Mobily, Zain, and STC: Which one has the best loyalty program?

With the telecom industry in Saudi Arabia being dominated by the three brands Zain, Mobily and STC, the telecom companies are investing largely in their loyalty programs as a way to keep customers loyal and true hearted towards the brand.

Nevertheless, which program is the best? 

To answer this, PointCheckout evaluated these programs based on the ease of joining, variety in points earning methods and redemption options.

Zain Plus Rewards Program

Ease of joining the program:

Customers are automatically enrolled in the first level or silver tier of the Zain Rewards program upon subscription, free of charge.  

Variety in points earning options:

Customers of the Prepaid and Postpaid Zain lines can earn 1 point for every SAR 5 spent upon settling bills and consuming any of the internet services.

Prepaid Platinum members earn an additional 1.2 points when their spending increases to SAR 450 within 3 months, whereas Postpaid Platinum members earn 1.3 additional points when their spending exceeds 1350 SAR within 3 months. On the other hand, Postpaid Gold members earn 1.2 additional points when they spend more than SAR 450 within 3 months.

Learn about Zain Plus from Zain KSA

Redemption options:

There are limited ways to redeem Zain Plus points, as they can only be exchanged for:

1. Additional minutes within Zain network

2. SMS messages within Zain network

3. Zain internet bundles 

4. SAR 35 credit (available only for prepaid lines) 

Total: 8/15

Neqaty Rewards Program from Mobily  Telecom Company

Ease of joining the program:

Mobily customers are automatically enrolled when they purchase and activate their postpaid or prepaid lines.

Variety in points earning options:

There are many ways to earn points within the Neqaty program:

1. Customers can earn points by activating and using any of the services available within the prepaid or postpaid packages.

2. Customers can earn points by shopping at any of the retail partners.

3. Customers can earn points through any of Mobily’s banking partners while spending on designated credit cards.

4. Customers can transfer points from other rewards programs such as Shukran.

5. Customers can earn points through Mobily's weekly competition on social media.

Redemption options:

There are three ways to redeem Neqaty points:

１. Redeem for Mobily services such as internet packages, minutes or SMS.

２. Redeem points for cash discounts from any of Neqaty’s partners.

３. Redeeming points for Souq.com balance.

Although these are the main options, Mobily offers customers subscribed to the Raqi packages an online store where they can pay with their bonus points.

Total: 12/15

Qitaf Rewards Program from STC

Ease of joining the program:

Unlike the Zain and Mobily rewards programs, registration to the Qitaf program is not automatic. Customers can register for free through one of the following options:

• Visit mySTC and register with their account.

• Through SMS by sending 201 to 900

• Fill out the registration application through the STC website

Variety of points earning methods:

In terms of earning points, Qitaf and Neqaty programs are very similar. Customers have a variety of options to earn points:

1. Customers earn points through activating and using available STC services and packages, as well as settling bills or charging prepaid lines.

2. Customers earn points by spending at any of the Qitaf partners.

3. Customers earn points for issuing and spending on the Qitaf Credit Card from Alawwal Bank.

Moreover, Qitaf members receive additional points every time their membership tier is upgraded.

Redemption points:

Qitaf offers its customers a range of redemption options:

1. Redeem points for internal rewards from STC services.

2. Redeem points for online purchases at Souq.com and mystore.com.sa

3. Redeem points for travel tickets or hotel rooms through Flyin.com and booking.com

4. Transfer Qitaf points into Fursan miles

5. Redeem their points at any of the partner restaurants and stores such as Al Hokair Group, Arabian Oud, Vavavoom, Dunkin Donuts, Patchi and much more.