Order a $200 American Express prepaid card and get a $25 free gift card – simple as that! Oh, and you are able to order three of them, so that will give you $75 in total! This is the exact same offer that was back in June, so for those of you who missed out, here is your 2nd chance. This current offer end August 31st.
As I mentioned back in June, this is the same prepaid card that some people have been purchasing at Office Depot (as they earn 5x points when credit cards that give them bonus points at office supply stores). However, for those of you who do not have this particular credit card, are not interested in the hassle of going to Office Depot, or live in a state/city that does not sell them (i.e, NYC!), then this is the perfect opportunity to still get some FREE money!
Card Info:
- This card has no fees (unless purchased at Office Depot)
- Can be used as a form of payment anywhere American Express is accepted
- Has the same purchase protection benefits as all other Amex credit cards!
- Can withdraw up to $400 per day at ATM machines.
- Amex Fees: First withdrawal per month is free. There after you will be charged $2 per withdrawal
- ATM Fees: Each ATM machine imposes varying fees – Amex will not charge any fees, but the ATM might charge a fee
- Cannot be sent to residents in the states of Arkansas or Vermont
- No foreign transaction fees
Steps to get your FREE $25:
- Step 1: Order an American Express Prepaid Card here.
- Select the option: “I would like to order a new Card (I don’t have a temporary Card).â€
- Must add $200+ at the time of ordering to get the free $25
- You will be asked for your SS#, however, no credit check will be run
- Step 2: Once your card has shipped, activate your card and set up your account
- Your $25 FREE American Express gift card will be sent to you via mail within 6 weeks
- Step 3: Use your American Express Prepaid Card at a merchant to purchase an item or withdraw the cash from an ATM (note: DO NOT abuse the ATM privilege)
- Step 4: People have reported being able to order a maximum of three of these cards and received three $25 gift cards – that is now $75 for FREE!
My experience
I ordered three of these cards on June 30 and received the cards in the mail two weeks later. I took awhile to verify my accounts so that is why it took a few weeks to arrive. Out of my three cards, two of them had $200 loaded onto it, one of them had nothing. Not sure what happened with one of the cards, but oh well. I have yet to receive my $25 gift cards per reloadable card, but it has only been 4 weeks and they state it will take 6 weeks. My assumption is I will only receive two $25 gift cards not three, since one of the orders did not have $200 on it. I have not ordered more than three so I am not sure if there really is a limit, anyone have experience with this?
How to continue to utilize this card
Many people will solely use this card for the FREE $25, however, there are great points and miles opportunities by sticking with this card for your everyday purchases. Many credit cards give you bonus points when making purchases at office supply stores, up to 5x points with specific cards. Many have purchased the myVanilla Prepaid Reload card at Office Depot stores. Each card costs $3.95 regardless of the dollar value. The best bang for your buck is to purchase the $500 card (the highest amount available). You can either use this card for your every day spend, or load the value onto the American Express Prepaid Card you just purchased. This is for convenience purposes and so you get the perks that come with this card.
You can load a maximum of $1,000 in any 24-hour period and $2,500 every 28 days. Note though that some stores are no longer allowing you to use your credit card to purchase these cards, only cash is accepted. If that is the case then you are out of luck. However, I’d recommend asking a manager if they’ll allow the transaction to go through. The main reason they are limiting this is due to fraud, not our little crew trying to earn more points and miles! Also, these cards cannot be purchased in New Jersey, Arkansas, and Vermont. NYC does not sell these cards either.
The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
I too have not received my $25 gift card and I am hesitant to put any more effort into this until I receive it as it has been over 5 weeks for me. Has anyone received their gift card?
Great post!
Hi Eric, I can confirm that it works. I just received my $25 card in the mail. It took the full 6 weeks, but it does come. I was getting nervous and glad when I got it in the mail.
@David – Glad to hear the cards came. Mine has been 4 weeks, so looks like I have another 2 to go.
So ordering one for oneself is simple, but how do you go about for #2 adn #3, is it under your same username and name (so same SS for all three) or then delegated or for three different people under three different SS and account/login?
@ORD-TGU – It is under the same username and name. In the T&C you are allowed to order three per person.
If you order the card through the website, how does it show up on your credit card statement? Hopefully not as a cash advance…
@David – I just re-read my post and realized it wasn’t clear. Through the website you must fund the card through a checking or savings bank account. It is the myVanilla Prepaid Reload card that you can purchase with your credit card to get credit card spend up (these are available at many Office Depot stores). You can then load these cards onto the American Express card through this promotion.
I’m relatively new to the points game, but could you buy the card, withdraw the money at an ATM, redeposit the money in your account, and pay off your card to get points and get the free gift card?
@James – These cards must be funded with a checking/savings account. But yes, you can withdraw the money from an ATM to get it back in your pocket and still get the free gift card. Just make sure to not abuse the ATM privilege.
