Gift certificates, whether you plan to buy one for your personal use or for gifting someone, are a good way to save money, especially if they are bought at the right time and from the right sources. These days, many sellers offer discounted gift cards as a strategic move to increase their customer base. You, as a customer, can benefit a lot from these certificates as you are getting much more value than you actually pay for. So, the next time you want to buy gift certificates at lower prices, make sure you check out the following options. Special Occasion/Holiday Deals It is usually observed that when a special occasion is around the corner, such as Valentine's Day, Christmas, or Easter, many restaurants, hotels, spas, and salons offer discounts or give more to the customers on the card amount. For example, on a card of $500, you might get an additional $50 free. So, if you keep your eyes open and stay alert during such days or during year end Christmas holidays, you are sure to land some good deals. Auction Sites A diligent search on the Internet will tell you that many sellers on auction sites offer some really cheap gift certificates. These sellers can offer you as much as a thirty percent discount on the certificates. But before doing that, be cautions and check if the seller is genuine and the deal which he is offering is legitimate. Buy More A good way to buy gift cards less than face value is to buy more of them. If you buy lots of gift certificates, it will automatically increase your bargaining power. This is especially beneficial if you are buying for your entire family and all your friends. So to avail large discounts, get in touch with the sales people of a company directly, and negotiate to get the best deal. Buy Secondhand Websites such as GiftCardsAgain.com and GiftCards.com offer gift cards on sale by customers who did not use them or who only used a partial amount. You can buy them from such sites and if you are lucky you can avail of as much as thirty percent discount on some of them, too. There are certain websites such as Certificateswap.com, which specifically deal with buying and selling gift cards. So you can hunt for some good deals at these websites as well. Specialized Websites If you are particularly looking for restaurant gift certificates, then you can go to specialized websites such as restaurant.com, that offers some really good discounts or some additional value on cards. By going in for such cards, you can enjoy a meal with your family at some of the good restaurants and hotels in your city, at a much lesser price. Frequent Flier Points If you are someone who travels a lot and has collected a good number of frequent flier points in the credit card account, you can use them to buy gift cards. Usually, you can get gift cards for clothes, retail products, or even for your local theaters. Local Grocery Store If you shop at a particular grocery store and your credit card company pays you back a certain percentage as rewards every time you shop at the same store, then instead of buying a gift certificate at a restaurant or a clothing store or a spa, it makes sense to buy it from the grocery store itself. This way you will be getting that "cash back" offer by the credit card company on the amount of the certificate as well. When buying gift certificates, make sure that you are familiar with all the terms, conditions, and restrictions which are set by some of these sellers. Sometimes, discounted gift certificates can only be used on particular days or at some specific timings during the day. Some sellers might set a lower limit for purchase, for example a seller might say that you need to spend minimum $50 before you can actually use the discounted gift card. Only when you are sure about everything, should you purchase a gift certificate.