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November 6, 2024   |   Articles

Restaurant discount cards compared – are they worth it?

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Tastecard, Dine, Meerkat Meals, Gourmet Society and Hi-Life Diners Club all offer good deals on dining out, but are they worth shelling out for?

You know me, I’m always looking for deals and discounts, and dining cards seem like a fantastic way to save some cash when eating out. But could you just be paying for something you don’t really need?

Rather than review them individually, I’ve compared what you get with each of the options and shared not just how much they cost, but whether they represent good value for money.

image of mobile with the apps

What restaurant discount cards are available?

There are currently four main options:

  • Dine Club
  • Gourmet Society
  • Meerkat Meals
  • Tastecard

How do dining cards work?

Sign up for one of the memberships and you’ll have access to discounts at thousands of restaurants in the UK. You can find out which restaurants are participating and what you’ll save via their websites and apps.

Once you join you’ll either be sent a physical card to put in your wallet or a digital card you access via an app on your phone.

Some restaurants require you to book in advance, but plenty allow you to just turn up. Let them know you’ve got one of these cards, present it when you ask for the bill, and you should get the money off your meal. Easy.

What discounts are available?

The offers used to be quite different, but now they are pretty similar. If there’s more than one type of deal it often depends on the individual restaurant which one applies.

  • Tastecard: 2 for 1 or 50% off, plus 25% off Caffe Nero
  • Dine Club: 2 for 1, 50% off or 25% off total bill
  • Meerkat Meals: 25% off the entire bill, 50% off pizza delivery
  • Gourmet Society: 25% off the whole bill including drinks, two for one meals or 50% off food

Anything to watch out for?

A few things you need to be aware of:

  • There are often exclusions on weekends, and some restaurants don’t let you use the card in December
  • Some restaurants have a limit of two people per card, though some let you use more than one card on a table
  • You might also have to book in advance
  • They will auto-renew! Make sure you cancel soon after you buy the card to avoid this as full-price is often (though not always) a rip-off. You’ll still be able to use it for the length of your membership and you can then look for a better deal if you choose to renew
  • I’ve had restaurants I’ve visited tell me they’re no longer accepting the cards, even though they’re still listed, so it’s worth checking before you turn up

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Where can you eat?

You’ll find some restaurants on all or most of the memberships, while others will only be on one.

Ultimately, which is best comes down to where you live and the type of place you want to eat. So if your local fave you often eat at is only with one membership, then that’s possibly the best for you.

There are plenty of chains too. You can check which restaurants are near you on the various websites and apps.

What free trials are there?

Half of the memberships offer free or £1 trials, with periods ranging from 30-days up to 90-days.

Check out the latest Tastecard and other dining card deals here. Typical free trial offers include 90 days Tastecard for free and 90 days Gourmet Society for £1.

You can even get a 24 hour pass for Dine for £1.99 which is perfect if you don’t need a long term membership.

Which is cheapest?

Dining membershipFree trial?Annual cost
TastecardYes (latest here)£39.99
Gourmet SocietyYes (latest here)£34.99
DineClubNo£49.99
Meerkat MealsNo£1 (via hack)

A year of Meerkat Meals can be picked up for around £1 using a simple little trick – and you get Meerkat Movies too.

With the others, an annual membership is likely to be the most cost-effective once you’ve had the free trials.

You can also choose to pay month by month for some of the memberships, which works out more expensive over a year, but possibly cheaper if you only need it a few times a year. And the £1.99, 24 hour deal from Dine Club is great to use if you’re not a frequent restaurant goer.

What extras can you get?

Tastecard and Gourmet Society have discounts on cinema tickets and days out whilst Meerkat Meals goes hand in hand with Meerkat Moveis.

The cinema offers tend to be discounted tickets at most major chains and some independents. This is pretty good, but as my ultimate guide to ways to save at the movies shows, there are other ways to save – often with bigger discounts. And you have to be careful that your local cinema doesn’t have an offer that beats this.

Should you get a restaurant discount card?

I think these memberships can each be really good value – but it mainly depends on four factors:

The price

If you have paid around £40 you only need to eat out two or three times to break even. As long as you’d do that anyway, it’s a no-lose situation and you will start saving afterwards. If you think you’ll use the cinema discounts too, then even better.

The discount

Two for one is great for two people, not for three. And though one card might give you 50% off food, another might give 25% off food and drink. Depending on how much you spend on booze, you might find the lower discount actually saves you more money.

The restaurants near you

It’s always worth checking what’s available near where you live and work as these are the places you’re more likely to visit – and then check if there are other savings you can get for free.

Will you actually use it?

I found that when I lived in London there were so many quality restaurants I wanted to eat at that I rarely used my membership cards. I’d rather enjoy my meal or try something new than go somewhere simply because there was 50% off.

But of course, if your fave place to eat is listed, then these can be brilliant ways to spend less when eating out. 

Andy’s top tips

I’d recommend taking out the trials rather than buying one straight away. This will help you see just how much you will use one. If it’s not much, then you know these might not be for you.

And you’ve always got the option with most to take out a monthly membership. Though your savings per meal will be less, you’ll be better off in the long run.

Do try, if you can, do support local restaurants though over the chains. So many are shutting their doors that our support can make a big difference.

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October 23, 2024   |   Articles

How to get free Amazon returns

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The reason you choose when returning an item can affect how much money you get refunded

Amazon’s dominance and often low prices means you’ve probably bought something from the online giant over the last few years – even if, like me, you’ve been trying to support local businesses.

But what happens if you don’t want or need something you’ve purchased? Well it’s pretty easy to return something online with Amazon. But one of the steps is more important than you probably realise – the reason why you want to make the return. Pick the wrong one and you may end up having to pay the postage.

image of a parcel on a doorstep

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

Amazon’s returns policy

As with most online purchases from any retailer, you’ve 14 days after you get the goods to return them. You don’t have to justify the return. In most cases, Amazon actually extends this period to 30 days.

