Earn Amex points fast without opening a new credit card. Right now, Rakuten is running elevated rates on four security and identity protection brands you’d actually use: NordVPN at 100x, Surfshark at 97x, LifeLock at 95x, and Norton at 95x. These offers stack. You can grab one, two, three, or all four, and if you’re a new Rakuten member you get a 5,000-point signup bonus on top.
Stack the top tier of all four plus the new member bonus and you walk away with 74,849 transferable Amex Membership Rewards or Bilt Rewards points for $722.36. That’s the max play. But the beauty of these offers is the flexibility. Pick the products you actually want, at whatever tier fits your budget, and the points scale with your spend.
This isn’t a credit card signup bonus. It’s not a spending requirement over three months. It’s one to four purchases through Rakuten that take about five minutes each, and the points land in your account within a few weeks. Here’s exactly how the math works, what to buy, and how to set it up correctly so your points actually track.
How to Set Up Your Rakuten Account for Points (Not Cash)
This is the most important step and the one most people skip. By default, Rakuten pays you in cash back. You need to switch your payout to earn Amex Membership Rewards or Bilt Rewards points instead. If you don’t do this before purchasing, you’ll get cash instead of points.
- Create a free Rakuten account if you don’t have one yet. New members earn 5,000 bonus points after their first qualifying purchase of $50+ (which you’ll hit easily with any of these offers).
- Go to your Rakuten Account Settings
- Under Cash Back Preference, switch from cash to either Amex Membership Rewards or Bilt Rewards
- Link your Amex or Bilt account when prompted
- Install the Rakuten browser extension so you never miss a deal
Once your account is set to earn points, every dollar of cash back becomes one point. So 95% cash back becomes 95x points per dollar. That’s where the magic happens.
Not sure whether to choose Amex or Bilt points? We wrote a full breakdown here. And by the way, you can earn points on Rakuten even without an Amex or Bilt credit card. You just need a free account linked to Rakuten. Check out our guide to learn how.
The Four Offers and How They Stack
First, Rakuten offers change daily. These are live as of the time of posting this article, but may not be live for long. Make sure you’re signed up for C9C daily emails so you get notified when these time-sensitive opportunities pop up.
These are stackable because they’re four different merchants. Rakuten treats each as a separate qualifying purchase. So whether you buy one product or all four, every dollar earns at the elevated rate, and the new member signup bonus pays out on the first purchase that hits $50+.
Norton — 95x Points (All Tiers)
Norton’s elevated rate applies to AntiVirus Plus and the full 360 lineup. Cash back caps at the amount you actually pay, so if you’ve been on the fence about antivirus or want to upgrade an old subscription on a different email, this is your moment. Norton 360 Premium at $59.99 nets 5,699 points. New customers only on initial enrollment.
LifeLock — 95x Points (All Tiers)
LifeLock’s identity theft protection is where the math gets serious. The Total tier at $349.99 generates 33,249 points on a single purchase. Even the entry-level Core tier at $124.99 annual gets you 11,874 points for what you’d otherwise pay for one piece of identity coverage.
Important: LifeLock requires you to keep the subscription active for at least 90 days or Rakuten voids the points. Don’t sign up just for the points if you plan to cancel immediately. Treat this as a product you actually want.
Surfshark — 97x Points
Surfshark’s 27-month plans are the sweet spot here. The Starter plan at $50.76 earns 4,924 points, and the One+ plan at $112.86 earns 10,948 points. A legitimate VPN is genuinely useful for travel: accessing content from home while abroad, securing public WiFi at airports and hotels, and keeping your browsing private are all real benefits.
This offer is valid on all plans, for new customers only.
NordVPN — 100x Points
NordVPN is the headliner of this stack. A flat 100% cash back means every dollar you spend converts one-to-one into Amex or Bilt points. The 2-year plans are where the math gets interesting because Rakuten only pays out on your first charge — the longer the term, the bigger the upfront payment, the more points you earn.
The Prime 2-year plan at $199.53 ($7.39/month × 27 months) generates 19,953 points on a single purchase, plus you get a $50 Amazon gift card thrown in by Nord. Even the entry-level Basic 2-year plan at $83.43 still nets you 8,343 points for what works out to $3.09/month — a price that’s hard to beat for a top-tier VPN.
This offer is for new customers only on initial enrollment.
Combined Total With Rakuten Signup Bonus
If you’re a new Rakuten member and you go all-in on the max stack:
- NordVPN Prime 2-year: 19,953 points
- LifeLock Total: 33,249 points
- Surfshark One+: 10,948 points
- Norton 360 Premium: 5,699 points
- Rakuten signup bonus (new members): 5,000 points
Total: 74,849 points for $722.36
That’s nearly 75,000 transferable points for about $722, valued very conservatively at $1,123 in travel and easily north of $2,000+ on the right premium cabin redemption.
Even without the signup bonus, the max stack still nets you 69,849 points for $722.36. And you don’t have to go max. The starter stack (Norton AntiVirus Plus + NordVPN Basic 2-year + signup bonus) gets you roughly 15,242 points for $103.42, which is a stronger return per dollar than most credit card category bonuses without an application or hard pull.12,521 points for $80.75, which is a stronger return per dollar than most credit card category bonuses without an application or hard pull.
Rules to Follow So Your Points Track
These Rakuten promotions are straightforward, but there are a few rules you need to follow or your points won’t track:
Switch to points. Make sure your Rakuten account is set to earn Amex or Bilt points, not cash back.
Click through Rakuten before purchasing. You must start from the Rakuten portal (or browser extension) and click through to LifeLock, Surfshark, or NordVPN. If you go directly to their websites, Rakuten won’t track the purchase.
Don’t use external coupon codes. Using promotional codes that aren’t listed on Rakuten can void your points. Stick to whatever Rakuten shows you.
Don’t cancel too early. Canceling your subscription within 60-90 days (depending on the offer) will result in Rakuten clawing back your points. Read the fine print on each offer.
No free trials. Points are not available on free trial signups. You need to purchase a paid plan.
Choose annual billing. You only earn the 95x multiplier on your first payment. If you choose monthly billing, you’ll earn 95x on just the first month’s charge and miss out on the bulk of the points. After purchasing, the transaction should appear as “pending” in your Rakuten account within a few days, initially showing $0. It will update to the correct amount later. Points from Rakuten pay out quarterly (the next payout date is typically shown in your account).
The Bottom Line
If you’re looking to earn Amex points fast or build your Bilt balance without opening a new credit card or hitting a minimum spend, Rakuten’s high-multiplier offers are one of the cleanest paths available.
Under $725 for nearly 75,000 transferable points is a rate that’s hard to beat anywhere else. Set your Rakuten account to earn points (not cash), click through the portal, purchase the subscriptions, and let the points roll in. Even if you never use LifeLock, NordVPN, or Surfshark, the points alone are worth more than what you paid.
Create your free Rakuten account and earn 5,000 bonus points →
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