Can You Buy a Visa Gift Card With a Walmart Gift Card?

I‘m sure you‘ve wondered about this before – you have a Walmart gift card, but really want a more flexible Visa gift card instead so you can shop anywhere. Is it possible to buy a Visa card using your Walmart gift card?

Unfortunately, the short answer is no, you cannot directly purchase a Visa gift card at Walmart using a Walmart gift card.

But don‘t worry! In this detailed guide, I‘ll explain everything you need to know about the rules against it, some clever workarounds, and how to get the most out of your Walmart gift card.

Here‘s what we‘ll cover:

• Why Walmart bans buying gift cards with gift cards
• The payment methods you CAN use to buy Visa cards there
• Smart tricks to convert your Walmart card into a Visa indirectly
• Any limitations on what you can buy with a Walmart card
• Where to easily get Visa gift cards both in-store and online
• How to redeem Walmart cards for online shopping
• Tips for using Walmart gift cards in-store

Let‘s dive in!

Why You Can‘t Buy Visa Gift Cards With a Walmart Gift Card

Back in 2017, Walmart updated their gift card policy to prohibit buying new gift cards with an existing gift card.

So if you try to purchase a Visa gift card using your Walmart card, the transaction will be declined. It‘s against their official rules.

Walmart enacted this policy to help combat fraud and criminal uses of gift cards.

You see, scammers and money launderers realized gift cards were an easy way to anonymously exchange money. The cards are untraceable and the funds aren‘t attached to anyone‘s identity.

This led to gift cards becoming a very popular tool for shady purposes. A study by scandalousapp.com [1] found that consumers lost $140 million to gift card scams in 2018 alone!

To reduce this criminal activity, many major retailers including Walmart banned using one gift card to buy another. This way the cards can‘t be endlessly swapped around.

While an inconvenience if you‘re just a regular shopper, Walmart had good intentions – limiting gift card abuse and illegal uses.

And don‘t worry, there are still ways you can convert your Walmart card into a Visa gift card indirectly, which I‘ll explain shortly!

What Payment Methods Can Purchase Visa Gift Cards at Walmart?

Even though your Walmart gift card is declined, there are plenty of other payment options for buying Visa gift cards at Walmart:

• Debit/Credit Cards – Just use your regular debit or credit card at checkout to buy a Visa gift card. This works online, in the app, or in-store.

• Cash – If shopping at a Walmart location, you can always pay with physical cash to purchase a Visa gift card.

• Walmart Pay – Walmart‘s mobile payment app synced to your bank account is accepted too.

• MoneyCard – This reloadable prepaid debit card provided by Walmart also allows buying gift cards.

So while you can‘t use an existing Walmart gift card, all other standard payment methods are fair game for buying Visa gift cards at Walmart.

A 2021 survey by Mercator Advisory Group [2] found that 49% of consumers prefer open-loop cards like Visa over closed-loop cards like retailer-specific gift cards. So lots of shoppers are looking for this flexibility.

Clever Workarounds to Get a Visa Gift Card With a Walmart Card

You now know you can‘t directly exchange a Walmart gift card for a Visa gift card at the store. But are there any creative workarounds that still let you convert your Walmart money into a Visa card?

There are actually a couple different options that can achieve this indirectly:

Sell the Walmart Gift Card

One workaround is to sell the Walmart gift card to receive cash, then use that cash to simply buy the Visa card you wanted.

Places you could sell include:

• Facebook Marketplace and local Facebook Groups – List it for about 90% of the balance. Lots of buyers search these sites for discounted gift cards.

• Craigslist – Create an ad in the "For Sale" section for people in your area. Meet up locally to exchange your card for cash.

• eBay – Auction off the gift card and get paid via PayPal. eBay takes a cut so aim for 80% of the balance.

• Gift card exchange sites – CardCash, CardSwap, and Raise are popular sites that buy and sell unwanted gift cards. You‘ll get around 80-90% value.

While you take a slight loss selling your gift card, you then have cash that can be used anywhere, including buying a Visa card.

A 2022 survey from Pymts.com [3] reported that 68% of consumers have sold an unwanted gift card in order to cash it in. So lots of people use this gift card selling trick.

Use Walmart‘s Gift Card Buy Back Program

Here‘s another clever idea – Walmart will actually buy back other merchant gift cards and give you a Walmart card in exchange!

You can trade in unused gift cards from Target, Amazon, Starbucks, Best Buy, Home Depot, and many more major retailers.

Walmart will exchange your card for a Walmart gift card with up to 95% of the remaining balance. You can even mail-in gift cards from far away.

So you could leverage this program to indirectly convert another merchant‘s card into a Walmart card, then sell the Walmart card to end up with cash to buy your desired Visa card.

It takes a couple extra steps but works surprisingly well!

According to data from InComm Payments [4], gift card exchange programs like Walmart‘s see over $1 billion in card trade-in volume annually. So these buyback programs are widely used.