A few items can’t be returned, generally anything that’s been customised or is perishable. You also can’t return media (such as CDs or DVDs) that have had their seal broken. You can read about these and a few other exemptions on Amazon.

But just because you can return a purchase within this time, it doesn’t mean it’ll be free.

Andy Says: Think twice if you’re returning to a small retailer

It’s worth noting that the refund rules apply across all of Amazon. But not everything you buy with the retailer is actually sold by them. It might not even be dispatched by them.

When you buy from third parties, they’ll obviously have to shoulder the costs of returns. And this can make quite a difference to their profit margins. 

So if you are returning the item because it genuinely is one of the chargeable reasons, consider whether you really should opt for a free option instead.

If it’s sold by Amazon though, I’d say it’s fair game to get them to fund the return costs. If it’s “fulfilled by Amazon” or sold by another shop, then it’s best to pay to return (as long as it’s not their fault).

When Amazon will charge you to return an item

There are three options you can choose which will mean you will get your refund minus £3.99. These are:

  • Accidental order
  • Better price available
  • No longer needed

The first one is easy to do with Amazon’s “One Click” buying option. I know I’ve accidentally hit that button when browsing but realised in time to cancel the order before dispatch. But if you’ve not realised until the package arrives at your front door Amazon wants to charge you the cost of sending it back.

This is possibly also the option you’d choose for any mistakes you made – perhaps you selected the wrong colour or didn’t properly read the description.

The common theme with the other two options is that you’d rather not keep the purchase, either because you want to pick it up for less elsewhere or you simply changed your mind. In each of these instances, Amazon is saying yes you can get your money back, but we’re going to charge you for having to bring the items back to the warehouse.

It is possible however, to avoid these charges by choosing one of the other options instead.

When Amazon won’t charge you to return an item

Now if you’ve brought something that is broken or faulty then Amazon has to either offer you a replacement or a full refund. And you’ll also get the delivery cost back. You will have to explain how it or the packaging is broken.

You can also get a free return and full refund if an item has arrived after it’s estimated despatch time. This is a really useful one. I think lots of people shop on Amazon for the fast delivery, often when they’ve left something to the last minute. And if a delay means you get something too late, then it’s worth returning the items and getting the full refund.

But what if it’s not damaged and arrived on time? Well, there are alternatives reasons you can choose, including the following:

  • Incompatible or not useful for the intended purpose
  • Performance or quality not adequate
  • Description on website was not accurate
  • Unauthorised purchase

I think the first three here are all justifiable selections if what you’ve bought isn’t what you hoped it would be. I wouldn’t use unauthorised purchase unless this really has happened – which could well happen if you’ve got kids talking to your Alexa smart speaker!

A final group where you can get free returns, and all your money back, is anything categorised as clothes, shoes, jewellery or watches. With these, you have to be able to try something on, so it’s near on impossible to know if it’s right before you order. If you’re not with Prime, here are some tricks to save money on your Amazon delivery.

What happens if you paid for speedier delivery?

One caveat with these reasons for returning is that you’ll only get the cost of the cheapest delivery refunded. Now, if you’re a Prime member buying from Amazon then this is irrelevant, as you won’t have been charged delivery.

But non-Prime members, or anyone buying from a third party might have paid extra. Of course, if the item is faulty you will get all the money back.

How to return purchases to Amazon

It’s actually very easy. Go to the orders section of your Amazon account and find the item you want to send back. Choose one of the reasons above which gives you free returns, then select whether you want a replacement or a refund.

If you choose refund you can have the money put back on your payment card or added to your Amazon account. Credit to your account will happen as soon as the item is received. If you choose your card, it’ll take 5 to 7 days.

Then you’ll be able to choose your return option. You can drop your parcel off at a number of drop off points including a Post Office or an Evri ParcelShop or arrange a collection. You don’t even need a label for some options, as they can be provided when you hand over your package.

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October 23, 2024   |   Articles

Is it worth selling old books, DVDs, games and CDs online?

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We review which site is best for selling DVDs, books and CDs

Over the years I’ve accumulated hundreds of CDs, books and DVDs. Yet thanks to Spotify, Netflix and my Kindle they’re just gathering dust. So if you want to sell books, CDs or DVDs then trade-in apps may be your answer. We put the market favourites to the test to see if you’ll make pennies or pounds from your unwanted items.

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

Picture of a selection of DVDs

Sites to sell CDs, books, games and DVDs

I looked at three different companies which all promise to buy your unwanted physical media and also compared these to what you could potentially make on eBay and Amazon Seller.

The apps I used were:

  • Music Magpie
  • We buy books
  • World of Books (known as Ziffit at the time of writing)

All three also work by entering details into a website if you don’t want to use a phone.

I also looked for others out there and it seems that MoMox and Zapper are not currently up and running.

How these buying sites work

  • Just scan the barcode with your phone and instantly receive an offer (or not) for your media.
  • Reach the minimum amount – one of the frustrations with some of these apps is you can’t trade in until you reach a minimum amount. This figure ranges from an achievable £5 through to £15, and when many items are offered to you for 10p, that’s quite a few to sell before you reach the threshold.
  • Package and post – once you’ve accepted the figures for the trade, you need to box the titles up. Most allow you to drop the box off, though some will collect by courier. There isn’t usually a charge for this.
  • Wait for payment – you only get paid once the items have been received and checked. With CDs, DVDs and games in particular this involves a condition check. If they aren’t of the desired quality you might get less cash, or even none at all.

How the trade-in apps fared

Having just moved house, I was still clearing out as I unpacked boxes and found books, CDs, DVDs and sheet music books that I hadn’t touched in years. So I grabbed five of each and used the apps below to see just how much money I could make. You can sell computer games too but I didn’t have any to sell.

