REDcard

Official Announcement from Amex about Redbird Reloads

Posted on June 13, 2015June 13, 2015 by admin

I received an email from Amex that announced a change of rules for Redbird reload. Here is the email,

Dear my name,

We wanted to let you know that you will no longer be able to load your Target Prepaid REDCard® by American Express at Target stores with a Target GiftCard or a non-Target branded credit card. You can continue to load your card with cash or debit at Target stores.

You can also add money to your Target Prepaid REDcard® by American Express online through direct deposit or transfer from your linked debit or bank account.

For more information about your Target Prepaid REDcard® by American Express, click here.

At a glance, my first thought was that they banned me from in-store reloads. But I continued to read,and found that it was just about a change of rule a month ago. I checked other blog posts and forums to confirm that it was sent to all cardholders.

A reason I was scared at first is current status of my Redbird. I have loaded $5000 in store and $1000 online last week. And this week, I rushed to unload by spending normally, paying bills. Then, yesterday I withdrew to my bank account to make the balance zero so I can close Redbird.

Target stores in my neighbor (NYC) don’t accept prepaid debit cards. So, I needed to go to Nassau County for reloads since the change. And surprisingly, even two stores in Nassau didn’t accept prepaid cards. I used PayPal business debit card in those stores. (my local stores don’t even accept PP business debit card.) These are enough reasons to switch back to Serve so I can load with prepaid cards at Walmart ATM. Click here for details.

The email says something strange,

……you will no longer be able to load your Target Prepaid REDCard® by American Express at Target stores with a Target GiftCard or a non-Target branded credit card…..

Target GiftCard? You weren’t able to use Target gift cards for reload from the beginning. non-Target branded credit card? It sounds like that you could use Target credit card for reloads, but I doubt it. That’s because the system doesn’t allow to use credit cards for reloads. Even if you can use it, there is no benefit by doing it, anyway.

I received another email. It is almost identical to the first one, just replacing “Target Prepaid REDcard” with “American Express Target Card.” What is Amex Target Card? When I saw “account ending xxxxx” in the email, I noticed this email is regarding of “American Express for Target.” The change from last month has been applied to Amex for Target, too. But I didn’t care. I used this card for a month or so, then I found it useless to me. I haven’t been using ever since. Did they change the name of the card, Amex for Target to Amex Target Card? …. I don’t care that, either.

Now, I am waiting for the last transaction of Redbird to complete. As soon as it completes, I will Redbird and open Serve.

Close Redbird, Open Serve due to more restrictions to reloads

Posted on May 25, 2015May 25, 2015 by admin

When Target stopped accepting credit cards for Redbird reloads, I decided to close Redbird and open Serve. I thought which one to open (Bluebird or Serve.) After some research, I have chosen Serve over Bluebird. Serve is the only card that you use credit cards for online reload. They used to accept any credit cards. But now, they only accept Amex credit cards. And if you use Amex-issued credit cards, you can’t earn the reward. To earn a reward, you have to link non-Amex issued credit cards, such as Fidelity Investment Rewards American Express Card. I don’t have any non-Amex issued credit cards now, but I will apply in the future.

I made a plan when Target changed the rule of Redbird reloads. Here my original plan goes:

load Redbird to the limit by 5/10
unload completely by 5/12
wait 3 to 5 business days for the last transaction (it’s most likely a withdrawal to my bank account) to complete
As soon as the last transaction completes, close Redbird and apply Serve
load Serve to the limit by the end of this month

However, I found it too busy to load Redbird. It took more time than the plan, and probably there was no enough time to load Serve. So I decided to do this next month.

Now, I have time to reconsider Redbird benefits over Serve. Here is some benefit of Redbird:

Target is the store I go very often
Target accepts Vanilla VGCs

There are only two benefits, but they are enough reasons for me to keep Redbird. I had once changed my mind and decided to keep Redbird. However, Target store in my neighbor applied their own rule. They don’t accept prepaid cards. Probably, this rule has been applied since May 6th, the date all Target store in the U.S. stopped accepting credit card for reloads. On the top of that, they don’t accept PayPal Business Debit card, which my name is embossed. A clerk said, “We only accept cash or debit cards issued by major banks, Chase, Citi,…..”

At that moment, my mind’s made up, I will close Redbird and open Serve for sure. Because of this store’s own rule, the closest Target store that accepts GCs for reload is now 20+ miles away. (there are seven other stores within that range, and they had already stopped accepting GCs even before May 6th.)

