American Express continues to plow into the prepaid market at full throttle.
-They have their own Serve product.
-They have a co-branded Serve card with Softcard (formerly known as ISIS) that is a super-charged version of Serve.
-They have a partnership with Walmart for the co-branded Bluebird card.
-And they now have a partnership with Target for the co-branded REDcard.
In 2012 I called Bluebird the next dollar coin burn. Indeed it proved highly effective as a method of creating spend for your credit cards. I had lots of fun with Bluebird but this past July I switched to Serve with ISIS.
Serve with ISIS allows $1,500 in credit card funding right from your computer in addition to $5,000 in gift card/debit card funding from WalMart and Family Dollar stores.
However that’s already starting to show cracks. Some banks like BOFA and Citi have caught on and now charge a cash advance for Serve loads. Though Chase and Barclaycard are still safe for now.
And now there’s REDcard. It’s currently only available in select Target stores, but it will be rolled out nationwide.
Stores in some regions charge $5 for a REDcard while other regions have them for free.
For now, Target allows you to fund REDcard from a credit card to the tune of $5,000 per month.
Additionally you get 5% off everything from Target, free shipping on everything from Target.com, and an additional 30 days to return items to Target.
Here’s my timeline:
10/14: On Tuesday I went to Target to buy a REDcard. In Cleveland there’s a $5 charge to purchase and load a REDcard. The card you get from Target is just temporary, you need to register it online after purchasing it to be sent a permanent card.
I purchased and loaded a temporary REDcard with $500 and the charge posted as a regular purchase. I tried loading it with more but the system didn’t allow that. The system also didn’t allow me to purchase another REDcard on the same day. You do need a license and SSN to buy a REDcard, though no credit check is done.
Of course I wasn’t able to register the REDcard under my SSN once I got home as I already have Serve with Softcard and AMEX only allows a person to have one flavor of their prepaid cards. I was able to register the card to someone else without any issue though.
10/15: On Wednesday I went back to Target and now that the temporary card was registered and had a pin I was able to load another $1,000 onto the card from my credit card. There was no fee. I tried to load more but it was rejected.
I then went to the Target ATM machine and was able to withdraw $200 twice with no fees before the system stopped allowing further withdrawals.
I was also able to buy another REDcard. You can buy one temporary REDcard per calendar day.
10/18: Of course then came the 3 day hiatus from all things electronic to finish off the Sukkos holiday, but the permanent card already came in the mail over the holiday!
So last night I went back to Target.
I tried loading $1,500 but the register said “amount too small.” The cashier and I got a kick out of that.
Then I went down to $1,000 and it worked fine. I loaded another $1,000 and then another $500 before the system cut me off.
Talk about making spend threshold spending easy!
Loads can be done with any cashier or at customer service.
Unfortunately the Target ATM machine was down. Not that it really matters as money can be transferred from REDcard to pay any bill or to transfer funds directly into your checking account.
10/19: Earlier today I decided to take the plunge and cancel my Serve card.
Of course there are several drawbacks to REDcard:
-You can’t load from a credit card online, while Serve allows me to do $1,500 per month from the comfort of my home. REDcard does allow $1,000 in monthly funding from a debit card (though not a gift card) online.
-I also have 4 free additional users on my Serve account and Serve cards qualify for Small Business Saturday. REDcard doesn’t appear to be eligible for AMEX Offers promotions.
That hurts, but I’ll just have to add some more additional users on my American Express credit cards to make up for it 😀
-Serve with Softcard gives $1 back on up to 50 purchases per month until the end of the year. Which hurts, but it’s a pain to break up your purchases that way anyway.
At any rate, $5,000 in easy credit card spend every month just seemed like something too good to pass up. And I can still use Softcard with other credit cards for promotions like this.
After cancelling Serve and waiting for the account cancellation email I was able to register the 2nd temporary REDcard that I bought last week.
So then it was back to Target today. The permanent REDcard had been funded with $500 initially, $1,000 on Wednesday after being registered, and $2,500 last night when the permanent version came. Today I was able to load it with another $1,500 in 2 transactions, bringing the total load to $5,500. The initial load didn’t count towards the $5K monthly limit, but now I’ll have to wait until November to load that card with another $5,000. It will take 2 trips on 2 different days, but I can easily load more than 1 REDcard at a time to make that less onerous.