I’ve summarised the results in this table so you can see how Ziffit (now World of Books), Music Magpie and We Buy Books compared:

Trading appAmount offered (for 24 items)Minimum payoutExtra incentives
We Buy Books£3.92£1510% extra with code APP10
World of Books (was Ziffit)£3.41£510% extra for new traders with code WELCOME10
Music Magpie£1.52£510% extra with code GET10EXTRA

We Buy Books

We Buy Books accepted a few more items than the others (10 out of 20) but offered slightly lower individual prices. And the funny thing is, quite contrary to their name, they didn’t accept any of the five books I tried to sell! That said, I’ve used them to sell books before and had some success, mostly 10p offers but I did get a random £6 offer for a grown-up version of a Where’s Wally book!

I was disappointed this time with their offer prices for the sheet music books. Most offers were around 50p which I guess is better than the price they offer for most books, but the one I found could possibly sell for around £25 on Amazon, they only offered just 12p for!

Summary: OK for sheet music books and DVDs but didn’t accept any of my reading books. It would take quite a lot of products to get to the £15 minimum for payout, so not great if you only have a few items to sell.

World of Books (was Ziffit)

Ziffit, as they were known as at the time of research, were good for their offers on the sheet music books and DVDs but only offered 10p on one book and made zero offers on the CDS. In total, they made offers for 9 out of the 20 items with prices ranging from 10p to 50p, so nothing to shout about. 

Summary: Good for sheet music, although don’t expect any offers higher than 50p. The £5 minimum payout is much more achievable and good if you have fewer items to sell. Not great for CDs or books in this particular case.

Music Magpie

Music Magpie would only take 7 out of 20 the items and the prices they offered were very low – in fact the best offer they gave was 40p for a Shawshank Redemption Blu Ray. They didn’t accept any of the books and offered just pennies for the sheet music books. They gave more offers for CDs than the other apps, but don’t expect anything big, the maximum was 22p.

Summary: Better than Ziffit and Music Magpie for CDs, but low prices across the board. £5 minimum payout is easier to achieve, so good if you’ve only a few items to get rid of.

Are these trade-in apps worth it?

From my test the answer is generally no. This kind of physical media just doesn’t hold its value, and with people also not really buying these items second hand, these websites don’t always offer a price which makes it worthwhile.

But you will get larger amounts for special editions, rare items, recent releases and textbooks, though you’ll probably get more for them on eBay.

And if you’re struggling for extra cash and don’t think you have the time to eBay your unwanted items, then these sites may just be the quick answer you’re looking for.

Are Amazon Seller and eBay better?

Since none of the buying apps came up trumps, I thought I’d compare their offers to what I could get elsewhere. CEX doesn’t buy books, but you can list these on eBay and Amazon (through Amazon Seller).

Obviously this is based on an estimate of what you could potentially make. For eBay, I looked at the same items and what price they are currently offered for. And for Amazon Seller, they give you the price after fees for the lowest price the item has sold at.

Other things to take into account are the photos, listing and packing for making Ebay sales, which all takes time and it would have to be done for individual items (although you could possibly sell in bulk). For Amazon Seller, if you go down the route of FBA (fulfilled by Amazon), then there are the storage fees to take into account if the products don’t sell.

And with both eBay and Amazon, there’s no definite sale. You could be holding on to the items for months or even years.

That could be an issue, unlike with the apps mentioned above where you have a definite income (once the products have been received and assessed).

How much could I make?

So what can I potentially make from Amazon Seller or eBay? Amazon Seller to me seems the best to go with but it requires some work. For the 20 products I’m planning to sell I could potentially make around £70 and on eBay about £60. But neither of these estimates are reality until the products sell.

Both estimates are a lot higher than the £3 odd offered by the buying apps above. The biggest difference in price I found between the trade-in apps and Amazon, was for a City of Angels music book. This was worth 43p on Ziffit and 12p on both We Buy Books and Music Magpie, yet Amazon predicts it could sell for £24.65.

That said, both Amazon Seller and eBay do require a lot more effort and man-hours than the trade-in sites, but I could make more money from them if my items go on to sell. But for convenience, the question is whether I should just take the £3.92 offered by We Buy Books!

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October 23, 2024   |   Articles

What to do with old coins and banknotes?

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There are an estimated 76 million old £1 coins still in circulation and £7.2bn in old notes

image of old twenty pound notes

How many old notes and coins are still in circulation?

A BBC Wales investigation found that a staggering £7.2bn of old-style banknotes were still out there.

The breakdown of old notes was:

  • 110 million £5 notes
  • 62 million £10 notes
  • 171 million £20 notes
  • 52 million £50 notes

And there are coins too. The current pound coin, with its many sides, two colours and other anti-counterfeiting measures has been around since May 2017. The old round coin stopped being accepted in shops six months later.

At the time there were thought to be 500 million of the old coins in circulation, so the fact there are still 76 million out there is surprising. There’s a good chance many of them are lost forever, but a huge chunk of that £76 million pounds has to be just sitting in our homes.

The best bank switch bonuses

Check out our list of all the bank switch offers you can get when opening a new current account

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What to do if you have an old £1 coin

If you find an old pound coin, you won’t be able to use it any shops or businesses. And you won’t be able to exchange them for the new pound coins either.

But you will be able to pay them into accounts at banks, building societies. If you don’t have your bank near you, or it’s someone like Monzo or First Direct with no branch, then you can also deposit old round pounds at the Post Office.

So if you track any down, then simply pop into your branch with your bank card and get it added to your balance. There’s a chance your bank could have a minimum number of coins to make a deposit

Before you do that, it’s worth a quick check on somewhere like eBay that you don’t have a rare version which could be worth more.

What to do with old £5, £10, £20 and £50 notes

If you have a UK bank account, the easiest way to exchange your old banknotes is to pay them into your bank account at a local branch or Post Office. There are also 48 Post Offices that will swap old banknotes, even if you do not have a bank account.

