RResidents in Japan

How many point cards do you have

And are they worth the effort.

21 comments

  2. I have so many point cards that I lost count already lol.
    They are worth if you shop in the same place often. I usually get 500 off like every 2 months or so.

  3. I’m going to partially sidejack this thread with a commentary about coupons in Japan – including some that you get from using point cards (there, tied it back in). I might be speaking as a spoiled American, but aren’t the coupon values pretty low here? Like I’ve seen stuff for only 5円 or 10円 off a beverage or something that seems barely worth time time to clip / scan.

    In the US, you might see the equivalent of 100円 off a 300円 product pretty frequently.

    That said.. back to points cards. I use Bookoff all the time, 7-11 if I’m interested in some promotional thing they are doing (but not for coupons really) and T-points or Rakuten points sometimes but am often annoyed I can’t use them in combination with a credit card purchase most of the time.

  4. One for pharmacy. They’re technically not worth the hassle but the psychology works really well from a marketing pov. Since it’s an arbitrary currency value can go up and down without any sort of control.

  5. My wife has a separate wallet for physical cards and countless folders on her smartphone for digital ones.
    I dread going shopping together.

  6. I have a ton cause I spend a lot and would like to save up without 我慢-ing too much.

    Are they worth it? Maybe?

    Some I have installed in my phone so at least I’d remember to use some when I’m out buying shit. Some I forget every single time.

    t-point is really worth it if you live close to a Welcia as 20th every month you can get 1.5x worth of goods. Meaning 200p = 300y (English is not my first language so I have no idea how to explain it better)
    Rakuten point is also worth it if you use have Rakuten card. Pay by Rakuten pay get you double the point (1x for using the app 1x for using Rakuten card)
    Keio point if you take Keio line and/or live along the lines as you can use it in its station shopping malls.
    Sugi? You can exchange points for goods but I’d recommend at least having an account and the official app since they have app only coupon often (10-15%off for 1 item)
    Etc

  10. 2.
    A friend of mine is crazy about ポイ活 and carry a spare wallet with maybe 30 cards. He spend his time chasing special offers with x倍 points for free. I’m sure I make more money working instead of chasing offers

  11. Two. One for the local grocery store and one for the local home improvement store. I use both very regularly so they’re worth it to me (grocery store for groceries, the home improvement store sell the laundry detergent, soap, shampoo, and conditioner I like cheaper than the grocery store).

    My husband seems to have about a thousand, he gets one for pretty much any store that offers them, and it’s irritating when he starts having to try to find one for a store we may only shop at once or twice a year. Not worth it for that.

    I’ve noticed that some stores are moving over to using apps instead of cards, and that’s much easier for him to organize. I’m still happy with just my two cards, and declining any for a shop I’m at less than once a month.

  14. A few are worth it. Usually for expensive things. I have one for Enoteca (technically an app on my phone) for buying wine. Points add up fast and I’ll get a couple thousand yen discount every few months.
    I also have one for my tailor and some for the big electronic stores (BicCamera, Yamada Denki, etc.). I don’t carry these around though — I just bring them with me if I’m going to make a purchase.

    The only physical ones I carry are for my grocery store and for a ramen place I like. The ramen one is more like a loyalty card than a point card though — they give it to you after your first visit and then every visit after that you show the card to get one free topping. Can’t beat that.

  15. Depends which ones you invest in, for example, vポイント currently has a campaign with 三井住友カード（NL) where after creating the card, you get 15% of what you spend back as vポイント up to a max of 7,000 points (you need to spend 46,667 yen in total). You essentially get 7,000 yen free, if you were already going to spend that money, as vポイント can be used to charge a prepaid visa/ID google pay/apple pay card, which can be used online as a normal credit card as well.

    KFC just had a campaign where you could get a free original chicken leg, ultimately you need to put some effort in to find the good points systems that match you lifestyle. My wife earns massive points off Rakuten during shopping marathons etc, because she plans how to get all the point modifiers. Just to give you an idea, my wife off just her Rakuten account (we have one for each family member due to specific campaigns etc) has earned 881,846 Rakuten points and since we are frugal people, these points are from things we need.

  16. Used to use a bunch of cards, now don’t carry any physical point cards. Now I just have the Rakuten, DoCoMo, and T-point apps. 0.5 or 1% extra on pretty much every purchase makes it worth it for me

  17. I only use apps, but currently sitting on 40,000 D-points, 6000 Rakuten points, 4000 Yodobashi points, 9000 LINE points, 2000 S-points from just riding the train to/from work etc

    It takes literally almost no effort to open and scan the app. Use the campaigns when you do your regular shopping and get 10-20x points. Hell, I get 2% back points for paying my city tax, 10% for my phone bill, 5% for my gas/electric, etc. no effort and I’m taking in the points, to use on big purchases.

  20. I bet most of you here complain about “my privacy!!!!” if say facebook tracks you around the internet, but you are happy having many point cards tracking what you physically buy and when/where you do it, along with all the other details you provided when you signed up.

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