The value of loyalty programs

[COcheesehead]

In the last few years we have made a concentrated effort to sign up for loyalty programs and use them. In the past we’d create accounts, forget about them and loose points, but just looking back at this past year, we got everything from free hotel nights, free beers, free 1lb bags of coffee and free ice creams.

 

[easysurfer]

I think the tradeoff is how much effort you have to put into the loyalty programs.

I don't travel enough to rack up free hotel stays. Seems they expire on me.

Just yesterday, I'm thinking about using a loyalty coupon type app for my local grocer. But not sure if the fiddling around in the app is worth the savings or not.

 

[Car-Guy]

I'm in several of the casino loyalty programs. Lot's of perks. Still, they are "way" ahead.

 

[COcheesehead]

I think the tradeoff is how much effort you have to put into the loyalty programs.

I don't travel enough to rack up free hotel stays. Seems they expire on me.

Just yesterday, I'm thinking about using a loyalty coupon type app for my local grocer. But not sure if the fiddling around in the app is worth the savings or not.

We use a digital coupon app at our local Kroger chain. We think it saves us $10-$20 a trip. We also collect gas points that will knock off up to 30 cents a gallon and we occasionally will get cash added to the account as well. It is sort of like free money. All you have to do it scan the QR code on the shelf to capture the discount.

 

[sengsational]

I just like that when you go to a hotel where you've signed-up for their program, it takes less time to check-in. I make no effort to "be loyal", but I've occasionally got a perk or two.

My local beer place gives me $125 tab if I try 200 different beers. So that's like $0.50 off per beer. The catch is it's on one day, so not like a gift card to use on multiple visits. The tab is typically used to have a party and buy beers for your buddies.

 

[easysurfer]

We use a digital coupon app at our local Kroger chain. We think it saves us $10-$20 a trip. We also collect gas points that will knock off up to 30 cents a gallon and we occasionally will get cash added to the account as well. It is sort of like free money. All you have to do it scan the QR code on the shelf to capture the discount.

The digital coupon app sounds similar the place by me. $10-$20 a trip is a good savings. I'm going to give it a try to see if I like or not.

 

[foxfirev5]

While the golden age of points has passed we still participate. But our purchase decisions are no longer influenced by potential rewards.

For example in 2008 DW and I took a week long trip to HI. 70k Miles for the airfare, 240k points for 6 nights at a Hilton resort and a free Hertz rental for the week. Today, not possible or close even with inflation adjusted prices.

 

[foxcreek9]

While the golden age of points has passed we still participate. But our purchase decisions are no longer influenced by potential rewards.

For example in 2008 DW and I took a week long trip to HI. 70k Miles for the airfare, 240k points for 6 nights at a Hilton resort and a free Hertz rental for the week. Today, not possible or close even with inflation adjusted prices.

We just did the very same thing last Nov. 70k for 2 RT tickets on United, 240k Hilton points for 5 nights in Kauai at the Garden Inn, and a free 5 day rental from Hertz.

 

[foxfirev5]

We just did the very same thing last Nov. 70k for 2 RT tickets on United, 240k Hilton points for 5 nights in Kauai at the Garden Inn, and a free 5 day rental from Hertz.

Try it today, post covid. We got some great deals in 2020 and 2021. Now not so much

 

[Chuckanut]

Between loyalty points for hotels and credit card points and cash back, I saved almost $1200 last year. The credit card points are always at least 2%, sometimes 5% cash back (groceries this quarter) and the occasional 10% back (gasoline last quarter).

Until the Fed started to raise interest rates I was earning more on my cash back cards that I was in interest on savings, money markets, and CDs.

I don't agonize and use up my precious time on them. A few hours a month is all it takes. Where else can I earn $50 an hour, tax free?

 

[rk911]

I think the tradeoff is how much effort you have to put into the loyalty programs...

this ^^^^

about the only loyalty program we actually use is at our local grocery store and a few others where we just use our phone number. i do the majority of the shopping and I shop at the same stores for the same items and rarely...almost never...use coupons.