You can also take your old notes in person to the Bank Of England in London or send them via the post for a swap.

Where to look for old coins and notes

If you haven’t checked for the old coins or notes, here are a few of the less obvious places you might have forgotten to check.

Your kid’s room

Soon after the old pound coins stopped being legal tender, my then seven-year old niece shared she had a small pot full of them that she was saving. In the end it turned out my dad (her granddad) had already switched them over to the new version. But it shows that if you’ve got kids with a money box or small purse they could be hoarding some old coins.

Winter clothes and bags

If you change your wardrobe with the seasons, then there will be some clothes – particularly coats – you’ve not used for six or more months. Check the pockets and check the bottom of bags.

Occasional use bags

A bit like the winter clothes, you might have bags you rarely use. It could be a posh handbag or a small one for weddings and nights out. You might have a sports or gym bag that’s not been used all summer. Basically anything you’ve not used for a while but you might put cash in!

Random change jars

We’ve got a couple of these at home and I tend to forget they are even there. Since I hate having loose change I tend to empty my wallet whenever I get some. This is usually onto random surfaces, which my wife then moves into a jar. It’s mainly pennies, but you could have a pound or two buried within.

coin jar
One of our random coin jars – no £1 coins, new or old, but plenty of coppers!

Your glove compartment

Though most car parks are going cashless, you might have a few quid hidden in the glove compartment.

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October 23, 2024   |   ArticlesReview

Deliveroo Plus – is it worth it?

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You can pay between £3.49 and £7.99 a month to get free delivery and other discounts

Takeaways might be tasty but they aren’t a cheap habit. And once you add in the service and delivery charges you get on top from the likes of Deliveroo and Uber Eats, it can quickly add up to much more than you intended.

Deliveroo knows this, so it offers a delivery subscription service, which gives free delivery on orders for a monthly fee. And did you know that Amazon Prime customers also get Deliveroo Plus included in their subscription?

But is paying for a monthly membership going to save you any money? Here’s our take.

Deliveroo plus logo

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What is Deliveroo Plus?

You’re basically signing up for a delivery pass with a monthly charge. Depending on the tier you select, you’ll get free delivery when you spend over a certain amount.

However, you will still pay the service charge on each order. Deliveroo also promises that members will receive extra “Plus” discounts – we’ll take a look at these below.

You are only tied into one month at a time so you can pick and choose when you want to use it. However, it will auto-renew if you don’t cancel.

Deliveroo Plus costs

There are two levels you can choose between:

Deliveroo Plus Silver

  • Cost: £3.49 a month
  • Minimum order for free delivery: £15 for close orders, but this may increase for restaurants further away — more on this below
  • Minimum order for free grocery delivery: £25

Until 31 January 2024, the minimum order for restaurant orders was £25, so the lower £15 level will mean single people can still take advantage of the scheme.

Deliveroo Plus Gold

  • Cost: £7.99 (was £11.49 a month)
  • Minimum order for free delivery: £10 for close orders, but this may increase for restaurants further away — more on this below
  • Minimum order for free grocery delivery: £15

You can order back-to-back free deliveries to different addresses with Gold, so you could potentially share your membership and split the cost.

In addition, Gold members get 10% credit back on every eligible order over £30. This cashback can then be redeemed on your next order. You can save up your cashback and stack it in one order, too.

Essentially, if you reckon you order more than £80 in takeaways each, you might make back the difference as well as get the other benefits, but this might be a fairly high threshold for a lot of households.

There is also an invite-only membership known as Deliveroo Plus Diamond, which gives you all the benefits of Gold membership plus free priority delivery on eligible orders and your full order value back as credit if your order arrives more than ten minutes late.

Other Deliveroo costs

You’ll still have to pay delivery charges if your order is less than the minimum set by your subscription level, and there could be a small order fee added on top.

Though you’ll get free delivery if you reach the minimum spend, there is still the service charge to pay – although this is reduced with the Deliveroo Plus Gold membership.

What is the extended delivery fee?

In April 2024, Deliveroo announced that it would be introducing a “small extended delivery fee” when drivers need to travel further (we think this is for ones four or more miles away) . We asked Deliveroo for more information on this and were told that the fee “applies to [Deliveroo] customers and primarily depends on how far the rider needs to travel to reach the customer. This fee will be discounted, exclusively for Plus customers, so members will pay less than other Deliveroo customers.”

We’ve taken a look at the app and it appears that the delivery cost for these restaurants is significantly higher — more than twice the cost a lot of the time. However, the minimum amount for delivery is also higher — and in the seven restaurants we checked, if you order above the minimum delivery, the delivery fee is removed.

However, order below the minimum order and you’ll pay a significantly higher delivery fee and a small order fee — these came to more than £10 at all of the restaurants we tried.

Deliveroo Plus discounts

Deliveroo Plus free trial

You can often get one 14-day free trial per account. You can cancel at any time before the trial ends but you’ll sacrifice any remaining days left. But forget to cancel and you will get charged.

If that happens, you’ve still got a 14-day cooling off period to request a full refund – as long as you don’t use the service in that time.

You’ll see the option to sign up in the app or on the site. If it’s not there then go to settings.

Free Deliveroo Plus with Amazon Prime

Amazon Prime members can get a free year of Deliveroo Plus Silver, worth £41.88. This (as you can see above) entitles you to free delivery if you spend £15 or more on an order. Here’s how to claim the offer.

If you end your Prime membership during the year you’ll also end your Deliveroo Plus membership. At the end of the year your membership will end – unless you had a membership running before activating this offer. In that case it’ll revert to whatever plan you were on.

Amazon Prime costs £95 a year and comes with free Amazon delivery and free Amazon Prime Video streaming (among other extras). You can also get a 30-day free trial.

If you already pay for Deliveroo Plus then it’s worth considering whether getting Prime as well for an extra £53.12 could be a decent deal. But following my year without Amazon, I’ve come to the conclusion that paying for Prime really isn’t worth it.