After that I loaded the temporary card that I just registered to myself before going to the store with another $1,000.
And I bought a 3rd REDcard and loaded it with $500.
Every time with a smile. Without a line. And never being asked for ID (which made meeting my wife’s thresholds for a recent 3BM that muss less painful). Take that WalMart!
Of course Target can always disallow credit card funding, though when that happens I can always switch back to Serve with Softcard if that’s still around at that time. It’s not really a matter of if but a matter of when, as some things are just too good to be true.
HT: jaywhy, via DDF and FM
How do you take off the $5k? Can you cash out? ATM?
@dan your just a beast man I need mefarshim
But what about getting paid to buy cereal??
@Jj:
The easiest way, as I wrote in this post, is to just transfer funds to your checking account or pay your bills (like your credit card, etc).
@Sol:
Lol. That’s what the comment section and DDF is for.
@getting paid to buy cereal:
Still do, read the post again!
You can transfer to your checking account?
@Mark:
Yes.
I will probably switch to the “Redbird” when it comes to our state, but one thing that makes me hesitant is the fact that, at least so far, I haven’t seen any comments that the card can be re-loaded at a Target ATM (e.g., using a gift card.) If so, and probably so, then those $200 gift cards bought from Staples (for the 5 x UR points) will be a PITA to load at a Target register. At least with Serve and Bluebird, if you can find a Walmart Moneycenter, you can load the cards without holding up the line at a Walmart cashier.
@pointie:
Just use them to buy Money orders or WM bill pay.
Prefer the ATM process better. Also, if you do Money Orders, that just causes another step in the process. Hopefully Target will update their ATM’s to handle the Redbirds.
1card/pp. Who’s the 3rd card for?
Thanks Dan.
Do you know when Redcard will be coming to Ca?
@dan Softcard is once per SIM card, how will you re-register?
Is there any way to load gift cards
@pointie:
Unlikely.
@ABC:
Someone else.
@Ari:
Nope.
But if you find one somewhere else you can always reload it anywhere.
@Yitz:
I still have Softcard. I would just add Serve back to it.
@Levi:
Sure, but why would you want to over a credit card?
Cam i load the staples visa gift cards in target with REDcard?
All of your red cards are in different names/Social Security numbers and your existing bluebirds and serves, correct? In other words, you can’t have both a red card and a bluebird or a serve, right?
@Mendel:
I don’t see why not.
Though I’d rather use those for money order or bill pay and use credit cards for Target (as credit cards don’t work for money order/bill pay).
@Eddy:
Correct.
Though you can get a temporary REDcard with a Serve. Though you’ll need to close Serve or have someone else activate to reload it and use the good stuff on it.
Do they offer check like BB? Any idea if the transfer to Checking account option can get you banned like with BB?
Am in target now. They said they haven’t been selling amex red cards for a while.
What gives?
I also went up every aisle. No prepaid cards in sight.
Only thing I see are posters for a debit card, but I’m assuming that’s not it. Right?
I use my bluebird to transfer funds to my checking account to avoid the monthly fee because it comes up as a direct deposit would serve and red card do the same? Is there any other reason not to switch from bluebird if walmart and target are the same distance from my house?
@thingy:
Only BB has checks.
Do you know actually know someone banned for transfers to checking?
@Jj:
@Jj:
Read the post again.
Specifically the 5th paragraph which starts “And now there’s REDcard.”
@chased:
Serve/RC should do the same.
For now this allows $5K in monthly credit card funding.
BB/Serve does not.
Erskine st off the belt parkway fyi
There was no points if load Serve with Amex, what about REDcard?
@Jj:
Exactly why you need to read the post. Look before you leap…
@Shimon:
It posts as a regular purchase from Target so there’s no reason why not, “GROCERY STORES, SUPERMARKETS” is how mine came up.
@dan
Can you explain? They only have redcard debit or credit card
@dan
My apologies. I clicked on the link. Thanks
Sorry I am slow. Not getting it. I buy pre-paid red-card and add $5K. How am I funding the $5K with CC, bank account, money order? Then transfer $5K money from pre-paid card to my checking account? How has this helped me? What am I missing? Am I getting points? Money back? etc…
@John:
Fund REDcard with credit card=Earn miles from credit card.
Use REDcard to pay off your bills or transfers funds into checking account.
