The Rise of Rent Rewards in the UK

For years, homeowners have enjoyed the perks of loyalty points, cashback, and rewards credit cards. Meanwhile, renters—who often pay out their single largest monthly expense on rent—have traditionally received nothing in return. Fortunately, that is changing. A new wave of fintech platforms has arrived in the UK to help renters get more value from their monthly payments.

Two of the most prominent names in this space are Rentd and Brick Rewards. While both platforms aim to reward you for paying your rent, they go about it in fundamentally different ways. Here is a factual, head-to-head comparison to help you decide which service fits your lifestyle and financial habits best.

At a Glance: The Core Difference

The single most important difference between these two services is how your rent is paid:

  • Rentd is a Mastercard-powered rewards card and "UK Rent Account" where you pay your rent by card through their platform. This represents a change in how you pay your landlord or letting agent.
  • Brick Rewards is a free rewards app that uses secure open banking to detect your rent payment after you pay exactly as you normally do. Brick never touches, handles, or moves your money, meaning there is zero change to your existing payment habits.

How Rentd Works

Rentd positions itself as a "UK Rent Account" built specifically for renters who feel overlooked by traditional financial products. It operates on a card-based payment model.

The Mechanism

To use Rentd, you pay your rent by card through their system. This is a shift from the traditional bank transfer method most UK tenants use. Rentd offers three different card tiers with varying benefits: Core, Elite, and Zenith.

Earning Points

Points are accumulated based on your card tier. The earn rates for rent and everyday spending are structured as follows:

  • Core Tier: Earns 1 point per £1 spent.
  • Elite Tier: Earns 2 points per £1 spent.
  • Zenith Tier: Earns 3 points per £1 spent.

Redeeming Points

Points earned through the Rentd card can be redeemed across several categories, including travel, dining, shopping, household bills, and other brand partners.

How Brick Rewards Works

Brick Rewards is designed for renters who want to earn points on their rent without changing their payment routine, switching bank accounts, or opening new cards.

The Mechanism

Brick uses secure, read-only open banking technology. You simply download the free app and connect your existing UK bank account. When you pay your rent as normal—whether to a landlord, letting agent, estate agent, or housemate—the app automatically detects the transaction leaving your account, verifies it, and awards you points. Brick is not a payment app; it never holds, processes, or moves your money.

Earning Points

With Brick, there are three primary ways to earn:

  1. Paying Rent On Time: Earn points automatically every month just for paying your rent.
  2. Shopping with Partners: Earn bonus points by spending at Brick partner businesses nearby, including local coffee shops, restaurants, bars, gyms, and beauty salons.
  3. Referrals: Earn extra points by sharing your unique referral code with other renters.

Redeeming Points

Brick points are designed to be highly relevant to your local area and daily life. You can spend them on:

  • Local Partner Rewards: Perks at local cafes, restaurants, gyms, and salons based around your postcode.
  • Discounted Gift Cards: Use your points to part-pay for gift cards (for example, getting a £100 M&S gift card for £90 plus 200 points).
  • Everyday Perks: Rewards spanning food, fitness, flights, and more.
  • Monthly Rent Giveaways: Enter your points into monthly draws for a chance to win a month's rent.

Note: Brick Rewards points cannot be redeemed or withdrawn as cash.

Extra Benefit: Credit Score Building

In addition to rewards, Brick offers an opt-in feature that reports your on-time rent payments to Experian. Because this uses positive payment history, it may help improve your credit score over time and could help demonstrate your financial reliability to future lenders.

Comparing the Two: Key Considerations

1. Convenience and Behaviour Change

If you prefer to keep your financial setup exactly as it is, Brick Rewards offers a seamless experience. Because it uses open banking to view transactions in a read-only capacity, you do not have to change how, when, or where you pay your rent. Rentd requires you to transition to paying your rent via their card system.

2. Cost and Accessibility

Brick Rewards is completely free to download and use on both iOS and Android. There are no tier fees to unlock the basic ability to earn points on your rent. Rentd operates on a tiered card system (Core, Elite, and Zenith), which offers higher point multipliers on their premium tiers.

3. Where You Can Spend Your Points

Rentd points are geared toward travel, dining, shopping, and household bills. Brick Rewards focuses heavily on local, postcode-specific rewards—such as your local independent coffee shop or gym—alongside national gift cards and their popular monthly rent giveaways.

The Verdict: Which Is Right for You?

Both platforms offer a great way for UK renters to finally get recognized for their largest monthly outgoing. The right choice depends on how you want to manage your payments.

Rentd may be best for you if:

  • You want a dedicated card-based rent account.
  • You want to earn points on both rent and everyday card spending through a single card product.
  • You are interested in tiered benefits and are comfortable paying rent via card.

Brick Rewards may be best for you if:

  • You want to earn rewards without changing how you pay your rent.
  • You want a completely free app with no card sign-ups or bank account switches.
  • You want to support and redeem rewards at local businesses near your home.
  • You want the added, optional benefit of reporting your rent to Experian to help build your credit history.

Ready to start getting rewarded for the rent you already pay? Download Brick Rewards for free today and connect your account via secure open banking in minutes.