Flybuys is Australia’s top performing retail loyalty program, according to the nation’s “largest” behavioural study into loyalty program performance, released by research agency Honeycomb Strategy.
Flybuys ranked first among retail loyalty programs in The Science of Loyalty 2026 study, ahead of Everyday Rewards and McDonald’s MyMacca’s Rewards.
The study also reveals that while consumers have no shortage of loyalty cards, memberships and rewards apps, active use of loyalty programs sits at just 45%, a year-on-year decline from 52% in 2025.
The study analysed 60 of the nation’s “leading” loyalty programs, assessing them across measures including saliency, membership rates, active engagement and impact on spend. What it reveals is that the best performing programs work with human behaviour, not against it.
Flybuys
The study notes that Flybuys is a “masterclass in delivering cognitive ease and reducing friction at every interaction”, resulting in 79% of surveyed members actively favouring shopping where they can use Flybuys.
For consumers, its appeal is straightforward, says Honeycomb Strategy. Members can earn across a multitude of retailers, spanning all aspects of their life including Coles, Bunnings, Kmart, Officeworks and Target for their everyday spend, while 2000 points translates directly to $10 off.
Once enough points have been accumulated, rewards are redeemable immediately at the checkout.
MyMacca’s Rewards
McDonald’s MyMacca’s Rewards takes a different approach with smaller rewards that consumers can access relatively quickly.
Members can turn points into free food, while separate offers – such as free items with a minimum spend – mean there can still be something available even when a member doesn’t have enough points for a redemption, says Honeycomb Strategy.
The result is a program that gives customers regular reasons to check back and 65% of surveyed members say the loyalty program makes them actively favour McDonald’s.
Beauty Loop
MECCA’s “highly successful” Beauty Loop demonstrates the value of a personalised loyalty experience, according to Honeycomb Strategy.
Members receive curated Beauty Loop boxes during the year, with frequency and value increasing by tier, alongside birthday rewards and additional bonus gifts.
As a result, 54% of surveyed MECCA Beauty Loop members actively engage with the program.
A winning loyalty program
Honeycomb Strategy founder Renata Freund says that the strongest loyalty programs are built around a value exchange that rewards customers for the effort they put in, whether that’s money off the grocery bill, free food, a better travel experience or a curated beauty gift.
“The best loyalty programs understand that loyalty is a value exchange. If you’re asking customers to give you their time, attention, personal data and spend, they need to feel they’re getting more back than they’re putting in,” she says.
“The programs winning right now share two things: they overdeliver on that exchange, and they work with human behaviour. They’ve stripped out the friction that makes engagement hard work. If someone can’t engage with the program easily, or nothing triggers them to return before they’ve moved on, engagement fades.
“That’s what creates loyalty. Customers feel that the effort they put into the relationship is being rewarded exponentially, rather than simply being given a token thank you.”
The five ‘Human Truths’
Honeycomb Strategy’s proprietary Human Truths framework is said to translate behavioural science into the forces that drive real buyer behaviour, analysing loyalty programs through a human truth lens rather than in purely technical or academic terms.
The 2026 study finds five Human Truths that “supercharge” customer engagement:
- We want it now
- We buy who we are
- We hate losing more than we love winning
- We spend in mental buckets
- We take the path of least effort
Honeycomb Strategy Strategy Director Kieran Collins says these five Human Truths show what Australians want from their loyalty program.
“That includes the truths that we will consistently take a smaller reward now over a bigger one later; every purchase says something about who we are, or who we want to become; the fear of losing something, or missing out on it, moves us more than the promise of getting it; we treat the same money differently depending on which mental bucket it comes from and how much it hurts to hand over; and we choose what is easiest to think of and easiest to buy.”
