How to get Waitrose gift cards with Amex Membership Rewards points

It has always annoyed me that you cannot redeem Amex Membership Rewards points for Waitrose / John Lewis gift cards.  I thought that things may change when John Lewis finally abandoned paper gift vouchers for gift cards, but it hasn’t.

There is, however, a solution!

Step 1

American Express Membership Rewards is a partner with Nectar.  You can move your Membership Rewards points to your Nectar card at 1:1, with no minimum transfer.  (This is, by the way, the best way of emptying out an odd amount of Amex points if you are closing your card.)

Step 2

Nectar is a partner with eBay.  You can convert your Nectar points into eBay credit, at the standard Nectar conversion rate of 0.5p per point.

This is an instantaneous transaction – your eBay credit is immediately available for use in your eBay account.

Step 3

There are lots of people selling Waitrose / John Lewis gift cards on eBay.  You should expect to pay 99% of face value, including postage.

I have done this in the past, when my Membership Rewards pile got a little too large to make sense, and it worked perfectly well.

You do not earn Nectar points via eBay when you buy gift vouchers, please note, so there is no extra ‘kicker’ from that.

0.5p per Amex point is not a great deal, of course.  However, it is better than the 0.4p you get if you redeem them for statement credit and it is better than the 0.45p you get if you redeem them for travel credit.

You can get the same deal on pretty much any other retailer gift cards as eBay is awash with them.  There is no need to be restricted by the range of stores offered by Amex directly.

Nectar also runs targetted offers a couple of times a year offering a bonus for converting your points to eBay.  This can substantially increase the value you get from your Membership Rewards points.

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Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2024 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.