Subway's New Loyalty Program, Explained

Subway has had a loyalty program since 2018, but much like its approach to menu innovation and meat slicing, the sandwich chain has decided to scrap everything customers are used to and roll out something entirely new. That's why this week, the chain is debuting a whole new system called MVP Rewards.

The new loyalty program replaces Subway's former MyWay Rewards. The 30 million members already enrolled in the former program will automatically be signed up for the new version, and all unspent "tokens" in their accounts will be converted to the new points system.

"Consumer input helped inform our refreshed loyalty program to create a best-in-class experience," said chief operating and insights officer Mike Kappitt in the announcement. "MVP Rewards gives our guests more of what they love from Subway, with a few hidden surprises baked in, so every guest feels like an MVP and comes back to Subway more often for their favorite subs."

Let's look into whether the new program offers newfound value for customers.

Unlike its predecessor, Subway's new MVP Rewards program is a tiered system. This layered approach to loyalty is similar to the revamps implemented by other brands like Sweetgreen and Dunkin'. However, while Dunkin's most recent update to its program rewards repeat visits with "Boosted" status, Subway's tiers correlate purely with money spent. It's still free to join Subway's rewards program, and new members automatically earn 250 points for joining.

Under the old MyWay Rewards system, members earned four tokens for every dollar spent and a $2 Subway credit when they reached 200 tokens, per Restaurant Dive. However, the new system does not use tokens; instead, the more you spend in a given year, the greater rewards tiers you can unlock. All members earn at least 10 points for every dollar they spend, with extra points awarded for ordering online or via the Subway app. Reaching 400 points earns members $2 in Subway Cash to use toward purchases.

At the bottom tier are Pro members, who spend less than $200 per year at Subway (statistically, that's most of us). Pro members receive the following benefits:

• 10 points per $1 spent on qualifying purchases
• 5% bonus points on mobile orders
• Members-only deals, bonus point days and earning challenges
• Birthday and anniversary rewards

The next level up are Captain members, who have an annual Subway spend of $200-$399.99. These members receive all the same perks as Pro members do, plus:

• "Better" birthday and anniversary rewards
• 10% more points per $1 spent on qualifying purchases
• Exclusive bonus point days
• Access to members-only Subway Swag Shop

The highest tier of this new rewards program is called All-Star and is reserved for members who have an annual spend of $400 or more at Subway (that is a LOT of footlongs). Members in the All-Star tier receive the same perks as the Captain tier, plus the following:

• "Even better" (once again, the brand's words) birthday and anniversary rewards
• 20% more points per $1 spent on qualifying purchases
• Free Chip Fridays (with purchase)
• More bonus points days
• Access to members-only VIP exclusives

Although it's not immediately clear just how much "better" certain perks get as a member rises from tier to tier, it is clear that Subway loves customers who spend more than a couple hundred a year in its restaurants and is trying to cultivate as many of those customers as possible. Since membership is free and points are earned just for signing up, there doesn't look to be any major downside to being a Subway MVP Rewards member at the moment. Just don't expect those new sandwiches to taste like the best thing you've ever had.