If you can buy Vanilla VGCs with credit cards at drug stores, or somewhere else, Redbird still has the advantage over Serve on that point. But my local drug stores don’t accept credit cards for payment of a large amount of GC purchase. The place I can comfortably buy is target.com. $400 VGC charges $6 fee; it’s 1.5%. You can use AmexGCs for the purchase and buy multiple GCs at a once. Keep it in mind, it’s always better to have many options for your MS. I may be going to use for Serve reload via Family Dollar. (I haven’t been to FD since I closed Serve for opening Redbird. I hope this option is still alive.)

Will I double-MS next month?

There was a forum post. It said that he or she had to wait for 30 days to apply a new card (Serve) after closing an old one (Bluebird). I used to have Serve and closed it for opening Redbird. As soon as the last transaction of Serve completed, I closed Serve. And then I applied permanent Redbird. It was about 10 minutes after closing Serve and was succeeded. So I was able to double-MS that month. In terms of switching Redbird to Serve, I couldn’t find the specific information. But big deal, I will close Redbird, anyway. For a possible double MS, next month, I will need to load and drain Redbird as soon as possible.

Target No Longer Accepts Credit Card for Redbird Reloads

Posted on May 7, 2015May 7, 2015 by admin

Overview

A new rule was reported in many forums and blogs on May 5th, and it’s implemented on May 6th in all U.S. Target stores. It’s hard-corded. The POS system won’t allow credit cards as a payment for Redbird reloads.

Background

Before this new rule, several Target stores in my neighborhood already had their own rules. For examples, “Cash or Debit Only” “No Credit Cards” “No Prepaid Cards (gift cards)”, etc. However, there are many other Target stores in my neighborhood. So, I didn’t have much trouble reloading Redbird until yesterday. Loading with credit cards was the main benefit of Redbird for me (and I suppose, for the most cardholders, too.) I mostly used AmexGCs for reloads. It was really easy to reload $1000 without worrying about a decline by a bank. You didn’t have to deal with fraud alert as long as a GC has enough balance on it. Now, the benefit is gone, and this new rule is hard-corded and nation-wide. There is no way to get around it.

Current Accepted Payment Methods

Target accepts Cash or Debit for reload. Reportedly, the system allows PIN-enabled gift cards. But I think some stores don’t accept gift cards because of store-specific rules. And I don’t think split payment works anymore. When I asked split payment, transactions of each card were treated as credit. (see details here) So, from now on, you will need to make separate transactions with each gift card.

What is the best now? Redbird or Bluebird or Serve

The main benefit of Redbird is gone. I’m going to close Redbird and open Bluebird or Serve. I’m still thinking which one to open, but I’m sure I will close Redbird. The new rule makes Redbird inferior to Bluebird and Serve for the following reasons.

Too Mush Hassle for reloads

You can’t use AmexGC anymore. For MS, the only option is to use PIN-enabled gift cards. I will use many $200 VGCs from BBY. 25 reloads ($200×25=$5000) every month are too many hassles. Besides, most local Target stores allow to reload at guest service only. Regular cashiers are not allowed, or simply they don’t know about Redbird. Each store has only one guest service. This means I have to go and ask the same clerk for multiple reloads. It’s not comfortable. Bluebird and Serve can be loaded by a kiosk at Walmart. You need to separate transactions with each gift cards, but it’s not a big deal because what you deal with is a machine. Even if a kiosk is out of order, regular cashiers know how to load.

5% REDcard discount isn’t that great

5% instant discount sounds nice, but you can get more discount by purchasing TargetGCs from gift card resellers. It’s not difficult to find 5% or even 6% discounted GCs. If you buy those GCs with reward credit cards, an overall discount would be more than 5%. In case discounted TargetGCs are all sold out, keep in mind that Staples sells e-codes online. If you have Chase ink business credit card, you will earn 5x bonus reward on the purchase. So, 5% discount is not exclusive, and even more discount would be possible.

Amex Offer

Recently, Bluebird has been able to be connected Amex Offer via Twitter, Facebook, etc. And Serve has been also able to do it quite a while. Only Redbird can’t. Maybe in the future, but I don’t want to wait for something uncertain and miss good Amex Offers.

My Plan

I used to have Serve. I closed it for opening Redbird. From my experience, you can apply a new one right after closing the existing one. In order to close the account, you need to unload the card completely, by bill pays or withdrawing to linked bank account, which takes 3 to 5 business days. For this month, I have already done $1000 online reload, but in-store reload is only $1400 so far. I will load as much as possible in this week and unload completely next week. Then I will close Redbird and open Bluebird or Serve. There have been some minor changes to these cards since I got Redbird. So, I will need to review all benefits of both cards to decide which card is better for me.