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Episodes every Tuesday.

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Deliveroo Plus rewards

These extra discounts have the potential to save you cash – but it’s a bit of a postcode lottery.

These are typically ones where you need to order a number of times at participating restaurants in a set time to get money off a fourth order – but the chances of you finding the restaurant you want to order from listed in this promotion are slim. And it could tempt you to order more than you normally would just to get a smallish discount.

If you pay for Gold you’ll also get £5 credit if your order arrives later than initially expected.

So, you probably don’t want to sign up expecting to save extra from the membership, though it’s a handy bonus if you do manage to.

Is Deliveroo Plus a good idea?

Andy’s Analysis

Taking a look at some of the delivery charges near me, they range from 79p through to £3.49 – with the majority around the £3 mark. Have a look at your most recent orders and see what you’ve been paying each month.

I’d imagine that if you are someone that regularly orders at least two takeaways from Deliveroo over £15, then you will hopefully get your £3.49 subscription fee back after one or two orders, maybe three.

It’s a tougher sell for people who won’t hit the £15 minimum spend for the Silver option. With the cost of the next tier at £7.99, earning 10% cashback would mean you’d need to spend about £80 per month on takeaways to make the month back. In delivery charges, you’d need to order at least three times a month (probably more) to get the month back. This can be harder to justify (unless you split the membership with a friend or family member at a different address).

So do the (quick) maths to work out whether you’ll actually benefit from this scheme or whether you’ll actually be spending more than the actual deliveries cost.

But even if you think that makes sense, there are some wider issues you need to consider.

First, if you sign up for a service like this it will be really tempting to order more takeaways. And that means you will spend more.

Second, it ties you into using just Deliveroo. And if you want to order from a restaurant on another app or direct, then you’ll have to pay a separate delivery charge.

Finally, it’s actually often cheaper to order direct from the takeaway. Since Deliveroo (and the other apps) take a decent cut of the sale, prices can be higher than if you go direct. Plus you need to factor in that service charge on top. Though sadly fewer and fewer restaurants are offering their own delivery service.

So check out the websites for your faves, and see if the prices are lower, and if delivery is free. If so that sounds like a better option – plus the restaurant will get to keep more of the money.

But if you order at least once a month from a Deliveroo only takeaway and spend at least £15 each time, then the family pass at £3.49 will mean you at least break even. That means there’s not much harm giving it a go – as long as you don’t start ordering more frequently than if you didn’t have it!

How to cancel Deliveroo Plus

Simply head to your account and select the option to cancel your membership. If that doesn’t work you can email [email protected].

Avoid supermarket orders on takeaway apps

Finally, a reminder that ordering from supermarkets on Deliveroo and Uber Eats is generally going to be more expensive than doing it yourself or ordering from their own delivery services.

Deliveroo promo codes

New users can also save money on their first order by using a promo code. I’ll list the best ones of these on my takeaway deals page.

Read next

October 16, 2024   |   ArticlesReview

Tesco Clubcard Plus review – is it worth it?

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Tesco promises savings of over £400 a year but you’ll have to pay a monthly subscription

Tesco launched Clubcard Plus – a premium version of the popular Clubcard loyalty scheme – back in 2019. As a member you’ll potentially save up to £384 a year on your groceries – as well as take advantage of other features.

The idea, much like Amazon’s Prime, is to bundle in lots of services together and build brand loyalty. I’ve taken a look at what it offers, to help you decide whether it’s worth paying for.

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

Tesco clubcard plus logo

How much does Tesco Clubcard Plus cost?

You can upgrade to Tesco Clubcard Plus for £7.99 a month. You’ll be able to cancel it for months you don’t use it as there’s no long-term commitment when you sign up.

There’s also a free trial for your first month (more on this in a bit), which means if you do keep it you’re looking at £87.89 in year one, then £95.88 in subsequent full years.

What do you get with Clubcard Plus?

  • 10% off two big shops in-store each month. Max £200 per shop. Exclusions include:
    • petrol
    • lottery
    • gift vouchers
    • tobacco
    • baby formula
    • prescriptions
    • magazines
    • stamps
    • wine that is in the 25% off when you buy six bottles promotion
  • 10% off Tesco brands on every shop including
    • F&F clothing
    • Tesco Pet 
    • Fred & Flo 
    • Go Cook
    • Go Play
    • Go Create
    • Fox and Ivy
    • Paperchase
  • Double data from Tesco Mobile for one mobile registered at your address
  • Fee-free overseas spending with Tesco Bank credit card

The best deals

Find our picks of the best offers in our dedicated deals library

Are the supermarket savings any good?

To cover the £7.99 a month you’ll need to spend £79.90 on groceries in Tesco across two transactions. That could be across one £80 shop, or two lots of £40 (or any other combinations). If that’s your regular supermarket spend that’s going to be easy to reach, possibly with just one visit. 

Ideally though you’ll want to spend more to take full advantage of the 10% discount. There’s a £20 cap per shop, or £40 per month. This means if you spend £200 on two occasions in a month, it’s possible to knock £40 off at the till every month.

Once you factor in the fee you’ll really be saving at most £32.01 each month, potentially adding up to around £380 a year.

More realistically you’ll likely spend – and save – smaller amounts, though saving some regular big purchases for when you use your discount will help.

Fortunately you do get to choose which shops you use the discount for. You’ll need to go into the Clubcard app and download a code to scan at the till. However, it is in-store only and not online.

So if you do your main shop at Tesco then this is a must, as long as you are going to spend at least £80 a month across two transactions.

Should you swap to Tesco for the discount?

If you have a Tesco near you, then I think Clubcard Plus could be a good reason to swap over – at least for a couple of trips each month.

Though it’s not usually the cheapest supermarket out there, it’s often not much more than others, and the 10% back could make enough of a difference to be worthwhile.

