If you're a budget-conscious shopper, your wallet is probably filled to the brim with loyalty cards. But are you taking full advantage of the perks?
With more and more shops fighting for your custom, loyalty cards and reward schemes are popping up left, right and centre to entice you in.
They might seem like a waste of time, but in some cases, you can make some serious savings just by showing a little bit of plastic (or an app) every time you reach the till – so take advantage of this!
Of course, not all loyalty cards are as good as each other, so we've ranked some of the most well-known ones by their value for money and given our reviews. You can thank us later.
Best loyalty and reward cards
Here are the 13 best loyalty cards:
| Loyalty card | Best for | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tesco Clubcard | Getting discounts with Tesco's Reward Partners (e.g. Pizza Express, 16-25 Railcard, etc.) |
| 2 | Nectar card | Often good offers on the Nectar website |
| 3 | Paperchase Treat Me | Spend £50 within six months and get £5 off next shop |
| 4 | Boots Advantage Card | Mega points weekends |
| 5 | Superdrug Health and Beautycard | Using points for part-payments |
| 6 | Subcard | Generous point scheme |
| 7 | Nando's Card | Points don't reset when you claim rewards |
| 8 | Waterstones Plus | £10 off after every £100 you spend |
| 9 | Co-op Membership | 5% of what you spend on Co-op products can be put towards your future purchases at Co-op food stores |
| 10 | Starbucks Reward Card | Freebies after you reach certain 'levels' |
| 11 | Costa Coffee Club | Points can be used to get free food and drinks |
| 12 | IKEA Family card | Freebies and discounts in store |
| 13 | myWaitrose | Freebies and vouchers |
Loyalty card reviews
Tesco Clubcard
How do you get Tesco Clubcard points?
You'll earn points on your Tesco Clubcard every time you make a purchase either online or in-store. You'll also earn points if you have a Tesco credit card, have an account with Tesco Mobile or have a current account with Tesco Bank.
You'll earn one point for every £1 you spend (or one point for every £2 you spend on fuel).
How much are Clubcard points worth?
Every point is worth a penny when you're buying items in Tesco, but you can trade them in for discounts at a huge range of high street stores and brands, making them stretch even further.
You'll receive vouchers based on the number of points you've collected every three months (usually every February, May, August and November).
Or, you can sign up for Faster Vouchers on the Clubcard app or website to get your points converted into vouchers within 24 hours (except during the two-week period before your Clubcard statement's ready, which is issued at the same time as your vouchers).
You can either spend the vouchers in Tesco as they are or use the codes on the vouchers to spend them with one of Tesco's Reward Partners instead – often tripling the value of your points!
Best way to spend Clubcard points
Rather than using them in Tesco, we would definitely recommend cashing your points in for discounts with a Reward Partner to boost your points by up to three times.
For example, you could turn every 50p you have in points into £1.50 to spend in Zizzi, Prezzo, Pizza Express or other restaurants.
You could also exchange a £1 Clubcard voucher for £3 to spend on a 16–25 Railcard, making it even easier to get cheaper train tickets.
Extra ways to earn Clubcard points
- Tesco Mobile – If you're a Tesco Mobile customer (including SIM only), you'll be racking up one Clubcard point for every £1 spent on your bill. Just make sure you register your Clubcard to your account.
- Tesco Bank Credit Card – You'd collect one extra Clubcard point for every £4 spent in Tesco stores, and one point for every £8 spent outside of Tesco.
- Tesco Pay+ – This app lets you store your own credit/debit and Tesco Clubcard in one place, so you can pay quickly at checkout and automatically collect your points.
- Tesco Bank Current Account – If you have a current account with Tesco Bank, you'll get one extra point for every £1 you spend in-store or on fuel using your Tesco debit card, and one Clubcard point for every £8 you spend elsewhere. However, they're not currently accepting applications for the current account – see the best student bank accounts instead.
- Tesco surveys – We're big fans of paid surveys, and Tesco will give you 25 Clubcard points for completing a short survey on your latest shop with them. There are also 25 points on offer for finishing a survey with Shopper Thoughts.
- Esso petrol stations – Fill your car up at any Esso forecourt with a Tesco shop and you'll earn one point for every £3 you spend on fuel. You can also get one point for every £1 spent on qualifying purchases at these destinations, including shop products and car washes.
Discounts with Clubcard Prices
As well as collecting points for vouchers, having a club card can also make your shopping bill a great deal cheaper. Tesco has marked selected products with Clubcard Prices of up to half price off. All you have to do is fill up your basket and they'll take the money off at the checkout.
What is Tesco Clubcard Plus?
Clubcard Plus, not to be confused with Tesco Pay+, is yet another way to shop with Tesco and reap extra benefits, including:
- 10% off two in-store shops a month
- 10% off selected Tesco brands (including F&F clothing and Go cook)
- Double data on any monthly Tesco mobile contracts
- Access to Clubcard plus credit card.
Clubcard Plus is a monthly subscription costing £7.99. It can be cancelled at any time, and Tesco is currently offering a free one-month trial.
