4 Reasons to Buy Groceries With Credit Cards

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Whether you're just starting out or you've been using credit cards for decades, it's easy to fall into the trap of believing that it's always best to pay in cash or with your debit card. But there are good reasons to pull out that credit card at the checkout stand at the grocery store.

Here are four reasons why you should use a credit card to pay for these necessary, ongoing expenses.

1. Build credit based on everyday spending

If you're new to building credit , opening a credit card with the express purpose of charging your grocery bills is one way to establish yourself. After all, if you're already spending that cash (regardless of whether you have a credit card or not), using a credit card for those charges isn't itself a danger.

Rather, it can actually help you access better terms on financial tools like loans in the future by establishing a credit history and showing that you're able to manage that credit responsibly.

However, it's important to still set a budget for your grocery spending. Otherwise, you run the risk of impulse-spending yourself into debt. So be sure that you can afford to repay any amount you charge by your due date to avoid interest charges.

2. Access credit card rewards for grocery bills

Many rewards credit cards offer cash back for everyday purchases, like groceries . And that can lead to a significant amount of savings over the course of your year.

If you were to pay $500 a month for groceries, that's $6,000 a year. If you had a rewards card that offered 2% back on groceries, you could recoup $10 a month. That's not a lot at once, but it's money you could put toward more lucrative options, such as a high-yield savings account (HYSA), which can offer APYs of 4% to 5%. Think of it as a smaller, grocery-centric version of an employer 401(k) match.

3. Protect yourself from fraud at the grocery store

Even if you tend to be an online shopper, there's one problem that can still put your finances at risk if you use your debit card at grocery stores: skimmers. These devices can capture your sensitive card data, including your PIN when you swipe at the till.

If you were to use a debit card at a store that had one of these installed, such as at the grocery store, your bank account could be emptied by the nefarious individuals who installed the device.

That isn't to say they couldn't charge purchases to your credit card if you used that payment method instead. But once charges are made on a credit card, it's significantly easier to get more of those charges reversed because credit cards often have better fraud protection than debit cards. And the timing of when you report a stolen debit card determines what you could owe, while credit cards could only hold you responsible for a maximum of $50 of those pre-report charges.

4. Track your food-related spending to understand existing habits

Many credit cards also offer ways to track your spending, which can be especially helpful if you find that food purchases are a spending category that you can't seem to reign in. These features can include an analysis of your broader spending categories, including what percentage of your spending is going toward groceries. That way, you'll be able to decide if your grocery bills are actually a problem or if you need to lower (or create) your grocery budget.

You may also be able to find spending patterns as you pay more attention to your spending in this category. For example, you may notice that you tend to spend more when you shop at certain stores than others. Learning these patterns can be the key to finding a way to break them, when warranted.

Grocery spending is unavoidable. But if you're careful and considerate about using a credit card to pay for these expenses, you'll be able to reap the benefits that a debit card doesn't always deliver.

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