Double your discounts hack

You should also be able to sign up more than once per household. Yes, you’ll have to pay two lots of £7.99 every month, but if you are spending enough at Tesco it could be worth it as you’d get the discount on four shops rather than two.

Remember, as long as there is at least £79.90 spent each month on each card you are covering the fees. But only do this is you are likely to max out the two lots of £200 on the main Clubcard Plus account in your family.

Are the other features worth paying for?

If you don’t shop at Tesco then I don’t think the other features warrant the £7.99 fee on their own. But if you are already getting the fee back (and more) from Tesco groceries then it’s worth checking out what you could get.

The 10% off Tesco brands such as Tesco pets could save you a decent amount, but work out whether you can get these items for less elsewhere first.

The fee-free spending abroad credit card is a bit pointless when better bank cards exist, such as Chase Bank and Starling’s debit cards.

The double data offer on Tesco Mobile sounds good, but since it only offers 2GB or 12GB as entry-level SIM-only deals, you’re either getting too little or too much data, even with the extra thrown in. It’s better to shop around and find a SIM elsewhere.

How to sign up for Tesco Clubcard Plus

You can apply online or via the Clubcard app. You won’t get a new Clubcard – instead you’ll operate the extra savings from the Tesco app on your phone.

Tesco Clubcard Plus free trial

If you’ve not used Clubcard Plus before or haven’t had it in the last six months and not had membership for six continuous months, then there’s currently a month free trial for Clubcard Plus.

You get all the same discounts, so it could be worth up to £40 off in the first month.

You can cancel at any time during the first month and you’ll continue to get all the discounts until the next month.

Sign up to Clubcard Plus

Can you cancel Tesco Clubcard Plus?

Yep, it’s easy to cancel, and there’s no commitment past each 30 days. So remember to stop it when you’re not using it (such as when you go on holiday). You can reactivate your membership when you want to get the benefits again.

More Clubcard savings

You can of course continue to earn Clubcard points on your Tesco shopping. Here’s my pick of the best ways to earn and spend Tesco Clubcard points.

Read next

October 16, 2024   |   Articles

What are loyalty card points worth?

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The real value of your Tesco Clubcard, Nectar, Morrisons More, Boots Advantage and Superdrug Beautycard points

If you’re like me, you’ll have a few loyalty cards on your phone and swipe away when you get to the till. But do you have any idea what the points you earn are worth?

I’m a big fan of Clubcard points as you can boost their value. I know what my Tesco points are worth as I use them frequently, but what are 2,000 Nectar points worth? Or 800 Boots? Plus there are schemes at Morrisons and Superdrug too – and they’re all different.

To help me – and you – I’ve taken a look at the biggest schemes to see what you get for your points, and how much you need to spend in order to actually use them.

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

How much are Tesco Clubcard points worth?

Value of Tesco Clubcard points

  • 1,000 Clubcard points = £10
  • 500 Clubcard points = £5
  • 100 Clubcard points = £1
  • 1 Clubcard point = 1p

Real value of Clubcard points

  • Usually 1 point earned per £1
  • So 1 point = 1% of your shop
  • Minimum payout is 150 points = £1.50 in vouchers
  • So you need to spend £150 before you can start using points

You can earn these at Tesco shops, petrol stations, website and also via Tesco Mobile and Tesco Bank.

Though the value is equivalent to 1%, you can boost them, usually double the value. Read the Best Uses Of Clubcard Points article for more on how to make the most of these points.

There are often extra discounts in store for Clubcard holders.

The best ways to earn and spend Clubcard points

How much are Nectar points worth?

Value of Nectar points

  • 1,000 Nectar points = £5
  • 500 Nectar points = £2.50
  • 100 Nectar points = 50p
  • 1 Nectar point = 0.5p

Real value of Nectar points

  • Usually 1 point earned per £1
  • So 1 point works out as 0.5% of your original Sainsbury’s shop
  • Minimum payout = 500 points will give you £2.50 credit
  • So you need to spend £500 before you can start using points

You can get bonus points on specific items each week, but you need to activate these in the app. You can also earn Nectar points at Argos.

There aren’t really any ways to boost the value of your points, but here are the best ways to earn and spend your Nectar points.

The best ways to earn and spend Nectar points

How much are Morrisons More points worth?

Value of Morrisons More points

  • 1,000 Morrisons More points = £1
  • 500 Morrisons More points = 50p
  • 100 Morrisons More points = 10p
  • 10 Morrisons More points = 1p
  • 1 Morrisons More points = 0.1p

Real value of Morrisons points

  • Points are earned on specific products rather than your whole shop
  • The amount you earn will vary, so you can’t assign a percentage value for 1 point
  • Minimum payout = 5,000 points will give you a £5 voucher

Morrisons brought back points in the summer of 2023 (having axed them two years earlier). It’s different from the likes of Clubcard and Nectar but you can find out how Morrisons More works here.

You’ll need 5,000 points to cash them out as a £5 voucher and there aren’t any ways to boost the value of the voucher.

How much are Boots Advantage points worth?

Value of Boots Advantage points

  • 1,000 Advantage points = £10
  • 500 Advantage points = £5
  • 100 Advantage points = £1
  • 1 Advantage point = 1p

Real value of Boots Advantage points

  • Usually 3 points earned per £1
  • So 1 point works out as 3% of your original shop
  • Minimum payout = 1 point / £0.01
  • But you can’t part pay with points (you need enough points to cover the total of the transaction for which you are using them)

You can only spend them in Boots shops or online at Boots.com. Of course, if you can get your shampoo cheaper elsewhere, the points probably won’t make any difference.

Keep an eye out for frequent bonus deals and vouchers where you can earn double value or even more for your shop. There are often extra codes in your online account.

The best ways to earn and spend Boots points

How much are Superdrug Beautycard points worth?

