Last Updated on 9 February 2026 by Dan Wilderness
Hello everyone! We’re huge fans of a loyalty card here at the Financial Wilderness and today I’m sharing my review of the Boots Advantage Card – is it worth it or not? Find out below!
Boots is obviously a staple of the UK high street and somewhere I find myself picking bits up from on a fairly regular basis, so the Boots Advantage Card has had real benefits for me.
Where I’ve really noticed the benefit though is since becoming a parent, as some additional features within the Boots Advantage Card makes it really stand out for Parents and the Over 60’s, and I’ll be elaborating on this below.
(Affiliate Note: We may receive a small commission for referring you to any of these services using our link, but it won’t affect the service you receive and per our editorial policy, we always write honestly about what we review, no matter if we get paid or not).
Quick Verdict on the Boots Advantage Card
We think the Boots Advantage Card offers one of the best earnings rates on the high street. It beats out rival Superdrug in our analysis and is particularly beneficial when combined with Boots Parenting Club or Over 60’s clubs, Double Points Promotions and Boots Advantage Prices.
Three quick tips to Turbo Charge Earning Boots Advantage Card Points
Here’s three great key points our article highlights that can make your points go a lot further.
- Double Advantage Card Points for your Birthday Month combining this with an already generous earnings rate is really powerful.
- If you qualify, make sure you use Boots Parenting or Over 60’s Club: Free bonus opt-ins that give some really big extra point rewards on qualifying purchases.
- Combine Boots Advantage Card with Boots Advantages Prices: Whilst not every Advantage Price is a real discount, combining a lower price with points earning can be powerful.
What is the Boots Advantage Card and how does it work?
The Boots Advantage Card is the loyalty card of UK high street chemist and beauty brand Boots.
It’s your classic points based loyalty card where you’ll earn points as you spend in store or online and can then redeem these for money off purchases.
Whilst there’s a few extra opt-ins to earn bonus point we’ll discuss below, Boots keeps things at the simple end and there’s not much more you need to do than remember to scan it at the till, or have your advantage card linked to your online account.
Advantages of the Boots Advantage Card
Let’s talk through why we think the Boots Advantage Card stands out amongst UK loyalty cards.
Strong earnings rate
You earn points at a rate of 3 points per £ spent in Boots – and with each point being worth 1p, that’s a 3% rate of cashback on your purchases.
That’s actually pretty strong compared to many loyalty cards and one of the reasons I wanted to write about Boots Advantage Card specifically. When you compare it to other high street loyalty cards it stands up as one of the best out there (most other schemes pay around the 1% mark, if that).
What can I get with my Boots Advantage Card Points?
To help translate how those points translate into tangible rewards here’s a little table showing ideas on what your Boots Advantage Card points can turn into! Just a note that you cannot part pay with Boots Advantage Card points, which we cover more in the disadvantages section below.
| Points Balance | Cash Value | Can you Part-Pay? | Verdict |
| 100 Points | £1.00 | ? No | Save them. |
| 500 Points | £5.00 | ? No | Good for lunch/snacks. |
| 1,000 Points | £10.00 | ? No | The Sweet Spot. Covers most toiletries. |
| 5,000 Points | £50.00 | ? No | Great for Christmas gifts. |
Key Note: You cannot “part-pay” with points. If your item costs £10.50 and you have £10 worth of points, you cannot use them. You must have the full amount in points to buy the item.
Ability to get even better returns with in-app offers
The secret to really racking up points with your Boots Advantage Card is to download the Boots App.
The reason for this is that once you’ve set up your Boots Advantage Card account, there’s a tab within the app called ‘My Offers’. You can see it in the picture below, just below the middle of the right hand side.
With it you’ll find (usually) five offers which update weekly and provide an extra points benefit if you buy something .
(A quick side note here – you do need to opt in to each offer for it to apply (personally if I’m buying something from Boots, I open the app in store and add on any relevant offers just before I make my purchase).
Most of those offers will provide an extra points bonus for buying something which is often a Boots own-brand product.
However what I think is worth highlighting is there’s usually a particularly generous extra points bonus for spending a certain amount, and those offers tend to be very good when you work out the return
For instance, at the moment I have an offer for 300 extra points for a £30 spend. In itself that’s rather nice – it equates to a 10% top up on my purchase in the form of £3. But remember you’ll also get the points from spending the £30 as well, so the actual total loyalty return is 13%, or £3.90.
