Safeway and Albertsons now let you load multiple gift cards into a single “Safeway Cash” wallet in your online account. The big catch, readers point out, is that once you add a card into Safeway Cash, it becomes usable online-only. You won’t be able to use those funds at the register in-store.
Also note, if you apply a gift card to an online order, that also ‘redeems’ the gift card to your online Wallet and locks it out of store use.
I doubt many people will use the Safeway Wallet for gift cards given this limitation. We saw Costco make a similar online Wallet recently, but with Costco you can still use the balance in-store as well via the app.
Hat tip to reader RM
I’ve had trouble using an Albertsons card at Acme, but there was a trick. I think you just scan the QR code as a regular item! Or if you’re at self check out you have to use the handheld scanner. I’m not sure if that’s still the case but I’ll verify next time
I just tried to use a digital gift card by scanning the QR code in self-checkout at Tom Thumb in Dallas and had the same problem that others below have mentioned. It didn’t work and the cashier told me that they don’t allow digital gift cards anymore. She said I have to print it out and bring it to a cashier in a regular checkout line. Seems ridiculous and like someone else mentioned, I don’t know how they’re allowed to do this because the terms when I bought it said it could be used on a mobile phone
Adjacent topic: Where are people getting discounted Albertsons gift cards these days? I used to get them for 8% off for personal use but that source dried up.
Yup AARP is where I got them too and I still have a stash to use. I did see that TopCashBack Gift Cards also has discounted cards but it’s only 4%
Does anyone have experience using Safeway/Banner Cash in store by enrolling in Direct Pay, as explained here? https://www.doctorofcredit.com/contact-us/#comment-2138137
My Safeway put up a sign for cashiers — blanket refusal to process any electronic gift cards. I gently pointed out that this is illegal and the manager came and overrode it. Glad they’re all used up.
My Safeway has done the same and the Manager has refused to accept the gift card when the cashier calls over a manager. I called the gift card help line and they stated they would “investigate.” No update still.
I hit the albertson’s line for mine (they just legit said “that’s not an ACME card that’s an albertsons [it was all 3] card” and I was like “y’all are a child property”) and they told me to go back and the manager who knew how to use it would be there and he wasn’t lmao
The same thing happened to me! The cashier told me I can only use my gift card if it’s printed out. Seems pretty illegal considering they were sold as electronic gift cards and the T&C on the card say mobile presentation is allowed.
I then emailed customer service and asked for a refund for the groceries I had to pay using my credit card instead of the gift card I had in my phone. Of course they refused to do that. This is what they said:
Thank you for reaching out to us and bringing this matter to our attention.
We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you experienced when attempting to use your E-Gift Card at one of our stores. We understand how frustrating this must have been, and we truly appreciate your patience.
Please be informed that our stores are currently undergoing system register updates. As part of this transition, stores now highly recommend printing out the E-Gift Card QR code rather than scanning it directly from a mobile device. This measure is intended to help prevent redemption issues and ensure a smoother checkout experience.
We understand this may be an added step, but we kindly ask for your understanding as this is part of our current store policy.
Should you have any further concerns or need assistance with your E-Gift Card, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’re here to help.
Warm regards,
Gift Card Team
Forth longest time I could not use Safeway giftcards to pay for online order, and the cashiers didn’t seem to know how to use e-giftcards as checkout payment. Now, they have made it usable for online order but useless for in-store while added to your account?
I am a niche audience this is good for because my local ACME genuinely does not know how to ring up gift cards and refuses to lmao
well that’s niche for you but not for us 😉
Yeah, I think I noticed this a least a month or two ago. Haven’t used it because of the online only limitation. Being able to consolidate gift cards in the app and then use in-store would be nice, but such advanced technology is probably far outside of lowly Safeway’s ability.
Same thing for Tom Thumb (Albertsons company in DFW area). Found this out yesterday and I’m still very disappointed.
This happened to me… They offered a discount for pickup, I used a GC and they moved it all to online only. F Safeway. I have a useless GC that can only be used online instead of in stores.