Value of Superdrug points

  • 1,000 Superdrug Beautycard points = £10
  • 500 Superdrug Beautycard points = £5
  • 100 Superdrug Beautycard points = £1
  • 1 Superdrug Beautycard points = 1p

Real value of Superdrug points

  • Usually 1 point earned per £1
  • So 1 point works out as 1% of your original shop
  • Minimum payout = 100 points / £1
  • So you need to spend £100 to use any points

It’s similar to Boot’s in that there are often bonus points offers. You can only use your points in multiples of 100.

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October 14, 2024   |   Articles

Swap old clothes for money off vouchers

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Recycle clothes and shoes to help save on something new 

H&M, M&S, Schuh, John Lewis, River Island and George at Asda all have schemes that let you swap old clothes or shoes for vouchers.

It’s a great way to clear the clutter and save money at the same time. Plus it’s far better for items to go to charity or get recycled than adding to landfill.

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

Image of a pile of clothes

H&M clothes recycling scheme (£5 voucher)

Donate any bag of old clothes or unwanted garments into an H&M shop and you’ll be given a £5 voucher to spend as part of the H&M Garment Collection programme. In theory, you’ll get a voucher per bag of clothes so you can get multiple vouchers. However, there is a £25 minimum spend with each voucher.

So what can be in the bag? Well you don’t need to have any H&M products to get the voucher. And you can also donate any kind of textile, whether its curtains or knickers as the fabrics are all recycled.

You can also do the same at H&M’s Monki and & Other Stories brands. The latter also has a beauty recycling programme where you get 10% off their cosmetics if you take in your empty beauty product.

M&S and Oxfam’s Shwopping Clothes Exchange (£5 voucher/freebie)

There are three ways to get something back via Marks and Spencer and Oxfam.

Get a £5 off £35 voucher

Hand over your old gear at an Oxfam and you’ll also get a £5 voucher to spend on clothes in Marks and Spencer.

One item must be labelled M&S, and you can only use the voucher in the same calendar month. There’s a minimum £35 spend and it’s only valid on clothing, home or beauty.

I asked in a store a while ago if you can use the voucher with other offers and the checkout woman said she’d seen the vouchers be used with Sparks offers such as 20% off everything. So it’s worth grabbing one of these to use when those deals come around.

You can find your nearest Oxfam and read the full terms and condition of the Oxfam Clothes Exchange.

Get 20% off selected kids’ clothes

You can also trade in your old M&S school uniform and receive 20% off selected kids’ clothing as part of the Back To School Shwopping Scheme.

All you’ll need to do is hand in your pre-loved uniform at a participating M&S store and scan the QR code on the Shwop Box.

You’ll then receive a voucher for 20% off selected kids’ clothing in the M&S app which can be used online or in-store.

Get a Sparks freebies

Or if you want to drop clothes off at an M&S Store you’ll be able to scan a QR code to receive a free treat via the M&S Sparks loyalty scheme.

It can be from any retailer, and the item doesn’t have to be clothing, with shoes, handbags, belts, hats, scarves, jewellery all taken, along with things like bedding, towels, throws and napkins.

The idea is that your donation will either be sold by Oxfam or recycled.

You’ll have to pop into a shop to see if it’s running there or not, but M&S say you can do this at most M&S clothing stores. It seems to work that you can get the Sparks treat every 30 days.

When I tried it the gift was a free pastry from the in-store bakery and I had 30 days to claim it. The M&S staff member who also tried it with me got the same promotion but I was told the offer will change and will be tailored to each person.

River Island x ReSkinned (£5 voucher)

This scheme requires you to send at least three items via courier to Reskinned. In return you’ll get a £5 voucher to use on purchases over £40 at River Island stores. They’re only valid for one month from issue, so don’t forget to use them.

Schuh “Sell Your Soles” scheme (£5 voucher)

You can get a £5 voucher to use at Schuh for every pair of shoes you donate. The shoes are donated to Recyclatex with around 98% of materials reused.

You can use your voucher online or in-store on full price items over £25.

John Lewis “Fashion Cycle” (£5 voucher)

Take five items of clothing into any John Lewis store as part of their FashionCycle scheme and you’ll get £5 off Fashion Rental, with a minimum spend of £50. They’ll accept shirts, t-shirts, jumpers, cardigans, jackets, coats, shorts, trousers, jeans, childrenswear, dresses, jumpsuits, skirts and school uniform.

You need to be a member of the free My John Lewis scheme and note that the voucher is only redeemable during the month.

The best deals

Find our picks of the best offers in our dedicated deals library

George (10% off)

You can box or bag up 10 or more unwanted clothes and textiles and donate them at Asda. In exchange, you’ll get a 10% off code to use at George .com.

There are limits on the parcel size (50cm x 30cm x 30cm) and it can’t weigh more than 10kg. You’ll need to check if your local store is participating.

Donate to Cancer Research UK via TK Maxx (no voucher)

You can take a bag of unwanted clothes to TK Maxx who will pass it on to Cancer Research to sell or recycle. Cancer Research UK will keep all the proceeds.

Donate to Zara (no voucher)

Zara will also take unwanted clothes that will be donated to those in need or sold by charitable organisations to raise funds. There’s no voucher for you if you do this.

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September 22, 2024   |   Articles

Regular savings accounts explained: Are they worth it?

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How you can save every month for a higher rate.

I’m a huge fan of monthly or regular savings accounts. They’re great for people putting money aside every month, and they also tend to have some of the highest interest rates! You can get up to 8% via these accounts – far above the best options elsewhere.

But these monthly savers are often misunderstood, especially when it comes to the amount of interest you’ll earn. So here’s an explainer to make sure you know how they work.

Some articles on the site contain affiliate links, which provide a small commission to help fund our work. However, they won’t affect the price you pay or our editorial independence. Read more here.

What is a regular savings account?

