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2023-03-07 8:26 PM

Absa rewards program review 2023

By William Dube

ABSA Rewards is a cashback program exclusively for holders of ABSA Debit and Credit Cards. Rewards are earned when cardholders make purchases at participating merchants. It saves up to 30% on gasoline, groceries, and health and beauty products. You can earn rewards from ABSA simply by swiping your card. This is a scheme designed particularly for holders of ABSA debit or credit cards.

Unlike some other loyalty programs, joining the Absa loyalty program is simple and completely free. A rewards program comes at a cost and is somewhat difficult to manage; with a successful rewards program, you must gain, not lose. It may be difficult to determine what your rewards program offers, as the majority of rewards programs are not as easy. In some instances, you may discover that you must achieve a certain level of credit or savings in order to enjoy the most rewards.

What you really need to do is determine whether the program is beneficial to you. You may discover that you are unable to meet some of your rewards program’s qualifying discount percentages. Due to the fact that the Absa rewards program is completely free, it may be beneficial to you. You’re likely to benefit from discounts that you weren’t aware of in the first place.

Prior to enrolling in a rewards program, such as Absa’s, you must first answer the following questions:

  • Are the statuses on your rewards program achievable?
  • Do the levels on the rewards program make any sense?
  • Am I paying for a membership or is it for free?
  • What is the opportunity cost of choosing this reward program versus an alternative?

By considering these questions you can come up with a concrete decision regarding whether or not to join a rewards program. Your choice will be subjective as it will be according to what you deem necessary.

How does ABSA Rewards Program Work?

Absa rewards its customers for making purchases using their bank cards at a variety of partner stores. Although the rewards program is not available to all Absa customers. The rewards program is only available to credit card, debit card, and check account holders. You are not eligible for the program if you just have a loan or other product other than an Absa transactional account. The Absa rewards program’s purpose is to ensure that Absa customers always have a positive banking experience.

Additionally, the rewards extend beyond banking, as you earn points for establishing a will, purchasing life insurance, and so on. By attempting to obtain the largest discount on goods, you can contribute to a prudent financial breakthrough. Your savings, investments, home loan, and other financial commitments will all be in order if you maximize the benefits of your Absa rewards program. Your rewards will be determined by your tier level.

Absa has a tier system to incentivize prudent banking behavior. The more customers who bank, the greater their benefits will be. Irresponsible individuals will be unable to reap the utmost profits.

Absa Rewards program tiers

Absa’s rewards program is divided into five tiers, each of which determines the percentage you get back on purchases. There are a few things that you must perform in order to progress from Tier 1 to Tier 5. You earn rewards points simply for having an Absa transactional account. While these will not bring you to the second tier, they will get you started.

As a member of the Absa rewards program, you should consider accumulating points. It’s straightforward but not simple, and the straightforward part is understanding what you’re rewarded for. By accumulating points, you can progress from one tier to the next, both backwards and forwards.

Let’s look at each tier and what maximum rewards you can achieve.

Tier 1

Tier 1 is the initial reward tier in Absa’s loyalty program. The tier begins with 0 points, and hence anyone who is a member of the Absa rewards program begins here. The rewards you get will vary according on the type of card you have with Absa. Discounts are available only to debit and credit cardholders. Credit cardholders often earn a greater percentage of discounts than debit cardholders.

To qualify for discounts and rebates, you must have between 0 and 489 points. The following table summarizes the discounts available to Tier 1 members.

ABSA Rewards Program Tier 1 Discounts

Discount DiscriptionDebit Card discount in %Credit Card discount in %
Cash rewards from Absa0.150.20
Sasol rewards0.501
Rewards at grocers0.150.20
Dischem rewards0.501

Tier 2

Tier 2 rewards are superior to tier 1 rewards. You earn more money and discounts. To advance from Tier 1 to Tier 2, you must earn 490 points. When comparing transfers between tiers, moving from tier 1 to tier 2 is more challenging. For example, if you move up or down tiers from tier 2, you will only need 100 points to reach the next tier.

ABSA Rewards Program Tier 2 Discounts

Discount DescriptionDebit Card discount in %Credit Card discount in %
Cash rewards from Absa0.200.40
Sasol rewards0.651.50
Rewards at grocers0.450.65
Dischem rewards0.651.50

Tier 3

Moving from tier 2 to tier 3 is easy as it requires only 100 points. This move comes with better rewards and discount percentage. Below is a table showing percentage savings from Absa partner stores.

ABSA Rewards Program Tier 3 Discounts

Discount DescriptionDebit Card discount in %Credit Card discount in %
Cash rewards from Absa0.300.75
Sasol rewards0.752.50
Rewards at grocers0.501.25
Dischem rewards0.752.50

Tier 4

Upgrade from tier 3 to tier 4 requires 100 points and a total of 690 points. To be in tier 4 you need to have between 690 to 789 points. Here are discounted savings that you can earn when you are in tier 4.

ABSA Rewards Program Tier 4 Discounts

Discount DescriptionDebit Card discount in %Credit Card discount in %
Cash rewards from Absa0.350.95
Sasol rewards2.006.50
Rewards at grocers1.506.25
Dischem rewards2.006.50

Tier 5

Tier 5 is the highest level of earning rewards and has the highest savings and cashback rewards of all the tiers. You will need to have a minimum of 790 points to be in tier 5. There are no maximum points, meaning even if you accumulate points greater than 790 you will still have your rewards status as tier 5.