 

[COcheesehead]

We found that by just tracking membership numbers and remembering to use them, is about the most you have to do.
We created a note on our phones with the numbers so access is easy. Many are just a phone number, others are unique ID numbers.

 

[athena53]

We created a note on our phones with the numbers so access is easy. Many are just a phone number, others are unique ID numbers.

I use an app called Key Ring. Easy to add loyalty cards, store pics of front and back and scan the bar code. Costco requires a physical card but most places don't. It's especially handy on my road trips to and from SC- I have loyalty cards for stores such as Kroger that I don't have at home.

Over the decades I've done really well with hotel and airline programs- as other have noted, not so much anymore. I got a Hilton Amex for the signup bonus but mostly use my Costco and Fidelity Visas for straight cash back.

I'm also not a fan of retailers (Kohl's, Penney's, Ulta) where you pay artificially-high sticker prices till you've racked up enough loyalty points and then- Presto!- You use your credits and get $200 worth of eye shadow palettes for $25. (Works for those of us who own Ulta stock, though. ) A friend who buys too much stuff will tell me, "I didn't really need A, B and C but they were free with credits from Amazon".

No, they were NOT free.

 

[audreyh1]

I pretty much only use the low maintenance programs. Which basically turns out to be cash back credit cards or discounts at checkout or for gas.

I have those free memberships in a couple of hotels chains etc. and accrue points, but usually don’t bother using them unless it’s very convenient. It’s mostly handy for using their app and a few small perks like free waters at check-in.

In terms of hotel discounts I almost always find that my AAA number gives me the best rate.

 

[Markola]

^^^^^ Similar. Our system is easy and I focus most on the ones that have attractive cash back or discount credit cards.

We put most everyday purchases on a 2% cash back Wells Fargo Visa, which really adds up ($1,500/year cash back)

A 5% back Amazon Prime Visa for Amazon and Whole Foods purchases; ($400/year cash back)

A 5% off everything debit Red Card for SuperTarget where we get already-cheaper groceries ($600/year saved).

And we have a Delta AMEX for Delta purchases. It’s the only card with a fee but we get a free companion ticket once/year, points and some perks. ($500/net saved)

Total: $3,000/year

It might sound complicated but these cards just reside on the related apps so it’s all automatic. All funnel into my YNAB budgeting software and all get paid in full automatically each month.

 

[Montecfo]

They can be valuable. I am a diamond level member of several hotel loyalty programs. You get free nights and free room upgrades. Once you have status with one, you can get others to match ("reciprocity"). For some the best rates are available through their lotalty program, similar to AAA but you get free nights as a kicker. Some hotels have close parking for Diamond members.

You can also use the upgrade to negotiate a discount. Example: offer to buy a room for multiple nights if they agreed to upgrade me to much larger, better room. We did this recently in Myrtle Beach.

We get air travel points these days mainly through credit card sign up bonuses. Say 50-100k points just by taking the card. We both did this with American Airlines recently. British Airways Avios is a good way to get US trips on American at low points cost. We are flying to Hawaii on points next month.

We use the Costco Visa cashback card for $1000+ per year.

We mainly grocery shop at Walmart but our secondary store is Harris Teeter (owned by Kroger). Having prescriptions there along with our shopping (using our loyalty number) saves us cash as others have stated and usually earns 60 cents to $1.00 per gallon off a tank of gas every month or so.

We do not bother with the other ones.

 

[foxcreek9]

Try it today, post covid. We got some great deals in 2020 and 2021. Now not so much

I did, as mentioned, this past November 2022. Point programs are constantly being devalued but bargains are still there. Flying AA to Italy 100k in points for the 2 of us, flying to Portugal for $850 for 2 RT on United, and flying one way to Helsinki on Air France for 30K + $148 in taxes for the 2 of us.

 

[JDARNELL]

I always track my travel point savings at the cheapest rate I can find for the property I am staying/airfare/car rentals and this year Chase’s pay yourself back. For 2022 it comes in at $9k. Chase UR points have been the big winner especially transferring to Hyatt.

