Millions of Nectar points up for grabs
Nectar is holding a big points giveaway this week, offering shoppers the chance to bag a share of 50 million points for free.
First off there is a prize draw, which you can enter at www.nectar.com/big-points-bonanza, before 4th February.
There will be 50 winners, each of whom lands a whopping one million Nectar points.
That’s worth at least £5,000.
In addition to the 50 million points giveaway, there is a second phase of the promotion, which will see 35 winners each getting 10,000 bonus Nectar points.
To be in the running, you need to shop in store via SmartShop or online and scan their Nectar card before 4th February.
Finally, there’s a chance to win just for Sainsbury’s shoppers.
Head to the supermarket on 4th February and scan your card at the checkout, and you’ll get a printed coupon for bonus Nectar points ranging from 50 to 5,000 points.
You just need to spend at least £20.
Note: the rest of this article is a classic loveMONEY guide that regular readers will likely have seen before.
Fill up for less
Every now and then Sainsbury's will run promotions where you can save big on fuel.
The catch is you need to spend a set amount in Sainsbury's to qualify, but you can save up to 10p a litre on fuel as a result.
These promotions don't tend to last very long and you only get a few days' notice before they launch, so you need to act fast when you see them pop up.
We'll generally let our newsletter readers know when one's about to launch, so if you've not done so, consider signing up.
If you want to save even more when you fill up, read our guide to getting cheap petrol or diesel.
Rack up Nectar points with reward credit cards
There are a host of credit cards tied into the Nectar scheme that allow you to build up your points total, no matter where you spend your money.
The Nectar Credit Card is a perfect example. It’s a useful all-round credit card, offering six-month 0% periods on both purchases and balance transfers. But the big selling point is how you can build up your Nectar points with it.
You get three points per £2 spent at Sainsbury’s, Argos, Habitat and Tu Clothing, as well as one point for every £5 you spend elsewhere.
What’s more, spend a total of £400 at any of those stores within the first two months of card ownership and you’ll pocket 8,000 bonus points.
Bear in mind that this is a rewards credit card, so you'll need to be able to pay it off in full each month to avoid hefty interest charges
Take advantage of sales
Of course, you can save a fair amount to staying on top of sales and discounts.
Sainsbury's has previously run sales for specific areas such as baby care products.
Keep an eye on loveMONEY's daily newsletter and our weekly roundup of top supermarket deals to ensure you're not missing out.
Take out Sainsbury’s financial products
Aside from credit cards, Sainsbury’s Bank offers a number of financial products, including home insurance, pet insurance, car insurance and life insurance.
If you take out one of these products, you can get double Nectar points on your shopping and fuel at Sainsbury’s.
This applies until you cancel your policy, miss a payment or don’t renew your policy with the same level of cover.
The more products you take out, the more you can boost your points, but it’s almost certainly not worth taking out such a product just for the sake of extra Nectar points.
Make sure you shop around for the best insurance policy, irrespective of whether you get extra Nectar points on top.
Book a holiday
Book your holiday with Expedia and you will get a bunch of Nectar points.
You can currently get up to 10 Nectar points for every £1 spent via Nectar’s dedicated Expedia page.
If you're a frequent traveller, consider joining a frequent flyer scheme, so you can earn points even on flights booked through Expedia; you just need your name on the ticket.
Also, look at rewards credit cards that have specific travel perks as these may have a better earnings rate than the Nectar or Clubcard schemes.
Eat in
You can even collect Nectar points with your next takeaway.
Ordering through Just Eat gives you one point for every £1 spent, making that chicken jalfrezi taste extra good.
Use Nectar eShops
You can collect Nectar points on your online shopping, in much the same way that you can earn cashback from sites like Quidco.
Just go to the Nectar eShop website, search for the brand that you want to shop with, then follow the link over to that retailer.
Your transaction will be tracked and you'll get points back based on your purchases.