Barnes & Noble Rewards: The Loyalty Program Every Bookworm Deserves
People have been predicting the death of physical books (and bookstores) for decades now. But guess what? They’re still here. Barnes & Noble has weathered the storm, holding onto its spot as both a big-box retailer and a place that somehow still feels like your local bookstore despite it’s size. With 600+ stores across the U.S., a robust online shop, and its own e-reader (hello, Nook), B&N continues to deliver for book lovers. And while other retailers have butchered their reward programs over the years (looking at you, Nordstrom’s and Bloomingdale’s), Barnes & Noble’s rewards are surprisingly great. They offer not one, but two programs—one free and one paid—and in our opinion, they’re both total winners.
Read on to see why this might just be your next literary love affair. 📚
Photocredit: Shutterstock
📖 How it Works
B&N has two programs: the free Barnes & Noble Rewards and an upgraded premium membership for $39.99 a year.
Free B&N Rewards:
For every $10 spent, you earn a (digital) stamp. Collect 10 stamps, earn a $5 reward.
Includes physical books, ebooks, and Audiobooks, and purchases of Nook.
Stamps automatically convert to a $5 Reward when you reach 10.
Stamps don’t expire unless you have 12 months of no activity.
Rewards don’t expire unless you officially quit the program (who does that in a free program? no one).
Let’s pause for 👏🏻👏🏻. Why? Because in the land of loyalty programs, this kind of expiration generosity is rare. Brands love to expire points and rewards as quickly as possible because it makes their programs more profitable and forces customers to shop before losing their perks. But here at Points Insider, we say: if you earned it, you should keep it. Bravo, B&N!
Barnes & Noble Premium Membership, at $39.99/year. 💵
Still earn all the stamps and Reward benefits of the free tier.
Every day, 10% off almost all items (physical & digital) in-store or online.
Free shipping with no minimum purchase
Free tote each anniversary (nice, but we all have too many totes).
One free ebook per month from a curated list
Birthday offer for you AND for any child under 12 on your profile.
Discounts and offers at their café’s
Other special member deals & offers
And here’s the kicker (the good kind): the $5 rewards and 10% discount stack. For example, spend $50 with a $5 reward in hand? They’ll take 10% off first (bringing it to $45), then apply your $5 reward, dropping your total to $40. That’s the more generous way to stack discounts—and B&N didn’t have to, but they did. Another👏🏻.
is the $39.99 worth it? we did the math
Members without the Nook:
In-store Buyers: You have to spend $400 annually in purchases to cover the $40. That comes out to about 1 hardcover and 1 softcover a month. For bookworms, this is not hard to do.
Online Buyers: Shipping is usually $6.99/order, so the savings plus the 10% will help you break even if you buy one hardcover book a month.
Exclusively eBook Buyers:
You receive one free ebook per month, but it’s from a very small, carefully curated list. If you don’t like any of the options, this benefit might be meh. And considering readership taste varies widely (yes, that’s you making a 🤨 at your friends’ Goodreads suggestions), this is the one benefit that might fall short.
At an average $14.99 per ebook, you’d need to buy at least two per month to make the membership pay for itself. Doable for serious readers? Yes, absolutely.
Keep in mind the above figures do not include the additional $5 Rewards you will earn from collecting 10 stamps (from $100 in spend).
💰 what’s the value?
(💡 Quick explainer: When we say return value, we mean how much you get back vs. what you spend to earn it. Spend $100, get $10 back in point value or cash back = 10% return value. Higher is better.)
We broke it down for you:
Free program: Simple 5% return value. That’s on par with strong programs like Kohl’s, and miles ahead of household programs from Dick’s Sporting Goods and IKEA.
Premium membership: Spend $400/year and you’re looking at:
$20 in rewards (from stamps).
$40 in savings from the 10% discount.
That’s $60 back, which is over a 13% return value—and we’re not even counting free shipping or birthday perks.
A 13% return in retail is excellent. Outside high-margin categories like beauty, you almost never see this. And even at Sephora or Ulta, you’d need to be a points-hacking ninja to come close (but reading our articles makes becoming a ninja easier🥷🏻)
🧐 Fine Print Rundown:
The good news:
✔️ Stamps don’t expire (just shop once a year).
✔️ Rewards don’t expire unless you cancel.
✔️ Discounts and rewards stack beautifully.
The small stuff:
⚠️ Premium membership auto-renews (set a calendar reminder).
⚠️ You’ve got 30 days to cancel for a refund if you change your mind, otherwise you have to wait to renewal time.
⚠️ Some exclusions apply (like gift cards), but nothing deal-breaking.
summary & verdict👩🏻⚖️:
At the end of the day, these programs don’t just save you money but reward you for a hobby that makes you smarter, calmer, and in our opinion… a better human (yes, we’re big book people at Points Insider). You can feel good about your savings and your purchases.
So go ahead, reader: stack those perks, build your book empire, and read on.
B&N Rewards:
Rewarding! It’s a no-brainer: solid 5% return value, simple, and no shady fine print.
💵 B&N Rewards Premium Membership:
Very Rewarding!
The premium program is one of the best around, with juicy benefits and member-friendly policies. Just make sure you’re spending enough to justify the $39.99 fee.
Leave us a comment! Do you agree or disagree? Any further tips about Barnes & Noble Rewards?
