Best Credit Cards for Groceries in 2026: Cash Back by Supermarket Rate

Blue Cash Preferred pays the most cash back on groceries among these cards when supermarket spending falls between about $3,170 and $10,250 a year, after its fee. At $500 a month it earns $360 at 6%, or $265 net from year two. Below that band, Capital One Savor's no-fee 3% wins. Above it, Savor's uncapped rate wins too.

FinanceRadar data: we modeled six grocery cards at $300, $500 and $750 a month of supermarket spend, using the fee, rate, cap and store terms on each issuer's card page, checked October 10, 2026. The $3,170 and $10,250 break-evens are our own arithmetic from those terms, and no issuer publishes them.

Most grocery searches come down to one question: which card pays the most at the store you actually use? Three things decide it, and issuers state them in different places: the rate, the annual cap on that rate, and what the issuer counts as a grocery store. This page puts all three in one table, then prices the annual fee at three spend levels. Our broader best rewards credit cards ranking covers the same cards on other criteria.

Six grocery cards on the same terms

The table lists each card's grocery rate and cap as the issuer states them, with the rewards at $500 a month of grocery spend. Cash cards come first.

Blue Cash Preferred leads on paper, and its 6% is the highest cash rate in the table. The $360 is before the fee, which starts in year two and leaves $265 a year after that. Blue Cash Everyday and Savor pay the same cash back with no fee, so the real question is whether the extra cash back covers the fee. At this spend, the extra $180 of cash back more than covers the fee.

Blue Cash Preferred's 6% covers only the first $6,000 of supermarket spend each year. Past that, the card pays 1%, which is why it stops winning at larger budgets. Amex's card page also states the supermarket rate without printing which stores qualify, so check a few months of statements before counting on the 6% at a big-box or club store.

The cap decides the Amex comparison

Blue Cash Everyday pays the same 3% as Savor, but only up to its cap. For readers choosing among no-fee cash cards, our best cash-back credit cards guide compares the wider field. Savor's card page says unlimited, so the two cards tie up to the cap and split above it. At $750 a month, Savor pays $270 and Everyday pays $210.

Blue Cash Preferred is the card that changes the answer at $750 a month. Its gross reward there is $390. Net of the fee from year two, that is $295, still ahead of Savor's $270. The lead does not last. Savor's uncapped 3% overtakes Blue Cash Preferred's net at about $10,250 of grocery spend a year.

FinanceRadar data: the same arithmetic gives the lower edge at about $3,170, and our credit card statistics page covers annual fees across the cards we track. Below that, the fee costs more than the extra three points of rate earns on the grocery bill, so Savor's no-fee 3% comes out ahead. Between the two edges, Blue Cash Preferred is the strongest cash card in this group.

Amex Gold: 4X points against a $325 fee

Amex Gold pays 4X Membership Rewards points at US supermarkets on up to $25,000 of purchases per calendar year, then 1X. Its card page lists a $325 annual fee. At the middle spend level, the category alone earns 24,000 points a year. Those points cover the fee only if each one is worth more than about 1.35 cents, and this page assigns no dollar value to points because the issuer pages do not set one.

Gold's grocery rate is strong, but grocery is not what carries the fee. The card also pays 4X at restaurants worldwide, up to $50,000 a year, which is why our best credit cards for dining guide ranks it on a different question. For a budget that already spends heavily on restaurants and travel, Gold can make sense. For groceries alone, it does not.

Chase: rotating grocery and online-only grocery

Chase Freedom Flex has no annual fee. It pays 5% on up to $1,500 of combined rotating-category spend each quarter, once you activate the category, and 1% on everything else. Chase's card page lists grocery stores, excluding Walmart and Target, as a rotating category for October to December 2026, with activation open from September 15, 2026. The page also lists grocery stores for January to March 2027.

A grocery quarter at the $1,500 limit earns $75 at 5%, against $15 at the 1% base. A year with one grocery quarter comes to $120. Outside those quarters, grocery earns the 1% base, $60 a year at the middle spend level. The card fits people who will activate the grocery quarters and whose grocery spend is steady enough to fill the limit.

Chase Sapphire Preferred charges $95 a year and pays 3X points on online grocery, excluding Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs. In-store grocery earns the 1X base. At the same spend online, that is 18,000 points a year. It makes sense for people who order groceries online and already want its transfer partners. For store trips, it is the wrong card.

