How much does a loyalty card make? Run the numbers
A loyalty card pays off when the extra visits it brings outweigh the cost of the rewards. For a local business, one extra visit every four months per regular is often enough, because a well-chosen reward costs only 1 to 5% of what the customer spends to earn it. Enter your numbers below.
The calculator
What it adds up to, per month
- Extra revenue
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- Extra margin
- –
- Cost of rewards
- –
- Quardy subscription
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- Net gain
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- Over a year
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An estimate based on your assumptions, not a promise. The key figure is "extra visits": start cautiously (0.25 = one extra visit every 4 months).
How to read the result
- Extra visits is the number that matters. Everything else comes from your business. Start cautiously, then replace the assumption with reality: with Quardy, the dashboard shows your visits week by week.
- The cost of rewards depends on your setup: fewer stamps means more rewards handed out. The guide which rewards to offer helps you find the right balance.
- The subscription is zero up to 50 customers. Beyond that it weighs little: €9.99/month, less than one extra visit a month in most shops.
An example
A neighbourhood café with 80 regulars, an average spend of €4 and two visits a week (8 a month). With a “10 drinks = 1 free” card and a drink that costs €0.40 to make:
- if the card brings each regular back once more a month, that’s 80 visits and €320 of extra revenue;
- the rewards handed out (around 70 drinks a month) cost about €28;
- the Quardy subscription costs €9.99.
The café keeps most of the extra margin, and above all keeps regulars who don’t go to the competitor.
What the calculation doesn’t show
A loyalty card also brings what no spreadsheet measures well: the customer who stays when a chain opens across the road, the recommendation to a friend, and the ability to tell your regulars about something new or a quiet day. That’s often where the difference is made.
For the big picture, see the digital loyalty card guide.
Frequently asked questions
How do I work out whether a loyalty card is profitable?
Multiply the extra visits the card brings by your average spend and your margin: that's the gain. Subtract the cost price of the rewards given out (all visits divided by the number of stamps, multiplied by the reward's cost) and the price of the tool. The calculator on this page does it for you.
How many extra visits does a loyalty card bring?
It depends on the business, the reward and how you present it. Be cautious in your calculation: 0.25 extra visits per customer per month (one more visit every four months) is a reasonable starting assumption. You'll then see the real figure in your statistics.
Should I count the selling price or the cost price of the reward?
The cost price: that's what the reward really costs you. A coffee sold for €2 costs you a few cents in ingredients.
Does the card stay profitable with lots of customers?
Yes, if the reward is well set: the cost of rewards grows with the number of customers, but so do the extra visits. Beyond 50 customers, Quardy costs €9.99/month, whatever the number of customers.
Launch your card and measure the result
Free up to 50 customers, with visit statistics included.