Gift cards are welcome stocking-stuffers for every difficult-to-buy-for person on your list, from the in-laws to college students (and they make good teacher gifts too).
But Santa never said you couldn’t walk away with a little something extra out of the deal.
Here is a growing list of gift cards that come with bonuses for those of us in Wichita. Most of them are for restaurants, but we may see other types of gift card bonuses as well.
Tips for maximizing your savings with gift card bonuses
Important note: The bonuses you get with gift cards are often promotional discounts with no cash value and won’t be good after their expiration date. (Unlike the actual gift cards, these bonus promos don’t usually carry over any unused balance either.)
That said, they’re still good deals! Here are some tips from Living on the Cheap’s Bryan Chavez on how you can maximize your savings with bonus gift cards:
- Know what you’re getting! Remember that price and participation may vary by location. Read the fine print for limitations, including minimum purchase requirements, date restrictions, or menu exclusions first! Also, many places don’t allow you to combine multiple bonus cards in a single transaction. Plus most (if not all) bonuses are not valid until after the new year.
- Most of the gift cards must be purchased by December 31 in order to get the bonus.
- It’s usually better to buy the gift cards in-store rather than online to avoid shipping charges.
- Gift cards don’t have to be gifts! If you have a favorite restaurant or merchant offering a gift card bonus, consider getting one for yourself. It’s like “pre-paying” for goods and services now and gifting yourself the bonus later.
- Get more bonuses by breaking down a large purchase. For example, if the bonus is for a $25 or more gift card and you’re buying a $50 gift card, why not purchase two $25 gift cards in separate transactions instead? You just doubled your bonus. Sometimes this isn’t necessary since the business gives the bonus based on the amount you spend, not the number of gift cards you purchase. As always, clarify first before buying (tip #1 above) because gift cards are typically non-refundable.
*Bonus tip! Since this is all about gift card bonus offers, here’s a bonus tip for you: If/when we see a 4x fuel points promotion on gift cards this holiday season, you might want to buy them there. The savings might be even better, depending on how much you spend and where you like to fill up.
Holiday Gift Card Bonus Offers
Now on to the deals! They’re in alphabetical order with both restaurant and retail gift cards, so just scroll through the whole list and you’ll get tons of ideas for gifts.
Starbucks eGift Card promotion
This gift card bonus offer will end soon, so don’t wait too long. Buy a $15+ Starbucks eGift using a Mastercard, Get a $5 Starbucks eGift Card – before November 22, 2020. Here are the full terms of the offer.
Last year, Starbucks had a Cyber Monday bonus on Starbucks gift cards. We’ll keep an eye out to see if they do this deal again.
Dillons 4x Fuel Points on Gift Cards
Download the digital coupon, then purchase qualifying gift cards at Dillons and you’ll receive 4x the fuel points on that purchase. This can add up to some serious savings really fast!
BJ’s Brewhouse Gift Card Bonus
Get a $10 bonus card with $50 gift card purchase and a $25 bonus card with a $100 gift card purchase. Plus, get a 20% off VIP card. More info.
Bonefish Grill Holiday Gift Card Bonus Offer
Purchase $50 in gift cards between November 1 and December 31, and you’ll get a FREE $10 off coupon. More info.
Buffalo Wild Wings Bonus Gift Card
Give a $25 BWW gift card to your BFF and get a $5 bonus for yourself. Find the deal here.
Carrabbas Italian Grill Gift Card Bonus Offer
Get rewarded this holiday season with a $20 bonus Carrabbas when you buy $50 in gift cards through November 18. The details are here.
Chili’s Holiday Bonus Offer
Buy $50 in gift cards and get a $10 bonus card from Chili’s. Terms and conditions apply, though they don’t make them easy to find.
Fuzzy’s Taco Shop
Give the gift of tacos this holiday season, and earn a treat for yourself! For every $25 in gift cards purchased at Fuzzy’s Taco Shop, both in-shop and online, guests will receive a $5 bonus card valid from January 1-31, 2021.
Logan’s Roadhouse Bonus Card
When you spend $50 on Logan’s Roadhouse gift cards, you’ll receive a $10 bonus card for yourself to use later! This deal is good on physical gift cards or e-gift cards.
Noodles & Company Gift Card Bonus
Guests will receive a $5 bonus card for every $25 they spend on gift card purchases. See offer here.
Outback Steakhouse Bonus Gift Card
$50 for them, $10 for you with this Outback Steakhouse gift card bonus deal available through 12/31. The $10 bonus card valid January 1 through February 7. See full terms and conditions at the bottom of this page.
Panera Bread Gift Card Bonus
Purchase or reload a $50 gift card for Panera and receive a complimentary $10 bonus card. More info.
Red Robin Bonus Buck Reward
Give the gift of burgers this holiday season and you’ll score a discount for yourself. Get a free Red Robin $5 Bonus Buck Reward for every $25 gift card purchase. Yummy terms and conditions here.
The Alley
When you buy gift cards/ game cards over $20 at The Alley you will receive extra on that gift card. When you buy a $20 gift card/ game card you get an extra $5, when you buy $40 you get an extra $12, when you buy $60 you get an extra $20, and when you buy $100 you get an extra $50. Find more information on their Facebook page.
Il Vicino
Il Vicino has a gift card deal this year as well. Buy a $25 gift card and get a $5 gift card for yourself.
Taco Shop
Taco Shop will match what you purchase on gift cards! If you buy $10 you get $20 and so on.
Taco Pronto
Taco Pronto offers a deal on their gift cards as well. If you buy a $40 gift card they will give you $50 on that gift card.
Chick N Max
On Tuesday, December 22 you can purchase a gift card at Chick N Max and get double that value for free. If you purchase in-store, you will receive 2 gift cards for the price of 1. If you purchase online, you will receive the amount purchase doubled on your card (usually takes about a day for them to double the amount online. For more info. Purchase online here.
That’s all we know of right now! Did you see a gift card bonus deal we missed? Please let us know about it in the comments!!!
Discounts on Gift Cards
Every once and a while we will find a GREAT discount on gift cards. This is just one way you can celebrate the Holidays on the Cheap!
Doo-Dah Diner
Get 20% off any gift card at Doo-Dah Diner. No promo code needed just head to their website and purchase a gift card for someone special (or yourself, we won’t tell.) This is a great deal; Doo-Dah Diner is a local favorite.
Past offers
Applebee’s Gift Card Bonus
When you purchase a $50 Applebee’s Gift Card, you’ll receive a $10 Bonus Card for yourself. More details here.
Chicken N Pickle
We have not seen that this deal is available for 2020, we will keep an eye out.
Purchase $100 gift cards before January 5 and receive $20 in free open play. No limits. Buy as many as you like. In-house only.
Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) Gift Card Bonus
Friends help friends buy shoes. Get a free $25 bonus card for DSW when you purchase $100 in gift cards or a free $10 bonus when you purchase $50 in gift cards. Promotion details here.
Longhorn Steakhouse Gift Card Bonus
They grill, you give. Receive a $10 bonus card when you buy a $50 (or more) gift card from Longhorn Steakhouse. Here’s the offer.
Olive Garden Christmas Gift Card Bonus Promotion
Get a $10 gift card with every $50 of Olive Garden gift cards purchased. Offer available until 12/30 and bonus gift cards valid 1/2 through 2/9. See offer details here.
P.F. Chang’s Gift Card Bonus Deal
Receive a $20 bonus reward with every $100 P.F. Changs gift card purchase through 12/31. Reward details here.
Remedywichita.com
Purchase $100 gift card this week and receive a free Jade roller.