7 Ways to stretch your budget with your UCount Rewards Points

The beauty of UCount Rewards Points is that you spend and save simultaneously, and therefore, you can access those savings later without having to take on any more spending, helping you continue to pay towards your daily expenses.

Here’s how to use your Rewards Points to stretch your budget:

• Pay for your groceries
  Spending over a period such as December can leave you feeling the financial pinch in January. Every time you pay for qualifying purchases online or in-store, you earn Rewards Points, and if you use your Standard Bank Credit Card, you’ll earn from 3* times more, depending on your Tier Level.
  
  Those swipes add up to Rewards Points, and a great way to cut down your grocery bill is to use them to pay for/towards your groceries at our Rewards Retailers, such as Game and Makro, and essential daily items at Dis-Chem.
• Pay for your fuel
  Save money on your fuel expenses by redeeming your Rewards Points for fuel and oil at any participating Caltex or Astron Energy service station. Even if you don’t have enough Rewards Points to cover the entire amount, you can use your Standard Bank card to pay the difference, helping you cut down on the cost of filling up.
• Pay for streaming
  If you’re planning on spending more time at home to save some money, you can sign up to Showmax and redeem your Rewards Points to pay for your subscription, freeing up space in your budget to allocate to other expenses or to treat yourself on those nights in.
• Pay for varsity or school fees
  Redeem your Rewards Points to pay for a family member’s university or school fees on the Varsity-Days® and School-Days® app or website and free up funds to cover other expenses, such as textbooks, technology and transportation.
• Pay yourself
  When it’s been an expensive month, it can be difficult to keep up with your financial goals, such as paying off your personal loan, or having enough left to continue to save and invest. You can use your Rewards Points to pay towards your personal loan or redeem them into one of our savings and investment accounts.
• Pay with vouchers
  Another top tip for making your money stretch further is that you can redeem your Rewards Points for vouchers from selected Rewards Retailers (any time of year) and use them to pay for what you need. It’s a handy cash-flow solution to help you pay for everyday expenses.
• Choose Your Own Rewards
  Maximise your UCount Rewards by choosing where you want to earn your Rewards Points with Choose Your Own Rewards, which lets you personalise the way you want to earn Rewards Points by selecting a category in the 'Choose Your Own Rewards' offering. This feature enables you to earn up to 20%* back in Rewards Points based on your spending preferences in your chosen category. You can choose between Grocery, Fashion or Lifestyle Rewards.

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_{Disclaimer: This article is solely intended for information. It does not constitute financial, tax or investment advice or recommendation. Please speak to a financial advisor or registered financial professional before making any financial decision(s).}

_{Standard Bank, its subsidiaries or holding company, or any subsidiary of the holding company and all of its subsidiaries make no warranties or representations (implied or otherwise) as to the accuracy, completeness or fitness for purpose of the information provided in this article or that it is free from errors or omissions.}