Starbucks Pick of the Week Discontinued: RIP Free Apps

Earlier, we declared the Starbucks Pick of the Week a free apps bonanza. Today, I’m here to confirm that the weekly free app from Starbucks has officially been discontinued.

For years, you could go to Starbucks and get a free iOS app from the App Store with your latte or your artisan pop tart or whatever. It began with the little cards with redemption codes on the back for the Featured Pick of the Week app. Then, Starbucks revamped their app and did away with the little cards, instead of sending you free apps to your inbox (meaning you didn’t even have to go to the store to get them.) Now, as of September 2016, that’s all done.

The end of the Starbucks Pick of the Week came without any fanfare. In fact, I had trouble getting official confirmation that the Pick of the Week was dead. I asked a barista, and she wasn’t sure, but she did note that the deal with Spotify probably meant the end of the deal with Apple and the App Store. I emailed Starbucks customer support, and at first, they told me that the Pick of the Week had not been discontinued, but that the free apps “do not go out as often as they used to.”

I asked: “Really?” And then a different customer service rep clarified that “not as often as they used to” means never. The Pick of the Week is officially done.

So, what do all you loyal Starbucks app wielders get (other than occasional free drinks and food after you’ve racked up enough reward stars?) It seems like the only digital perk on offer is the Spotify stuff.

As I mentioned in my previous write-up, Starbucks and Spotify have partnered up to display which songs are playing in the store and let you “take the Starbuck playlist with you.” You can also influence what music Starbucks plays in stores by saving and favoriting songs that you like in Spotify.

Neat, I suppose, but not nearly as cool as free apps once a week. (You know, you can really influence what music you hear in Starbucks stores with a magical device called headphones.)

If you’re as bummed as me about the end of the Starbucks Pick of the Week, you can tune in for the iTunes Free App of the Week. We write up reviews of each one, so if you subscribe to our newsletter, you’ll know when the best free apps come out.