Tim Hortons Rewards Canada: How it Works (2024)

More than 80% of Canadians said they try and visit a Tim Hortons each month. With a flow of customers like that, the coffee giant set up a rewards program to incentivize customers to keep visiting.

The Tim Hortons Rewards Canada program is free to join. Frequent patrons can earn rewards based on their purchases and then redeem them for goodies within the store.

The Basics of the Rewards Program

Tim Hortons customers can sign up for their rewards program called “Tims Rewards” anytime. Shoppers can earn up to 10 points per visit when they scan their physical or digital card during checkout.

Members of the program are eligible for special rewards and exclusive offers. You can also expect a birthday offer when it’s your big day to help you celebrate with your favourite coffee and donut.

Earning Points

To earn points, keep making purchases. However, it must be over $.50 before tax to qualify. Remember that it doesn’t matter how much you spend per transaction, you’ll still earn only 10 points. This means buying a small coffee or filling up with a dozen donuts still gets you 10 points, no matter the price.

There is a maximum limit for reward members. You can only accrue up to 20,000 points, but chances are you’ll redeem them before you ever get that many. Also, points expire 12 months after you earn them.

How To Register

How To Register

Getting a card is easy and will only take a few minutes. You can download the app and sign up using your email address. That’s all it takes.

After you register, you’ll get your digital Tim’s Rewards card. You’ll need to scan this every time you visit a local Tim Hortons and make a purchase.

Before Tim Hortons switched to digital cards, their rewards program ran with physical cards. That ended in October 2020, when the company updated the program. However, if you already had a physical Tim Hortons rewards card, you can still use it, but you’ll have to link up your card via the app.

How To Redeem Rewards

How To Redeem Rewards

While 10 points per purchase doesn’t seem like much, it quickly adds up, especially if you’re a frequent visitor. Once you build up your points, it’s time to use them for all the delicious goodies Tim Hortons offers – but how does it work?

Redeeming your rewards is easy enough. Go to your app or the website and choose the category you want to use your points on. You can select between breakfast, baked goods, beverages, and lunch.

Each menu item has a different point total ranging from 50 to 220. If you don’t hit the “Save My Points” box when choosing a category, your points will get automatically deducted if you’ve accumulated enough.

As an example, if you want to use your points for a frozen drink (140 points) but don’t hit the “Save My Points” button when you choose the beverages category, 70 points will automatically get deducted if you buy a regular coffee or tea.

One of the best parts is that you can still earn points even if you’re redeeming them. As long as your bill has a balance of $.50 before taxes, you’ll still get those 10 points per purchase.

Here’s the list of eligible reward categories and their points value.

How Do Tim Hortons Rewards Work In Canada image 1
How Do Tim Hortons Rewards Work In Canada image 2

Other Rewards Offers

Earning points isn’t the only benefit of a Tim Horton’s rewards card. With more competition coming from other coffee retailers and fast food joints, companies are looking to expand their rewards programs to help with customer loyalty.

With that in mind, here are some unique offers for Tim Hortons customers.

Birthday Gift

When it’s your birthday, you’ll receive a free offer that you can access within your app. The only requirement is that you add your birth date when you register.

Many people also use their birthday as a reminder to redeem any outstanding points since they expire within 12 months.

Contests

To gain more customer involvement, Tim Hortons adds weekly offers, games and contests so members can earn more points.

One of the most popular contests is the Roll Up to Win (formerly Roll Up the Rim). The contest went digital during the pandemic and lost some of its luster, according to some customers. 

With this contest, you can earn a roll for each eligible purchase. You’ll have to go to your app to reveal your prize. You can get a free coffee or donut or win a vehicle, electronics, or getaways. This contest has always been one of Tim Horton’s most popular and continues to draw in customers every year.

Exclusive Offers

In addition to earning points every time you make a purchase, the rewards app can track your purchases to put together a list of exclusive offers catered towards your favourites. These offers are typically time sensitive and won’t last long.

Tims It Forward

You probably heard about paying it forward, but Tim Hortons put a twist on it. Now, you can pass your rewards on to family or friends, all with the click of a button.

With Tim Hortons’ “Tims It Forward” program, rewards members can share kindness with those they love. You can give donuts and cookies and coffees and teas all through the app.

All you have to do is tap on the app and go to the Tims It Forward section. Select the gift you want to send and enter the recipient’s email address. You can add a personalized message or just leave it blank for a surprise gift.

Choose between lesser-point items like donuts and muffins or go all out and send a 140-point frozen beverage.

Here are some ideas:

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Source: www.timhortons.ca

The Round-Up Feature

Speaking of paying it forward and doing small acts of kindness, you can help the Tim Hortons Foundation Camp (THFC) if you enable the round-ups feature. This is a donation tool that lets you make a small contribution every time you make a purchase in-store or on the app and scan your rewards card.

With the feature enabled, every time you make a purchase, your total will get rounded up to the nearest 10 cents. This additional money will be donated to the THFC.

So, for example, if you buy a coffee and a couple of donuts and your total comes to $4.85, if you have Round Up enabled, you’ll end up with a total of $4.90, and that extra $.05 will go towards the Tim Hortons Foundation Camp.

The camp is a nonprofit organization that helps disadvantaged kids from ages 12 to 16. The camp is meant to help underserved youths acquire the skills to cope with and flourish within their challenging communities.

Looking for more information or other ways to help? Check out Tim Hortons Foundation Camp’s website.

FAQs

What if I didn’t link up my Tim Hortons rewards card?

Tim Hortons changed its rewards program in the fall of 2020. New rules meant that existing users of physical rewards cards had to link them to the app to redeem their points.

If members don’t link up their rewards card with the app, they can still earn points, they just won’t be able to redeem them until they do.

The card will keep track of the number of points you earn so they won’t be lost, but if you want to enjoy the benefits of those points, link up your card as soon as possible.

What if I don’t select a reward category?

When you want to redeem your points, you’ll need to select a category on the app. Now, you could continue to save your points for a bigger reward. However, to do that, you’ll have to select the “Save My Points” option in the app.

If you don’t choose any category, you’ll automatically get defaulted to the 70 points level, which includes beverages like coffee and tea.

How do you know if your points are expiring?

Points expire 12 months after you redeem them. However, you don’t have to keep track of when and how your points are used. Instead, let the app do that. If you registered an account when you signed up for the app, you should receive an email to let you know when your points are on the verge of expiring.

Do I get more points if I order combo meals from the menu?

You won’t get more points even if you order lots of items from the menu. For each purchase, you’ll receive 10 points when you scan your rewards card as long as it’s an eligible one. That includes items over $.50 before tax.

Final Thoughts

Tim Hortons Rewards In Canada

Tim Hortons has a rewards program where customers can earn and redeem points, either with their card or through the app.

Members can earn 10 points per eligible purchase and need just as little as 50 to get a donut or cookie.

Want to learn more about Tim Hortons and how much opening a franchise costs? Check out this article.

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Author Bio - Christopher Liew is a CFA Charterholder with 11 years of finance experience and the creator of Wealthawesome.com. Read about how he quit his 6-figure salary career to travel the world here.

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1 thought on “Tim Hortons Rewards Canada: How it Works (2024)”

  1. I have a new rewards card and cannot replace for the old one. How do I do that. No where to be found on your website.
    Please advise as I have lots of points.
    Thank you

    Reply

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