I have a red card credit card for sometime. Can I load that to like the prepaid card?
@Makir Tova:
No.
You would need to get the new AMEX REDcard.
The only way to fund with cc is through a cashier at the register?
Once you have the card, can at be loaded at any Target or only the only the stores where it already rolled out?
@dan:
so i can get gift cards from staples and 5 point per dollar and $20 rebate…..
@Abeytt03:
Yes.
@thingy:
Any Target.
@Levi:
There are many other ways of liquidating those cards…
@dan
Do these cards need to be activated first in store? Like a gift card?
Wondering if I can get a family to pick up in Cleveland then send here to me and I’ll load it.
So now you will be doing 10k month directly from CC between you and wife is more if you can get more in others name…. But that totally negates the staples 5-1. So you will just use ink 5-1 for MO and bill pay at Walmart? I can also swipe em on Amazon swiped I guess right?
@Jj:
Yes.
Yes.
@EAN:
Yup.
Redbird is currently only available in the following states:
Alabama
Arizona
Colorado
Indiana
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Mississippi
New Mexico
North Carolina
Ohio (Cleveland area only)
Oklahoma
Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Tennessee
Virginia
Wisconsin
I was hoping this stayed on DDF until it is fully rolled out, so that their “trial” doesn’t get overwhelmed with CC usage..
why cant i buy it online and then later load it up in store??
are we referring to the red card debit or is there a special card here??
@Dogo:
Considering that the vast majority of DDF traffic is from the coasts I’m not sure this makes much of a difference.
@dav:
This is the AMEX prepaid REDcard.
It’s not available online.
If you had 4 AU on the serve card that means $150 for SBS…
Why do you like redcard better?
If I were you I wait after SBS to this…
What do you say?
@yitzyu:
so for the majority of dandeals readers this is not doable yet
@Dogo: selfish.
@Mendel: There are no participating stores in New York at this time.
Can any credit card (Visa,MC,AMEX) be used to fund the REDCard?
I have serve and just signed up for ink how can I reach the 5k without soft card
I don’t think it’s worth the hassle of getting it, the CC loading will be gone within 2 months.
That’s my prediction.
@netlevy:
True.
But I was able to do 10K in funding between October and November.
Even without a spend threshold that’s 15K miles on a card like Everyday Preferred or United Club and worth more than $150.
@John:
Yes.
@Jack:
You can do 1K without softcard per month.
@Waste of time:
Could be, but it’s really not much hassle.
@Meee, not selfish just don’t want it to get killed before You can benefit from it.. and then once its fully rolled out it would take longer to change the rules – as opposed to a trial that is meant to catch the loop-holes..
@Dan Curious as to where maj of DDMS traffic from?
@dan if I close my serve will they give me a hard Imelda to reopen?
I just went to a bunch of targets here in New Jersey. They have a prepaid Target American Express. But it is not a RedCard. I wonder if it’s worth flying to you Dan to pick one up.
@Dogo:
1. United States 91.64%
2. Israel 3.86%
3. Canada 2.11%
Within the US…
1. New York 49.44%
2. New Jersey 13.10%
3. California 6.88%
4. Florida 3.80%
5. Illinois 3.26%
And none of those have RC access yet…though a relative can always ship one to them and they can load it anywhere.
@dan
almost seems on purpose to skip those places mostly interested in them!
@Dan if I close my serve card will they give me a hard time to reopen?
Are there any limits as to which credit cards can be used to fill this up? Can I use an Amex? Or will they catch on that I’m filling a prepaid American Express prepaid card with one of their credit cards?
Hi,
Seems like there is an option to order it online…………
https://redcard.target.com/tdc/flow.do?_flowExecutionKey=_c8C916CB9-B7CE-B3CE-9BD0-EA2FA3C99640_kD6739360-D892-F4C4-1ACD-9493A898EEAD
Cool numbers (sort of reflects Jewish population in the US). Where is CLE…
Adding 1k a month from ink to serve will I recive points from chase, and how can I get the other 2k in spending. Thanks
@Nate that is not from AMEX
If I loaded $5000 to my Bluebird this month and then cancelled, am I able to load my newly opened Redcard or do I have to wait till next month.
