Best way to buy starbucks gift cards

It's always hard to buy gifts for your coworkers, so can you really blame your boss for taking the easy route this holiday season and buying you a Starbucks gift card? It seems little generic, sure, and you know they probably picked it up that morning on the way to the office. But a gift's a gift, and all things considered, a Starbucks gift card isn't totally the worst, especially if you already have a bit of a Starbucks habit. It's even better if you know how to hack your Starbucks gift card so you can get the most bang for your buck, or, in this case, gift card—even if you don't really go to Starbucks ever.

So if you're ready to do something with those little pieces of plastic that are hogging space in your already crowded wallet, here's an easy three-step plan to make the most of your Starbucks gift cards from your boss or coworkers or employees.

Register Your Gift Card To Get Some Sweet Perks

The first step to hacking your Starbucks gift card is registering your Starbucks gift card. You need a gift card number to register for the Starbucks Rewards program. It's technically a customer loyalty program, meant to encourage you to buy all of the drinks so you can reach gold status, but you see perks immediately after registering, you'll start seeing perks immediately, like free in-store refills.

You'll also get a free drink on your birthday, even if your birthday isn't until July and you've long run out of credit on your gift card by that point. There are even stories of folks who registered 365 different gift cards with 365 different birthdays so that they could order a free drink every day of the year—and though you could go this route if you got enough gift cards, that, for the record, is generally considered by baristas to be a terrible thing to do.

You've reached a limit of 15 orders in the eGift Cart. Please checkout your eGift Cart items and then return to this page to place any additional orders.


2. Gift card details

You can add up to 999 email addresses separated by a comma or a space. Each recipient will receive their own personalized gift card.

The Starbucks gift card is a great way to treat yourself – or a buddy – to your favorite drinks and snacks (maybe even a mug or t-shirt) at Starbucks stores. It makes a great gift for any occasion and is a great way to go when you’re in a bind for a last-minute gift for many reasons. Starbucks is a coffee company that nearly every American has experienced at some point in their lifetime. Needless to say, Starbucks is a staple for many coffee drinkers around the world and is going to remain that way for a long time.

Starbucks is the most popular coffee company on the planet, so there are multiple Starbucks stores in almost every city. Starbucks has coffee and non-coffee drinks, so whoever you’re giving the gift card to is likely to be able to find something they will enjoy. And finally, while reasonably priced, Starbucks is more expensive than many other coffee options, so a Starbucks gift card will be a welcome reprieve for your recipient’s bank account.

Best way to buy starbucks gift cards
Use your Starbucks gift card to order your favorite drink.

Starbucks Gift Card Discounts

Finding discounts on gift cards is generally a difficult task and getting your hands on discounted Starbucks gift cards is no exception. While brands like Starbucks love the idea of helping customers feel like they’re getting a great deal and value from their product, that doesn’t usually trickle down into the gift card world since they don’t view the Starbucks gift card that you’re purchasing as a product but more in the same way they view the cash in your wallet.

However, there are still a few ways for clever shoppers to find Starbucks gift card discounts. The most obvious are gift card websites like Raise. You might have to purchase a $100 Starbucks gift card to get a discount (a few sites are currently offering $10 off $100 Starbucks gift cards). You can also shop on gift card websites like MyGiftCardsPlus and receive cash back (through their partnership with Swagbucks) when you purchase gift cards, which is virtually the same as receiving a discount.

Where to get Starbucks Gift Cards online

Starbucks gift cards are such a popular item, you can find them at almost any major online retailer. You can buy gift cards on popular websites including Amazon.com, Target, Walmart and Best Buy.

How to get free Starbucks Gift Cards

The best way to earn totally free Starbucks gift cards is through Swagbucks. Earning points for shopping online, trying new products, and sharing your opinion is easy and fun. Then you can redeem those points for free Starbucks gift cards. You can also find other amazing gift cards like Amazon, iTunes and Home Depot OR you can get Visa pre-paid cards.

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Can you combine Starbucks Gift Cards?

Combining Starbucks gift cards is actually very easy. Once you create a Starbucks account, you can choose one of your gift cards to be your official Starbucks Reward card. Save that one. Now you’re able to upload every gift card you receive into your account and manage your balance from one place. Use your designated Starbucks Rewards card for all transactions and dispose of all the other gift cards once you’ve uploaded the balance into your account.

With the Starbucks app, you select “Pay” then select “Manage” and follow the same steps outlined above.

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Do Starbucks Gift Cards expire?

Unused Starbucks gift cards have no expiration date and they don’t charge fees for your unused balance after certain lengths of time like some other companies do. Starbucks gift cards are worth their full value forever, until you decide to use them. Also, when your Starbucks card is registered to your account, any remaining balance is protected from the time you notify them of the loss. Reporting a stolen card is an easy one-click action within your account, at which point they balance is frozen until you are able to connect a new card to your account.

Checking your Starbucks Gift Card balance

There are a few different ways to check your Starbucks gift card balance. If you’ve registered the gift card to your Starbucks account, you can always log-in to your account and view the gift card balance there. You can also visit Starbucks.com/card and input the card number and security PIN (found on the back of the card) to check the card balance. And for anyone who’s not near a computer or smartphone, there’s an easy phone number to check the balance on your cards as well. Call 1-800-782-7282, follow the prompts to enter your card number and PIN and an automated representative will tell you the available balance.

Sending Starbucks Gift Cards via text

Gifting a Starbucks gift card is extremely easy and always a great idea. You’ll need to head over to the eGift card page at Starbucks.com/egift. You follow their simple checkout flow to purchase your egift and then choose who you’d like to send it to. The gift recipient doesn’t receive the gift card via text, but they will receive a very well-designed email with info on how they can redeem their Starbucks gift card. They might receive a notification on the mobile phone when the email comes through, so we can count that as sending one via text if you’d like. Either way, you’ll feel good for gifting something that’s sure to please anyone you’re shopping for.

Free Starbucks on your birthday

One of the most popular perks of Starbucks Rewards membership is the free birthday coffee. Every year, you’ll receive a credit on your account for one free food or beverage. So that could be a handcrafted coffee beverage, a sandwich, a pastry, or even a ready-to-drink bottled beverage. You’ll just need to visit your favorite Starbucks store and pay with your Starbucks gift card (the one you’ve designated as your official rewards card) to receive your credit.

How do I get a physical Starbucks gift card?

If you wish to still purchase a physical Starbucks Card, you can do so by visiting Starbucks retail stores, various grocery, drug, and mass merchandise stores (including Safeway, Target, and Albertsons) as well as online at Amazon.com.

Can you buy a Starbucks gift card and send it via text?

If you have an iPhone, you can use the Messages app to text Starbucks gift cards to anyone! If the recipient also has an iPhone, they'll see the gift card in the message instantly. If they have an Android, they'll receive a link to the gift card instead of an image.

Are Starbucks gift cards a good idea?

Perfect for Every Budget: Most cards have a minimum load of $5, making it easy to buy for everyone on a gift list. Whether buying a cup of coffee for a coworker or a season's worth of splurges, a Starbucks Card fits the bill.

Is a Starbucks gift card the same as a Starbucks card?

Just like a physical Starbucks Card, Starbucks Card eGifts can be used to purchase beverages, food and merchandise at participating Starbucks store locations or even online.