Over the past year, millions of people in Japan and South Korea have been using Google Play Points, and starting today, Google Play Points is launching in the United States.
Google Play Points allow you to earn points for everything you do on the Google Play marketplace, from downloading new apps to subscribing to services to buying movies, books and more. You can also earn Play Points by downloading featured free apps and games. Weekly points events can boost your earning rate on movies, books, and select games.
The program initially launched in Japan in September 2018, followed by South Korea in April 2019 and the program has been tweaked in terms of point value and levels for the U.S.
When you earn points in a calendar year, your points add up to put you at a certain level. The more points you earn, the higher your level becomes. The higher your level is, the more points, perks and benefits you can get.
Google Play Points has four levels, ranging from Bronze to Platinum. Your level depends on how many points you’ve collected, and higher levels have perks like weekly prizes. You’ll start at the Bronze level by earning 1 point for every $1 USD you spend with Google Play, increasing up to $1 USD for 1.4 points at Platinum.
Points & benefits by level
| Level | # of points you need to have |
Points earned for every $1 spent |
Additional benefits |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bronze | 0 – 149 | 1 point |
|
| Silver | 150 – 599 | 1.1 points |
|
| Gold | 600 – 2,399 | 1.2 points |
|
| Platinum | 3,000 or above | 1.4 points |
|
Special events may be hosted where you’ll have the opportunity to earn more points than usual. For example, for this kickoff week, everyone will earn 3 times the usual Play Points on everything they buy.
In addition, users can donate their points to support a charitable cause, like Doctors Without Borders USA, Save the Children or the World Food Program USA. These nonprofits will rotate over time.
Google is funding the points, so there’s no impact on developer revenue. That is, developers won’t have to choose to participate and accept points as opposed to earning revenue from purchases.
Google Play Points will be available over the next week. The program is free to join and there’s no ongoing fee. To access Play Points, just go to the menu in the Play Store app and tap on “Play Points.”