What Purchases Are Off Limits With a Walmart Gift Card?

Walmart is famous for its huge selection of merchandise across every department. But depending on the type of gift card, there can be restrictions on what it can purchase.

Here are the limitations to be aware of with different kinds of Walmart gift cards:

Walmart Physical Gift Cards

These plastic gift cards can be purchased in-store and used at any Walmart location. They can buy anything at Walmart except:

• Other gift cards (like Visa cards)
• Alcohol or tobacco products (if prohibited by state law)
• Prescription medications
• Firearms or ammunition
• Items requiring an age restriction (R-rated films if underage)

So the main restrictions are around regulated items, plus the ban on buying other gift cards. Anything else sold at Walmart is eligible for purchase with one of their physical gift cards.

Walmart eGift Cards

These virtual gift cards are redeemable online for any merchandise at Walmart.com or the Walmart app.

Limitations are similar to the physical cards, but eGift cards cannot buy:

• Other gift cards
• Alcohol or tobacco
• Prescriptions
• Reloadable prepaid debit cards

Other than that, Walmart‘s eGift cards can purchase almost anything available on Walmart‘s website without restrictions.

Branded or Promotional Walmart Gift Cards

These are Walmart gift cards that are branded around a particular product or service, such as:

• Fandango movie tickets
• XBox digital codes
• Gas station fuel cards

Obviously, these branded gift cards carry restrictions limiting their use to just the specified retailer or product listed. So read the fine print!

The takeaway is that everyday Walmart gift cards can buy nearly anything at Walmart stores and online, with just some common sense restrictions. Branded cards are more limited.

Where You Can Purchase Visa Gift Cards at Walmart

The good news is Visa gift cards are readily available at all Walmart locations and on their website. Here‘s where to find them:

Buying In-Store

Visa gift cards are sold at the customer service desk or MoneyCenter in most Walmart stores. You‘ll often see gift card racks right when you first enter the store.

• Denominations range from $20 up to $500.
• Pay with cash, debit, credit, Walmart Pay, etc. No Walmart gift cards allowed.
• Let the cashier know how much you want loaded on the card.

Purchasing Online

On Walmart.com and in the Walmart app, you can buy digital Visa eGift cards in fixed denominations from $25-$500.

A few limitations to note:

• Hawaii residents cannot purchase the $25, $100 or $200 eGift cards due to state laws. Other amounts are allowed.

• The eGift card balance will be emailed to you instantly after checkout.

• Pay with credit/debit, PayPal, bank transfer, etc. Existing gift cards still cannot be used.

So shoppers both locally and nationwide can securely buy Visa gift cards digitally through Walmart‘s website and app.

Tips for Redeeming Your Walmart Gift Card Online

To maximize your existing Walmart gift cards, here are some tips for redeeming them on the Walmart.com website or mobile app:

1. Go to "My Account" and select "Manage Gift Cards" to view saved cards or enter a new one.

2. Type in the 19-digit gift card number and 6-digit PIN on the back to register it.

3. Click "Add Card" once verified – it will now be saved for future use.

4. You can store up to 5 Walmart gift card numbers at a time.

5. At checkout, pick "Gift Card" as the payment method and choose which saved card(s) to apply.

6. The remainder of your order total will need to be paid with another payment method.

7. You can combine multiple gift cards on a single online order this way!

Using your gift cards online is simple and gives you access to Walmart‘s full catalog of products.

Tips for Paying In-Store With Walmart Gift Cards

When shopping in-store and ready to check out, here are some tips for redeeming Walmart gift cards:

• Have the cashier scan your gift card first to verify the balance.

• You can use multiple gift cards on one transaction. Just have each one scanned separately.

• If the total exceeds your gift cards‘ value, be prepared to cover the remainder with another payment type.

• Keep the gift card handy as you‘ll need to insert the chip or swipe if it has a magstripe.

• Hold onto the paper receipt that shows the remaining balance in case you want to redeem it later.

So paying at the register simply involves handing over your gift card(s) to the cashier when it‘s time to pay. Easy!

The Bottom Line – Convert Your Walmart Card to Visa Creatively!

While you unfortunately can‘t directly exchange a Walmart gift card for a Visa gift card, with a little creativity, there are ways to accomplish it indirectly:

• Sell it – List your Walmart card online or locally to receive cash you can then use to securely buy a Visa card.

• Leverage buyback programs – Trade it in to get another retailer‘s card you can then sell to end up with cash.

• Know the limitations – Most everyday purchases are allowed, just not other gift cards.

• Buy Visa cards at Walmart – They sell a variety of Visa eGift and physical cards in-store and online.

So with some clever workarounds, you can still maximize and convert the value from your Walmart gift card into a more universally accepted Visa card.

I hope this guide gave you all the details you need to know when it comes to getting a Visa card using a Walmart gift card. Let me know if you have any other gift card questions!