Just remember points bonuses should always be seen as an opportunity to earn a little more on something you want to purchase anyhow rather than being an excuse to spend! Nonetheless if you are making a purchase from Boots anyhow, it’s well worth doing this.
An example of the offers selection page from the Boots Advantage Card app is below:
Examples of Boots Advantage Card Offers
As an example of the type of offers you might get with a Boots Advantage Card, I’m listing some of the offers I’ve had for the present week:
- 350 Advantage Card points when spending £35 in a single transaction
- 200 Advantage Card points when spending £20 on Vitamins
- Double points (6p per £) on Wellness Gifts
- Triple Points (9p per £) on when buying 2 Boots own brand products.
- £5 worth of Advantage Card points when spending £40 on premium hair care items.
Boots Birthday Bonus
One essential hack with the Boots Advantage Card is the ability to get Double Advantage Card points (making it 6 points per pound) for the entire month of your birthday.
Just make sure you enter your birthday details in the app when signing up, then opt into the double points birthday offer.
Remember, if you have any big purchases you’re planning on making around this time, targeting this offer can be quite helpful.
It’s one of a number of great offers we’ve highlighted in our guide to UK Birthday Freebies.
Boots Price Advantage Discounts
Boots have followed other brands like Tesco Clubcard in having prices where you can get an (in some cases quite substantial) discount on a product so long as you use an advantage card.
You can look out for these deals in store where they’re usually marked with a pink sticker on the relevant shelf. This will highlight what the Boots Price Advantage cost is and the non-Advantage cost.
This is designed to push us towards loyalty use, but it’s status as a benefit is variable – the offers can come more as a penalty of a high price for those not using a Boots Advantage Card, as opposed to offering a true discount.
Sometimes there are good deals to be had, but we’d always recommend a quick check of what prices are being offered elsewhere before making purchase as a good financial habit!
Regardless, having the Advantage Card is always the path to the cheaper price, so makes it more worth having – we’re just not giving big postive credit for this in our review scoring.
Easy to Use
The Boots app does also make the Boots Advantage Card easy to use (you can simply show the barcode in your app and therefore don’t need to worry about carrying a physical card).
You can also manage any prescriptions you regularly get from Boots via the app, or book in for one of their in store appointment services such as travel vaccinations.
Beyond that you’ll find what you’d expect for any shop app – the ability to search for products or view offers available at the moment, but the app is at well designed and easy to use.
Extra Boots Advantage Card Earnings for Parents and Over 60’s
There’s a couple of hidden clubs within the Boots Advantage Card I wanted to particularly call out in this review.
On top of the offers we’ve mentioned above, two groups (Parents and the Over 60’s) can do even better with the Boots Advantage Card, and earn an incredible 8 points per £ on certain items.
At this point there’s a really significant benefit from the Advantage Card that makes Boots the cheapest place for some items, especially if used in conjunction with other app/ in-store offers and promotions.
Boots Advantage Card Over 60’s Rewards
Boots have also launched an additional part of the Advantage Card scheme for those Over 60, called Over 60’s Rewards.
Signing up will provide you will access to additional price discounts targeted at those in this groups as well as opportunities to earn Advantage Club points at a higher earnings rate.
Boots brands (and occasionally others) will get 8 points per £ or an 8% return which exceptional in UK loyalty.
Additional Benefits of a Boots Advantage Card for Over 60’s
There are also some specific ongoing offers available to just Over 60’s:
- 300 points (a £3 value) for getting a free hearing health check up.
- 10% off all purchases at Boots Opticians
- 10% of all Boots Own Brand items
- 8 points per spent at Boots Photo
Boots have also been running a number of Over 60’s shopping days as part of this scheme – these have included some quite hefty discounts with an extra % off increasingly with overall spend.
How do I sign up for Boots Advantage Card Over 60’s rewards?
Time needed: 5 minutes
How to sign up for Boots Advantage Card Over 60’s Discounts
- Have a Boots Online Account (If you already have one, skip this step)
To opt into the Over 60’s Discounts scheme, you’ll need a Boots Account. You can either sign up via the App or on the Boots Website here (this page links to the Over 60’s hub, where you can read more about the offers available).
