Go Back  FlyerTalk Forums > Miles&Points > Credit, Debit and Prepaid Card Programs > Manufactured Spending
Reload this Page >

Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

Community
Wiki Posts
Search
Old Oct 25, 2013, 7:07 pm
FlyerTalk Forums Expert How-Tos and Guides
Last edit by: ericdabbs
Please read the wiki before posting a question.

UPDATE 01/17/15

BeFrugal: 1.5%
Big Crumbs: 0.9%
TopCashBack: 1.5%


For other cash back or airline portals, check here: http://www.cashbackmonitor.com/Cashb...erican+express

Public Service Announcement: Do NOT use fee-free codes if you want portal cashback / miles. CB/Miles will post and then be clawed back.

FAQ

Will it post as a cash advance (CA)?

Citi - Yes.

Cards from Chase, BoA, FIA, Barclay, AMEX, CapitalOne, US Bank, Discover, HSBC, etc., have posted as purchase. PNC Visa Cashbuilder - posts as purchase but does not earn CC rewards

Note: Some issuers (Discover, US Bank, etc.) will decline the authorization if it exceeds your CA limit. This does NOT mean it will post as CA. It simply means you need to lower the purchase amount below your CA limit for authorization, but it ultimately posts as a purchase.

How do I set PIN on AMEX Gift Cards and use as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc.
You cannot set PIN or use them as debit to load Bluebird, buy MOs, etc. You can only use them as credit where AMEX is accepted.

How do I cash out AMEX Gift Cards?
Use manufactured spend techniques (load RB, buy Visa/MC GCs, VRs, AP, AFT, etc.) or normal spend where AMEX is accepted.

Why buy AMEX Gift Cards then?
To reduce the cost of manufactured spend, to mask your manufactured spend (i.e unusual high spend at Target or CVS), earn additional cash back on spend, or meet minimum spend targets faster.

Next day shipping that isn't?
The next day shipping is from when they ship the cards to UPS, which can be as long as 10 days from the order submission if you order personalized cards (more recently this has been under a week). For next day shipping, you are notified late night (once your card finishes processing, see above) and the package arrive that same morning before 10:30AM in your area.

What is with the charge disappearing from my credit card?
Once the order is placed you will see a pending charge on your CC account. Quite often once the card ships this pending is removed but does not show as a charge. Don't panic (or celebrate) it will show up as a charge within a day or so.

Personalized GCs?
Either Biz or Personal GCs can be personalized with your name. This helps when shaky cashiers who demand to see your card are prevalent. These take approximately 4 biz days to arrive compared to the non personalized which arrives as quickly as the next day.

UPS Tracking?
If you logged in to your AMEX account when placing the order you can get tracking info by logging in to your AMEX account and clicking on cards > gift cards > order history > order details. Unfortunately tracking information may not appear until well after your order has shipped so it's best to sign up for UPS My Choice to get faster tracking info and reroute your package if needed. Since UPS may drop your package off at the door if you're not home, it will be useful to know when your package will arrive.

The portal terms indicate that coupon codes will invalidate cash back. Is this true?
Yes (as of July 2014)

What are the purchase limits? (Updated Dec 2014)
10K personal every 14 days
100K business every 14 days

Do declined orders count toward the purchase limits?
YMMV

Do fees and shipping count toward the purchase limits?
No

Why was my purchase declined by AMEX?
There are several possibilities:
- Your billing address does not match 100% with what the credit card company has on file. This could be anything from apt/suite/condo # on the wrong line to zip code requiring 9 digits instead of 5. If your first purchase does not go through, call your bank or login to your acct to verify that this matches what you used.
- You have gone over the $10k every 14 day limit on personal gift card purchase.
- Even if you are sure the first two are correct as you have ordered before on that card and it's been more than 14 days, you might still get declined. No one has any idea why.
- You placed a business order and you don't really have a business (at some point AMEX does a background check for a valid business) or you have exceeded the 14 day limit for business orders.

My order was declined but my credit card still shows a pending authorization. How long until this falls off and my credit line is freed up?
I typically takes 1 week for the pending authorization to fall off after a declined order.

Can I order from the business side using a personal card? Or does it need to be a business card?
You can use whatever credit card you want to pay for business or personal orders. About the only restriction is you can't use an AMEX GC to buy another AMEX GC.

How long will it take the portal to track my order and confirm the pending cash back or points?
For non-Cartera portals (TCB, BC, Befrugal, etc) your order will usually track within a day or two.
For Cartera portals (Barclay Reward Boost, Lucky Rewards, USAA, Alaska, Delta) it will take 3-4 weeks to track.

My orders are not tracking. How can I maximize the chances the portal will track my order properly?
Use a browser you do not normally use (Chrome, Firefox, Opera), reset all browser settings to defaults, clear all browser cookies, disable all browser add-ons, and close/re-start your browser before navigating to the portal and placing your order. Do NOT use promotional coupon codes. The vast majority of tracking issues result from use of coupon codes, a bad browser cookie, improperly configured browser settings, or add-ons that interfere with cookie tracking.
Print Wikipost

Cashback on Amex GC through TopCashBack, BigCrumbs, etc.

