A card-linked offer pays a member for buying with a card they have already enrolled. There is no code to type and nothing to show at the register. The purchase itself is the trigger. Banks run these offers inside their apps. Airlines and retailers run them as card-linked loyalty programs. In bank offer programs, the brand that wants the sale pays for the reward.
What are card-linked offers?
Card-linked offers are rewards that attach to a credit or debit card in place of a coupon. The member links a card once, or adds a single offer to a card, then pays as normal. When a purchase matches the offer, the reward lands as cash back or points.
Three kinds of operator run them. Banks publish offers in their own apps. Chase targets Chase Offers using each customer's purchase history and pays cash back when customers activate an offer and shop (Chase). Offer networks sell space inside many banks at once. Cardlytics runs its network inside the digital channels of its partner banks, Chase and Wells Fargo among them (Cardlytics 10-K). Loyalty programs link cards to earn their own currency. Delta's SkyMiles Dining pays up to 5 miles per dollar at participating restaurants once a member enrolls a card (Delta).
How do card-linked offers work, step by step?
Each program runs the same six steps.
- Consent. The member agrees to let the program watch card purchases. Visa only serves programs where each cardholder has clearly said yes (Visa).
- Targeting. The operator picks who sees which offer, often from past spend.
- Activation. Some programs ask the member to add each offer. American Express requires the member to enroll in the offer on the same card used to buy (Amex Offers terms).
- Matching. The platform reads card network data and checks the merchant and the amount. Visa's platform reads the authorization and settlement stream (Visa).
- Fulfillment. The reward posts when the purchase is final. Amex says credits generally post within 30 days of the purchase (Amex Offers terms). On Mastercard, some sellers that go through a payment facilitator only match at clearing. That adds a few days (Fidel API).
- Reversal. A return or refund can pull the reward back (Amex Offers terms).
Matching depends on what the merchant sends. Amex relies on data from the merchant to spot a purchase that counts. Offers on its site rule out purchases made through middlemen such as resellers and delivery services (Amex Offers).
Who funds card-linked offers?
In bank offer programs, the brand that wants the sale funds the reward. When a network runs the offers, it adds a fee and the bank takes a share. Cardlytics shows the split in its annual report. Brands pay Cardlytics. Cardlytics pays the cash back to cardholders, then generally pays each bank a fixed share of what is left (Cardlytics 10-K).
The Cardlytics platform billed brands $364.0 million for 2025. Of that, $151.7 million, about 42%, went back to cardholders as cash back. The way brands pay is shifting. Revenue from engagement pricing, where a brand pays after a member picks an offer and buys, rose to $129.3 million from $99.4 million. Revenue from served pricing, a cut of all purchases by members shown an offer, fell to $79.1 million (Cardlytics 10-K).
Chase uses a similar rule. Brands are charged only when a customer views a campaign and makes a purchase (Chase). Base card rewards are a separate budget, covered in our look at how bank loyalty programs work. Brand money sits on top of that base.
Which card-linked model fits your program?
The three models differ on who owns the member and who keeps the fee.
| Model | Card enrolled with | Where offers appear | Who funds the reward | Example |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bank-run offers | The bank that issued the card | The bank's app and website | Brands, charged when a customer views and buys | Chase Offers |
| Offer network | Each partner bank | Many banks' apps at once | Brands, with a share passed to each bank | Cardlytics |
| Card-linked loyalty program | The program, through a network or linking service | The program's own app | The program, or merchants that join | SkyMiles Dining |
A bank that runs its own offers keeps the whole fee and the data. Banks do switch models. Bank of America told Cardlytics in April 2025 that it would not renew their agreement (Cardlytics 8-K). Its BofA Rewards page now lists cash back deals on popular brands as a member benefit (Bank of America). Visa's platform also lets a program run offers without merchant participation and issue the statement credits itself (Visa).
What data and privacy rules apply to card-linked offers?
