For as much as I travel the one thing I regret not doing earlier is signing up for the Starbucks loyalty program. When I’m on the road I tend to buy at least one cup of Starbucks coffee a day. Sure, I know it’s not the best coffee in the world, but it’s everywhere. Plus, when you’re on the road there is something comfortable about the familiar and Starbucks is one of the few familiar things you’ll find in the middle of Iowa!
Starbucks Rewards Overview
I’m not sure why it took me so long to sign up for the Starbucks Rewards program. For one reason or another I was resistant to the idea of signing up. Eventually though I caved and downloaded the app to sign-up. Signing up is extremely simple and only requires that you download the Starbucks app and register. From there you have to link your credit card to your account and pre-load your Starbucks account with funds. I tend to do just $10 each time I re-load because I hate having money in pre-loaded accounts like these.
Once registered you’ll start earning “Stars” with each qualifying Starbucks purchase. For each qualifying purchase members earn 2 stars per $1 spent at Starbucks. Starting out all members begin at Green status which includes the following benefits.
After earning 300 Stars in a calendar year Starbucks Rewards members earn Gold status and receive the following benefits.
Perhaps the most valuable benefit of Gold status is the free drink you earn after earning 125 Stars. Keep in mind though that it takes about $70 of spend to earn 125 Stars. That is, unless you take advantage of some of the bonus star promotions that Starbucks occasionally offers.
Starbucks Offers Bonus Star Opportunities In The App
One important thing to do after joining the Starbucks Rewards program is the check the app often. About every other day there is at least one type of promotion. More often than not these promotions include half off drinks or discounted menu items. However, occasionally these promotions include challenges to earn a lot of bonus stars.
Currently, Starbucks is offering two of these bonus star promotions and the best part is that they are stackable. So, in theory you could complete both challenges after ordering just three drinks from Starbucks.
Earn 100 Bonus Stars From Starbucks Menu Challenge
The first bonus star opportunity is to earn 100 stars from the Starbucks Menu challenge. These menu challenges are offered about once a week I’ve noticed and usually include at least one of the more obscure Starbucks menu items. However, this week the menu items were on the more traditional side.
When I logged into the app I found the above card which explained in order to earn 100 stars I only needed to order 3 menu items in 3 days. When I went into the details page I found the eligible menu items.
As you can see, in order to complete this challenge all you have to do is order 1 Caramel Macchiato, 1 Caramel Frappuccino, and 1 Cold Brew from 9/7/18 through 9/9/18. In theory you could order all three of these items in a single order to complete the challenge. Also, the challenge does not specify a size so you could complete the challenge by ordering only Tall beverages. The app generally defaults to Grande, but you can adjust the size of the beverage when customizing your order.
After completing the challenge the stars post to your account within a day or two. Also, these stars count toward qualifying for Gold status so completing this challenge helps fast track you to the higher tier status.
Earn 75 Starts From Starbucks Star Dash
While you could complete the Menu Challenge in a single order you would be missing out on the second challenge of the week. The second challenge is simply to place three different orders at Starbucks. Yep, it’s that simple.
When yo u click on the details of the Star Dash promotion you’ll notice that all you have to do is place three orders in the 7 day period from 9/4/18 through 9/10/18. It’s that simple.
Obviously the best way to knock out this second challenge is to place an order for each of the above items included in the Menu Challenge. By ordering all three of those items in three separate transactions you’ll earn a total of 175 bonus stars and be more than 50% to earning Starbucks Gold status. If you already have Starbucks Gold status you’ll earn a free drink and be well on your way to earning another.
Final Thoughts
I like these promotions from Starbucks because otherwise I don’t know if I’d earn enough Stars in a year to qualify for Gold status. When I usually visit Starbucks I only order a Tall Pikes roast. That is only $2 or so which means I only earn about 4 stars a visit. Clearly I’d have to go about every day to earn Gold status that way.
Usually I would never order the items in the Menu Challenge, but this week the challenge included items that I would potentially order organically. So completing the challenge this week was easy. In fact, as I write this post I’m enjoying my Carmel Frappuccino at my local Starbucks.
