If you’re anything like me, you know there’s no shame when it comes to deal hunting. Using my phone to scan the shelves at Walmart for hidden clearance? I fully embrace that life. Jumping on Amazon glitch deals as soon as I see them? Couldn’t be more into that. But joining AARP to get their discounts? I’ll admit I gave this tactic a side-eye because it seemed like something only my retired grandma might appreciate (or my mom — sorry, mom).
But once I did a deep dive into all the discounts you get once you join, I turned into a big fan of AARP. A card-holding fan, I might add. Now that I’m a new member, I’m paying the equivalent of $1 a month to get 15% off my hotel stays and AARP discounts at restaurants like Outback Steakhouse and Moe’s. And I’m totally realizing the answer to “is AARP worth it?” is a resounding Y-E-S.
Before you decide for yourself, here’s my take on all the benefits that will make an AARP membership worth it.
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Get a whole year of AARP discounts for as low as $12 — plus a free organizer for your car.
If you sign up online for your first year and select auto-renewal, you’ll score a discount that brings the first-year price down to $12. That’s less than the monthly price of Netflix! And each membership comes with a second free membership card for someone else in your household, whether it’s your friend, roommate, sibling, or parent.
After your first year, the annual cost goes to $16 a year. Still pretty darn cheap in my book.
Grab these new member deals before they’re gone:
You can be as young as 13 and get an AARP card (really!).
Just like teens can have an Amazon Prime membership, people as young as age 13 can sign up for an AARP membership. Once you go through the steps to join, you’ll see they accept birth dates for applicants as young as 13.
Note: While you can join as young as 13, you might not be eligible for all the discounts available, like those restricted by law and certain insurance products.
TIP: While the AARP name originally stood for the “American Association of Retired Persons,” ever since the late 90s, they just go by their acronym.
Is AARP worth it for young people? For these discounts, yes!
I’ll be honest — the total number of discounts you’ll get with an AARP membership is a bit overwhelming at first. For example, the latest PDF guide of all the current discounts is 28 pages long!
But here are the absolute best discounts (in my opinion) that make an AARP membership worth it for young people. I’ll go more in-depth with each one in a minute!
1. Save up to 15% on hotel stays from a ton of top brands.
Even if you want to book directly with a hotel to get your loyalty points, you can still get your AARP hotel discount by flashing your membership card at check-in or during the booking process. (Most will have a drop-down to select an AARP membership rate.)
You’ll typically save more when you stay on a weekday versus a weekend. And remember: these discounts are taken off the best available rate. So let’s say your hotel costs $180 a night. With the AARP discount, you’ll save a quick $18, which is more than enough to pay for a year’s membership.
Here are some of my favorite AARP hotel discounts:
- Best Western — 5% to 15% off
- Comfort Inn — up to 10% off
- Comfort Suites — up to 10% off
- Crowne Plaza Hotels & Resorts — 10% off or more
- Econo Lodge — up to 10% off
- Hilton — up to 10% off and late checkout when available
- Holiday Inn — 10% off
- Kimpton Hotels & Resorts — 10% off
- MainStay Suites — up to 10% off
- Motel 6 — up to 10% off and late checkout until 2 p.m. upon request
- Quality — up to 10% off
- Radisson Hotels — up to 10% off
- Red Roof — 10% off and one free bottle of water per room
- Rodeway Inn — up to 10% off
- Sleep Inn — 10% off
- Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts — up to 10% off
- Wyndham Hotels & Resorts — 10% off
TIP: You’ll also save on hotel stays with AAA membership discounts, like getting 20% off at Omni Hotels.
2. Some of the biggest discounts are on rental cars — like 30% off Avis and Budget.
When you book your rental car online through the special AARP website for Budget or Avis, you’ll unlock savings of 30% off base rental car rates. Since the average cost of a car rental is about $80 per day, you could save over $25 a day. That’s about twice the annual cost of an AARP membership.
