. Check out our guide to shopping portals (which you can also use for other online purchases outside of just groceries) to get the lowdown on earning more rewards when you shop.

Bonus-category rewards cards

These credit cards have an earning structure that allows cardholders to earn bonus rewards in select categories. For example, a card that earns 1% cash back on all purchases, but then also earns an additional 3% back on grocery purchases would be considered a bonus-category rewards card. 

Most of the top credit cards for grocery purchases fall under this umbrella, including the Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, the Amex Gold and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. Generally, these types of cards are not associated with any specific store. 

Cobranded rewards cards

Cobranded cards are credit cards that are the result of a partnership between a card issuer (such as Amex or Chase) and a specific brand. Cobranded cards are common in the points and miles arena because they offer a way for travelers loyal to a specific brand to earn rewards exclusive to that brand on assorted expenses. 

For example, let’s look at the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Credit Card. This is a popular cobranded card from Delta Air Lines and Amex. You’ll earn rewards with the card on various purchases, including at U.S. supermarkets, but the rewards you earn are Delta miles specific to the airline’s loyalty program. 

Cobranded cards are great options for frequent travelers who are loyal to a specific brand and want benefits associated with that brand. Using the Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card as an example again, that card has perks specific to Delta, such as free checked bags.

While cobranded cards do sometimes offer rewards on grocery store purchases, they are usually most beneficial when used for travel purchases while you use a card with better rewards rates for your grocery expenses. 

Store credit cards

Store cards are credit cards offered by a specific store. Most major retailers in the U.S. have a store credit card (if you’ve shopped in person at a retailer, you’ve likely been offered to apply for one of these cards at the checkout counter).

Store cards generally only offer brand-specific rewards and discounts, and a lot of store credit cards don’t offer a lot of value to cardholders compared to other rewards cards. However, that doesn’t mean there aren’t some great store cards out there — especially for grocery store purchases. 

The Prime Visa is a great example. This card has a great rewards rate for Amazon and Whole Foods purchases (so if you order your groceries from Whole Foods, it’s a solid option for you), even though the benefits outside of that are lacking. 

The Costco Anywhere Visa® Card by Citi (see rates and fees) is another example of a store credit card (though you could also technically call it a cobranded card with Citi), with the potential to earn valuable cash back on multiple spending categories outside of Costco.