By Aleks
Updated October 2026: This method no longer works. Stockpile shut down on April 17, 2026 (adult accounts moved to Public), and stockpile.com now only hosts a gift card refund form, so you can't buy its gift cards with a VGC anymore. For plays that still work, check out our Methods guide.
Recently, I learned of an app called Stockpile. This is an investing app aimed at families. The fascinating thing for us is that they allow users to anonymously buy gift cards online using debit cards and Visa gift cards at no cost. These gift cards can be redeemed on their platform to buy stocks/crypto. I’ve been playing around with this for a while, and wanted to share some findings.
How does it work?
Excuse the potato quality, apparently I don’t know how to resize images
At the time this article was published, you could purchase a gift card and pay using your VGC. To liquidate, create an account on their platform, and redeem it for a stock. I’ve typically waited a few days to let the funds accumulate, and then I “cash out” from within the app. They send the money to your bank account within a week.
Their website states that this is limited to $200 redemption per day, but I’ve tried successfully up to 3 per day.
What are the downsides?
The main downside with this approach is their monthly fee. They currently charge $5 per month. Now, if you liquidate enough cards using this platform, then that cost will make sense. Each gift card has zero fees as well, which makes this method appealing. That is a decision for you to make. It seems that they occasionally offer lifetime memberships for a fixed price, so that is something you can look out for.
The obvious other downside is account shutdown. If they notice that you are taking advantage of their platform, they are within their rights to shut your account. Obviously, they will refund you any money that is still in your account, but you will not be able to create a new account, since these investment-type services typically identify you by your SSN.
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Questions and datapoints from readers.
One additional downside is a scenario where you purchase the stock gift card with your VGC, redeem it for a stock and then that stock price goes down before you can cash out. You lose money. Alternatively you could make money if it goes up even a bit! However, if you buy into a very conservative investment vehicle like a money market fund, then you will be investing in a super conservative ALMOST guaranteed to NOT lose value investment. Current rate (July 2024) for most money market funds is about 5% APY and until the Fed reduces interest rates, that ~5% is not going down anytime soon. . You will make a nominal amount of money and can leave that "profit" in the account to cover the $5 monthly fee. Tax man note: At the end of the calendar year expect to receive a tax statement from Stockpile as required by law even if you only keep the account for the short term. It will show your profit/loss and this needs to be accounted for when you file your taxes. Any profit that you make as a result of your chosen stock going up will be taxed as capital gains once you cash out. Alternatively, if you lose money because your chosen stock goes down in value, you can claim that loss on your income taxes! Consult your tax pro for the details.
When attempting to purchase Stockpile gift cards using various prepaid cards I get this error, “Declined by card issuer.” What am I missing?
This doesn't work anymore as of Nov 2024 and later...