If you watch Shark Tank then you probably saw the segment on RewardStock. RewardStock is a paid membership site that aims to make understanding, redeeming and valuing loyalty hotel and airline points more efficient.
It looks like the service was actually started by a Flyertalk member. The service costs $29 annually and for that they provide the following features:
- Algorithm-powered search results
- Search best reward deals for anywhere you want to go
- Easy “one-click” reward bookings
- Automatic reward balance tracking
- Strategic earning guidance
- Customize parameters for your situation
A lot of the features of RewardStock are available on other sites, for example you can track your reward balances easily with AwardWallet. Sites like such as Travel Codex and previously Pointimize provide the best routings for award trips. Sites like Frequent Miler provide point valuations as well. It looks like in addition to monetizing with the $29 annual fee they also use credit card affiliate links on site as well. I think for me the most interesting feature is the one-click rewards booking. This is described in more detail here.
Our Verdict
I need to have a play around with RewardStock a bit more to get a better idea of the site and service offered. For me personally a lot of the features are useless as I already have those aspects covered (e.g balance tracking, point valuations). One of my least favorite things to do is actually sit down and try to redeeming points/miles, I don’t find it too bad with hotels but when it comes to airlines I end up wanting to poke my eyes out. Things like Travel Codex have made that somewhat easier, but if RewardStock is giving me real time availability and also able to book things like partner airlines without me having to do anything then I’ll happily pay the $29. My guess is that this is harder to do than it sounds and that RewardStock will have some issues being able to do that efficiently on a regular basis. As I said, I need to do more thorough testing first. It’s a shame that they don’t seem to offer any sort of free trial period either. I’d also be hesitant to rely on the credit card recommendations as one of their monetization strategies is to make commission from those cards.
I’d love to hear from any readers that have used this site/service in the past.