Free $10 Target GC with a $50 Applebees GC purchase

Posted on April 14, 2015April 16, 2015 by admin

Overview

Target has a promotion. You can get free $10 Target gift card for a $50 or more Applebees GC purchase. They offer this type of deal occasionally, but this deal is 20% back. It is a high return. It’s available both in-store and online. The offer ends on April 18th, 2015.

Limit

They say, “Quantities limited.” So, when GCs are out of stock, they stop this promo. And it seems that you can get only one $10 Target GC per transaction. At Target.com, when I add a $50 Applebees GCs in a cart, a free $10 Target GC appears in a cart, too. But even if I change the quantity of Applebees GC, there is only one free Target GC in a cart. And, I don’t know what’s going to happen to in-store purchase.

How will you receive Target GC?

Online, you will receive an electric gift card. During a check-out, you need to enter an email address to which you want them to send EGC. The email address doesn’t need to be the same as one from your Target’s online account.

In-store, you will probably receive a physical gift card. And most likely, it’s a paper card without a silver scratch. All numbers are exposed from the beginning. Be careful with these GCs. Target reuse them over and over. If some crooks keep the numbers, they can snatch the amount of GCs. I suggest moving the balance to another GC as soon as possible. If you don’t have one, you can buy new GCs with GCs.

Is it profitable?

I just don’t want to use GCs at a restaurant. I’m not interested in saving money at a restaurant by using GCs. All I care about this promo is if it’s profitable when I sold to GC exchange sites. At the time of writing this post, the highest rate is 76.5% from Giftcards.com. If you sell $50 Applebees GC, you will receive $38.25. Say you shop at Target very often, and consider $10 Target GC as cash ($10USD). After you sold, you would have $48.25.

It’s a loss of $1.75. However, you should know a few things about GC purchases at Target before a conclusion.

Things you should know about GC purchases at Target

Cash Back Portal – You may earn cash back from a portal. I bought 3rd party EGC a few days ago. Portal site sent a confirmation email, and pending cash back was posted. (Soon after, I bought $400VGC via the same portal site. I received a confirmation email as well, but this time, it says $0. See details here.)

5% REDcard Discount – 5%-discount used to be applied on 3rd party GC purchases, but no longer applied. This change happened just a week ago. Online, I can’t find any GCs with 5% discount applied since then. I don’t know about in-store purchases.

Pay with Target GCs – You can use Target GCs for GC purchases except Visa, MasterCard, and American Express (available in-store only.) Although 5% REDcard discount is gone, you can get 5% or more discount by using Target GCs. You can find 4 to 6% discount GCs at GC exchange sites. Buying and using discounted GCs might as well get a discount at check-out.

So, is it profitable?

Say you buy a $50 Target GC with 4% discount at raise.com. You save $2. Then you buy and sell a $50 Applebees GC at the rate of 76.5%. You have $38.25(check)+$10(TargetGC)+$2=$50.25. It is slightly profitable. Considering with credit card reward from the transaction at GC exchange site, it is a good deal. And there may be cash back from a portal. Most importantly, I can carry out an experiment of cash back portal without losing money.

Conclusion

I purchased one $50 Applebees GC with Target GC, via the same cash back portal site from a few days ago. So far, I have received a confirmation email from Target. That’s it. Not yet, an email of $10 Target GC nor an email from the portal. I will update a result here when I receive.

Update 4/15/2015

I received $10 Target eGC next day. And almost the same time I received an email from the portal site. Unfortunately, the amount of cash back is $0. Cash back for the transaction of the other gift card from a few days before still exists in my account, without clawback (still pending, though.) Depending on gift cards, you may earn cash back with GC purchases.

5% REDcard Discount no longer applied to GC purchases

Posted on April 12, 2015July 12, 2015 by admin

It happened for a few weeks in April. 5% discount IS applied to GC purchases, except for Visa, MasterCard, Amex or Target.

Overview

It seems that Target implemented a new rule on gift card purchase. 5% REDcard discount is no longer applied to ~~any~~ GC purchases.

Target Gift Card

5% discount had been never applied on Target GCs purchases. So, the change doesn’t affect on Target GCs purchases.