I was in target in nj. They had the signage but it was gift cards on the rack. Hey said hey ran out. More likely they never had them!
sorry did not read whole forum but quick question. If I buy Visa gift cards with my Chase Ink at Staples, can i then use them to get Redcard? It seems that the Target 5% back would cover the vig on the Visa giftcards (not relevant now that there is a rebate on the visa cards this week but afterwards). I think the logic is that i would get the 5 points on chase Ink bc its via staples but can defray cost of cards with spend at target bc of 5%. thoughts?
Dan,
Basically what you are saying is that if I get my hands on the temp redcard (either a relative buys it for me or if I happen to travel out of state) then I can register it and fund it with a cc at my local target even if my state is still not on the list.?
staples has $20 rebates on visa gc thisweek.
@done:
Or skipping the most populated areas.
@Sam:
No.
@Bob:
AMEX is fine.
@Nate:
Not AMEX.
@Dogo:
OH is 9th in the US.
@Jack:
Buy GCs from Staples, http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/53468
@Chris:
You can load the full $5K this month to RC as well!
@Tony c:
That’s a good sign though, should be coming soon.
@Eric:
You can, though you won’t get 5% back from Target for loads to REDcard.
@Sam:
Correct.
@zuck:
http://www.dansdeals.com/archives/53468
Dan,
Regarding your comment ” Some banks like BOFA and Citi have caught on and now charge a cash advance for Serve loads”:
Do BOFA and Citi charge cash advance even for the regular Serve card loads(without softcard/ISIS)? Thanks!
@Moshe:
Yes.
Dan, does this mean that I can’t load my serve card with my Citi Double Cash card?
Also, am I able to load my serve card at Family Dollar with a credit card?
Thanks.
can you have both redcard & amex for target?
@Sam:
You would get hit with a CA.
You cannot.
@John:
Yes.
My theory is that Target is happy to process your $5000 in cc. (They obviously knew this going in as amex would’ve told them). The reason I think this will stay is because
a) They force to you to come to target twice a month
b) Targets’ swipe rates are likely exceptionally low due to their volume, If I had to guess its probably cheaper to use this to entice customers to come in than to advertize
We will see I guess, they can easily block CC transactions if they want to.
@Dan:
Can I load anything by Family Dollar with a CC?
@ Dan with which credit card did you load the $5,500 ? chase? Freedom?
@Anonymous:
(I’m not Dan, but)
You cannot load anything at Family Dollar with a CC. What I do is buy vanilla GCs at CVS and then take them to Family Dollar and load them onto my Amex Serve. So I use my CC at CVS, but not at Family Dollar.
And it looks like REDcard is not available in Chicago. O well.
Just went to pick up my prepaid redcard at the Pikesville Target (closest to the Jewish community) and apparently it is the only target in the whole state of MD that has this card with no fee 🙂 I was told that these have been flying off the shelves all day!
So that’s miles for totally free? or there are there any charges somewhere between the transfers.
Am I reading correctly that a person can have more than one RedCard at a time? You have three open at the same time or are those for three different people?
@jack:
One per SSN
why is this better than serve??
dan whats wrong with the online link nate posted who cares if it not amex
@ mordy:
If you read the terms and conditions from the target redcard prepaid website, it says the ways of loading money are by debit card, cash, bank transfer, and direct deposit. Notice there is no mention of credit card. That is why I agree with Dan, this is a matter of when they will accepting credit cards and not if and most probably the when will be very soon. That is why I wouldn’t go driving 300 miles just to pick this up.
@Dan
You mention that the first RedCard you got you registered to somebody else, and when you got the permanent card went back to Target to put another 2.5K on it.
If I’m understanding correctly, does that mean that person A can register a Target card for person B, and when the permanent card comes, person A can take person B’d RedCard to Target and load it with a credit card in person A’s name? (aka, it doesn’t need to be the person who the permanent card “belongs to” who is loading the card at Target?) Is the persons name imprinted on the Red Card?
All good things do come to end and a posts like this just accelerate the process. Only this time when it happens there will also be collateral damage.
so for now all credit cards even bofa and citi are still reg transactions if you load at target. i loaded citi onto serve last week didnt see any ca charge. did this happen a just a few days agao?
would it work for someone to pick up one for me in a diff’t state and mail it to me
I still have BB, does the same rules apply when signing up for redbird? shut down BB and then go into participating target and sign up?>
@wondering: yes
@rots5: think you can get temp card and do initial load in target but in order to to get permanent card you have to cancel bb or serve.