Drawbacks of the Tesco Clubcard
Tesco will deactivate your account if it's unused for more than two years. Most vouchers have an expiry of two years as well, although you can find the exact expiry date on your voucher.
Nectar card
Where can you collect Nectar points?
Nectar cards are best known as a loyalty card for Sainsbury's, but you can actually collect points from hundreds of different brands including Argos, eBay and Expedia. Please note that with many of these, you can only collect points when you shop online.
Check out the full list of brands here.
At Sainsbury's, you'll earn one point for every £1 you spend. This varies across brands, though – a lot of stores offer two points per £1. The Nectar website will specify the rate for each store.
How much are Nectar points worth?
Again, how much Nectar points are worth when redeeming them varies depending on where you're shopping. In Sainsbury's, one point is worth 5p, so 500 points will get you £2.50 off your shop.
This is often the going rate across most stores but, in some cases, your points might be worth more.
Best way to spend Nectar points
To get the most out of your Nectar points, check the Nectar website for special offers.
There are some good deals in there, but don't let this dictate where you spend money. Your Nectar points might be worth more if you use them at a particular shop or restaurant, but if you had no intention of going there, are you really saving cash?
Extra ways to earn Nectar points
- Nectar credit card – If you have the Nectar American Express credit card, you'll earn two Nectar points for every £1 you spend on the card, in addition to any regular Nectar points you would have earned with that purchase (e.g. if you were shopping in Sainsbury's).
- Nectar app – According to the Nectar website, the average customer earns 3x as many points with their app. Other benefits include weekly personalised offers to help you earn extra points, accessible balance updates and a digital barcode so you'll never forget to swipe your card!
- Nectar Canvass – Sign up to Nectar Canvass and complete surveys to earn Nectar points. This is a great way of earning points without having to spend a penny (and remember there are plenty of extra ways to earn money from surveys too).
- Check the Nectar website – They sometimes have special deals and promotions where you can earn bumper points, or even earn points without having to spend anything.
Drawbacks of the Nectar card
Nectar card points are only worth around half of what Tesco Clubcard points are worth, having dropped the rate by 50% back in 2015.
What's more, if your account remains inactive for 12 months, your points will be wiped.
Paperchase Treat Me card
How does the Paperchase card work?
The Paperchase Treat Me is less of a points card and more of a ticket to discounts and freebies. So, while you won't be able to spend your points as and when you fancy, there are some great benefits to a Treat Me card that can save you some decent money in the long run – especially if you shop at Paperchase often.
You get some benefits just from signing up, then every time you spend in-store or online, you'll move a step closer to your next 'treat'.
In our opinion, it's worth it just for the free £5 spend on your birthday (no purchase required).
Why should you get a Paperchase loyalty card?
- 15% off your next purchase when you sign up or activate your card
- If you spend £50 within a six-month period, you'll get £5 off your next shop
- Free greetings card when you buy seven in a year
- You get £5 off on your birthday (valid for 28 days from activation)
- Free Click and Collect when you spend £10 or more
- Free upgrade to next-day delivery (via Yodel) when you spend £25 or more, or next-day delivery for the price of standard delivery if you spend less than £25.
Drawbacks of the Paperchase Treat Me card
Once you rack up £50 worth of spending and get your £5 off, you only have 28 days to use it (although the staff are usually really good at letting you know when you're getting close to the £50 spend mark).
You also can't use your Paperchase student discount in conjunction with Treat Me offers and discounts.
Boots Advantage Card
How do you get Boots Advantage points?
You'll earn points every time you make a purchase at Boots online or in-store. You'll receive four points for every £1 you spend, so a £20 spend would get you 80 points. This makes the Boots Advantage Card one of the most generous on the market.
How much are Boots Advantage points worth?
Every point is worth 1p to spend in-store or online, so the 80 points from a £20 spend would be worth 80p.
To use your points, just show your card at the till and ask to pay with points, or select the Advantage card icon at the checkout when shopping online.
Extra ways to earn Boots Advantage Card points
- Boots app – Download the Boots app and you'll earn 200 points, as well as being able to use your Advantage Card on your phone.
- Boots newsletter – Sign up for emails from Boots to collect 100 points.
- Mega Points Weekends – These are special events where you can earn a bunch of extra Advantage points for spending over a certain amount in-store or online – 1,000 extra points for spending £50, for example. If possible, delay purchases until these events so you're only spending money on things you actually want – and for even more points, split up your shop into separate transactions to get the bonus multiple times.
- Tailored offers – Check the Boots app, your emails and your account page on Boots.com for tailored offers, which often include bumper points for buying specific items.
- Student discount – Ok, so this isn't a way to earn extra points, but you can only get a 10% student discount at Boots if you also hold an Advantage Card.
Drawbacks of the Boots Advantage Card
You can't earn points on prescriptions, powdered milk products, gift vouchers, plastic bags or insurance.
You also can't use your Advantage points to part-pay for an item – you need enough points to cover the entire cost.
For example, if you're buying a £4 mascara and you have 400 points on your card, you'll be able to get the mascara for free. But, if the mascara costs £4.99, you won't be able to use your points and pay the remaining 99p.
If your Advantage card is inactive for two years, your points will be wiped.
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