Tacky or acceptable?

[mcppalmbeach]

Is it tacky or acceptable to print out an e-gift card as a birthday or I guess any kind of gift? I usually get “normal” gift cards, but over the break I had some random get a $25 Xbox gift card for $20 deal on Target I believe so I used that for a son’s friend and printed it out. Anyway, it’s rainy here today and I need to run out and get a gift card for a party my son is going to. I was talking to my friend and I was like ugh. I don’t feel like leaving the house maybe I’ll just buy one online and print it here and she was horrified and said that was so tacky. She’s one of my besties so I didn’t take offense lol. Just curious what others think because I’m procrastinating going to the store!

[waverly]

I would not side eye this at all. I’m assuming there is a barcode that they can scan for in person purchases.

Gift giving is not my love language and I hate shopping though so not the best person to answer this.

[gretchenindisguise]

Totally ok.

[jackie011]

I see absolutely no problem with this as long as it’s valid. If there’s any question, like from a 3rd party site you’ve never used before, I prob wouldn’t do it.

[Jalapeñomel]

Not tacky

[cjcouple]

I gave my BIL an ecard for a brewery he likes that ran out of physical gift cards. I just printed it on regular paper and emailed it to him after he opened it.

[maudefindlay]

Email gc are an option, so not tacky to print it.

[nsl]

Not tacky, and frankly I'd prefer this over a gift card purchased in a store given all of the stories about scammers stealing the numbers/PIN codes from physical gift cards and spending them.

[underwaterrhymes]

Totally fine.

[penguingrrl]

Not tacky at all.

[thejen626]

I’m a judgy bitch and I don’t have a problem with this at all.

[Roc A Bee]

Not tacky and I’ve done it. Some places have print or email as the only option! I print and wrap.

[momin2013]

I honestly see no difference between an actual card and a printout of an e-card - the kid receiving the x-box funds will not care in the slightest and I highly doubt a parent would either.

[bittybomb]

Not tacky at all. My BFF bought my son a $50 PlayStation gift card and texted the code/link to him 😂 she did also give him a legit birthday card, but it wasn’t at all necessary

[Pilsy]

I really don't understand what's tacky about this. I actually prefer it, because the recipient will have it in their (or a parent's) email, which makes it tougher to lose.

[Leeham Rimes]

I can’t imagine why on earth it would be tacky. I’ve done it on occasions when getting a physical gift card wasn’t possible. My sister does this for the boys, they like it better bc there’s no weird foil that they need to take off in order to access the code.

[livinitup]

Not tacky.

I also wonder why it would be tacky? Some people are a little trigger happy with the tacky label for kid’s gifts. She probably thinks cash is tacky, too. I don’t.

[RoxMonster]

Not tacky at all and I do this all the time. For many occasions, I'll get my mom an e-gift card for the place she gets pedicures at and it's local to her; I'm 2.5 hours away. So I always do the e-gift card and if we are celebrating in person, I'll print it and wrap it.

[expectantsteelerfan]

In this age of people stealing the money from a physical gc without you being able to tell before you buy it, I actually kinda prefer e-gift cards because they are safer.

[nicolewi]

Absolutely fine.


For a kid, I’ve even emailed the gift card directly to the parent, and just written a note in the card that we sent a gift card for them to use. That way the kid can’t lose it or anything.

[honeydew1894]

Totes fine!

[ellipses84]

It’s not my first choice but I think it’s fine if it’s somewhere the giftee loves. I wouldn’t think twice about a printed gift card and I think a lot of parents would prefer gift cards for their kids to avoid duplicate gifts or get something they need or want more than a random toy.

The other day my niece told me the gift card I mailed her for Christmas had $0 balance and the pin wasn’t scratched off. I was mortified because I bought a bunch and gave them to several people including as teacher gifts! Going back through my emails, I realized I bought her card in person in cash and it wasn’t the online order I’d given most of the rest of the people.

So my tip is usually to keep a bunch of gift on hand so I never have to run to the store for a last minute gift, but clearly that backfired on me!

[loira]

Totally fine. It's more secure than a physical gift card because there have been a ton of issues with scammers stealing the barcodes of the cards in shops, or placing their own barcodes over the original codes, and then using up the balance once people load them.

nationalpost.com/news/canada/what-to-know-about-the-gift-card-scam

[blondemoment123]

I would totally do this but I don't have a printer at home.

[hermione]

Ummmm…we’ve received cards that say “Have your mom check her email for X gift card.” Like multiple times. It has never struck me as tacky.

[cville]

If anyone says this is tacky, I'll backhand them.

[definitelyO]

not tacky - a GC is a GC

[zaneyzoo]

If that's tacky, then I guess I am too! I do it often and the appreciation for the gift seems no different.