If you are a little bit older like me (I’m 26 which is ancient in student years, I know) you might remember the old NUS card. Well, TOTUM came from the NUS card – you could say NUS evolved into TOTUM.
It was a rebrand, basically, to bring the scheme into the modern day, give it a fresh reputation, and reimagine what it could be used for. Not just discounts, but cash back, official ID, giveaways, blog posts, and more.
I would have to say it has been a success looking at where it is now. It is much bigger than it used to be, but also more complicated, so let me explain how the TOTUM card works.
Free vs Paid Membership
The TOTUM card is free, but the TOTUM+ card is not. Plus, the TOTUM card isn’t actually a card at all, it’s an app only service, whereas you get both with TOTUM+.
You don’t have to pay for a TOTUM+ card, but you certainly get a lot more out of it if you do.
Both options get you access to student discounts and other types of deals and savings, but the paid membership offers an awful lot more than the free version.
It’s not expensive either. At the time of writing the payment options are:
- 1 Year for £14.99
- 3 years for £24.99
Clearly the 3 year option is better value, and let’s face it, you could spend £25 on a round of drinks, but what are some of the added benefits?
| Feature | TOTUM (Free) | TOTUM+ (Paid) |
|---|---|---|
| Discounts | Access to a selection of online discounts from top brands. | Access to exclusive discounts, including additional offers not available to free members. |
| Membership Format | Digital-only, accessible via the TOTUM app. | Includes a physical TOTUM+ card for in-store discounts and a digital membership. |
| Additional Benefits | N/A | Free International Student Identity Card (ISIC) for worldwide discounts, TOTUM Age ID (government-approved proof of age), and access to TOTUM Cashback for savings on supermarket bills. |
| Cost | Free | £14.99 for 1 year; £24.99 for 3 years. |
Being able to use your TOTUM card as ID is a big one for me. The hassle of carrying ID on top of other cards is frustrating, but this means you can leave your driving license at home. Where it won’t get lost.
It’s Government backed and officially recognised, so no one can refuse you entry or sale to 18+ events or products if you have your TOTUM card.
Is it Worth Paying For?
This is one of those, it depends kind of answers.
It’s worth it if you’re going to use it, and that depends on who you are and what type of stuff you get up to.
For example, a lot of the big discounts on fashion are with more expensive brands. There are smaller discounts available for more affordable brands, but you might not do enough clothes shopping to think it is worthwhile.
Then again, if you eat out a lot or order in, there are loads of deals that can see you save between 10% and 40% a time, get you free delivery all year, 2 for 1 cocktails all day, and loads more. Then you can enjoy a massive discount to membership at the Gym Group to work it all off.
To be honest I think most people would find enough benefit to make the TOTUM+ option worthwhile. Once you get used to using it the savings will pile up.
Given that it only costs £24.99 for three years – roughly £8.33 per year – even if you barely use it you will easily save what you spend. Apparently, people save around £550 a year on average.
So if you are someone who is going to make the most of your membership, definitely go for the TOTUM+, otherwise, stick with the free version.
TOTUM Cashback
An additional feature that other student discount schemes don’t have, is the TOTUM Cashback scheme.
We all know what cashback is. We’ve seen the adverts on TV. The good thing about the TOTUM version is you can get regular cashback on everyday spending, such as at supermarkets or hardware stores. You can get it in store as well as online too.
At the time of writing they have 3.5% cashback at Sainsbury’s, 3% at B&Q, and 7% at Primark. If you spent £50 a week at Sainsbury’s and got 3.5% cashback each time, that’s a saving of £1.75 per week and £91 per year. That doesn’t take into account all the other cashback you might get from other stores too.
In my estimation, this alone make a TOTUM membership worthwhile. It more than covers the cost of membership. You can even sign up just for the cashback part of it for £3.99 a year, so you don’t need to sign up for the student discount side of things as well. It’s included for the first year with a TOTUM+ membership, but costs £3.99 extra per year after that.
It’s perhaps a bit of a faff, since you need to use a pre-paid VISA card to access the cashback, but there is no minimum top up amount and over 80 big name brands are signed up to it.
I wish this existed when I was a student.