@all: Does it make sense to buy gift cards at a grocery store with a cash back card and then load those cards at target onto a redcard?
I tried to load my serve card last night wiyh debit at CVS and the cashier said the transaction failed, even though was able to successfully initially load with a Visa debit/gift card.
I called serve customer service and the rep said that debit loads are limited to $1,500/mo, but can ONLY be loaded online, not in store.
Has anyone else experienced this??
Just got the Amazon from serve = $120 but I did 10 cards – however 4 were amex AU so maybe only primary????
Do you think I can have an out-of-state relative buy a pre-paid REDcard and ship it to me…then register it myself? Or perhaps just have him get the plastic off the shelf, send it to me, and then I will actually do the buying of the item at my local Target so there is no need for him to use his SSN or DL?
Hi,
Just purchased a red-bird in target, NEW YORK QUEENS, zip 11373.
3 dolloar fee, and now I am with it.
@Joosoo: how did you get it isn’t it unavailable in NY?
@Joosoo: also wondering the same… How did you pick it up in NYC? Are you sure it’s the AMEX?
@Joosoo:
because I purchased a wrong card
@Joosoo: sure you didn’t hop on the wrong train? They don’t and never had it
Has it been confirmed that this will be rolling out nationwide?
i bought the redcard and tried making an account to get the real card and at the end of the process it said
YOUR ACCOUNT IS BEING REVIEWED
Thanks for your application! However, we need additional information from you before we can approve your Account. Please check your email for further instructions. Don’t forget to check your spam folder.
HAS ANYONE EVER SEEN THIS WHILE TRYING TO REGISTER?
TIA
@Joosoo:
@Anonymous
@Deal guy
As I said, I purchased a wrong item, lame…
How do u transfer the money to your checking account from red card?
on supplement to delta amex cardmember agreement, it does say “eligible purchases do NOT include” and then it lists among several, “purchases or reloading of prepaid cards”. any one know if this would be what invalidates points or miles from creditng? Thanks.
Can I just pull out the $ from the tem card?
And everyday do $500
That’s $15,000 a month..?
Or should I say, Why else are they available to purchase, one per day per person, if at the end of the day you can only have one?
What would it help if you buy a lot?
Or can one still use it as a charge card (without a pin)???
There has to be another way to pull out the $ that you loaded, if your unsuccessful in registering…
Re: Serve – I tried to add money from my Chase Ink card to my serve card, but Chase declined the transaction, saying that it was a cash advance.
Dan, if you load the prepaid card with $1,000 and use your regular target card to pay for it do you save 5% off of the purchase?
Can you load $1500 w/ CC and pay off that CC with account balance? Can this be done with Amex cards?
YES i have to ask this question after reading this whole blog.
i got a redcard DEBIT CARD.. i have the feeling i got the wrong card …do i have to get the prepaid redcard ????
ok i made a mistake …get this card
https://amex.serve.com/prepaidredcard/faqs/
i am in ny so they do not have them yet ,so
i went online and got the debit card ,which is the wrong card ;-(
Do I understand this right? I can fund RedCard with my Chase Ink then pay off my Chase ink with my Red ? Somethings missing here.
@Trying to register redcard: call redcard Amex customer service (open 24 hours) tell them what it says ask for a link to your email to upload a picture of your Id and a bank statement with your address on it then upload it call them again tell them you did it they’ll look at it and they’ll open your account
isnt it only available for target stores
so you can buy a temp card michigain and refill in illinios ?
do they just take the license number or number expiration etc
I tried this and they had no clue what i was talking about. I spoke to 2 managers. I could get the credit or debit redcard. Credit is a target only credit card and cannot be loaded up. The debit card is linked to checking account and zaps whatever you buy from bank account 2 days after purchase. Is it possible this is State specific? This was in FL.
@Shmiel:
Oh…and it is NOT amex, they run it through TD Bank (again, in fl) and now i have a useless redcard 🙂
can you please post a link where is shows you can transfer funds from the redcard to your linked bank account? You mention that in the article. Thank you
Why cant I keep my serve card and never register my redcard. That way I can have both??? Whats the benefit of registering the redcard?
target has a amex card that it says that I could pay bill with it but its not this amex redcard and no 5% on it and they ask for ssn when buying it what is that all about?
dan please explain how to load $5,000 in gift card/debit card funding from WalMart and Family Dollar stores with serve card and with softcard (issis) . thanks
@kevin: Its under settings – transfer to bank account
someone asked this but was not responded to.
