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Earlier this week, T-Mobile announced that it was adding more benefits for its wireless customers, under the guise of creating a “Magenta” elite status. Despite the name, Magenta status will apply to all T-Mobile customers, regardless of plans or services.
Normally, these sorts of press releases are more about marketing chutzpah. In this case, although there isn’t much in the way of details, the list of benefits is impressive and includes: Hilton elite status, free gas and EV charging with certain rental car companies and discounted movie and concert tickets. (h/t: Frequent Miler Insider Ben)
The Deal
T-Mobile has announced the creation of “Magenta Status,” which really just means an additional set of benefits for its wireless customers. These perks will start to be rolled out on February 13th. Benefits include:
- 15% Off Hilton Properties: T-Mobile customers will have access to 15% off across most Hilton brands worldwide.
- Hilton Silver Status: T-Mobile customers will get automatic Hilton Honors Silver Status through March 31, 2025. It’s unclear if this is a one-time or ongoing benefit.
- Free rental care fuel or EV-charging: T-Mobile customers don’t have to fill up the gas tank at Dollar or recharge their Electric Vehicle (EV) at Hertz before returning it. T-Mobile says that this will be “available at nearly ALL airports across America.” We’re unclear as to whether you ONLY get free gas at Dollar and ONLY free EV charging at Hertz or if you get gas and EV charging at both. We also don’t know whether or not a corporate code that requires a higher rate will be necessary.
- $5 Movie Tickets: T-Mobile customers will have access to a $5 ticket for everyone on their account to a new movie each month. February’s movie is “Bob Marley: One Love.”
- Discount concert tickets: Customers will get 25% off tickets to certain shows at Live Nation amphitheaters and select clubs and venues, all year-round. T-Mobile says that discounts will be available on over 1,000,000 tickets annually.
- New T Life App: T-Mobile is introducing a new app for T-Mobile customers to keep track of their perks. It’s available on Android and iOS and will be an automatic update to the “T-Mobile Tuesdays” app.
Quick Thoughts
None of these benefits are currently live, and won’t be until February 13th. So, it’s impossible to check them out, confirm the details and see how they’re actually implemented. That said, it seems like an impressive list, given that it appears to be offered to virtually all T-Mobile customers.
By far, the most exciting thing for me is the free rental car gas and EV charging. Like most of us, I always fill my car up before returning it, and it’s usually a bit of a pain to find a station on the way to the airport, budget in the time required, etc. To be able to just return the car without having to worry (or pay) for gas? That could be a killer deal.
It looks like the two companies that T-Mobile is partnering with are Hertz and Dollar and it’s not clear whether EV charging and gas fills are offered at both, or if it’s EV charging at Hertz only and gas at Dollar only. We also don’t know if there will be code that we’ll have to use in order to get the benefit, which could result in a higher rate than we might otherwise pay. Without those details, I’m cautiously excited.
The rest of the deals, including Hilton discounts and elite status, discount movie tickets and reduced-price concert tickets, fall into the “nice to have for free” category. Each of my local movie theaters already has a $5 movie night during the week and my assumption is that the T-Mobile tickets will be available only during weekdays as well. Hilton Silver Status is a skosh above from worthless, but at least gives folks a 20% bonus on base points and access to Hilton’s 5th night free benefit. However, my guess is that, if you’re reading this blog, you already have access to Hilton Gold or higher through a credit card.
All told, this sounds like an unexpectedly generous list of benefits, considering that it’s available for no cost to most T-Mobile customers. Once everything starts rolling out, we’ll know exactly how useful each perk will be.
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hilton is getting desperate – it sounds like. good earnings report…but maybe the forward internal forecast is lower?
