Discounted Gift Card Calculation Sheet

I feel like I need a video conference on this topic LOL. But I am going to try to focus and follow what you have shown us! Thank you so much for sharing it.

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Sometimes my spreadsheets start out confusing and all over the place, then I streamline them.

You should have seen the one before this version! I’ll probably think of some better ways to display the info, especially as I add other stackable discounts.

Think I might need to turn this into an app. :wink:

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FYI all: I fixed an error in formulas bottom of the savings table that told you how much money would be left on each type of card after the purchases were done.

Worked a little on adding other transaction types to the stack, but not ready for prime time.

Many great ideas for saving with ebates, swag bucks etc in the chat thread… Thinking I might try to compile them here for posterity later…

If you don’t want to buy the gift cards on raise.com…I always get a better discount at giftcardgranny.com. But no Ebates rebate there.

Wow, in the last few days I’ve learned of so many sites I’ve never heard of!

Excellent rundown of stacking discounts from @AuntB_luvsDisney:

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Ok - I just gave this a trial run with the ebates->raise->target and my goodness! Add in that I’ll eventually get 3% back from my Discover card, and that I got $5 off for making my first raise purchase, and it’s slightly over 15%. Even without the first time purchase discount, I should make 12-13% going forward. Thank you so much!

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And I forgot about the fact that I’ll funnel it through a Disney Vacation Account! :wink:

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Here’s a flow chart that I put together based on everything we’ve discussed on the chat. Basically there seems to be several ways to get to a 15% discount. Here s a link: http://bit.ly/1h1czI6 Please let me know if you find any errors in math or logic. :smile:

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Welcome to the “savers” club. @mtruesdell

I mentioned this in the other post as well, but it looks like Raise is no longer a part of Ebates cash back.

Interesting site that monitors cashback/rewards per store etc. I’ve just taken a quick look and plan to look back later.

I originally found it via this blog post: Triple Dip With Raise - frugalhack.me

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Don’t forget to check your AMEX offers. Frequently, your able to buy Disney/Target gift cards in store, then get the AMEX discount. For example, AMEX recently had a promo for getting a $75 credit when making a $250 purchase at Staples/Home Depot. I purchased Target cards, then used those cards stacked with the 5% redcard discount to purchase Disney gift cards.

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@Razsav Thanks! I’ve seen people mention those Amex offers a few times lately and checked, but nothing.

I never see them mentioned in the Amex e-mailings, do you go out and check on the site at regular intervals or find out about them another way?

All of you are geniuses!!! I’m going to have to do some studying to make sure I understand.

question:
Will the DSA work if you’re using a TA?

About the AMEX rewards: if you go to the website for your card, they’ll have a tab for rewards and it’ll have a bunch of discounts or gift cards at a reduced price.

@hmperry If by DSA you mean the DVA (Disney Vacation Account) then YES! It will work with your travel agent. Just ask them to treat it like a gift card transaction when your TA speak with the CM.

Hi all!
Just a warning… Target cancelled my recent wdw gift card online ordering attempts. I called Target to inquire and, after spending 15 min on hold, the Target CS guy said that I have reached my “limit” of Disney gift cards. :flushed: :persevere:
I asked if there is a timeframe on this limit, or if I can never again order Disney gift cards online with target… I didn’t really get an answer. He said I could try again in a couple weeks, but I think he just wanted me off the phone cause he couldn’t or didn’t want to give a clear answer. He did tell me I could just go to the store and buy the gift cards there. Thanks buddy. :roll_eyes:
Needless to say I’m pretty bummed. My sister will let me use her red card account to continue making Disney gift card purchases, but I’m worried maybe target is catching on to the “double dipping” discount trick. Hopefully they just flagged me and there won’t be a change to their system for everyone.

I did this recently (1st week of December), and ordered a total of $3000 in Disney gift cards from Target. My approach was this: click through givingassistant.com to get to cardpool.com for 2% cash back (which they deliver to your debit account remarkably fast). Buy Target gift cards on cardpool.com, using CapitalOne card (2% rewards), at a discount ranging from 6.7% to 4%. click through givingassistant.com (or ebates, etc.) to get to Target for additional cash back. Then, I got the 5% redcard discount.

The only limitation I found was that givingassistant (and ebates, and others) say you’ll only get 2% cashback from cardpool.com for the first $1000 you spend. That’s easily circumventable, by just not creating a user account on cardpool and proceeding as a guest. Target never imposed any limitation for me, though I purchased over the course of about 4 weeks in multiple separate orders.

Raise.com is saying in the Target info area that gift cards cannot be used to buy other gift cards. Does that make this all moot?

I believe that has been the standard policy since the start, but Disney gift cards fall under the category of “Entertainment cards”, so a happy loophole!