Visa Gift Card

A few weeks ago, Target started selling high denomination of Target Visa gift cards ($200 and $400) online. And 5% discount was applied to these purchases. I believe this deal had been available for a week or two after their debut at Target.com. However, this deal ended last week. The VGCs of other denominations have been available since way before. But 5% discount wasn’t applied on these GCs purchases.

MasterCard Gift Card

The available denominations of Target MasterCard gift cards are $25, $50, and $100. It had been several months that they sell MCGCs, and 5% discount was applied when you check out with REDcard. This deal have ended at the same time as $200&$400VGCs’ deal ended.

3rd Party Gift Card

The 5% discount had been applied on 3rd party GC purchases for years, but ~~it’s ended as well~~.

Cash Back from Portals

Generally, you don’t get cash back on GC purchases. Back then, ShopDiscover ( a former version of Discover Deals) paid cash back on GC purchases except Target GCs. I used to buy a bunch of VGCs through it. After ShopDiscover stopped being a partner with Target, I couldn’t find any cash back portals that pays on GCs purchases until yesterday.

I purchased one 3rd party e-GC yesterday. The main purpose of this purchase was to make sure if I can still buy 3rd party GCs with Target GCs, and just in case I clicked a link on one portal site. The order went through successfully. And the portal site sent me an email that told me I earned cash back. I checked my account and saw a pending cash back posted.

Soon after, I purchased one $400 VGCs with a regular credit card, via the same portal site, hoping for the same result. I received an email as well. This time, however, it clearly says that the amount of cash back is $0.

Summary

5% REDcard discount is no longer applied to ANY GC purchases. You can still use Target GCs for GC purchases except Visa and MasterCard. So, you can still save money on GCs (again, except Visa and MasterCard) by paying with Target GCs which you buy with discount at eBay, cardpools, etc. Cash back deals vary by portals and GCs you purchase.

This story is limited to online purchases . I don’t know outcomes for in-store purchases.

Updated 05/02/2015 – I noticed that 5% REDcard discount on 3rd party GC purchase is back again. I haven’t actually checked out, but the discount appeared in a cart after I choose REDcard as a payment method. I did that for several 3rd party GCs and confirmed that the discount was applied. Unfortunately, it didn’t applied to Visa, MasterCard, and Target GC purchases.

Loading A Temporary Target Prepaid REDcard

Posted on December 23, 2014December 24, 2014 by admin

I registered Target Prepaid REDcard (AKA Redbird) yesterday. A permanent card is now on the way. Until the permanent card arrives, I can use a temporary card for reloads, purchases, ATM use. A balance of my temp card is $1. The person who bought the temp card loaded $1 when activated at his or her local Target store. (I bought the temp card on eBay. Click here to see details.)

Now, I can load money up to $1500. I took AmEx GC and Visa GC to Target and planned to make two reloads with them. First, I went to the customer service. I told the clerk that I wanted to load $500 to the temp card. She swiped my temp card on a register that is facing to them. Then a PIN pad that is facing to customers says, “Slide your card.” I did it with AmEx GC. After I had signed on a PIN pad, the clerk asked me to hand her the AmEx GC. Then she typed something on the register (probably the last four digits of the card.) Nothing else can check, anyway. There is no name on AmEx GC, and there is no name on the temp card, either.

She gave me back both cards with a receipt of reload. My first reload to Redbird was done successfully. It was very smooth. I was worried if they don’t know how to load or refuse to load. Because in the state I live (NY), Redbird hasn’t been available for purchase yet.

After that, I bought some groceries with the temp card in the same store. And then I tried to reload at a cash register which I just bought groceries. However, the cashier told me that I had to go to the customer service for reload. I didn’t want to go to the customer service again. So, I left the store without the second reload.

This was what I had never expected. I assumed that I could have it loaded at any cash registers as well as the customer service just like at Walmart for Serve reload. I thought back a little while and tried to remember what blog posts and forums said. None of them mentioned about such a thing. So, I guessed that the cashier didn’t know how to reload or that the store instructed cashiers to send customers to the customer service for reload. To make sure of it, I went to the next Target store which was only a mile away.

At the next store, I went to the customer service first because I wanted to make sure that I could use Visa GCs for reload. I brought two $200 Visa GCs which I had bought at Best Buy. This time, I asked a store clerk to load $400 and make a payment split into two. The process was the same as the previous one until I swiped the first card (Visa GC.) A display of PIN pad prompted to enter PIN, but the clerk told me to press “Cancel”, which is a red button at the bottom left corner of PIN pad. And then a display (touch screen) showed “Debit” and “Credit.” I was told to press “Credit” and signed. I did the same for the next card.