Card linking runs on card data, so three sets of rules meet. The first is consent. Visa asks for cardholder consent, and merchant consent where it applies (Visa). Amex tells members that enrolling in an offer lets it use their transaction and personal data to run the offer (Amex Offers).
The second is US bank privacy law. Under Regulation P, a bank cannot share private customer data with an outside firm until it gives notice and a chance to opt out (12 CFR 1016.10). An exception covers service firms whose contract limits the data to the bank's purpose (12 CFR 1016.13). Cardlytics says its network works with no personal data leaving its partner banks (Cardlytics 10-K).
The third is card security. PCI DSS covers any firm that stores, processes or sends cardholder data (PCI SSC). A loyalty program that collects full card numbers is in scope. Fidel API, a card-linking service, requires full PCI compliance from any client that sends it raw card numbers (Fidel API).
How do you measure a card-linked offer?
The number that matters is the sales an offer added. Redeemers include people who would have bought anyway, so redemption counts overstate the effect. Chase gives brands incremental lift reports next to its campaign reports (Chase). Cardlytics says its measurement rests on actual purchases in store and online, with no models (Cardlytics 10-K). The loyalty program ROI guide sets out the holdout method.
Know which base a bill uses. Under served pricing, a brand pays on purchases by everyone shown the offer, whether or not they activated it. Under engagement pricing, it pays only after a member picks the offer and buys (Cardlytics 10-K). Read either bill against a holdout.
For illustration, a coffee chain offers $5 back on a $25 purchase for four weeks. The bank picks 200,000 cardholders and holds 20,000 back at random. The holdout spends $8 each at the chain. The 180,000 who see the offer spend $9 each, or $1.62 million in total. Without the offer, that group would have spent $1.44 million, so the offer added $180,000 in sales.
Of the exposed group, 12,000 members redeem, which costs $60,000 in cash back. Add a $2 fee per redemption, or $24,000, and the campaign costs $84,000. Each dollar spent added about $2.14 in sales. Redeemers spent $420,000 in total, which would suggest $5.00 per dollar. That higher figure counts sales the chain would have made anyway.
How GRAVTY handles card-linked offers
GRAVTY is the Loyalty Juggernaut platform. It has 150+ system integrations, and its integrations list includes Fidel API, a card-linking service. Fidel lets members link credit and debit cards and earn rewards on the purchases that count. There is no extra step at checkout.
Once a matched purchase arrives, the program's own rules set the reward. GRAVTY Visual Rules is a patented no-code rules engine, so the loyalty team sets earn rates and bonuses itself. Native partner settlement records each partner transaction with its rate and direction, then nets what each party owes. AI-Trust flags odd earn and redemption behavior as it happens. For banks and card issuers, points, cashback and tiers run on one engine.
Frequently asked questions
Do members have to activate each card-linked offer?
In bank apps, usually yes. American Express asks members to add an offer to a card before they buy (Amex Offers terms). Chase pays when customers activate an offer and shop (Chase). Dining programs work in a different way. A SkyMiles Dining member enrolls a card once and earns miles at participating restaurants (Delta).
How long does a card-linked reward take to post?
Usually a few days to a few weeks. American Express says credits generally post within 30 days of the purchase. In some cases it takes up to 90 days after the offer ends (Amex Offers terms).
Do brands learn who used a card-linked offer?
Not by name in the large bank networks. Cardlytics says no personal data leaves its partner banks, and it aims offers using data with names stripped out (Cardlytics 10-K). Brands get campaign reports instead, such as the lift reports Chase gives them (Chase).
Do card-linked offers work with debit cards?
Yes. Cardlytics says its US platform takes in about one in every two debit and credit card transactions (Cardlytics 10-K). Its data also covers ACH and bill pay transactions.
Is a card-linked offer the same as a cashback program?
No, card linking is one way to deliver cash back. A cashback program returns part of the spend to the member. It can track purchases by receipt or member ID as well as by linked card. Card linking removes the need to show a member ID at checkout.