The gift card guide / How to get every dollar out of a gift card

The five rules

How to get every dollar out of a gift card

Five rules. Each one comes with the research that backs it, one tap deeper.

1
Use it at a store you already go to, for things you already buy.

A grocery card used for groceries is the best gift card there's. A card used for a treat you would not have bought is the store's win, not yours.

2
Only buy one for yourself if you get a deal.

At full price, a gift card is just cash that works in one store. Most people end up spending more than what's on the card.

3
If you buy one, buy it the smart way.

Pay with a credit card that gives rewards and that you pay off that month, or use a store promotion like fuel points. That's a little extra on top of the deal. Count it as part of the deal when you try the Now what? tool.

4
Pick a day to use it. Write it down.

People given three weeks to use a card used it five times as often as people given two months. A deadline you set yourself works.

5
Won't use it? Give it to someone who will.

A card for a store you never visit is worth more to a friend who goes there every week. Give it. If only a few dollars are left, some states let you ask for cash.

Go deeper: the research behind each rule

Rule 1: stores where people shop often see very little money go unused. Starbucks recorded $222.4 million of never-spent card money on $15.2 billion that was spent (SEC, fiscal 2025). Gift card money also tends to get spent on treats and on the store's own brands (Helion and Gilovich, 2014; Reinholtz, Bartels and Parker, 2015).

Rule 2: 44% of people typically spend more than the card's value (TSG and Bank of America, 2026). Nearly 60% say they would, by $73 on average (Blackhawk Network, 2026).

Rule 4: a three-week deadline got 31% of people to use a cafe certificate; a two-month window got 6% (Shu and Gneezy, 2010). Money that expired after three weeks was 61% spent, against 23% (Boehm, Fize and Jaravel, 2025).

Rule 5: in California, a card with less than $15 on it can be turned into cash on request (since April 1, 2026). In Massachusetts, once you have used 90% of a card you can take the rest in cash. CardCue Pro can send a card's details to someone you choose; it sends details, not money.

A deadline gets it used

Share of people who used the money.

Shu and Gneezy, 2010 (3 weeks vs 2 months). Boehm, Fize and Jaravel, 2025 (expires in 3 weeks vs never). Bigger

Rule 4 is the one CardCue Pro is built around: set a day to use a card, and the app reminds you near the store. Rule 5 is Send a Card.

Rule 4 and rule 5, built in. Get CardCue Pro.

CardCue Pro keeps every card's balance, expiration and barcode in one place, and chirps when you're near a store where you have a card. Free for 3 cards. iPhone, with an Apple Watch app on every plan.

Download on the App Store Not a bank or card issuer. It never holds, funds or guarantees a balance.
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