Do you think I can have an out-of-state relative buy a pre-paid REDcard and ship it to me…then register it myself? Or perhaps just have him get the plastic off the shelf, send it to me, and then I will actually do the buying of the item at my local Target so there is no need for him to use his SSN or DL?
Anyone knows if any banks are charging redcard loads as cash advance or is it safe with all credit cards so far?
on other sites they are saying that it does not work to load it with credit cards but does work with visa gift cards with pins. is it true that credit cards dont work?
Thank you Jacob. I load my Redcard with my new Chase Ink and its a purchase on the Ink card and no fees.
Dan,
Amex does not consider Target to be a grocery store like chase cards do so i will not be getting the 4.5 x miles for using my amex everyday preffered card.
I just tried to load with cc at store with 3 different cards and didn’t work I called up and they said you can not use cc.
I told them i used cc to initial $1,500, but they said won’t work…
RedCard no longer works with credit card — Dan, any solutions?
Once you register your Card, you can continue to add money using Direct Deposit, linking a debit card or bank account, or by adding cash for free at any U.S. Target store.
@Adam:
Do you have the AMEX REDCard?
@Dan
Yea. It did not work at the store, I tried online and it would not work either. The paragraph I copied is directly from the website.
https://amex.serve.com/prepaidredcard/
@Adam:
What exactly did you try?
How much money?
Was your REDcard registered?
What did the register say when you tried?
@Dan
I called the store before going, they said you can use credit card. However, when I came, I first tried loading $1500, it did not go through, I then tried $1000, didn’t work. The cashier said she thinks 500 is the most you can do before you register the card, so I tried that as well, but it did not go through (I do not remember a specific error message). Maybe Amex decided to not allow credit cards as of today? I will try again at a different location today or next week and will report.
@Adam:
You can’t load anything after buying the card unless you register the card.
@Dan
I guess the cashier was not informed. I will try again now that it is registered and will post the results.
I got hit with a Cash Advance fee on Chase INK for loading on to Serve via Website.
@Chanan:
It changes to a purchase once it actually posts.
Oh Thanks! I was getting scared:( I will follow up Monday or Tuesday then when officially posts. I noticed that my cash advance limit was reduced by $1,000 for 2 $500 loads yesterday and today so assumed that meant it was being treated as a cash advance. Thanks for letting me know.
Just an FYI before anyone tries, I noticed Walgreens/Duane Reade also has a new Balance Financial Prepaid Debit Card with a $1.95 activation fee and when I went to the register the computer popped up with a cash only screen. I hope that is not what is happening at Target.
@dan how do you register more than one Prepaid RedCard? When i tried it wouldn’t let. can you use it long term without registering If so how do you remove funds?
Thanks Dan! I was worried for a minute and should never have doubted you. I now have 3 transactions and full Cash Advance limit. I never looked at the cash advance limit until trying this and when i saw it go down $500 each time i ASSumed the worst. So far Chase INK is still good to go. And by the way, to hit my Threshold I bought an AMEX Prepaid card for $3,000 with no fee. It got denied twice and i called in and processed it a third time. Is this normal? Will they let it go thru eventually?
@Trying to register redcard:
Anything further to report?
Is there a max for the initial load when purchasing the card?
Would anyone be able to send me a card or two? They aren’t available for purchase where I am. I can pay via paypal or Quickpay or whatever is convenient for you. Send me an email if you can help me out. Hollawood24@yahoo.com. Thanks!
From the Redcard website:
Adding Money
How do I add money to my Prepaid REDcard Account?
You can add money to your Prepaid REDcard Account in many convenient ways:
Direct Deposit — an easy and free way to add all or part of your paycheck or government benefits check to your Account.
Cash — a convenient way to immediately add cash to your Account.
Free Cash Reloads at the Target register: Add cash for FREE at any Target location in the U.S. You can add as much as $1,000 or as little as $0.01 for FREE to your personalized card. Just give your Prepaid REDcard and cash to the cashier and your money is immediately added to your Card. It’s that easy!
Bank Transfers — add money from any U.S. issued checking or savings account.
