Rewards Review: Is the Millionaire’s Club at Books-A-Million Worth It?
Overview: Books-A-Million Millionaire’s Club
What is the Books-A-Million Millionaire’s Club, you might ask? It’s a pay-to-join rewards membership for Books-A-Million (or BAM) customers. And no, you don’t have to be a millionaire to join. Whew. THAT’s a relief!
To clarify, it is a membership— not a credit card. Some companies try to convince you to join their credit card rewards program, which comes with a whole slew of other caveats and drawbacks that could do you more harm than good. That’s not what this is. It’s a rewards program... that you pay to join.
Usually, I’m not a fan of these types of programs, but some have their perks.
What Are the Benefits of Joining the BAM Millionaire’s Club?
If you’re going to pay a fee to join a membership like this, the payout has to be worth it. So, what are the benefits of joining BAM’s Millionaire’s Club?
Here are what the brand likes to call their everyday “Member Discounts” that are readily available to Millionaire’s Club Members:
40% off the list price of the top 10 current best-selling hardcover books
20% off the list price of all “adult” hardcover books, as decided upon by Books-A-Million (does not include gifts, journals, or books in the bargain, juvenile, or kids sections).
10% off the Books-A-Million price of other eligible items (basically everything else that was not included above, except for sale/clearance merchandise).
Thank You Thursdays: Every Thursday, BAM gives members 30% to 50% off select books.
These are great. It will save you money— but how much you save depends on the types of books you want to buy and the quantity.
But what about online shopping perks?
If you prefer to shop online, here are the perks you can expect to see from your Millionaire’s Club membership:
Free standard shipping on every order (3-7 business day delivery)
Up to 40% off select best-selling books and merchandise, as decided upon by BAM (The wording here is a little sneaky. It makes it seem like that 40% can be used on a lot of things, but really, it’s just a rehashing of the rules/percentages listed above).
As a member, you also gain access to special members-only promotions and are eligible for a $5 gift card upon signing up.
Books A Million Millionaire’s Club Cost
It costs $25 annually to join Books-A-Million’s Millionaire’s Club. For it to pay for itself, you have to have saved over $25 with the membership.
Okay, so let’s break it down and look at this realistically. As of writing this article, here are some of the bestsellers available for 40% off with a membership:
Rachel Gillig’s The Knight and the Moth. The listed price is $30. It’s $18 with the discount, saving you $12.
Dani Francis’ Silver Elite. The listed price is $32.99. It’s $19.79 with the discount, saving you $13.20.
If you bought these two books, you’d have saved roughly the cost of your membership, making future purchases worth it. But that’s only if you want to read the bestsellers that qualify for the 40% off.
If you mostly, or only, utilized the 10% off most everything else, you’d need to spend around $250 annually. And that’s just to get the annual cost back in savings. At an average of $14 a paperback, you’d need to buy around 17 paperbacks a year to make it worth it.
BAM’s Millionaire’s Club VS Barnes and Noble Premium Membership
How does this compare to Barnes and Noble’s Membership? Well, Barnes and Noble’s Premium Membership (not to be confused with their B&N Mastercard) is $39.99 to join. With Barnes and Noble, you get 10% off almost everything, a free e-book per month (similar in style to Amazon’s free First Reads... so, nothing groundbreakingly exciting from what I can tell), free shipping, a tote bag, and a free size upgrade for drinks at the cafe.
The BAM membership costs about $15 less than Barnes and Noble’s Premium Membership. I’m not in massive support of either. I would rather see free rewards options utilized more regularly— which is why I like Barnes and Noble’s free (albeit very limited) rewards membership. I would love to see BAM create a free membership (maybe call it the Paupers Club for those of us who don’t want to spend a million, haha!).
So, is the Books-A-Million Millionaire’s Club Worth It?
It all comes down to how much money you want to budget for books per year and how you want to spend that budget. It also depends on what you like to read.
For example, I read a lot of YA and fantasy. I also prefer paperbacks, because they’re easier to hold— and hardcovers usually tend to cost more. But, at BAM, the hardcovers are what you get more of a discount off of... yet, they still end up being more expensive than the paperbacks.
It comes down to a matter of preference and shopping habits. Do you prefer new books over used? Is it in your budget, and depending on your book-buying habits, would it save you money?
To help you decide, I recommend considering all of the books you bought last year. How much money did you spend on books? How many of them were new books bought from a store like BAM? How much was that total? After you add all of that, add $25 and then take anywhere from 10% to 20% off that cost to see how much the membership would have saved you.
Are There Ever Coupons for Non-Millionaire’s Club Shoppers?
So maybe the membership won’t save you money, and thus isn’t worth the upfront cost. Don’t be dismayed, there are still ways for non-members to save money at Books-A-Million.
Unlike Barnes and Noble, since there’s no free rewards program, you can’t garner points from purchases. Thus, there aren’t really a lot of coupons for non-Millionaire’s Club shoppers at BAM.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other ways for you to save money on books at Books-A-Million without being a Millionaire’s Club member.
Ways to Save at Books-A-Million if Not a Millionaire Club Member
Here are two easy ways to save money at BAM without paying to join their rewards program:
Keeping an eye out for popular annual sales
“Spinning the wheel” online and subscribing to email updates.
Right now at Books-A-Million, there’s a sale happening! And you don’t have to be a Millionaire’s Club member to save. It’s “Book Lovers Season” according to BAM, discounting many titles up to 50% off.
Another great way to save a bit of money on books at BAM is by visiting their website on your computer and finding the little pop-up banner on the left side of the screen. When you click a “spin to win,” a discount wheel opens. Spin the wheel, and you’ll get a discount— but only after you subscribe to get emails. This is a good thing. By subscribing to their emails, you’ll get notifications on when the best sales are happening.
Alternative Ways to Save on Books!
There are plenty of other free ways to save money on books!
If you’re a lover of e-books and want to get access to 1000s of free books at the touch of a finger, you need the Libby app. Don’t forget about Stuff Your Kindle Days, too! Those things are a gold mine of indie-writer novels.
If, like me, you want to own some of your favorite books, but don’t always care if they’re new or used, I created an in-depth guide to the best online used bookstores.
And when in doubt, check it out— at the library, that is. Local libraries are a treasure trove of books and more! Some even have free passes to local museums.
