Ways to Save at the Pump!

Hello All,

Not sure what happened here, I was reviewing my posts yesterday and decided that I didn't like the title of my post so I changed it....didn't realize that if would totally erase my post! I just noticed that is was blank. Sorry about that.

With the rising cost of fuel so goes the cost of just about everything else. Saving a few dollars here and there at the pump while we fuel up our vehicles can turn into a large fortune before long. One of the easiest ways to save on fuel is with these rewards programs that a lot of the big chain grocery stores will offer when you buy your groceries with them. Here in Kentucky we have a large chain called "Krogers" and they have an excellent program to save big money on fuel. For every $100 in groceries you spend at their store you will receive a reward of .10 cents off per gallon of fuel you pump up to a maximum of 35 gallons. You can stack these rewards all the way up to a maximum of an entire $1.00 off per gallon! This program gives you credit by the month. So, if it's January 31st, and you are trying to decide to go to the grocery either today or tomorrow...before you decide, look at your last grocery receipt, if have spent a total of $320 in groceries for the month, and you plan to spend at least another $80...go now, before the month is over to get to that $400 mark this will give a .40 cent off total reward for the month of January that you can use anytime during the month of February. Sometimes Kroger will run a promotion on their gift cards that they sell. If you frequent a local restaurant or store and plan to spend the money at a store where Kroger carries their gift card, buy the gift card for what you are planning to spend anyway and you will receive a handsome fuel point boost just for buying the gift card that you will turn around and use at the restaurant or store anyway. Usually they will reward you with 2 times the fuel points of the dollar amount of the gift card purchased, so if you bought a $50 gift card to Best Buy since you plan to go buy a camera there anyway, you will receive a .10cent off reward just for picking up the gift card there at Kroger. During Christmas holiday season they run promotions for 4 times the fuel points!!! That is awesome...my wife and I will plan out which stores we are going to be spending our money, and then go to Kroger and purchase gift cards for those stores, then go and buy the gifts with the gift cards! NOTE: Your Kroger Plus Card (not a credit card), will automatically give you .03 cents off per gallon...this is NOT combined with your rewards.

Another rewards program that is great, is Speedway's Speedy Rewards (also known as Super America in other parts of the United States), they are similar to the Kroger rewards, however, they accumulate differently. You get points for the little items you buy in the store, such as soda, gum, snacks, ect. However, the best way to really rack up the points is when they run bonus point promotions on their gift cards. When this happens, buy the gift card in the amount to qualify for the bonus points and then turn around and pay for your fuel with your gift card....you were going to spend the money on the fuel anyway, it's just one more step and you will get rewarded for it. These points can buy you gift cards to local restaurants, the gas station, ect. or you can choose to spend your points on savings per gallon...though the maximum you can pump is 25 gallons with Speedway. NOTE: Your Speedy Rewards Card (not a credit card), will automatically give you .03 cents off per gallon...this is NOT combined with your rewards.

Another GREAT way to buy the cheapest fuel in town is with the mobile app "Gas Buddy" this app will let you know where in your area you can purchase the cheapest fuel...this does not account for additional savings for being a "Kroger Plus Member" or a "Speedy Rewards Member", the prices on Gas Buddy is what someone off the street who does not belong to a discount program would pay. The way this program works is it relies on it's users to update the fuel prices...and trust me, they get updated frequently. This program will reward it's users with a drawing once per month for $100, the more you help update the fuel prices the more you get entered into this drawing.

If you are planning a road trip this summer like I am, then you should consider your vehicles fuel economy and your distance being travelled. Our family is taking a road trip to Wyoming this summer to see family, and the round trip mileage will be in the range of 3,400 miles! So, I checked into renting a Toyota Prius Hybrid, it's fuel economy is a whopping 50 miles per gallon!!! I did the math, with my car averaging 28-30 miles per gallon, I will break even on the trip cost for transportation which includes the rental cost. So, it's a no brainer, I am going to save putting the miles on my car and go with the rental. This may not be feasible for everyone, just check into it before you take off on your trip.

Thanks for reading!

Like always, your feedback, tips, or comments are ALWAYS welcome!