- Opt-in to Boots Over 60’s Rewards
You can either go to this page and scroll down to the Join Over 60’s Rewards button, or else click “My Account” on the Boots Website, then “My Advantage Card” and click through to Over 60’s Rewards in the Club Section.
If using the Boots App, click “More” when you’re signed in and then follow the above steps.
Boots Advantage Card Parenting Club
The Boots Advantage Card also has additional offers for parents of children up to 5 in the form of Parenting Club. The provides some additional freebies and rewards at key stages.
We think Boots is particularly fantastic for Parents, which is why we’ve also called this out in our guide to UK shops with discounts on baby products which may be of interest.
Benefits of the Boots Advantage Card Parenting Club
The benefits include:
- 8 points per £ spent on all Baby items (a 8% return) – see note below.
- Free Gifts at key stages of child development
- Unique offers for Parenting Club Members
- Access to expert Parenting Advice
- A free welcome gift on signing up.
Important: Prescriptions are excluded for earning, as is infant formula up for babies up to 6m – the earnings rate for these is zero. (This is because of UK law restricting promotions on infant formula and medication).
Boots Parenting Club Store Restriction
One slight frustration I found when trying to use Parenting Club is that in order to get the free gifts and some offers, you’ll need to go to a Boots that’s designated as a Parenting Club store, which is definitely not every Boots and it’s not always obvious which are are aren’t.
I found a list of Parenting Club stores on the Boots website here (just note it’s a PDF, so you’ll need to manually search for your local store).
I would also suggest heading to a bigger store if you can – I didn’t have an issue with availability once I found a Parenting Club store but some friends and family found not all items were in stock at some smaller ones.
How to sign up for Boots Advantage Card Parenting Club
- Have a Boots Online Account (If you already have one, skip this step)
To opt into the Boots Parenting Club scheme, you’ll need a Boots Account. You can either sign up via the App or on the Boots Website here (this page links to the Parenting Club hub, where you can read more about the offers available).
You can also do this via the Boots App – just go for “More” as your starting point on a signed in account
2. Opt in to Boots Parenting Club
You can either go to this page and scroll down to the Join Boots Parenting Club text or else click “My Account” on the Boots Website, then “My Advantage Card” and click through to Parenting Club in the Club Section.
If using the Boots App, click “More” when you’re signed in and then follow the above steps.
What happens if I combine a Parenting Club shop with one non-qualifying?
The products will all earn at their individual qualifying rates rather than the whole basket being marked up or marked down.
To illustrate this, we put together a hypothetical mixed basket of products to show what the earning rates on each bit would be.
| Category | Parenting Club Rate (8 pts/£1) | Standard Rate (3 pts/£1) | No Points (Excluded item) |
| Nappies & Wipes | ? | ||
| Baby Clothes | ? | ||
| Follow-on Milk (6m+) | ? | ||
| Stage 1 Formula (0-6m) | ? | ||
| Your Toiletries | ? | ||
| Prescriptions | ? |
Extra Advantage Card Points with Recycle at Boots
You can also earn extra advantage card points with Boots in-store Recycling scheme.
The purpose of the scheme is to encourage you to recycle bottles used in beauty products that cannot easily be recycled at home.
When you bring 5 eligible bottles into store and spend £10, you’ll be credited with an extra 500 Advantage Card points (a £5 value).
It’s a good initiative, but unfortunately the scheme is a little cumbersome in practice. You’ll need a separate Recycle at Boots App and to register what you’re recycling to ensure it’s eligible for the scheme.
You can read more about Recycle at Boots and how to use it here.
Disadvantages of Boots Advantage Card
Cannot use points to Part Pay
In a slight oddity compared to most loyalty schemes you cannot redeem a small amount of Advantage Card points to get a discount on something larger.
Instead, you’ll need to be able to cover the full cost of an item with your points in order to be able to pay with points. Basically, it’s all or nothing when it comes to using your points to make a purchase.
It’s a bit strange choice which I don’t quite understand why Boots have done things this way, but still see the scheme as valuable.
If you have a small amount of points you want to use up, it makes the easiest way to use them simply to buy one or two small things.