Debit Cards — add money from your debit card at the register or by linking it to your Prepaid REDcard account online. Please note: Gift cards cannot be used to add money.
*****
It seems that the credit card option to reload is not available…..
Has anyone tried loading REDcard using credit card lately? especially at locations that don’t sell REDcard? I would like to make sure it still works before going out of my way to obtain one. It’s not sold in my state.
@TJ:
Works fine nationwide.
Just a follow up to AMEX Gift Cards, I couldn’t purchase a $3,000 AMEX gift card with a $3.95 fee for who knows what reason. If anyone tries and succeeds please let me know how. even the customer support center has no idea. We tried all week various methods and various cards. (Using a Virtual Number for CITI helps;)) At any rate, I purchased 6 $500 Congrats cards with no fee per card and free shipping. just call amex or google no fee amex gift cards for a code. Was approved right away. Dan, is this the way to go instead of dealing with RedCard? It just seems easier especially to meet thresholds and just unload on Serve $500 at a time even with the $1,500 monthly limit. Just met my threshold on the CITI Premier and INK cards in 2 transactions. i signed up for a credit card processor who offered me free swipes for 2 weeks. Using your advice, i am only swiping gift cards, not my personal cards. But it made me think, why not have my friends sign up and we swipe each others cards. and then even after the 14 days its 1.95% fee which doesn’t seem like its worth it.
I tried to get cash from Target ATM using temp REDcard and transaction was declined….
How to transfer money from REDcard to bank account?
Are you still able to load via credit card with no fees? They only mention the following ways:
Reload cash for FREE at Target
Enroll in FREE Direct Deposit
Transfer Money for FREE from debit cards or US bank accounts
Thank you.
Once I buy the card do I need to put money on the card before activating it online?
Will I ever get audited if im transferring 5000 dollars from my redcard to my checkings account each month????? Any way around this?
PSA FOR ALL CROWN HEIGHTSERS
The vending machine’s in 770 downstairs take contactless payments (Softcard, Google Wallet, Apple Pay etc.) this is a great way to take advantage of the Serve promotion of $1 back on all purchases of $1 or more!
Is it safe to purchase red cards from people selling them on ebay
At least a yes or no?
Dan iv been loading my multiple serve cards with chase rewards credit card how will we know when they will start charging cash advance fee will we have a heads up? iv been doing it on alot of cards i dont wana one day see crazy fees do you know?
How do you transfer money straight to your checking account?
forget it figured it out thanks
I know this has probably been answered before, but I wanted to confirm. Can I load Visa Giftcards onto my RedCard and therefore earn the 5x points if they were bought with my ink?
Has anyone experienced red flags being raised because of this? Is the only way to do that in a store?
I just asked a relative in Detroit to get an amex redcard for me but they wanTed her to give all her info when loading it, does that make sense? They insisted the permanent card would be sent to her address, any way around that?
Can someone purchase the card for me in a state where they have them and have the permanent card shipped to a state where they don’t have them?
(i think) i just picked up a American Express for target at a target in brick nj. i had to register it online at amex.com. it says that to upload it costs 3.00. they also scanned my license. it was not up in the front of the store so i a manager and she went and found me one. is it still worth it even though there is a 3.00 fee. every time i want to up load?
@persin:
Wrong card.
@Dan:
Can I pay my freedom bill with redbird?
I picked up my second Red Card at Target in Annapolis, MD on Monday with no problem. When I tried for my third one on Wednesday, The computer blocked me with a message to the effect of ‘can’t load card’ or something similar. We tried two different cards off the rack with the same result. My friend was able to get his first card right after I was blocked. Anybody else have a similar experience?
@התחדשות:
Yes.
@NoVA Rick:
1 activation per SSN per day.
@Dan: Buys were 2 days apart
Hey Dan, The RedCard FAQ Page doesn’t list Credit Cards as an option to add money to the re-loadable card. https://amex.serve.com/prepaidredcard/faqs/
Also there are major limits to how much can be added every day/month. Are we still able to do this?
Who cares about FAqs??????
Just read this post.
Haha ok thanks! I thought maybe they changed something. I registered for the RedCard today and will let you know how it goes.
If a relative picks up a card for me in Cleveland and mails it to me in Connecticut will Target ship the permanent card to me in Connecticut or will they only ship it to Cleveland?
