From points to rewards and frequent flyer partnerships, which of these loyalty programs will give you more bang for your buck?
Coles flybuys and Woolworths Rewards both give you a way to earn points when you shop at the supermarket and with program partners. They also allow you to get frequent flyer points for your spending, as you can transfer flybuys points to Velocity Points or Woolworths Rewards points to Qantas Points.
Bet how do the other features of these two loyalty programs compare? Let's take a look.
What you'll find in this guide
Snapshot of Coles flybuys vs Woolworths Rewards
| Program feature | Coles flybuys | Woolworths Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Earning points at the supermarket | 1 point per $1 spent No minimum spend | 1 point per $1 spent No minimum spend |
| Cash off shop rewards | 2,000 points = $10 value | 2,000 points = $10 value |
| Frequent flyer rewards | 2,000 flybuys points = 870 Velocity Points | 2,000 Woolworths Rewards points = 870 Qantas Points |
| Reward options | Rewards you can get with your points include:
| There are three reward options:
|
| Program partners | You can also earn points with many other brands, including:
| You can also earn points for spending with the following brands:
|
| Member offers | Offers are sent by email and include bonus point promotions. | Offers are sent by email and include bonus point promotions. |
| Point expiry | flybuys points don't expire as long as you collect or redeem them at least once a year. | Any unused points balance of less than 2,000 points may be set to expire 18 months from the date on which you last scanned your rewards card at a participating store. |
Coles flybuys
The Coles flybuys rewards program is free to join, with options to sign up online or in-person at participating stores. As of 2018, flybuys has more than 8 million active members across Australia.
Below, we've covered the highlights of this program. You can also check out the full guide to flybuys for more details about the program.
Earning flybuys points
At Coles supermarkets (and online), you'll earn 1 point per $1 spent when you scan your flybuys card before paying. The same earn rate applies when you're shopping at Liquorland, First Choice Liquor and First Choice Liquor Market, as well as Kmart and Target.
You can also earn points per $1 spent with a number of other partners, which could cover your spending in the following major categories.
- Fuel and cars. You can earn 1 point per $2 spent at Coles Express service stations and 1 point per $1 at Kmart Tyre and Auto.
- Utilities. Earn points for your spending with AGL or Kleenheat.
- Credit cards. Coles offers a range of credit cards that allow you to earn flybuys points for your spending. These cards also double as your membership card, with the barcode printed on the back.
- Other banking and insurance. Earn points with a Coles credit card, personal loan or prepaid card. You can also get points with Coles insurance products, as well as other insurance partners, such as Medibank.
- Travel. Partners include flybuys travel and Budget car and truck hire.
- Other shopping and lifestyle partners. This includes adidas, eBay and Fitbit.
Using flybuys points
With so many different partners, the flybuys program also offers many ways to use your points. Popular options include:
- Money off your shop. With this option, 2,000 flybuys points give you $10 value at a participating store. Redemption options are available for Coles and Coles Express, as well as the following partners: First Choice Liquor and First Choice Liquor Market, Kmart, Liquorland, Target and Kmart Tyre and Auto.
- Frequent flyer points. Add your Velocity Frequent Flyer details to your flybuys account and you'll be able to transfer 2,000 flybuys points for 870 Velocity Points. Occasionally, there are also transfer promotions that can see you get an extra 10-15% more Velocity Points.
- Travel. flybuys travel lets you put your points towards flights, hotels and packages, with each point valued at 0.5 cents.
- Merchandise and gift cards. You can redeem your flybuys points for a variety of items or gift cards available at the flybuys store, including kitchen appliances, watches and wine.
How to earn Velocity Status Credits through flybuys
A unique feature of the flybuys loyalty program is that it allows you to earn Velocity Status Credits for your shopping at Coles, Liquorland and First Choice Liquor.
All you need to do is add your Velocity details to your flybuys account and scan your flybuys card when you shop with one of these partners. You'll then earn 1 Status Credit for every $100 you spend, across multiple transactions, up to 10 Status Credits per month. This is one of the only ongoing ways to earn Status Credits when you're not flying, making it a key benefit for Velocity members.
Check out the perks you can get with higher Velocity status
Compare Coles credit cards
Woolworths Rewards
The Woolworths Rewards program is also free to join either online or in a participating Woolworths Group store. As of 2018, Woolworths Rewards has 11 million members across Australia. Although Woolworths hasn't said whether these members are all active, it does suggest it has more members than flybuys.
While you can get all the details of the Woolworths Rewards program in our guide, here we've picked out the key features to compare with flybuys.
Earning Woolworths Rewards points
Woolworths Rewards offers you points for your everyday spending at the following stores:
- Woolworths and Woolworths Online
- Big W
- BWS
- Caltex Woolworths service stations
This is a major difference to flybuys because the options for earning points are focused on just a few stores, rather than many different partners.
Using Woolworths Rewards points
Another major difference to flybuys is that Woolworths Rewards only offers three ways to use your points – two of which involve getting cash off your shop. The options are:
- Instant cash off your shop. With this option, 2,000 Woolworths Reward points will earn you $10 off a shop at Woolworths, Big W or BWS. Once you've earned enough points, you'll have the option of using this $10 off when you spend at least $10 in store. This rate is similar to flybuys Dollars.
- Bank your points. With this option, you can save your Woolworths Rewards points up and then use them to get money off a larger shop, such as during the Christmas holiday season. When you bank your points, you'll be given the option of using them on a quarterly basis (instead of whenever you've earned 2,000 points).
- Qantas Points. You can transfer 2,000 Woolworths Rewards points for 870 Qantas Points. When you choose this option through your Woolworths Rewards account, the transfer will be automatic whenever you reach 2,000 Woolworths Rewards points. This rate is similar to that of flybuys and Velocity Points.
What about Woolworths credit cards?
A Woolworths credit card can double as your Woolworths Rewards card, with the membership barcode printed on the back near the signature panel. This means you can scan the back of your credit card to earn points through Woolworths Rewards.
However, there are not technically any Woolworths credit cards that offer you additional Woolworths Rewards points for your everyday credit card spending. Instead, you can earn Qantas Points or credit card reward points per $1 spent on eligible purchases with your card. These points are in addition to any Woolworths Rewards points you earn, meaning you can get points through two different programs with one of these credit cards.
Compare Woolworths credit cards
How can I decide if Coles flybuys or Woolworths Rewards is better for me?
If you want to focus on earning points through just one of these programs, asking the following questions can help you choose between them:
- Where do you do most of your supermarket shopping? If there's a Woolies just around the corner or a Coles close to work, you might find that you end up spending more with one supermarket brand. If you're not sure, check your credit or debit card transaction history and see where the bulk of your supermarket spending goes.
- Do you regularly shop with other program partners? Whether it's getting fuel at a Caltex Woolworths service station or picking up household bargains at Target and Kmart, looking at the partners for both Woolworths Rewards and flybuys will help you decide which one's going to earn you more points based on your current spending habits.
- Do you want Qantas Points or Velocity Points? If you're a member of a frequent flyer program – or if you prefer one over the other – this could be a key factor in deciding whether Coles flybuys or Woolworths Rewards offers you more value.
- What sort of rewards do you want? If you're looking for lots of different ways to use points, flybuys might be the more appealing option. On the other hand, if you just want a simple way to get more value from your shopping, the three options Woolworths Rewards offers could allow you to get rewarded without too much effort.
While you can get more benefits and value from focusing on just one rewards scheme, it may be worth joining both flybuys and Woolworths Rewards so you can earn points when you shop at either supermarket. Just remember to keep your membership card or details handy so you actually earn points for your spending.
Pictures: Shutterstock
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