A regular savings account is designed for people saving some of their income every month rather than depositing a lump sum. Hence the name. Usually this transfer is made by a direct debit, set up when you open the account.

I’m a big fan as they encourage you to save a set amount every month, rather than ad hoc amounts as and when you have spare money.

How regular savers work

Often there are limits and restrictions, though this can vary depending on the account.

You’re limited to how much you can save in them

You can typically only deposit between £50 to £500 every month, with most actually having a cap of around £200.

You might also have to pay in a minimum each month, though that might not be much – usually £25 or £50.

The account normally closes after 12 months

The vast majority of regular saver accounts (Natwest/RBS’s option is the main exception) last for just one year. Once the year is up you’ll be paid the interest and the account is closed with your money moved to a lower paying easy-access account.

Rates can be fixed or variable

Unlike most other types of savings account, you’ll find some could change during the time you have them, while others are fixed.

During this time of likely base rate cuts, a fixed rate account is a good option, and worth tying in while you can.

Withdrawals can be limited

Some regular savers don’t allow withdrawals until the year is up, or have extra limits on them such as just two a year. If you do take money out, you might not be able to add it back in for that month.

The best accounts require current accounts

The highest paying regular savers are usually restricted to existing customers of the bank. Though you should be able to easily open a new current account with those banks to be eligible, there might be better paying options at other banks, for example a monthly reward or cashback. There are also a handful of loyalty savers via building societies that require you to have been a member on a certain date.

How interest is calculated

The main area people get confused about is the interest rate. For this example, let’s use an interest rate of 5%.

If you save £250 a month into the account, and therefore have £3,000 saved by the end of the year, you might expect to get 5% on that £3,000 – a total of £150.

However you don’t have £3,000 for the full year – you’re adding money incrementally. This means you’ll only earn interest on the cash held each month. So the first £250 will have been saved for 12 months and earn the full 5% – a figure of £12.50 over the year

In turn, the second £250 saved will only be in the account for 11 months. So you’ll earn 11 twelfths of 5% on £250 – which works out as roughly £11.45 of interest.

The next £250 will be 10 twelfths, the next one 9 twelfths and so on. If you miss a month or pay less in that month, then that’ll also affect your earnings. If carried on you paying in the maximum every month, you’d earn £81 after a year.

If you calculated this £81 return on the total £3,000 balance it’s effectively 2.7% – just over half the advertised rate. This is why people get angry. But you are still earning that headline money on your monthly deposits.

And that “50% of the headline rate” is a handy shortcut if you want to find out how much you’ll make based on the annual balance saved. For a more accurate figure, you can use the calculator on Money Saving Expert.

How much could you make?

Here are the top paying accounts at the time of writing, and the interest in the first year if you deposit the maximum amount allowed at the start of the month.

BankRateMonthly limitMax interest in 12 monthsRequirement?
Principality Building Society (six months only)8%£200£27*No
Progressive Building Society7%£300£135No
First Direct7%£300£135Current account
HSBC7%£250£114Current account
Nationwide6.5%£200£84Current account
Club Lloyds 6.25%£400£161Current account
Natwest6.17%£150£60**Current account
RBS6.17%£150£60**Current account
Halifax5.5%£250£89No
* Interest for 6 months only
** Carries on after 1 year but only paid on the first £5,000

Regular savings hacks

These regular savings accounts aren’t just for people building up a new savings pot. You can funnel other, lower-paid savings, into these accounts.

Drip feeding your savings

If you’ve got a small lump sum you can gradually move money from one account into a regular savings account.

Say you have £3,000 already. The first thing to do is move it to the highest-paying account or accounts you can find.

For the example here let’s assume it’s all in an easy-access account earning 4.8%. In a year this would earn you £144 of interest.

But if you then move it month by month (at £250 a time) to a regular saver account paying 7% you would earn a combined total of £180 in interest (£113 from the regular saver and £67 from easy access account). That’s £36 more than if you’d left it in the easy-access account.

However, this might not be too different from putting the cash in a one year fix. For example, one that paying 5% would earn £150. Here’s more on drip feeding vs fixes.

Featured savings deal
More Details
Trading 212 Cash ISA
AER (variable)
4.53%
Minimum
£1
New Trading 212 customers get a bonus of 0.68% AER for 12 months for current year subscriptions
More details ▼
Additional Info

Existing Trading 212 customers get a rate of 3.85%

FSCS Protected?: Yes

Allows transfers in?: Yes

Flexible ISA?: Yes

▲

Using multiple regular savers for larger savings

You’re not limited to just one regular saver, so you can use the same trick as above to drip-feed deposits if you have a larger stash.

For example, at the time of writing, you could pay a total of £1,000 each month into four accounts that earn above 7%.

Are regular savers worth it?

Andy’s Analysis

If you want an account that pushes you to save every month, earns decent interest and sometimes make it harder for you to access the money for a year then they can’t be beaten.

And as they’re offering some of the best rates on any kind of account, you’ll also likely be earning the most money you can. The fact that some are fixed also means you’re locking in a decent rate when they’re likely to fall elsewhere.

But, many of these high-paying ones do require a current account. Though there’s no reason you can’t open up more accounts to get these offers, it’s worth considering if you’ll make more money by switching bank instead. Plus bear in mind you’ll be credit checked to open those current accounts.

The best regular savings accounts

Right now those with current accounts get up to 10.38%, and with no restrictions up to 7%. Check out our regularly updated list of what’s on offer.

It’s always worth trying your local building societies too as they may have higher rates that are only accessible if you live locally.

The best monthly savings accounts

Check out our list of the highest paying regular or monthly savings accounts.

However, it doesn’t make sense to have a regular saver paying less than the best easy-access accounts, while lump sums might be better off in a fixed-rate bond. We’ve listed the highest paying ones in our savings best buy tables.

The best savings accounts

Check out our list of the highest paying regular, easy-access, fixed and ethical savings accounts

Read next