They’ll ship to CT
You link your bank account to your registered Redbird account AFTER you’ve received and registered the permanent card. You go through “settings” just as you would with Bluebird.
@Dan, you think 3BM will work for RedCard activation?
Have you considered it?
how many red cards can you own under your own SSC#?
If you live in ny, how do use get a redcard? Do you buy it in a state where they sell it and then regI ster it with your address?
If someone without my ID buys a card in Maryland and brings it to NJ, can I then register it to myself in NY/NJ?
dan, i have a few redCards, however i am only able to load 1g per a transaction so i go back a bunch of times, can u explain how to consolidate $2500 /1500 into one transaction?
thanks,
sam
I tried the ft method but cashier didn’t know what i was saying, ill try again no worries
Can I use the redcard to pay a credit card bill directly, or do I have to transfer it to a checking account and then pay the credit card bill from checking?
u can pay cc bill directly
hi dan do they ask for an ID when you get a red card, in other words can i buy for someone else?
Dan, old thread, but was wondering if you can write an updated post regarding cash advance and whether or not REdcard is being discontinued?
Dan – I have a prepaid Redcard and want to sign up for Amex Gold. The Amex terms specifically say that to meet the spending threshold you cannot use on reloads for prepaid cards. Wouldn’t that mean that the Redcard is disallowed by Amex to meet the spending threshold?
I got my permanent red card but cannot figure out how to transfer money to my checking account. Please advise. Thanks!
Dan, when I tried to register my second tem redcard, system did not allowed me to do it…
have you registered second rc under same ssn?
@Mike L:
Go to “Settings” then “link bank account and debit card”
Dan do you know anything about the subaccounts- do those count towards your 5,000 per month or can you do additional spending on those?
does anyone know if these cards are legally allowed to be sold
Will loading a serve card with Chase freedom be considered a cash advance or a purchase?
@Dan:
Hi.
I know this a few months old but it’s the exact question I have.
What are the exact steps for transferring money out. I linked the permanent card with my checking account but it doesn’t appear there is any way to push the money out to my checking account.I may be able to pull the money in from my my Red Car Prepaid account to my checking by initiating a transfer on my checking account but I am not sure if this will work.
Thanks.
@Nolan Johnson:
To transfer the money from REDcard to your bank click on Settings -> Withdraw Funds -> Transfer to bank.
However, DO NOT DO IT!!! This is a very good way to be a candidate for Redbird closure. Instead, do bill pay or even pay a person (your girlfriend, mom, friend) via cash check if you have to.
For people who can’t get this at their local Target, I can provide you with one in a matter of minutes (activated, ready for you to register with your name). I’ve done this for hundreds of people…[NoonRadar] [at] [Gmail]
im really new to this! Dan, sorry, can you explain in more detail? I just got a redcard credit card… was that the right first step? Or should I have gotten the redcard debit card?
@NoonRadar: I would get one. How?
@ec:
Neither, you should have gotten the PREPAID, it looks like this: https://plus.google.com/111093296086029483755/posts/DTLVuZFe3Bp
@noonradar
thanks! I will cancel the CC and get the prepaid (i still get 5% off purchases right?).
@ec:
Yes, with the Targed prepaid REDcard you get 5% off shopping at Target and Target.com, also free shipping from Target.com, also extra 30 days on returns.
Do you get any additional points from Amex just for getting the card? Where did the 70,000 bonus points come from?
@RD:
RD, you don’t get points for getting REDcard (aka Redbird) but you do get points for signing up for + using a credit card to load (put money into) REDcard.
Dan, I’m in Clevelabd for succos and went to Target and they said they will get in 7 business days. I figured I would just go to one further away but they said they are the only Target in Cleveland that sells them and they are just a test store!
Are there any Targets that currently sell on the drive from Cleveland to NY?
Looks like they have just blocked charging the RedCard using a credit card… just went to my local target to put $2500 on, and the error that came back was ‘zero is the maximum amount that can be charged by this type’
I can confirm with what ‘sadRedBird’ says, the prepaid REDcards can no longer be loaded with credit cards of any form. The only acceptable way to load it now is cash or debit card (must enter pin number). I know this as an employee of a Target in my area and I do not agree with this change as I legitimately used balances on other credit cards so I could use the prepaid with my employee discount. Employee discounts only work with cash or one of Target’s REDcards, so I’m thinking of just boycotting Target in general.