How changes to Grab rewards from March will affect you

Looks like all good things eventually come to an end. Grab is reportedly set to reduce the amount of points you can earn per transaction and increase points needed to claim rewards from March 2, 2020, onwards. 

Currently, a Platinum Grab user can earn up to 10 points for every $1 spent at a retail store. Sadly, starting March 2, 2020, that is all set to change. There will only be one point system regardless of the purchase, and all cash purchases will no longer earn you any points. This means that the same Platinum Grab user will only earn 4 points for every $1 spent. That's a whopping 60 per cent reduction.

Apart from earning lesser points per transaction, the amount of points needed to exchange for vouchers and other rewards is set to increase. A $5 Grab voucher currently costs between 1,900 to 2,200 points, depending on your earned tier. With the revision, a $5 Grab voucher will cost you 2,500 points - that's a 300 point difference and could mean an additional spend of $150 (based on a green membership). 

Even as the changes wait to be rolled out, we share a list to show you how they will affect you. 

RIDES

If you have been paying your Grab rides with cash, this might be a good time to rethink your choice. When March 2 rolls around, you will no longer earn any points for cash transactions (le sigh!). You will only earn points if you are paying for your ride through GrabPay or GrabPay Mastercard. Even then, the amount of points you stand to earn per $1 spent will also be reduced rather significantly.

FOOD DELIVERY

All that ordering-in, on days you can't be bothered to cook up a storm, is going to take a hit too. There will be lesser points earned when you order meals, but Grab has stated that it would have a wider variety of restaurants and eateries on its food delivery list. 

SHOPPING

This is the section that sees the highest reduction in points earned per $1 spent - up to 60 per cent. The one silver lining is that Grab will be increasing the number of places where you could earn points at, along the tune of 53 million places worldwide, online with GrabPay Mastercard. 

Got mixed feelings? We feel you. It's probably a good time to take those rides (when not on surge), order in and binge watch the shows you've been putting on hold, and load up on points before March comes calling.

This article was first published on SingSaver.com.sg.