Starbucks recently changed up its rewards program so that members could start collecting rewards faster—and their Star Dash offers are here to help get a free drink in your hands as early as this weekend.
For those not familiar with Star Dashes, they're basically promos Starbucks does to reward people for buying a certain kind of drink. Per Starbucks, "Star Dashes are personalized offers extended to Starbucks Rewards members as a way for them to earn Bonus Stars by purchasing some of their favorite Starbucks food and beverage items. These offers will vary based on the menu item as well as the number of stars that can be earned." This week, my account shows an offer for cold brews—ideal now that the weather is vaguely approaching spring.
Here's how this particular deal works: If you order a cold brew three times between April 30 and May 6 (next Monday), you'll earn 175 bonus stars on top of the points earned for the drinks. To collect the stars, you have to be a rewards member and pay through the app. Now, with the new rewards program, 150 stars gets you a free handcrafted drink, hot breakfast, or parfait. That means with your bonus stars alone, you'll be able to order any drink on the menu for f-r-e-e—or a breakfast wrap or sandwich, if that's more up your alley.
Plus, since you're buying drinks, you'll earn stars for that. As a reminder, members earn two stars for every dollar spent, so while you could order three tall drinks and still earn your bonus stars, you'll earn even more if you order a grande or venti size.
Since offers depend on your drink preference, they might look different based on what you normally order—keep an eye out for offers in your app's inbox to take advantage of the bonus stars. And keep in mind, if you're patient, you can hold onto those bonus stars and cash them in for store merchandise or at-home coffee once you reach 400.
*Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect the variations in Star Dash offers.
