'I Am So Done' — Starbucks New Reward Program Has Customers Fuming

While companies are always seeking ways to innovate on their products and services, consumers expect them to put a lot of thought into these changes when it comes to rewards systems, as even small tweaks can lead to fans interacting differently with what they're buying. In the case of Starbucks and its "reimagined" loyalty program, fans have been quick to point out that it's a step backward in terms of usefulness for consumers and will likely deter them from purchasing coffee from the chain with the same frequency that they used to.

For those unfamiliar, the new Starbucks Rewards system will separate consumers into three tiers — Green Members, Gold Members, and Reserve Members — depending on how many stars they have at the end of the year. Green is the base tier, Gold requires 500 stars in a year, and Reserve requires 2,500 stars. Because this change also comes with a decrease in the amount of stars you get per dollar (making it harder to rise up the tier rank), customers are furious with a system that used to be a great way to save some money at Starbucks. "As someone who has been a rewards member for like 15 years, this is absolutely a crock of s**t," one Redditor lamented. "I can't believe they're gonna even attempt this ... They're raising the prices, lowering the quality, and now taking away the rewards? They should just send me a letter telling me to stop coming in."

To put into perspective how much the new reward system will impact a regular Starbucks consumer, it's important to look at how stars are redeemed. Any handcrafted drink, like a latte (which wasn't served at the first Starbucks location) or cold brew, takes 200 stars to redeem. This is already higher than it once was — much to the chagrin of long-time rewards members — but it comes pretty naturally if you visit Starbucks multiple times a week. In the new system, Green members will only get one star per dollar (down from two), which means it would take over a month of buying a $6 Starbucks drink every single day before getting a freebie. Plus, because stars expire after just six months as a Green Member, it's difficult to build up a notable amount of points unless you are a highly consistent, high-paying Starbucks customer.

There are some who are defending the change, stating that it's not quite as bad as people think. While the biggest frustration being due to a lack of double stars when using the Starbucks app, double stars can still be earned if you bring in your own cup regardless of your tier. However, considering that Starbucks has made a routine out of making its rewards system slightly worse every few years — and the fact that using a personalized cup used to earn you more star points than what double points equates to now — some online have hypothesized that using personal cups for double star points will eventually be phased out as well.