 

[Midpack]

I don’t much care for loyalty programs. But it does make sense to take advantage of some of them IF it’s a merchant or service you use often and would use anyway (e.g. Harris Teeter fuel points for us). I don’t get people who sign up for every loyalty program, not worth the effort with some with programs that pay poorly (e.g. OpenTable for us), or that you won’t use often enough to amount to rewards worth having.

Cash back on credit cards is worth way more than any loyalty program I’ve seen.

 

[Chuckanut]

I don’t much care for loyalty programs. But it does make sense to take advantage of some of them IF it’s a merchant or service you use often and would use anyway (e.g. Harris Teeter fuel points for us). I don’t get people who sign up for every loyalty program, not worth the effort with some with programs that pay poorly (e.g. OpenTable for us), or that you won’t use often enough to amount to rewards worth having.

Cash back on credit cards is worth way more than any loyalty program I’ve seen.

+1

The problem with too many loyalty programs for the same or similar services is that the points get spread out over many different companies and you end up rarely getting enough points to actually get that free room or free ticket. I'll pay somewhat more to go with my preferred hotel company especially since I get CC points as well as the regular stay points. And about 40% of the time I get some kind of upgrade. Often the upgrade is trivial, but at times it's a noticeably bigger room or better equipped room. But, if the price difference for a similar room elsewhere is too high, I'll wander off the farm. Cash is king.

Speaking of cash being king, I noticed that Starbucks will soon devalue my points by 50%. Another reason to go with cash awards. Thankfully, my stash of Sbux points is very small. Show me the money!

 

[braumeister]

My big three are Hilton, Delta, and Kroger. I save significant money from the points on all of them, and it's completely automatic since I rarely shop at their competitors. I really don't care if they track my spending and resell the information; it's worth it to me.

 

[COcheesehead]

+1

The problem with too many loyalty programs for the same or similar services is that the points get spread out over many different companies and you end up rarely getting enough points to actually get that free room or free ticket. I'll pay somewhat more to go with my preferred hotel company especially since I get CC points as well as the regular stay points. And about 40% of the time I get some kind of upgrade. Often the upgrade is trivial, but at times it's a noticeably bigger room or better equipped room. But, if the price difference for a similar room elsewhere is too high, I'll wander off the farm. Cash is king.

Speaking of cash being king, I noticed that Starbucks will soon devalue my points by 50%. Another reason to go with cash awards. Thankfully, my stash of Sbux points is very small. Show me the money!

That why we use only three programs for lodging: Hilton, Wyndham and IHG. Almost any town will have one of their brands.
Keep in mind, partial points may not get you a free room, but they still might still get you a discount. We recently only had 8000-9000 points at Hilton, below what we needed for a free room, but we got the night’s stay reduced to $19.

 

[mn54]

We use a digital coupon app at our local Kroger chain. We think it saves us $10-$20 a trip. We also collect gas points that will knock off up to 30 cents a gallon and we occasionally will get cash added to the account as well. It is sort of like free money. All you have to do it scan the QR code on the shelf to capture the discount.

how much do you have to spend to save 10-20 dollars?

 

[COcheesehead]

how much do you have to spend to save 10-20 dollars?

We spend $100-$125 a week.

 

[EastWest Gal]

We save our grocery points for gas discounts for the van-larger gas tank, lower mpg. Usually save over a dollar per gallon, or $15 per fill-up. The Prius gets filled at Costco, saving 20¢/gallon, or about $1.60. By buying groceries at one chain, and keeping an eye on the points offerings, the savings add up. I belong to IHG and Hilton, as both chains have hotels in many locations, but we don’t travel often.

We’re grinding down the timeshare points and plan on dumping the timeshare, a big money drain, in two years. Two weeks on the Big Island next Christmas, and a week in Manhattan in March (that cost a ton of points!). One more trip somewhere and we’ll be done with that.

We’ll be using points and miles to get from PA to Kona first class. We did that in 2017. All from credit cards.