When launching a loyalty programme, one question always comes up: should it be a stamps card or a points card? The two systems look alike on the surface — the customer accumulates, then earns a reward — but they rest on completely different logics.
The right choice depends on your activity: how often your customers return, how regular their baskets are, and the reward you want to offer. This article compares the two systems point by point and gives concrete recommendations depending on your type of business.
The stamps card: how it works
The stamps card is the oldest and the best known. The principle is immediate: the customer earns one stamp per visit (or per product), and once the grid is full, they get their reward. "Buy 10 coffees, get the 11th free" is the textbook case — everyone understands the rule in a second.
Its great strength is this legibility. The customer sees their progress at a glance: they know how many stamps they have, how many they are missing, and what they will get at the end. This clarity makes it a very motivating mechanism, especially when the goal is close.
Its limit is that it takes no account of the amount spent. A customer who buys a coffee and a customer who buys a full menu get the same stamp. As long as your baskets are homogeneous, this is not a problem. As soon as they vary sharply, the system becomes unfair — and you risk rewarding small baskets as much as large ones.
The points card: how it works
The points card works on the amount spent. The customer earns a number of points proportional to their purchase — typically 1 point per euro — and unlocks rewards at different thresholds. The system therefore naturally rewards the customers who spend the most.
Its strength is flexibility. Whether the customer buys for €8 or for €120, the programme adjusts on its own. You can also create several reward thresholds, which keeps motivation going over time: once the first threshold is reached, the next takes over.
Its limit is that it requires a small effort to understand. "1 point per euro, 150 points for a reward" is slightly less immediate than a 10-box grid. And the system requires recording the amount of each transaction, not just the visit — one extra step at the till, painless with a digital tool, but real nonetheless.
The decisive criterion: frequency and basket regularity
To decide, ask yourself two questions. First question: do your customers come back often? Second question: do their baskets look alike from one visit to the next?
If your customers come back frequently and each time spend a comparable amount, the stamps card is made for you. This is the case of a bakery, a café, a salad bar: the customer comes in almost every day, the basket varies little, and the stamps grid fills up fast — which keeps motivation alive.
If your customers come back less often or spend highly variable amounts, the points card is fairer. This is the case of a clothing shop, a wine merchant, a florist: the same customer may spend €15 then €200, and it would be absurd to give them the same credit in both cases.
Recommendations by type of business
Bakery, café, bar, sandwich shop: stamps. The frequency is high, the basket regular, and the simplicity of the stamp fits a daily purchase perfectly. "10 drinks, the 11th free" fills up in two weeks and keeps the customer hooked.
Hairdresser, barber, beauty salon: both work, depending on your offer. If you think in terms of identical services ("10 cuts, the 11th free"), the stamp suits. If your customers combine services of very different amounts (cut, colour, treatment, retail products), points are fairer.
Restaurant, brasserie: points rather, because the bill varies sharply between a quick lunch and a dinner. Shop, wine merchant, florist, home décor: points without hesitation, because of the basket gap. Gym, subscription services: points or status tiers, to reward seniority and commitment.
Why digital changes the game for both systems
Whichever system you choose, the paper card suffers from the same flaws: it gets lost, it gets forgotten, it tells you nothing about your customers, and it stays frozen once printed. If you get the threshold or the mechanism wrong, you have paid for it for nothing.
A digital loyalty card removes these constraints. It lives in the customer's phone, in Apple Wallet or Google Wallet, and its counter — points or stamps — updates automatically. Above all, it leaves you free to adjust: change a threshold, modify the reward, or even switch from stamps to points if you find the other logic suits your business better.
It is a real comfort when launching a programme: you do not have to decide everything perfectly first time. To understand concretely how the stamps system works in digital form, see our page on the stamps card.
And if you are still hesitating?
If after these criteria you are still hesitating, the practical rule is this: start with the system that is simplest for your customers to understand — that is, stamps — unless your baskets really vary a lot. A simple programme well followed is always worth more than a sophisticated programme poorly used.
You can correct course anyway. The advantage of a digital tool is precisely the ability to observe your customers' real behaviour for a few weeks, then adjust with full knowledge — with nothing to reprint or redistribute.
WePush.me supports both systems: a points programme with thresholds, or a stamps card with an automatic reward, all within a card importable into the phone's Wallet. You can start for free, test one mechanism on your real customer base, and evolve it afterwards.
Frequently asked questions
Stamps card or points card: what is the difference?
The stamps card gives one credit per visit or per product, regardless of the amount. The points card gives a credit proportional to the sum spent. Stamps are simpler; points are fairer when baskets vary.
Which system should I choose for a bakery?
The stamps card. A bakery's customers come back very often with a regular basket: the stamps grid fills up fast and stays motivating. "Buy 10 products, get the 11th free" is immediate to understand.
Which system should I choose for a clothing shop?
The points card. In a shop, the same customer may spend €15 then €200: the points system adjusts to the amount and rewards fairly, where a single stamp per visit would be unfair.
Can I change system after launching my programme?
With a paper card, no — it is frozen once printed. With a digital loyalty card, you can switch from stamps to points and adjust the thresholds at any time, with nothing to reprint or redistribute to your customers.