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Which Grocery Stores Earn 3X With the Chase Sapphire Preferred®? Kroger, Whole Foods, H-E-B and More
September 27, 2026
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The content on this page is accurate as of the posting date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns 3X points on online grocery purchases, with no annual cap on that category. Chase excludes Target®, Walmart® and wholesale clubs, but most supermarket orders placed for pickup or delivery qualify, from Kroger and Whole Foods to H-E-B and Publix.
That means the same cart can earn 1X or 3X depending on how you check out. Order it online and pay with your Sapphire Preferred, and it lands in the 3X category. Swipe the card at the register, and it usually earns 1X.
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Shop in store more than online? See which cards earn the most at each type of grocery store. Read the grocery card breakdown by store type.
What Counts as Online Grocery for the Chase Sapphire Preferred?
Chase defines online grocery as pickup and delivery orders placed online with grocery stores, specialty food stores, or delivery services that classify as grocery store merchants. Meal kit delivery services also count.
Two conditions have to line up. The merchant must be coded as a grocery store, and the order must be placed online for pickup or delivery. A supermarket purchase made in the checkout lane does not meet the second condition.
Chase also carves out a few items, even at qualifying stores:
- Membership and subscription fees, such as a grocery delivery pass
- Purchases from a pharmacy inside the supermarket
- Gift cards, gift baskets and gift boxes
Source: Chase Rewards Category FAQ
Kudos looks at the cards in your wallet and shows which one earns the most at the merchant you are shopping with, so you can use the Sapphire Preferred for online grocery orders and another card where it earns more.
New to the Sapphire Preferred? Catch up on the card's 2026 changes. Read the Sapphire Preferred 2026 refresh guide.
Does Kroger Delivery Count as Online Groceries?
Yes. Kroger is a supermarket, so an order placed on Kroger.com or in the Kroger app fits Chase's definition of online grocery. Both home delivery and curbside pickup qualify, since Chase's category covers pickup and delivery orders placed online.
A few details are worth knowing before you check out:
- Final charges post after delivery. Kroger finalizes the amount once your order is fulfilled, so the charge on your statement may differ slightly from your cart total.
- Delivery memberships earn 1X. A Kroger delivery subscription is a membership fee, which Chase excludes from the online grocery category.
- Pharmacy items earn 1X. Prescriptions from the in-store pharmacy do not qualify, even when added to a pickup order.
What About Kroger Orders Through Instacart, DoorDash or Uber Eats?
Kroger also sells through third-party delivery apps. When you order this way, the charge comes from the app, not from Kroger. Chase counts delivery services only if they classify as grocery store merchants.
Instacart orders commonly post as online grocery. DoorDash and Uber Eats orders may be coded differently, so check your statement after your first order before you make it a habit.
Does Kroger Pay In Store Count?
Kroger Pay is a mobile payment option you scan at the register, linked to the card saved in your Kroger app. Since 2021, cardholders on Reddit and the myFICO forums have reported that Kroger Pay purchases posted as online grocery and earned 3X on the Sapphire Preferred.
Treat that as a cardholder finding, not a Chase rule. Chase's definition covers pickup and delivery orders placed online, and Chase can change how it categorizes a purchase at any time. If you try Kroger Pay, check your rewards activity after the first purchase to see which category it posted to.
Watching grocery caps on other cards? See where spending limits change which card wins. Read how grocery and gas caps compare.
Which Other Grocery Stores Earn 3X?
Kroger isn't the only supermarket where cardholders report 3X. Chase does not publish a list of qualifying stores, so the data points below come from cardholder forums and points blogs. Treat each one as a report, not a guarantee.
- H-E-B: Curbside pickup ordered in the My H-E-B app posted at 3X, according to a 2023 myFICO forum report.
- Publix: Paying through the Publix app at checkout posted at 3X, per the same 2023 myFICO thread.
- Whole Foods: Pickup orders placed through the Amazon app earned 3X, according to a 2024 FlyerTalk report and a 2025 article from The Points Guy. The same FlyerTalk poster reported 3X on in-store palm payments.
- Harmons, Food Lion and The Fresh Market: Instacart pickup orders earned 3X, according to a 2026 Upgraded Points article.
- Amazon Fresh: Reports are mixed. Some cardholders say delivery orders earn 3X, while other guides say Amazon Fresh codes as an Amazon purchase.
- Safeway: The 2024 FlyerTalk poster could not find a way to pay through the Safeway app in store, so there is no confirmed data point yet.
- Walmart, Target, Costco and Sam's Club: 1X by any method, since Chase excludes them.
