I hate to waste money on ANYTHING! Being a self-proclaimed coupon nerd, this is probably pretty obvious to most of my loyal readers by now.

So when I stumbled upon an old Visa gift card in my desk drawer recently, which was about to expire (GASP!), it was clearly time to put my frugal skillz to work and figure out an easy way to get my money off the card. The original balance was $25 and I knew I only had a few bucks left on the card.

Luckily I discovered that Amazon will let you buy an Amazon gift card by using an unwanted Visa gift card as your form of payment. Then you can simply spend the Amazon gift card whenever you’d like as they don’t expire.

Step 1: Activate the Visa Gift Card for Online Use

1 –  Go to the gift card company’s website. (Usually listed on the back of the gift card)

2 – Follow the steps to “Check your balance and access your account”.

3 – Once in your gift card account, follow the steps to “Shop Online”. Usually as simple as adding your zip code to the card/account.

Step 2: Add your Visa Gift Card to Amazon Wallet

1 – Simply log-in to “Your Account” on Amazon.com.

2 – On your account page, click on “Payment Option”which will take you to your “Amazon Wallet”, then click on “Add a Credit or Debit Card”.

3 – Next, just add your Visa gift card to your Amazon account like you would with any debit or credit card.

Note: This should also work on any gift card with a MasterCard, American Express, or Discover logo on it.

Step 3: Get an Amazon Gift Card Delivered to Yourself

1 – First of all, you’ll want to know the exact remaining balance on your Visa gift card. If you’re not sure what it is, just call the number on the back and they’ll tell you.

2 – Next, visit the eGift Card page on Amazon.com. You’ll want to use an eGift Card as they offer e-mail delivery.

3 – Under “Amount”, pick “Set my own” and enter the amount remaining on your Visa gift card.

4 – Enter your own e-mail address as the “Recipient E-Mail” and choose “Now” as your delivery date.

5 – Once you reach the checkout page, simply select your Visa gift card as your form of payment.

6 – Once finalized, your Amazon gift card will show up in your e-mail inbox within a couple hours.

Shop on Amazon and Redeem your New Gift Card

This step is fairly self-explanatory.

Just shop on Amazon like you normally would and when you reach the payment page, simply apply your new gift card to your purchase and you’re golden.

Scenarios When This Tip Works Best:

1 – If you have a Visa gift card with a small balance on it, and you’re not sure when you’ll ever use it, this tip is for you.

Especially since many Visa gift cards have an expiration date on them. Get them turned into Amazon cash and use them up before they expire.

2 – Also, if you have a significant amount on a Visa gift card, let’s say $125, and you want to buy a new $600 HDTV from Amazon, this tip will also be beneficial.

This is because Amazon does NOT let you split transactions on 2 different cards. But they do let you use a Amazon gift card in conjunction with a regular credit card.

Happy savings.

By Kyle James

Photo credit to frankleleon.

Kyle James( Owner/Founder )

I started Rather-Be-Shopping.com in 2000 and have become a consumer expert and advocate writing about out-of-the-box ways to save at stores like Amazon, Walmart, Target and Costco to name a few. I’ve been featured on FOX News, Good Morning America, and the NY Times talking about my savings tips. (Learn more)