What counts as a grocery store

Capital One's Savor page defines a grocery store as a supermarket, meat locker, freezer, dairy product store or specialty market, and it excludes superstores such as Walmart and Target. The same spend at a superstore earns Savor's 1% base instead of 3%, so anyone whose weekly shop happens there should price Savor at 1%. Our Savor review covers the rest of the card.

Chase's online grocery rate excludes Target, Walmart and wholesale clubs, while the Freedom Flex grocery rotation excludes Walmart and Target. The best credit cards for online shopping guide covers general online retail, which is a different category. Amex's card pages do not define US supermarkets, so a Blue Cash cardholder cannot tell from those pages whether a warehouse club or superstore qualifies. Whether any issuer counts a warehouse club such as Costco as a grocery store is a separate question. Our Costco Anywhere Visa review covers that card separately.

The fee math at three spend levels

The table prices each card at three grocery budgets. It assumes every dollar lands at a store the card counts, applies each annual cap, starts Blue Cash Preferred's fee in year two, and counts no sign-up bonus. Points rows carry no dollar value, because no issuer page sets one. Multiply by the value you actually redeem at.

The Gold break-even is the simplest one to check. At the middle spend level, Gold's points cover its fee only when each point is worth about 1.35 cents, so the redemption value you actually get decides it.

Which card fits which grocery bill

• Under the lower edge at stores that qualify: Savor. The Blue Cash Preferred fee costs more than the extra rate earns, and Savor's 3% needs no cap tracking.
• Inside the middle band: Blue Cash Preferred. After the fee, it beats Savor across that band.
• Above the upper edge: Savor. Its uncapped 3% overtakes Blue Cash Preferred's net.
• No fee, and 3% on gas and online retail too: Blue Cash Everyday. It ties Savor under the cap on groceries and trails it above.
• Quarterly grocery, with activation discipline: Freedom Flex. A grocery quarter adds $60 over the base on the first $1,500 of spend.
• Mostly online grocery, already holding Chase travel points: Sapphire Preferred, for its 3X online rate.
• Dining, travel and grocery in one budget, willing to pay the fee: Gold, with its grocery points worth the fee only above about 1.35 cents each on this category alone.

Methodology: how we checked the grocery terms

We checked each issuer's public card page on October 10, 2026: Amex Blue Cash Preferred, Amex Blue Cash Everyday, Amex Gold, Capital One Savor, Chase Freedom Flex and Chase Sapphire Preferred. The issuer pages print no effective date for these terms, so this page dates them by the check date. Sign-up bonuses are left out of every calculation.

The model assumes spend stays inside each card's grocery category, each cap applies per year, the Freedom Flex base rate is 1% with no grocery quarter in the fee table, and the Blue Cash Preferred fee is charged from year two. Because Amex's card pages do not define US supermarkets, the Amex rows assume every grocery store qualifies. The Savor and Chase store rules come from those issuers' own card pages.

This page is general information, not personalized financial advice. Confirm the current terms with each card issuer before you apply, because rates, caps and store categories change. Some card links may earn Financeradar a commission. How Financeradar makes money explains how those links are paid.

FAQ

Which credit card pays the most cash back on groceries?

Among the cards here, Blue Cash Preferred pays the most cash back for a household in the middle band of supermarket spend, after its fee. Its 6% covers the first $6,000 of spend each year, then drops to 1%. Above that band, Savor's uncapped 3% pays more, at stores that qualify for both cards.

Does Blue Cash Preferred have an annual fee?

Yes, from year two. Amex's card page lists a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95, whatever you spend on groceries.

Does the Capital One Savor grocery rate have a cap?

Capital One's Savor card page describes its 3% grocery rate as unlimited, with no annual cap. It excludes superstores such as Walmart and Target, so a shop there earns the 1% base. The 3% applies to supermarkets, meat lockers, freezers, dairy product stores and specialty markets.

Does Chase Freedom Flex pay 5% on groceries every quarter?

No. Chase lists grocery stores as a rotating 5% category in some quarters, including October to December 2026 and January to March 2027, and you must activate each quarter. The 5% covers up to $1,500 of combined rotating spend per quarter. Grocery spend in other quarters earns 1%.

Is the American Express Gold Card worth it for groceries alone?

Not on grocery spend alone. Its $325 annual fee needs each point earned at US supermarkets to be worth more than about 1.35 cents at the middle spend level. Gold makes more sense when restaurants, travel and its credits are part of the same budget.

Cite this: FinanceRadar, "Best Credit Cards for Groceries in 2026: Cash Back by Supermarket Rate", October 2026.