Digital loyalty cards: points vs. stamps, which works when
A digital points card awards points based on spending; a digital stamp card awards stamps based on visits. Both live in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, both work without an app, but they reward different behavior. The short answer to which system fits: stamps if customers visit often and spend similar amounts. Points if purchase sizes vary widely and you want to reward bigger transactions. This post shows how both systems work, walks through examples, and gives you a decision guide.
How a digital points card works
Your customer scans the QR code on your display, the card lands in their Wallet. At each purchase, your team scans the card and enters the receipt total; points are calculated from that. One point per euro is the standard rate. At a certain points level, there's a reward—for example, 100 points for a 5 euro voucher.
The advantage: customers who spend more get rewarded more. The customer with a 40 euro receipt gets four times as many points as the one with a 10 euro receipt. That feels fair and motivates bigger purchases.
One detail often overlooked: points need a rounding rule. A receipt of 7.49 euro gives 7 points, a 7.50 euro receipt gives 7 or already 8. Set this in advance and write it on the card, otherwise your till staff will debate every other receipt.
The downside: points are abstract. Your customer has to calculate how far they are from the reward, and your team has to enter an amount at every scan. That takes longer at the till than a simple scan.
How a digital stamp card works
The process is the same, just simpler: one scan, one stamp, no matter how high the receipt is. After a fixed number of stamps, there's a reward—say, 10 stamps for one free coffee. Optionally, you can set a minimum purchase so not every small item earns a stamp.
The advantage: everyone understands it instantly, it takes a second at the till, and the card shows progress visibly. The psychological effect of collecting stamps is strong; more on that under Psychology of loyalty programs.
The downside: the customer with the big receipt gets the same stamp as the one with the small one. That doesn't matter when purchase sizes are similar, but it's unfair when they vary widely.
Direct comparison
| Criterion | Digital stamp card | Digital points card |
|---|---|---|
| Rewards | Frequency of visits | Amount of spending |
| At the till | One scan | Scan plus enter amount |
| Ease of understanding | Very high | Medium, customer has to calculate |
| Progress visible | Yes, stamp by stamp | Yes, as a number |
| Fair with varying receipts | No | Yes |
| Suits | Café, bakery, snack bar, barber | Boutique, delicatessen, specialty retail |
| Abuse risk | Low, scan cooldown | Low, amount is verified |
Example: café with stamps
A café sells coffee for 3.20 euro; most receipts are between 3 and 8 euro. Stamp card: 10 stamps, 1 free coffee, cost of goods 0.80 euro. A customer visiting twice a week fills the card in five weeks and will have spent roughly 32 to 50 euro by then. The reward costs you 0.80 euro, so under 3 percent.
If the café switched to points, 1 point per euro, 50 points for a free coffee, the math would be roughly the same. But the customer would have to hear at every coffee that they now have 22 points, instead of seeing that seven of ten boxes are full. For a café, that's no gain.
Example: boutique with points
A boutique has receipts between 15 and 200 euro. A stamp card with 5 stamps would reward the customer who buys five t-shirts the same as the one who buys five coats. That doesn't fit. Points card: 1 point per euro, 200 points for a 10 euro voucher. That's 5 percent cashback, distributed evenly, whether the customer makes two large purchases or ten small ones.
At a 50 percent margin, the voucher costs the boutique 5 euro per 200 euro in sales, so 2.5 percent. That's comparable to the café, just based on spending instead of visits. Which reward form suits which shop is explored in depth in Choosing the right reward for your loyalty program.
Decision guide in four questions
- Do your receipts vary widely? If most receipts fall within a factor of two to three of each other, use stamps. If one receipt can be ten times higher than another, use points.
- How much time does your till have? If there's a queue in the morning, use stamps. One scan without entering an amount is fastest.
- Do you want to reward frequency or purchase size? If you want customers to visit more often, use stamps. If you want to encourage bigger purchases, use points.
- Will your customers understand the system in one second? If you hesitate, use stamps.
For most small shops with a counter or till, the answer is stamps. For specialty retail, boutiques, and delicatessens with widely varying receipts, the answer is points. The post Stamp card vs. points program goes through business types one by one.
What both systems share digitally
Whether points or stamps: the digital card in Wallet brings the same advantages over paper or plastic. And you can switch without printing new cards: if you start with stamps and after half a year realize receipts vary more than expected, you change the mechanics in the dashboard, and all cards show the new system instantly. It's always with them, you can send push notifications to their lock screen, inactive customers get reminded automatically, and the dashboard shows live how many customers are active and how many rewards have been redeemed. Customers don't need an app, you don't need hardware.
Conclusion
Points card or stamp card isn't a question of technology, but of the behavior you want to reward. Stamps reward frequency and are fastest at the till; points reward spending and are fairer with varying receipts. Both work digitally in Wallet, without an app and without hardware. With stampa, you set up your card in minutes, free up to 100 active customers, and no credit card needed. Start free now.