It’s very impressive. These two reloads were made with GCs, and they were used like credit cards. But, Target’s POS system recognizes the cards as prepaid GCs and even shows the remaining balance of GCs on the receipts. It is very useful when you have Visa, MasterCard, or AmEx GCs that have a small amount. I receive a lot of GCs as forms of rebate from Staples, Newegg, TigerDirect, etc. They usually have small amounts, and many of them are not whole numbers. (often, $7.99, $86, etc.)

In that store, I made a small purchase with the temp card and then asked to load at the cash register. This time, I successfully had it reloaded. I used one $200 Visa GC and entered PIN (used as debit card.) Here is the receipt (on the left.) As you see, it doesn’t show the balance of GC.

When you use Visa or MasterCard GCs like credit card for reload by split payment, Target’s POS knows the amount of GCs. So, maybe I don’t have to tell the cashier the remaining balance of GCs. I wonder if it automatically drains the remaining balance and up to how many cards Target allows in a single transaction. I will find out later.

Say Goodbye to Serve, Hello to Prepaid REDcard

Posted on December 20, 2014December 21, 2014 by admin

A final transaction of American Express Serve has been completed. Now, it’s time to close Serve and register Target Prepaid REDcard (AKA Redbird.) The transaction was a withdrawal of a remaining balance from Serve account to my bank account. In Serve, it was completed within 24 hours. However, in my bank account, it was pending for a few days. It might have been OK to close Serve account in this period, but I took precaution of waiting for the transaction to complete in both accounts.

After I chose a reason for closing an account from a drop-down list and wrote about Redbird in a box below, I successfully closed Serve account. They gave me a sad (crying) face.

Let’s move on to Redbird’s registration. I typed temporary card number and security code and my date of birth. And then my name, address, SSN, email address, etc. I did it within minutes after closing Serve account, but I was able to register Redbird. No information of a person who bought a temp card was necessary. (I bought the temp card on eBay. Click here to see details.) After verifying the email, the registration was completed.

Now, I can add money to the temp card, up to $1500 and use it at Target stores. Everything was done as I learned from FrequentMiler’s Blog. However, I overlooked one thing. It’s that I can’t link a debit card or a bank account until I receive and activate a permanent card. It’s 19th of December today, and it will take 7 to 10 business days for the permanent card to arrive. So, I can’t reload online with a debit card this month. I might be able to do a few reloads, but not full of 5 times (5 days.)

Tomorrow, I will go to Target store and reload with credit, debit, and Visa GCs.

Temporary Prepaid REDcard arrived, Closing Serve Account

Posted on December 17, 2014May 3, 2015 by admin

I received my eBay order today. It is a temporary version of Target Prepaid REDcard (AKA Redbird.) In the package, there is a temp card and folded paper written of cardholder agreement. A card number and a security code of temp card are covered with tape. With the numbers, you can register for a permanent card.

But first, I have to close Serve account because AmEx doesn’t allow to have both cards at the same time.

Before closing the account, take advantage of Serve for the last time. Redbird can’t connect to Amex Offer. Redeem all offers you are interested while you have Serve. And, remember you have to make sure that statement credit is posted.

Use another advantage of Serve, $200 x 5 online reloads with credit card. It will be the last online-reload with credit card, which is very easy and comfortable MS that AmEx officially allows. Reload online $1000 with debit card as well. I think I will be able to reload another $1000 to Redbird in the same month. So, it may be the total $2000 reload online with debit card only this month.

When you close an account, you need to make the balance down to zero. It will be easily done by paying bills and withdrawing to bank account. But, remember it takes days for these transactions to complete.

When I order a temp card on eBay, I had already done 0nline-reloads and Amex Offers, but there was one pending transaction that I canceled the order at Newegg.com. It took more than a week to be cleared. After it had been cleared, I withdrew the remaining balance to my bank account. Now, I am waiting for that transaction to complete.

Check and double-check all of these. Close an account by clicking “Close Account” located at the all the way bottom in Profile page when everything is good. Otherwise, you can’t close. You will see this page.

MasterCard Gift Card & Target REDcard & Target Gift Card

Posted on November 12, 2014November 12, 2014 by admin

The order I placed yesterday has been shipped. I bought MasterCard Gift Cards online, but Target didn’t charge a purchase fee and applied 5% REDcard discount.

I checked the site today. It seems that “No fee” deals has ended, but 5% REDcard discount is still available.