Too bad its Hertz and Dollar (a Hertz company). Sapphire covered insurance claim on the rental. I receive email from eclaims, Sapphire’s insurer, that the case is closed and the claim was successfully negotiated (for $100 less than the full amount). 5 weeks later (sufficient time to ‘forget’ that claim was final) I get an angry phone call from Hertz that I owe them $100 and I should take care of that immediate. Fat chance. I told them ‘talk to the insurance’. Called the insurance about this. They said Hertz is known to do that, If they call again: ‘tell them to call the insurance’.
$5 movie ticket is a fun perk. It’s available 7 days a week. We go to theatres with lie flat seats. Tickets are generally $18 to $20. It’s a nice savings for 2 of us. The $5 tickets that a lot of theatres offer are generally old movies brought back for nostalgia.
How does one access the Hilton Silver status?
I think one of the better T-mo benefits is the free WiFi when flying on certain US carriers.
Me and P2 used it on 15hr Int’l flight non-stop SFO-MNL in Polaris end of January.
I was pleasantly suprised at the speeds, and it was nice after sleeping six hours on the red-eye to cheek email, FM, DoC and FB, wife got to catch on FB and IG posts.
We’re on a grandfathered Military One plan 7 lines $140 and we also have home internet with T-mo. But we have been locked out of some of the better upgrade deals and benefits (AAA roadside) deals last 24 mos since the launched Magenta. Imagine if the economy continues to slow that will change.
We were paying $9 for Netflix Ultra (Premium) with four screens (users) an 4K – it was useful during C19 but now less so we downgraded to Standard (2 screens) with the change we loose two 4K & 2 screens/users and its $8.50.
I could see this free gas thing being pretty helpful for people who live near an airport and drive long distances to work. Renting a cheap vehicle with a big gas tank and siphoning the gas might also work
You keep using that word (chutzpah). I do not think it means what you think it means. 😉
I always thought it was audacity/bravado . Tell me what I need to know!
Typically the word, “Chutzpah”, as a negative tone to it. If you substitute the word, “nerve”, then it might make more sense. i.e. That person had a lot of Chutzpah (Nerve) to do something like they did.
oddly…I think it’s positive. Though would never associate it with marketing. More of a personal attribute / modifier.
Robert is spot-on. While it can be used in a positive way (in the context of having the nerve to barge into your boss’s office and demand a well-deserved raise, for instance), it’s generally negative, and doesn’t make sense the way you used it. There really isn’t a perfectly analogous word in English, so it’s tricky to use properly.
We switched to T Mobile a little over a year ago and got $400 in gift cards (we put them on Amazon) and a $90 monthly rate for 2 of us.
Unfortunately they now require bank account access or the rate is $100.
Free Netflix was nice but now it is tied to the ad level of service and I don’t see a way to pay the difference to upgrade it.
Free year of MLBTV was nice.
T Mobile provides a lot of discounts although if they don’t have service in your area it doesn’t matter. And they seem to be trying to push people into a higher monthly plan claiming the benefits are better but not IMO.
Log into your Netflix account and you can change the tier to no ads and pay the difference. (The charge will be billed by TMo.)
You can pay the majority of your bill via CC and let the autopay pick up the rest. I have been paying all but $5 with whatever card gives me the best deal that month and still get the autopay discount.
Actually you can have a debit card or bank account on file for the auto-pay discount but still pay 100% of the bill by credit card before the auto pay date and receive the auto-pay discount.
Not worth the security risk of giving TMO your bank account information. They have a sloppy security record with multiple breaches and even showing all account details to other customers. No way I’d give them blanket access to my bank account. They are not to be trusted with that kind of valuable info.
This is 100% correct and not discussed enough regarding auto-pay. Don’t give access to your bank account. The recourse is different from that of a credit card.
T-Mobile…another coupon book.
Nice benefits especially since the T Mobile Tuesday benefits have been anything but stellar lately .
But they are still not enough to keep me with a company that took my main phone number away. Long story. I am leaving them next month with absolutely no regrets.
Free gas would be nice, but after an experience i had at Dollar at LAX.. never again. I’d rather take the city bus!