Getting started with instant gift cards

Instant Gift Cards let your team redeem tacos for real gift cards, delivered automatically by HeyTaco directly to the recipient's email. There's no manual fulfillment required — once someone redeems, HeyTaco handles everything.

Step 1: Add funding

Before your team can redeem gift cards, you need to pre-fund your account. Go to Admin → Gift Cards and click "Add Funds." Funding is charged to the credit card on file for your HeyTaco subscription and is processed in USD regardless of the gift card currency.

Once added, your Available Balance appears immediately and decreases automatically as gift cards are redeemed. If your balance hits $0, gift card redemption is paused — you'll never go into a negative balance. See [How do I add instant gift card funding?] for full details including low balance alerts and refunds.

Important notes about funding:

• All funding and gift-card charges are processed in USD, regardless of the gift-card currency.
• If you run out of funds (balance hits $0), users cannot redeem gift cards — and you will not go into a negative balance.
• You can set a Low Balance Alert threshold in your user settings. HeyTaco will email you when your available balance falls below that threshold.
• If you decide to stop using Gift Cards and have leftover funds, you can request a refund of unused balance.

Step 2: Add gift cards to your Taco Shop

Go to the Taco Shop, click "Add Reward," and select Gift Card as the reward type. Browse the catalog — HeyTaco offers thousands of gift card options across 100+ countries — and choose which brands and denominations to make available to your team.

Step 3: Announce to your team

Once gift cards are live in your Taco Shop, let your team know. A few things worth communicating upfront: redemptions are instant and final (no exchanges or returns), and gift cards are sent to the email address associated with their HeyTaco account.

Step 4: Monitor and top up

As redemptions happen, keep an eye on your Available Balance in Admin → Gift Cards. You can set a Low Balance Alert in your user settings to receive an email notification when your balance falls below a threshold you define.

Mixing gift cards with other reward types

Many teams find a good balance by offering instant gift cards alongside non-monetary rewards like team experiences, extra PTO, or perks unique to your culture. This keeps the Taco Shop from becoming purely transactional and maintains the spirit of recognition.

Transitioning from manual gift card fulfillment

If you've been offering gift cards as custom rewards and fulfilling them manually, switching to instant gift cards eliminates that admin work entirely. To transition: add gift cards to your Taco Shop, then remove the manual gift card custom rewards to avoid confusion. Existing taco balances are unaffected — employees keep everything they've earned.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)