The pattern is consistent. Orders placed on a grocer's own website or app, and Instacart orders from supermarkets, tend to post as online grocery. In-store app and palm payments have worked at some chains, but they fall outside Chase's written definition and can stop working without notice.
Which Grocery Orders Don't Earn 3X?
Chase names three exclusions in the card's terms, and its category FAQ adds a few more. These orders earn 1X even when placed online:
- Big-box retailers such as Walmart® and Target®, which are named exclusions
- Wholesale clubs such as Costco, Sam's Club and BJ's, also a named exclusion
- Liquor stores, which are not classified as grocery stores
- Narrow specialty sellers that sell only a few grocery items
The deciding factor is the merchant code, not what is in your cart. A store that sells groceries but is coded as a supercenter or discount store will not trigger the category, even for an online order.
How to Make Sure Your Order Earns 3X
A few habits keep your grocery orders in the right category:
- Order directly from the grocer when you can. Supermarkets like Kroger are coded as grocery stores, so an order placed on the store's own site or app is the most predictable route.
- Pay with the card itself. Chase notes that purchases routed through third-party payment accounts or digital wallets may not post in a rewards category if they are not set up to process that way. Entering your Sapphire Preferred directly at checkout removes that variable.
- Keep pharmacy and gift cards separate. Neither earns the bonus, so add them to a different order or buy them with another card.
- Check your first statement. Your Chase rewards activity shows which category each purchase posted to. If an order earned 1X, you know to switch how you place it next time.
How Much Does 3X Add Up To?
A household spending $500 a month on online grocery orders would earn 18,000 points a year at 3X, compared with 6,000 points at 1X. That is 12,000 extra points from changing where you place the order.
Calculation formulated by Kudos, based on $6,000 in annual online grocery purchases at the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card's 3X and 1X earn rates.
A DoorDash Perk That Stacks
The Sapphire Preferred also comes with complimentary DashPass when you activate by December 31, 2029. DashPass members get a $10 promotion each calendar month on one non-restaurant DoorDash order, which includes grocery orders. Unused value does not roll over, so it works best as a small top-up order each month.
Is the Sapphire Preferred the Best Card for Groceries?
It depends on where you buy them. The Sapphire Preferred only rewards online orders, while American Express cards reward U.S. supermarket purchases whether you shop online or in person.
- Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card: 3X on online grocery (excluding Target®, Walmart® and wholesale clubs), with no annual cap. In-store grocery purchases earn 1X.
- American Express® Gold Card: Earn 4X at U.S. supermarkets, on up to $25,000 per calendar year, then 1X. Applies online and in store.
- Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express: 6% cash back at U.S. supermarkets (up to $6,000 per year, then 1%). Applies online and in store.
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If most of your groceries arrive by delivery or pickup, the Sapphire Preferred's uncapped 3X keeps working all year. If you mostly shop in the store, a supermarket card will usually earn more on that spending. Many households pair the two and route each trip to the card that earns the most.
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by Amex Assurance Company.
How Kudos Helps You Pick the Right Card at Checkout
Remembering which card earns the most on Kroger.com versus the Kroger aisle is easy to get wrong. Kudos looks at the cards in your wallet and shows which one earns the most at the merchant you are shopping with, so you can use the Sapphire Preferred for online orders and another card where it earns more.
If you are weighing a $95 travel card for your grocery spending, our Sapphire Preferred vs. Strata Premier vs. Venture comparison shows how the three stack up.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Instacart count as online grocery on the Chase Sapphire Preferred?
Instacart orders commonly post as online grocery and earn 3X. Orders from Target®, Walmart® or wholesale clubs placed through any app still earn 1X, and Instacart+ membership fees are excluded.
Does curbside pickup count as online grocery?
Yes. Chase's definition includes grocery pickup orders placed online, so a Kroger or H-E-B curbside order earns 3X like a delivery order.
Is there a cap on the Sapphire Preferred's online grocery category?
No. The 3X online grocery category has no annual spending cap.
Do meal kits count as online grocery?
Yes. Chase lists meal kit delivery services as part of the online grocery category.
Does Whole Foods count as online grocery?
Cardholders report that Whole Foods pickup orders placed through the Amazon app earn 3X. Amazon Fresh delivery reports are mixed, since some orders post as an Amazon purchase, so check your rewards activity after your first order.
Why did my grocery order earn 1X?
The most common reasons are an excluded merchant (Walmart®, Target® or a wholesale club), an in-store purchase, a merchant not coded as a grocery store, or a purchase routed through a third-party payment account.
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