You’ll also get a 3% credit for future rentals within the next year and a free upgrade on compact through full-size rental cars.
3. Get $65 off round-trip economy flights with British Airways.
When you book a flight with British Airways through Jan. 31, 2024, your AARP membership will unlock $65 off standard economy fares (World Traveller) and premium economy fares (World Traveller Plus).
For business class fares (Club World), you’ll save $200 with an AARP membership.
4. Get BOGO ticket offers for tons of Ticketmaster events.
When I scrolled through all the Ticketmaster discounts just for AARP members, I was stunned at all the offers! Most of the available offers were for 50% off tickets and discounts on four-packs of tickets for you and three friends. They’re always adding new events, but here are a few events I found in May 2023:
- Cirque du Soleil: Corteo
- Blue Man Group
- Beetlejuice (Touring)
- 1776: The Musical
- Ben Folds
- TLC, Shaggy, En Vogue, and Sean Kingston
- Ludacris – Music by DJ Infamous
- WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event
5. Take 10% – 15% off your restaurant bill at Denny’s, Carrabba’s, Outback Steakhouse & more.
Flash that AARP membership card when the check arrives for an easy percentage off your total. You’d only need to spend about $120 a year at these restaurants in order to let the discount completely pay for your AARP membership.
Your AARP restaurant discount works on food and nonalcoholic beverages at national chains like these:
- Auntie Anne’s — 10% off (also includes orders placed in-app and online when you link your AARP card)
- Bonefish Grill — 10% off
- Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. — 10% off
- Carrabba’s Italian Grill — 10% off
- Cinnabon — 10% off
- Denny’s — 15% off
- Jamba — 10% off
- Joe’s Crab Shack — 10% off
- Moe’s Southwest Grill — 10% off
- Outback Steakhouse — 10% off
I also found a lot of local restaurant discounts — like $5 off a purchase of $25 at Buffalo Wild Wings — when I entered my ZIP code on the AARP member offers website.
TIP: Download The Krazy Coupon Lady app so you never miss out on the best savings and discounts.
6. Save 15% on a Valvoline oil change (a savings of around $12 – $16 for a mid-size sedan).
If you have a car, you know the cost of getting a twice-yearly oil change can really add up — especially if you don’t use one of these oil change coupons. Flash your AARP card at any Valvoline Instant Oil Change location and save a quick 15%. You’ll also get 15% off any preventative maintenance services at Valvoline like air filter and wiper blade replacements.
Here’s what a Valvoline oil change would cost for my 2018 Honda Accord Sport 2.0, which holds 5.1 quarts of oil:
- Full synthetic: $106.19 regular price
- OR Synthetic blend: $80.19 regular price
- AARP discount (15% off): $12.03 – $15.93
So after just one oil change with my AARP card discount, I’d pay for my membership!
7. Score a free resume review and 20% off resume writing services from TopResume.
Your AARP membership comes with a free resume review, where an expert from TopResume will provide you with feedback on how to improve your resume to get more job interviews. They’ll take a look at what you submit and give you tips on ways to structure, organize, and summarize your skills.
You can also save 20% on their resume writing services:
- Professional Growth package (includes a keyword-optimized resume) — $119 (reg. $139)
- Career Evolution package (includes a resume and cover letter) — $159 (reg. $199)
- Executive Priority package (includes a resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile) — $249 (reg. $319)
8. Get a free review of your student loan repayment options with Savi.
With your AARP membership, you can get a free assessment of all your student loans and loan forgiveness options through Savi. And if you decide you need their upgraded services to tackle your debts, you’ll save up to $50 on their packages.
9. Save $120 a year on an AT&T Unlimited Premium plan.
If you have an AT&T Unlimited Premium plan, they’ll knock $10 off your monthly bill for each line you have, plus they’ll waive activation and upgrade fees.
To get the discount, just show your AARP membership card in-store or use your AARP login to shop online at ATT.com.
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