Are Reward Clubs Worth It?
November 2, 2009 by Jennifer Chait
Filed under Shopping Issues
Reward clubs come in many forms from warehouse shopping clubs, to store rewards, to roadside assistance, to movie rental rewards and more. BUT they’re not always worth it. Most cost a fee, sometimes monthly, sometimes annually, and once in a while a flat join rate fee.
To work out whether a reward club is worth it to you, consider the following.
Are you compulsive when shopping or do you carefully consider each purchase? If you’re compulsive (be honest) warehouse shopping clubs like Costco may not be the best deal. These stores are set up to get you to buy more AND to get you to buy stuff not on your shopping list which is exactly what a compulsive shopper may do. If you’re going to buy stuff you wouldn’t normally just because you’re a member this is one reward that will waste money.
Do you already have something that works like the reward? For example, AAA is a good club to join in my opinion. I was with them for years. It’s cheaper piece of mind if you’re driving an old car, and if you break down can save you some serious cash plus you get killer deals on hotels, restaurants, and more with most auto clubs. However, last year I bought a new car and it came with roadside that accomplished everything AAA did for me so I canceled AAA. If you have a club that doubles up with another, why pay that extra cash?
Do you buy enough? Store rewards for goods like movies, medications, or books are only good if you’re a over the top regular shopper. For example, my local bookstore has a rewards with a hefty fee, and if I bought $400-$500 worth of new books each year it would pay off. However, of course I NEVER buy that much in new books, so the $25 four times a year is a crime. My boyfriend pays a fee for a movie rental place and because he has himself and his two daughters (all three huge movie buffs) this membership fee pays off big time.
The reward that almost always pays off – membership rewards to local theme parks. Even if you only visit three times a year, most of these memberships pay off. For example, we go to the zoo here in Oregon about 5-6 times a year, and to pay full price each time is way more expensive than a membership. When we lived in New Mexico we went to the zoo at least twice a month and I figure we saved literally 100s with our membership. Basically, do the math for your local attractions, but these are usually a great deal for families – and the larger your family the better deal you get.
How do you pick and choose which rewards to use and which to skip?
[image via stock.xchng]