ABSA Rewards Program Tier 5 Discounts

Discount DescriptionDebit Card discount in %Credit Card discount in %
Cash rewards from Absa0.401.15
Sasol rewards4.5030.00
Rewards at grocers4.5030.00
Dischem rewards4.5030.00

Tier 5 provides the most desirable cashback and discounts than any other tier. In fact, rewards on fuel and groceries are 30% when you have an Absa credit card which dwarfs tier 4’s 6.5% savings on fuel and groceries. Moving to tier 5 not only gives you better savings when you shop but also a higher percentage in cash back.

Since you now know all about the tiers in the Absa rewards program. Now let us check how you can earn maximum points and move between tier 1 to tier 5. There are a number of things that you can do to earn points and it all starts with having an Absa debit or credit card.

How to earn points on the Absa rewards program

When it comes to earning points on the Absa rewards program, Absa has made it simple to earn them. The point system is easy to understand and straightforward with no special conditions. Absa makes it clear that you can earn points through the type of transactional account you have with them, products and how you bank.

It is that simple. However, you will need to satisfy a number of requirements to earn points and that’s what we will look at. We will look at every point earning categories and investigate how many points you can earn.

You will notice that by making the right financial decisions you can earn many points. Absa’s rewards program aims at promoting responsible banking. By actually trying to earn points you will make exceptional financial decisions.

Below is what you can do to earn points taking into consideration the transactional account you have with Absa, products with Absa and banking behaviour.

Earning points through transactional account

To qualify for the Absa rewards program you need to have a transactional account. By virtue of owning an Absa transactional account, you will earn points. Not a bad way to start a rewards program! The points that you will earn will be based on the type of card that you have with Absa.

For the purpose of the Absa rewards program, Absa rewards three types of card/account holders. These include a cheque account with overdraft, savings/Cheque account without overdraft and credit card with debit order towards monthly repayments.

The table below depicts the number of points that you can earn for holding one or several of the 3 accounts/cards that Absa recognises for its rewards program.

Qualifying rewards criteria Points/score
Cheque account with overdraft 150
Savings/Cheque account without overdraft 100
Credit card with a debit order towards monthly repayments 50

By having all three accounts with Absa you can simply start your rewards program with a massive 300 points. If you only qualify for one or two of the transactional accounts, you don’t need to worry as there are many points that you can still earn.

Earning points by having asset finance, savings and insurance

As your designated banking services provider, Absa wants to make sure that you get rewarded for taking out loans with them. It is even better when you choose to protect your loans through the use of insurance companies. You will also earn points by having life insurance or short term insurance to safeguard your valuable assets.

Below is a table that showcase the amount of points that you can earn for having selected products.

Description Minimum debit order balance Points/score
Home loan R5000 75
Vehicle and asset finance R5000 50
Personal loans R5000 50
Savings and investments R5000 50
Insurance products N/A 15
Wills N/A 10

Note the minimum debit order balance on a home loan, vehicle and asset finance and personal loans must be R5000 that will go towards monthly repayments. The R5000 is a debit order transaction. So to qualify for points on a home loan, vehicle and asset finance and personal loans you will need to have debit order for one or more of the transactions on your Absa transactional account.

To benefit insurance points, you will need to have an ongoing insurance policy. It can be a short term or long term insurance policy. For you to earn points on a Will, such will must be in the safe custody with Absa. Additionally, Absa needs to be the appointed executor of the will.

Earning points due to your banking behavior

Your banking behaviour matters, as an Absa rewards program member, you need to keep in check on how you bank. The way you bank can earn you many points. Truth is, this category has got more points than any of the 2 mentioned categories above. This is where you will need to capitalism the most.

Here are points that you can earn for banking better.

Description Points/score
Pay five or more beneficiaries using Absa online, USSD, ATM or Absa banking App 40
Receiving eStatements for all products that contribute to tiering 25
Depositing your salary in your Absa transactional account or making payments of R32,000.00 or more and initiate 10 or more transactions 270
Giving Absa a marketing consent to at least 2 of the following: SMS, Email and telephone 25
Providing valid contact details of at least 2 of the following : home/work number, cell phone number or email address 25
Buying foreign cash notes or make/receive an international SWIFT payment 20
Making rrecurring monthly payments to your savings and Investment account of R250 or more. 20
Have 3 or more home or vehicle loans 30

Absa Rewards Program Partners

Absa has partnered with a number of retailers and services providers to make their rewards program fun. As an Absa rewards program member, you can earn up to 30% cashback when you shop at Absa partner stores. This is, however, dependent on your tier level.

List of Absa rewards program partners:

  • Food Lovers Market
  • Fidelity
  • McCarthy.co.za
  • Planet54.com
  • Etihad Airways
  • Mangwanani
  • Bolt
  • Dischem pharmacies
  • Avis
  • The baby/kid Zone
  • Sasol
  • NuMetro
  • Travel Start
  • Mytelnet
  • Pick n Pay
  • Woolworths
  • Camelot Spa
  • Celestial
  • Bidvest Waltons

Conclusions

The Absa rewards program offers a great deal of savings for Absa cardholders and comes at no additional cost. With over 15 partner stores you can earn rewards in many ways when you spend money through gas, groceries etc.

Earning points is easy with the Absa rewards as over 50% of the score earning categories can be micromanaged by the account holder. Being a member of Absa rewards program will benefit you in many ways possible.

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William Dube

William Dube is a finance and economic news expert with over 10 years of experience in economic anaylsis, financial product assessment and market analysis. With a numerous certificates from prestigious universities including but not limited to Yale University and the University of Pennyslivenia. William specializes in providing insightful news developments in South Africa and commentary on investment strategies, risk management, and global economic trends. You can contact him on william@rateweb.co.za

Tags: ABSA