Best Credit Cards for Bookstores and Book Lovers

I spent more on books than I would like to admit, whether that's from big name retailers (Amazon, Barnes & Noble) or my favorite local bookstores (Wild Aster Books, Virginia Highland Books).

No matter where you buy books from, in this blog post I will tell you the best credit card to use for all book purchases. There are certain cards that will give you the best on spend, whether you are looking for cash back or travel rewards.

There are broadly five strategies you can use:

5% cash back credit cards

4X travel reward credit cards

4X travel rewards using gift cards

4X travel rewards using Rakuten or Capital One Offers portals

6X - special technique

That means - on average if you are spending $100 on books every month, that's anywhere between $60 cash back or $144 in travel rewards.

Let's get started.

Amazon Prime Visa - 5% Cash Back on Book Purchases

Starting with the simplest strategy, the Chase Prime Visa gives unlimited 5% cash back on all Amazon purchases, including books.

If most of your book purchases are from Amazon, and you don't care about travel rewards, this can be a one and done strategy.

Barnes & Noble Mastercard - 5% on B&N Book Purchases

Another easy option - if you exclusively buy from Barnes & Noble and prefer cash back over travel rewards, get the Barclays Barnes & Noble Mastercard to earn 5% cash back on all Barnes & Noble purchases.

You get 5% as statement credit for future B&N purchases. This is why I don't like store credit cards. It traps you in their ecosystem. The earned cash back has limited utility.

Wells Fargo Attune Card - 4X on all Bookstore Purchases

Now, let's move to the fun world of travel rewards.

Starting with the most surprising option - use the no annual fee Wells Fargo Attune card to get 4X Wells Fargo Rewards points on all bookstore purchases.

The points earned are extremely versatile:

Can be redeemed as simple cash into your checking or savings account

Can be transferred to British Airways (to book American Airlines or Alaska flights), Avianca (to book United Airlines flights), Flying Blue (to book Delta Airlines flights), or hotel partners like Choice and Wyndham.

As a bonus, the card also gives you 4X on all Amazon purchases, including books.

Compared to the first two suggestions that are limited to two big retailers, the Attune card earns you 4X on those, plus other local bookstores.

American Express Gold Card - 4X on Grocery Store Gift Cards

Staying with the theme of travel rewards, if you prefer earning Membership Rewards points, you can pick a slightly more complicated approach using gift cards.

The AMEX Gold gives 4X on Restaurants and Supermarkets.

In many supermarkets, including Whole Foods and Kroger, you can buy gift cards. You'll frequently find Amazon and B&N gift cards. Load them up in your app and use them during checkout, both online and in physical stores.

Hence you are earning 4X on all book purchases from Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Rakuten Portal Stacking - 4X on Barnes & Noble Purchases

Both Rakuten and Capital One Offers always offer 2X bonus points if you use their links to click through to the Barnes & Noble website.

That means, any online B&N order (whether pickup or delivery) will earn you 2X plus credit card points.

Now, for the credit cards, if you use a simple 2X everything-else card, like the Citi Double Cash or Capital One Venture X, you earn a total of 4X travel reward points on all B&N purchases.

Rakuten American Express Credit Card - 6X on B&N Purchases

By using a combination of the Rakuten American Express Card (by Imprint) and the Rakuten portal, you earn an astounding 6X Membership Rewards or Bilt Rewards travel points on all Barnes & Noble online purchases.

Here's how the stacking works:

4X from the card

2X from Rakuten portal

Although limited to one retailer only, you can't beat 6X MR and Bilt points on all B&N book purchases.

My Strategy - Rakuten + AMEX Gold + Capital One Venture X

In an ideal world, I would use the Attune card for all my book purchases. However, unfortunately, I closed my Wells Fargo Attune card last year.

That's why, I have a three-pronged approach:

Barnes & Noble - Rakuten Amex + Rakuten portal to get 6X Bilt points

Amazon - AMEX Gold + Gift Cards to get 4X MR points

Other Bookstores - Capital One Venture X to get 2X Capital One miles

In closing, if you are looking for a one-card setup for all bookstore purchases, go for the Wells Fargo Attune card. Otherwise, do a combination of the gift card strategy and a catch-all 2X credit card like the Citi Double Cash or Capital One Venture X.