Air New Zealand have extended the ability to earn Airpoints Dollars on print and/or digital subscriptions to The Economist, and boosted the normal earn rate until 9 December.
When you purchase a 3-year print and digital subscription to The Economist, you’ll earn a whopping 1,100 Airpoints Dollars – this is one of the best opportunities that I’ve seen to earn a very high number of Airpoints Dollars all at once, without stepping foot on a plane.
I’ve reviewed the offer below to show what subscription type and duration is best, based on the effective Airpoints Dollars rebate you’d receive for your spend.
Offer details
According to the terms and conditions, this offer is for first-time subscribers only.
The number of Airpoints Dollars you’ll earn depends on the subscription type, and duration.
I have listed all the different subscription types, lengths and costs below, and have sorted from highest to lowest the effective rebate you’ll receive in Airpoints Dollars. Remember that 1 Airpoints Dollar equals $1 NZD spent on flights with Air New Zealand, so if you travel frequently either domestically or Trans-Tasman, you’ll immediately be able to see the value you’ll receive back in ‘free’ flights.
| Subscription Type | Cost | Airpoints Dollars (APD) Earnt | Effective Rebate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital - 3 years | $1,175 | 840 APD | 71% |
| Digital - 1 year | $460 | 320 APD | 70% |
| Print + Digital - 1 year | $640 | 450 APD | 70% |
| Print + Digital - 3 years | $1,620 | 1100 APD | 68% |
| Print + Digital - 2 years | $1,180 | 780 APD | 66% |
| Digital - 2 years | $850 | 530 APD | 62% |
| Print - 3 years | $1,350 | 840 APD | 62% |
| Print - 1 year | $530 | 320 APD | 60% |
| Print - 2 years | $980 | 530 APD | 54% |
As you can see, a 3-year digital subscription offers the greatest return vs spend amount. If you were planning to spend $840 on flights anyway, you’re effectively only paying $335 for a three-year subscription to The Economist – or about $2.15 per week.
Our take: is this a good deal?
If you have no interest in The Economist, keep your money in the bank. I cannot see any value in purchasing a magazine subscription just to earn the Airpoints Dollars.
However, if you were already intending to purchase a subscription, you should definitely take advantage of this high-value Airpoints Dollars earning opportunity. The ordinary online purchase price here for a subscription without bonus Airpoints Dollars is the same, so you won’t be financially penalised for taking advantage of the offer.
While lots of miles/points programs partner with The Economist to provide similar offers, Airpoints is the outlier where you can easily see how much value you’ll receive by taking it up.
Note that it may take up to 8 weeks for the Airpoints Dollars to credit, so be sure you plan this into any future flight purchases you intend to make.
You could redeem 1,100 Airpoints Dollars on 11 return flights between Auckland and Wellington with Air New Zealand
Pictures courtesy of Air New Zealand
have you got a link to the terms and conditions where it says its not for renewals?
thanks
Hi Bob – it’s possible that this requirement may have changed, it was originally published as fine print on both the Air New Zealand and The Economist website, though now seems to have been removed. Though if you’re an existing subscriber and intend to rely on this offer, I would still recommend calling The Economist to make sure I haven’t missed something somewhere.
You will need to maintain your subscription for a minimum of one year to keep the Airpoints Dollars (says this on the final checkout page).
https://www.economist.com/terms/specificoffers
Thanks for finding that! Will update article.