How I Save Money on Gas

Here is my big secret:

Gift Cards

I do the majority of my grocery shopping at Smith's. If you live outside of Utah, any Kroger affiliated grocery store works the same way. When you buy groceries at Smith's, you earn one point for every dollar that you spend. 100 points equals 10 cents off each gallon of gas (up to 35 gallons).

When you buy gift cards, they offer 2 points per dollar. Frequently they have promos where they offer 4 points per dollar. They have a huge selection of gift cards. They sell gift cards for most restaurants and retail stores.

If you bought a $25 gift card to your favorite restaurant, you would earn 100 points (during the 4 point per dollar promo) which equals 10 cents off each gallon. If you got 35 gallons of gas, you would save $3.50 which is essentially earning 14% cashback from buying that $25 gift card.

So how do I maximize my savings on gas? Every time I go to Smith's, I think about where I'm going to shop during the week. If I need to go to Target, I'll buy a gift card. If my kids need clothes, I'll buy a Children's Place gift card. When we remodeled our bathrooms this year, we bought A LOT of Home Depot gift cards. I also stock up on gift cards to our favorite restaurants. When we go out to eat, we look through our stash of gift cards and choose where we want to eat. The best part is that they're already paid for! I usually earn enough points every month to get at least $1.00 off each gallon of gas. 

What I recommend:

*Stock up when they offer the 4 points per dollar promo.

*Buy gift cards for restaurants and stores that you frequently shop at.

*With the holidays coming up, buy gift cards for whatever stores you're planning on shopping at. If you're giving gift cards for Christmas gifts, this is the place to buy them.

*Make sure you keep track of what gift cards you buy and actually use them. If you're buying gift cards just to save on gas, it kind of defeats the point.
*When you buy gas make sure you take two vehicles and purchase all 35 gallons to maximize your savings. Get a $1 off per gallon and buy 35 gallons...guess what, you just saved $35.

*Enjoy your gas savings!