About card swipe requirements

Some credit cards offer extra rewards after you make a certain number of transactions. And when opening a bank checking/saving account, if you use the linked debit card a certain number of times each month, you may also qualify for account opening bonuses or earn a higher interest rate. While these transaction-count requirements are usually achievable, missing them just once because you forgot can be pretty frustrating.

Below, we’ll go over some quick, safe, and low-effort ways to meet transaction-count requirements. We’ll also include a few practical use cases at the end.

Common methods

For debit cards only: money transfer apps

If you’re trying to generate debit card transactions, the easiest method is to use money transfer apps such as Venmo and Square Cash App. Just register an account, then add money, withdraw, or transfer funds. Note that if the requirement is for purchases rather than simply a number of transactions, transfers usually will not qualify.

Amazon Reload

If you regularly shop on Amazon, one of the easiest methods is to use Amazon’s Reload feature. The current minimum reload is $5 each time.

Compared with buying an Amazon gift card directly, Reload is much more convenient. Buying a gift card requires entering an email address and then copying and pasting the code into your Amazon account manually, while Reload posts directly to your account balance.

In-App Gift Card Purchase

Quite a few apps let you buy gift cards directly in the app. If you have gift cards you can actually use, buying a few small denominations can help satisfy the requirement. These gift cards usually have a minimum purchase amount, such as $5, so it can still be a bit inconvenient. The advantage is that gift cards in these apps are sometimes discounted, or the purchase itself may earn extra miles or points. Common apps include:

  • Raise APP: sells discounted secondhand gift cards. Since the gift cards come with a one-year guarantee, it is relatively safe. It offers many common brands, so buying discounted gift cards while adding transactions can work well.
  • Samsung Pay APP: sells primary-market gift cards, including many common brands, and offers some discounted gift cards every month. Since Samsung Pay also has its own transaction-based rewards, this can pair nicely with credit card/debit card transaction-count requirements.
  • Swych APP: sells primary-market gift cards, including many common brands, and often has some discounted gift cards.
  • Mileage Plus X APP: sells primary-market gift cards across a variety of common brands. Buying gift cards can earn 0.5-20 mile/$ in UA miles.

Cellphone bill

Most cellphone bills let you choose exactly how much to pay each time, and they generally accept credit cards. You can simply make a $0.01 payment each time. If the system does not allow that, try increasing the payment in $0.01 increments. If your account balance is 0, you may even be able to overpay directly.

eBay/Amazon seller fee

If you sell on eBay or Amazon, seller fees can also be paid in arbitrary amounts. Paying them one cent at a time makes it easy to rack up transactions. Of course, don’t submit hundreds of one-cent payments all in one day; spread them out over several days instead.

Split up your checkout

You can also increase your transaction count at self-checkout in physical stores. For example, when buying several items at Walmart, you could ring up and pay for one item at a time at self-checkout, and your transaction count will increase quickly. Of course, if there’s a long line behind you, it’s better to finish up quickly and not hold other people up.

Mainland China platforms

If you can add your credit card to Alipay or WeChat Pay (both support this now), there are many more ways to complete transaction requirements.

Mobile top-ups

In WeChat or Alipay mini programs, or in the wallet section, you can use mobile top-up services to add airtime for family members’ phone plans. The minimum seems to start at 50 yuan, while data packages can be as low as 10 yuan. Transactions under 200 yuan do not incur a service fee.

Reload Mainland China gas cards

Alipay has a PetroChina mini program, 中油好客 e 站, which lets you reload your own fuel card account. The minimum reload is 1 yuan per transaction.

Scan-to-pay

Many online platforms support QR-code payments using US-issued cards. For example, Bilibili supports this, and it also supports paying through PayPal.

Transit cards

On iPhone, you can add a Suica card directly in Wallet. Ignore the 1,000 yen amount shown below when reloading; you can manually enter 1 yen instead. You can reload it directly using the card stored in Apple Wallet.

Some use cases

Triggering bonus rewards on credit cards

Meeting debit card transaction requirements

  • Debit cards linked to checking/saving accounts: making a certain number of transactions each month may waive monthly fees, earn 5% interest, or qualify you for a $100-$300 account opening bonus.

Getting small credit card perks

Many credit cards have a small balance waiver. If the amount owed when your statement closes is only tiny, the bank may simply waive it.

In addition, Citi Rewards+ automatically rounds up points, so very small purchases can theoretically generate a very high return.

Getting past the popup

If AMEX keeps showing you a popup for no clear reason, making more purchases may help build your relationship with the issuer.

Keeping a card active

  • Some cards may be considered inactive and eventually closed if you never use them, so occasional spending can help.