Thread Tools
 
Search this Thread
 
Old Sep 30, 2014, 9:03 pm
  #8806  
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Programs: DL DM-1MM HH Diamond
Posts: 361
Originally Posted by robertw477
I like how the Wiki here says 1.5% TCB today only. I wonder how that poster knows that :-) We will know shortly as the portals get ready for holiday season. Maybe it wont be as good as before but there should be opportunity at least around Christmas, Mothers Day, etc. thoughout the year.
Scroll down to 'Red Hot Deals' Says expiration: today only. Maybe that's what he's referring to?

http://www.topcashback.com/home
2B or back in coach is offline  
Old Sep 30, 2014, 9:48 pm
  #8807  
Suspended
 
Join Date: May 2012
Location: ORD
Programs: AA, UA, AS, DL, BA, F9, IHG Plat, HH Gold, CC Gold, SPG Gold, MR Silver
Posts: 1,786
Originally Posted by robertw477
I like how the Wiki here says 1.5% TCB today only. I wonder how that poster knows that :-) We will know shortly as the portals get ready for holiday season. Maybe it wont be as good as before but there should be opportunity at least around Christmas, Mothers Day, etc. thoughout the year.
Earlier today TCB stated just that on the page you click through, but that has since been removed.
skibum7732 is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 4:20 am
  #8808  
 
Join Date: Jun 2014
Location: Gulf Coast of FL
Posts: 115
TCB still showing 1.5% for me.
nittanylion1 is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 5:47 am
  #8809  
 
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Coconut Creek, FL
Programs: AA Lifetime Platinum-2 MM Starwood Plat,Delta DM
Posts: 975
Originally Posted by 2B or back in coach
Scroll down to 'Red Hot Deals' Says expiration: today only. Maybe that's what he's referring to?

http://www.topcashback.com/home
Its October 1. The deal is still there. So much for one day. Some of the other portals should be back in a matter of time. For me the 1.5% is pretty good on top of my normal points I generate.
robertw477 is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 7:00 am
  #8810  
 
Join Date: Apr 2014
Posts: 1,273
It took forever to get the approved email (seriously --- about 15 hours).

You suppose the system was flooded? :-)
ZzzzX is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 7:44 am
  #8811  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: PHL
Programs: SW CP, SPG Gold, Hilton Gold
Posts: 571
I'm still holding out for a higher percentage. They can certianly do better than 1.5%...
ftomasze is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 8:23 am
  #8812  
 
Join Date: May 2013
Posts: 747
Anyone else wake up and check all the CB sites first thing?
nrdk is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 8:48 am
  #8813  
 
Join Date: Nov 2013
Posts: 572
BeFrugal is 1.5% on AGCs.
Zgirl is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 8:56 am
  #8814  
 
Join Date: Dec 2009
Posts: 138
Originally Posted by nrdk
Anyone else wake up and check all the CB sites first thing?
Um, yes.
skibum3d is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:02 am
  #8815  
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: East Coast
Posts: 70
Waiting
3% or more before i'm back on.
Dockdogs is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:30 am
  #8816  
Suspended
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: ILG/PHL
Programs: Amex Plat, AA Gold, SPG Gold, Hyatt Gold, HHonors Gold, Carlson Gold
Posts: 1,075
Originally Posted by Zgirl
BeFrugal is 1.5% on AGCs.
If it's between BF and TCB for the same rate I'm going with TCB since you get your money sooner and they ACH directly to your checking account.
payeco is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:34 am
  #8817  
 
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: Northeast USA
Posts: 300
Originally Posted by payeco
If it's between BF and TCB for the same rate I'm going with TCB since you get your money sooner and they ACH directly to your checking account.
I vote BF - have never used TCB due to the reports of tracking issues, but I've had 100% near-instant tracking with BF. They do take a bit longer to pay out, but I don't mind waiting, and I actually prefer getting a few checks each month so that I have something other than MOs to deposit to my stable of banks.

Waiting for 2.5%+...
dublin487 is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:37 am
  #8818  
 
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: RDU
Programs: Delta silver, HH silver, IHG platinum, SPG gold, AMEX platinum
Posts: 400
bigCrumbs

Looks like AGC is 0.9% at BigCrumbs...lol
stealph is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:47 am
  #8819  
 
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Midwest U.S.A
Programs: Too many to list. Since the early 90's.
Posts: 1,407
Originally Posted by dublin487
I vote BF - have never used TCB due to the reports of tracking issues, but I've had 100% near-instant tracking with BF. They do take a bit longer to pay out, but I don't mind waiting, and I actually prefer getting a few checks each month so that I have something other than MOs to deposit to my stable of banks.

Waiting for 2.5%+...
Agreed. I also like getting the paper checks in the mail for that reason plus I don't trust portals with my checking acct. #s, but that's just me. I greatly limit the number of companies who I give access to those bank numbers even though I realize some may employee secure systems. Also waiting on better cb %. It may be useful for some of you at this level, but doesn't work for me. Enjoy. If no one offers better before the end of the year, then I also won't be doing any regular Christmas shopping through portals. I've actually enjoyed visiting actual stores since AGCs haven't been available with good cb% through portals since July/August.
Churnman is offline  
Old Oct 1, 2014, 9:55 am
  #8820  
 
Join Date: Sep 2014
Posts: 10
Q4 Discover for AMEX Gift Card

Just wondering if ordering these online with the portal would also count for the discover Q4 for online shopping 5% cashback? Anyone try that before?
rwt534 is offline  


Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.