Should You Get a Sam's Club Membership Just to Buy Gift Cards?

Like most stores these days, every Sam's Club has one of those handy-dandy kiosks full of gift cards to various retailers and restaurants. Unlike most stores, however, the prices for gift cards at Sam's Club are often discounted below their face value.

Discounted gift cards can be a nice boost to your finances, opening up a lot of room for savings. But to get in the door at Sam's Club, you need a $50-a-year membership. Are a few gift card deals worth that price? Let's find out.

When the math works out

The best case for getting good value from Sam's Club gift cards is if you already spend a significant amount of money with these brands. This is probably easiest to do with something like restaurants, for which you can save up to 30%:

• 4-pack of Logan's Steakhouse $25 gift cards (total value $100): $75.00
• 4-pack of Wendy's $15 gift cards (total value $60): $47.98
• 3-pack of Cold Stone Creamery $10 gift cards (total value $30): $20.79
• 2-pack of Smash Burger $25 gift cards (total value $50): $37.50

With deals like these, it would only take a few gift card purchases for the savings to cover the cost of your Sam's Club membership. After that, additional gift cards are straight savings.

When to skip gift cards

If you can find gift cards, like those above, that offer a significant discount, then that's often an easy call. But what about gift cards with lesser discounts? In some cases, you might actually be better off using a rewards credit card to pay, rather than using a gift card.

For example, samsclub.com sells a three-pack of $25 Darden gift cards for $71.98 shipped. That's a 4% discount. My best restaurant rewards card gives me the equivalent of 8% back. So, I'd be missing out on 4% extra in rewards if I went the gift card route. (If I could pick the cards up in store for less than $70, the value proposition would start to shift in their favor.)

Keep in mind that it's not always about the purchase rewards. Sometimes your cards offer other perks with less tangible value that make them the smarter option.

Sam's Club offers Southwest Airlines gift cards at a 10% discount. This is a better return than you'd get with most rewards cards (though some travel cards could match it). However, the best travel rewards cards also offer something you won't get from your gift card: travel insurance.

Credit card travel insurance can include trip interruption/cancellation coverage, bag delay coverage, and even lost luggage reimbursement. Not only is this a bit of peace of mind, but if you actually need to use it, travel insurance can save you thousands. Here are some of the cards with the best travel insurance:

• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card (see rates and fees)
• The Platinum Card® from American Express (see rates and fees)
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Digital vs. physical gift cards

If you're buying gift cards from Sam's Club online, be mindful of what type of "card" you're buying. Unlike Costco, Sam's Club sells both digital and physical gift cards on its website.

Although physical gift cards typically ship free -- even if you're not a Plus member -- you might be unpleasantly surprised if you suddenly need to wait for a physical card to arrive when the digital gift cards are emailed right away. And vice versa; you don't want to end up with an inbox full of digital gift cards when you want something more tangible to tuck into a stocking.

Pro tip: If this happens, don't despair; just get creative with it! Print out the barcode and deck out the paper with glitter or festive stickers. Just don't obscure the part the recipient needs to redeem their gift.

Using third-party gift cards sites

If you don't have a Sam's Club membership (and don't want one), there are other ways to get discounted gift cards. You could get them directly from the business, for instance. Many businesses discount their gift cards around major holidays.

You could also try a third-party gift card reselling website. These offer discounted cards purchased from people who traded their cards in for cash, or purchased with bulk or affiliate discounts.

Whichever route you go, make sure you keep any payment restrictions in mind. For example, some credit card issuers actually have rules against gift card purchases. They may even treat it as a cash advance.

If your purchase is considered a cash advance, you won't earn any rewards on it. Plus, you'll be charged a cash advance fee. Your balance will also start accruing interest right away at the cash advance APR.

Use 'em or lose 'em

All else aside, remember that gift cards don't do anyone any good if they're left to molder in a drawer. Some gift cards may even expire if they're left inactive for too long. Your location can actually impact the legality of when your gift cards can expire, so it could be worth looking up local laws if you're worried about old gift cards.