If you often shop online, it’s unlikely that you’ve never heard of Amazon, one of the largest online shopping sites in the world. However, many people still don’t understand how to shop on Amazon, especially if they don’t have a credit card or Paypal. 

Fortunately, Amazon provides an alternative payment tool, namely the Amazon Gift Card (AGC).

For those of you who are still confused about how to use the Amazon Gift Card (AGC), let’s see the steps in this article.

Buy Amazon Gift Card

Before knowing how to use an Amazon Gift Card, of course, you need to buy it first. You just need to visit a local e-commerce site like Tokopedia or Shopee and type the keyword ‘Amazon gift card’ in the search field. After that, various Amazon Gift Card options will appear. Choose the Amazon Gift Card that uses the currency that corresponds to the region of the Amazon site you want to visit.

For example, if you want to buy goods from Amazon.com, then buy a gift card whose nominal value is in dollars. Meanwhile, if you’re going to purchase goods from the Amazon.co.jp site (Japan region), buy a gift card whose nominal value is in Japanese currency, namely Yen.

Choose the nominal that suits your needs. It’s better to buy an Amazon Gift Card whose nominal value is close to the price of the item you want to buy. If the nominal cost of the item purchased is lower than the nominal Amazon Gift Card; Amazon will not refund the rest.

After selecting, you will get the voucher code via WA/email/package chat.

Creating an Amazon Account

You can’t use Amazon Gift Card if you don’t have an Amazon international shopping account or an Amazon region that matches your Amazon Gift Card region. So, create an Amazon account first.

How to create an amazon account

  1. Go to the Amazon.com site (For the US region), click “Account”
  2. Select “Create your Amazon Account” to create a new account and fill in the required data such as email address, name, and password. Amazon will send a code to your email, and you can enter the requested account confirmation code.

Top up Amazon Gift Card

After buying Amazon Gift Card, now is the time to top up the balance. Here are the steps:

  1. Log in to the official Amazon US website (Amazon.com).
  2. Select the “Your Account” menu
  3. Then select the “Apply a Gift Card to Your Account” menu.
  4. Enter the code in the “Enter Claim Code” field and then click “Apply to Your Account.” Here you need to type code manually; you can not copy and paste.

Check Amazon Gift Card Balance

After filling the Amazon Gift Card balance, check your Amazon account balance by:

  1. Visit the official Amazon.com site
  2. Login to your account
  3. Click “My Account”
  4. Then click “View Gift Card Balance and Activity.”

How to Use Amazon Gift Cards to Purchase Products

In this example, we will see how to use an Amazon Gift Card through the Amazon international shopping site (America region).

  1. Go to the official Amazon.com site.
  2. Login to your account
  3. Select the item you want to buy on Amazon by typing the name of the item you wish to search for in the search field. Add the item you wish to buy into the shopping cart by clicking the cart icon or clicking the “Buy” button if it is the only item you want to buy.
  4. Click “Process Now”
  5. Fill in the purchase address
  6. .Please select the payment method “Gift Cards & Promotional Codes.” If you intend not to use payment instruments other than Amazon Gift Card, make sure the nominal amount from Amazon Gift Card is sufficient for purchases.
  7. Click “Continue,” then the AGC balance will be automatically deducted.
  8. Then, select the shipping method you want. These methods differ in terms of delivery duration. The faster the delivery, the more expensive the shipping costs.
    1. Standard International Shipping (1 to 3 weeks delivery time)
    2. Amazon Global Expedited Shipping (6 to 9 days shipping time)
    3. Amazon Global Priority Shipping (2 to 4 days delivery time)

If you want to make an Amazon Gift Card your primary means of payment, then make sure that the Amazon Gift Card balance is greater than the price of goods and shipping costs. If the balance is not enough, then you can add a payment method by credit card.

Benefits of Using Amazon Gift Card

There are several advantages to using an Amazon Gift Card:

  1. Amazon Gift Card has no expiry date and is valid forever.
  2. No additional costs.
  3. Amazon Gift Card can be used as a practical gift because it is only in digital form, and you can take it anywhere.
  4. You can use Amazon Gift Card on multiple devices at once and anywhere but in the same Amazon account.
  5. If you buy Amazon Gift Card from the official Amazon.com website; Amazon offers various variants and designs according to certain moments for your Amazon Gift Card; it can even be customized by uploading photos or videos from our cellphone or computer gallery.
  6. Amazon Gift Card is available in various denominations.

That’s how to use an Amazon Gift Card, starting from how to purchase it, top up your balance, check your balance, and how to use it when buying goods on Amazon. I hope it is useful. Happy shopping!