A seldom discussed perk of this card is the lack of foreign transaction fees. I haven’t tried this, and would like confirmation from someone who has, but let’s say you’re traveling to the UK. A decade or so I’d have bought travelers cheques, but I haven’t been able to get these in Sterling for a while, and they really are obsolete. Instead, load up this card, cash at an “cash machine” in the UK (banks don’t charge for this as a general rule there), and you have, in effect, a free currency conversion. Then use the card for other purchases where Amex is accepted (less than the US, but still many), to keep Amex happy. I also find that having a prepaid card is also a very convenient way of keeping track of expenses for a single trip.
I have FOUR prepaid AMEXs tied to my account. One in my name, three others in family members’. Received bonuses for three of them only though, but that was for promo from last year.
I read the T&C, and it says limit 1. Am I missing something? Too bad you can’t use a credit card and get miles in the process.
I did the $200 deal back in June and received my $25 giftcard two weeks ago so this definitely works!! Thanks for the post about the new offer!
I got 3 of the $200 cards ( still waiting for the 3 $25 cards)
pin numbers came in mail ( 3 letters) after the cards, no way to easily match up the pin numbers with the cards.
So, I’m a bit confused. Would this work for more than one card?
@Andy – Yes, it should work for up to three cards.
Does this work if you buy the cards instore at Office Depot?
@Stephanie – Yes it should (at least it did for those who did it back in June)
Hi, agree this is great for foreign transactions. Do you know if there is any expiration on these?
Christopher – The expiration on mine (I got them in June) is 7/17
If you order 1 every week for 3 weeks the pin numbers will come in the mail a week apart and you will have an easier time matching them to a card.
@Joshua Pickles – Thanks for that tip!
I just got a targeted offer in my email for a $50 giftcard for making two direct deposits of at least $250 each on all cards on my email address.
[…] of you already ordered your American Express prepaid card, right?! You can read more about it here, but essentially this is the one where you can get a free $25 gift card when ordering and loading […]
Do the T&C actually say you can order 3 cards and get $25 each time or is it just from anecdotal evidence? I’m asking because this bit threw me off:
‘Limit of one $25 Gift Card per new Card user named on a Card’ and ‘Limit one (1) offer per Card’
@Phillip – Quite honestly, I am not sure, however people have had success with three.
An update- I just spoke with someone in Customer Service and they said that the Office Depot cards are different cards and don’t qualify for this promotion.
[…] can get a FREE $25 American Express gift card when ordering an American Express prepaid card with $200+ loaded on it at time of […]
I just ordered four of these and got confirmation numbers on each order.
[…] Deals We Like for posting this. Posted on August 5, 2012 at 12:15 am by infamousdx · Permalink […]
Question on the ATM withdrawal – one free per month from AMEX. If I bought cards for both my husband and myself – is it one free withdrawal per each of us, even though I bought the cards all from my account. Just different names. Wondering if I needed to buy my husband’s cards from a different account ? I didn’t because the phrases ” Limit of one $25 Gift Card per new Card user named on a Card’ and ‘Limit one (1) offer per Card’. I too am worried I will not receive the $25 for additional cards in each person’s name. I can do more in my adult childrens’ name and it would be perfect for an upcoming international trip we are taking together but will hold off till I know more about the nuances.
@Sandy – It is one free per card, I believe. I purchased two from my account and haven’t yet withdrawn my money. I will test it out for you and let you know.
I try to buy 3 cards over the weekend and though I received order confirmation numbers on all, this morning a rejection note came on one order (without identifying which one). Talking to Customer Service, she is saying it is because I cannot have more than 3 prepaid cards under my name, including the previous order for the $10 on $50 promotion (maybe everyone understood that but not I !)
This customer agent (who acted very sure and doublechecked when I questioned her) said I definitely do not qualify for the $25 gift card since I am not a new customer. The August promotion apparently differs from earlier promotions which allowed reloads / existing customers. Given this condition, one can only receive the $25 promotion per each NEW users name. So one will NOT receive 3 $25 gift cards for 3 cards under the same (user) name. I also asked if I could cancel my orders to start over since I would obviously like to receive the promotion and she said I could do so in a couple of days after the card numbers are actually generated. I could also just not verify the bank deposit checks and the cards would automatically be cancelled. To receive the 3 $25 gift cards, I plan to have my husband order 3 cards – one in his name, and 2 others in our adult children’s name.
If I had more time, I would call back and see what another agent says but this query took quite awhile already. Thus I will simply follow the process which is most likely to succeed in receiving the $75 gift cards.
I ordered three of these cards in my name. After calling customer service with some questions, I was told that I would receive only one $25 bonus gift card. They said I would have had to order the cards in three different names to get 3-$25 bonus cards. This whole process was too difficult to deal with. I will not do this again.
haven’t received my GC in the mail yet??? ordered it on august 30th. does anyone have the same experience? it’s been over 6 weeks now.