A purchase fee of a $100 MasterCard GC is $6, and REDcard discount is $5.30. So, it’s not a good deal unless if you can use other payment methods and still get 5% REDcard discount.

First, I changed the payment method into the other credit card. When I did, the page was automatically refreshed, and REDcard discount disappeared.

Next, I chose REDcard again to let it reappear 5% discount, and then clicked Target Gift Card. I entered numbers and clicked “save & continue.” 5% REDcard discount was still there. I got Target GCs with around 7% discount. So, if the order goes through, I will get $100 MasterCard GC for around $93!

From my experiences, I’m pretty sure that I would be able to place an order and receive a confirmation email. The point is, after that, whether or not Target would cancel the order.

I got canceled some orders of Visa GCs before. (I tried to buy Visa GCs with Target GCs.) I received a confirmation email and then a cancellation email minutes later. But this time, I guess the order will go through. That’s because REDcard discount doesn’t appear when Visa GCs is in the cart. That means MasterCard GCs are treated as a regular merchandise (at least for now.)

However, I decided not to order. If I didn’t order twelve GCs yesterday, I would be excited to perform this experiment. I don’t want any potential problem while twelve GCs are on the way.

I will perform the experiment some other time.

Target REDCard Secret

Posted on November 3, 2014July 12, 2015 by admin

Background

My cell phone is Boost Mobile. It is a prepaid phone. You can pay a monthly fee by credit or debit cards online or buying Reboost card (prepaid card) and then adding money to your account online. Paying a monthly fee or purchasing a Reboost card are subject to sale tax. To save money, I was paying a monthly fee in the following methods:

Paying with Chase Ink Cash credit card directly at boostmobile.com – 5% cash back from credit card
Purchasing the total $200 or more Reboost with Chase Ink Cash at Staples – 5% cash back + 1% statement credit from VisaSavingEdge
Purchasing Reboost with REDcard at Target – 5% discount
Purchasing Reboost with Target Gift Cards at Target – No discount when purchase. But I got Target GCs with discount (6-7%)

All these transactions incur a sale tax. Sale tax where I live (Queens, NY) is 8.875%, and some part of North Bergen, NJ is only 3.5%. So, every time I visit there, I buy several Reboost cards at Staples or Target. In store only, there is no listing at Staples.com. As for Target.com, there have been a listing, but never been available to purchase (see details here.)

And now I found that Reboost card (email delivery) was available online. I’d like to conduct an experiment for which I have longed.

Experiment: Get 5% REDcard discount WITHOUT using REDcard

Target offers 5% REDcard discount almost all items including gift cards. Except for Visa or Target GCs, you can get 5% discount on the purchase of GCs. Online, create your account and enter your REDcard info and you will see 5% discount automatically applied when you add items to the cart. In billing section, when you choose other credit cards, 5% discount disappears. However, when you choose Target Giftcard or PayPal, 5% discount stays.

Let’s continue with PayPal. 5% discount ($1 in this experiment) is described as “Promotion on Boost Mobile Prepa…” in PayPal website. But the discount disappeared when I returned to Target.com.

Next, I tried to choose Target GCs. But, first I needed to clear up PayPal payment information by logging out and in again. After adding an item to the cart, I also needed to choose REDcard and click “save&continue” to make 5% discount reappear. Then I chose Target GCs, and 5% discount stayed until the final page. I checked out and received Boost Mobile redemption code within an hour.

Everything was fine. The amount deducted from Target GC had 5% discount. I successfully entered the code and added money to my Boost Mobile account. Target GC I used for this purchase, I bought it with about 7% discount. So, this transaction is about 12% off deals!

12%!?…. Wait a minute. It is not only 12%. It’s more because there was no tax. When I buy Reboost cards in stores, stores charge a sale tax. When I pay online directly with credit card, Boost Mobile charges a sale tax. So, there is extra 8.875% discount in this transaction.

I tried to do the same thing on purchase of Target MasterCard GC, but it didn’t go through. Target doesn’t allow to use GCs for the purchase of MasterCard GCs and Visa GCs. I could check out but received an email of cancelation minutes later.

Since Target MasterCard GCs appeared online, Target still offers 5% REDcard discount on the purchase of Target MasterCard GCs. Purchase fee of $100 GC is $6, and the discount is $5.30. If there is a way to compensate the loss ($0.70), it will be a way of manufactured spending to consider.

So far, I haven’t found a cash back portal that pays on the purchase of gift cards at Target.com.

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