Points expire in 12 months (with no activity)
Boots Advantage Card are wiped if you don’t make use of your Boots Advantage Card in a 12 month period.
I haven’t considered this as a particularly big issue as there’s an easy fix if you’re getting close to a deadline – just buy something cheap like a pack of gum and use your card when spending. This will instantly reset the clock.
You don’t need to spend points to reset the clock! Any spend or purchase will do it. When done, this resets the 12 month expiry on the whole balance.
Boots Advantage Card vs. Superdrug Health and Beauty Card
If you’re shopping at Boots one question you might have is how the Advantage Card compares in terms of benefit to the most comparable other shop in Superdrug, who also offer a loyalty scheme in the health and beauty card.
Boots Advantage Card vs. Superdrug Comparison Table
To help assess this, we’ve included a table below which shows the key differences between the two loyalty schemes:
| Feature | Boots Advantage Card | Superdrug Health & Beautycard |
|---|---|---|
| Base earn rate | 3 points per £1 spent | 1 point per £1 spent |
| Point value | 1 point = 1p | 100 points = £1 (redeem in 100-point increments) |
| Redeeming / part-pay | No part-payment — you must have enough points to cover the full cost (incl. delivery). | Part-payment allowed with points + cash in-store or online. |
| Points expiry | Removed after 12 months of inactivity. | Expire after 24 months of inactivity. |
| Boosters / clubs | Over 60s: up to 8 pts/£1 on Boots brands; Parenting Club: 8 pts/£1 on baby items (selected). | Occasional bonus events and member-exclusive promotions. |
| Extra earning | Recycle at Boots: typically £5 in points for 5 empties with a £10 in-store shop (via app). | No national recycling-for-points scheme. |
Overall Review of the Boots Advantage Card
With one of the most generous standard return rates for spending among any shop on the UK high street coupled with some very generous offers to get extra points, we think the Boots Advantage Card is an absolute must for your wallet.
This is especially true if you’re buying items as a member of the Over 60’s Club or baby items for parenting club, where cashback remains particularly strong, although we still encourage shopping around.
The only thing we find a challenge and a frustrating design point is that you cannot use your advantage points for a part-payment, and have to completely cover the cost of whatever you’re buying – we just don’t understand this and take off a star for it.
Advantages
- One of the best loyalty cashback rates on the UK High Street.
- Fairly regular promotions to earn extra points
- Easy to use and scan in store
- Parenting and Over 60’s Club offer pretty unbeatable value.
Disadvantages
- Need to cover entire transaction with points when using which can be impractical with more expensive items.
How can I sign up for the Boots Advantage Card?
You can sign up for a Boots Advantage Card at the Boots website right here.
FAQ’s on the Boots Advantage Card
Yes, the card is completely free to sign up for and use.
If you’d prefer a physical advantage card, you can also request one in store.
It’s also possible to have both a physical and digital advantage card. You can add a plastic card to a digital account but clicking “more” in app or on the website, clicking “manage my advantage card” and then selecting the option to link a physical card.
Yes you can! If you’re a student you can get a little extra you can get with the Boots Advantage Card – a 10% discount on each purchase.
If you head in store with your student card the cashier can link your student card and Boots Advantage Card.
In future when you scan your Advantage Card, the extra student discount will simply apply automatically. You’ll find it tends to stop working around September of each year, and you’ll need to re-verify the link in store at this point.
Yes, I’m afraid you do – Boots don’t offer Student Discount in other forms, even with a valid student card.
Simply ask at the till when you’re making any purchase for your points to be used and your points will be applied before making a purchase.
If you’re using a self-service machine, you’ll see a Pay with Points option at checkout
If you’re purchasing from the Boots website, you’ll be given the opportunity to apply your points when you’re checking out your purchase.
Yes, so long as the card is linked to your Boots account the Advantage Card works exactly the same way online as it does in store.
Other UK Loyalty Schemes
If you’re interested in our pick of the other best loyalty schemes out there, why not look at our guide to the best UK Loyalty Cards and Apps?
Any questions?
If you have any questions about the Boots Advantage Card, or have secured any particularly great bargains we would absolutely love to hear from you! Just drop us a note in the comments below.
And that’s it!
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