From vet bills to dog food: Earn points, miles and cash-back rewards on pet expenses
Editor's Note
When maximizing points and miles for your family, there's no reason to leave the furriest family members out of the fun.
Whether you have a points pup or a first-class feline, there are plenty of ways to turn those monthly orders for food, toys, pet supplies and more into your next vacation. (We're just not responsible for what your pets may do when they see your suitcase come out — again.)
Maximize points, miles and cash back on pet supply purchases
One of the best shopping revolutions of the 21st century is having 40-pound bags of pet food delivered right to our doors, thanks to online shopping (and strong delivery people). Luckily, when you order pet food and other supplies online, you can easily rack up the rewards just as you do with most other online purchases.
Check credit card offers
Lyndsey Matthews, TPG's managing editor of points and loyalty programs, makes monthly online purchases for her two cats, Chips and Dip. She uses Chewy to get food, litter and treats to her door every few weeks. Since her cats are seniors, she buys prescription food, which can add up quickly.
To maximize her pet-related purchases, she has made it a habit to check her Amex Offers and Chase Offers to see any offers she's been targeted for. Once an offer is added to her card, she can use it to automatically save money or earn bonus points.
The exact pet-related offers come and go, but previous offers TPG staffers have seen include:
- Bark: Spend $20 or more, earn $10 back, up to 2 times (total of $20; through Amex Offers)
- Chewy: Get $5 cash back when you spend $50 or more, including taxes and after any discounts (through Chase Offers)
Shop through an online portal
On top of this, Lyndsey maximizes her points and miles earnings by heading to a shopping portal aggregator like Cashback Monitor or Savewise to find the online shopping portal that awards the most points, miles or cash back per dollar spent at the places she wants to shop. These rates can and do vary, so check each time, but a few current examples include:
- Petco: 6% cash back through TopCashback and 3.4 miles per dollar spent through Rove
- PetSmart: 4% cash back through TopCashback and 1 mile per dollar spent with Delta SkyMiles Shopping and United MileagePlus Shopping
- Chewy: 2% cash back through Rakuten or 1 mile per dollar spent through American Airlines AAdvantage eShopping
Related: How I use Savewise to stack shopping portals, credit card offers and cash back for bigger rewards
Typically, these portals offer 1% to 2% cash back (or 1 to 2 points per dollar spent) at most pet supply stores, but keep an eye out for limited-time offers with much higher rewards. For example, during Black Friday in 2024, Lyndsey spent $47.76 at PetSmart and earned $7.16 cash back through Rakuten during a 15% cash-back deal.
Check the United MileagePlus X app
You can also stack United Airlines miles earnings by purchasing immediate electronic gift cards within the United MileagePlus X app. For example, if you are shopping at Petco and your total is $85.84, you can open up your app and immediately purchase a Petco gift card for that exact amount and earn bonus miles by paying at the register with your new gift card. This also works when paying for an order online.
In addition to Petco, you will often find opportunities to earn bonus miles at pet-friendly shopping destinations such as Walmart and Sam's Club within the app. Those with a United credit card, such as the United℠ Explorer Card (see rates and fees), get a 25% bonus on miles earned via the app.
Stack and save directly through pet store loyalty programs
Of course, you can earn extra rewards and savings directly through the loyalty programs of major pet store brands.
Petco, PetSmart and Chewy all have loyalty programs, but Chewy+ requires a paid membership to earn rewards. Here's what kind of rewards you can earn through the free programs (and stay tuned for a longer comparison article including the paid options):
- Petco Perks: The free Petco Perks program offers 10 points per dollar spent (or 30 points per dollar spent on Petco brands). Once you earn 5,000 points, you can redeem them for $5 worth of Petco Cash. That's roughly a 1% to 3% return on spend, depending on which products you buy.
- PetSmart Treats Rewards: The entry-level member tier offers 10 points per dollar spent, with redemptions starting at 1,000 points for $2. That's a 2% return on spending, though the higher tiers of this program (which you become eligible for once you spend a certain amount per year) offer even better rates.
Stack and save on Amazon
If you order your pet supplies via Amazon, there are a few ways to stack earnings and save money. First, set up an Amazon subscription for discounts on items like dog or cat food and treats. The Prime Visa is also an option that offers 5% back on Amazon purchases.
The information for the Prime Visa has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Related: The best credit cards to use for Amazon purchases
How to get 0% APR on pet purchases
Unfortunately, emergencies can happen with your pets, and if you don't have pet insurance, these can create massive vet bills. However, credit cards can play an important role here, as many offer an introductory 0% annual percentage rate on purchases for a period of time after opening.
Nick Ewen, TPG's editor in chief, utilized this exact strategy with his dog, Winston, who underwent emergency surgery to remove a mass on his spleen a few years ago.
"Winston is a part of our family, so there was no question that we would do everything we could to help him. However, rather than dipping into our savings to cover the expense of the procedure and his recovery (which came close to $5,000), I utilized my then-new Chase Freedom Unlimited® (see rates and fees), which offers 0% APR on purchases for the first 15 months (then a variable APR of 18.24% to 27.74% applies). This allowed me to fit a manageable monthly payment into my budget, and I still earned valuable rewards in the process."
Related: How I turned my pet's emergency vet bills into a free night in London
Best credit cards for pet costs
Owning a pet can easily cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars each year, for everything from vet visits and boarding to supplies and medication. It pays to use the right credit cards for pet costs.
For charges like vet checkups and grooming appointments that fall outside routine credit card bonus categories, a solid everyday credit card is probably your best choice for pet expenses. A few of our suggestions include:
- Chase Freedom Unlimited: Earn 1.5% cash back on nonbonus spending.
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: Earn 2 miles for every dollar spent.
- Citi Double Cash® Card (see rates and fees): Earn 2% cash back on everything (broken down as 1% back when you make a purchase and 1% back when you pay it off).
- Bilt Palladium Card (see rates and fees): Earn 2 points for every dollar spent on everyday purchases.
- Blue Cash Everyday® Card from American Express: Earn 3% cash back on U.S. online retail purchases (on up to $6,000 per calendar year, then 1%).
Bottom line
TPG "pawrents" stack many of these opportunities to turn dog and cat treats into beach retreats. Once your pets help earn all these points and miles, it's only fair to explore how to take them along on your next vacation.