Why Are CVS Receipts So Long?
Updated: Jun. 07, 2022
No, it's not because you're buying too much.
Even if CVS isn’t your pharmacy of choice, you’re probably seen a joke or two about the chain’s super-long receipts. They can easily reach several feet even if you’re just picking up one or two things! Like Goodwill’s color-coded price tags and Aldi’s numerous barcodes, extra-long receipts are part of the CVS experience. As a result, people love to make fun of them — lengthy CVS receipts are the subject of countless memes and Reddit posts. So why are CVS receipts so long? It’s a marketing strategy.
feels like the very long CVS receipt halloween costume was made for the twitter crop being gone pic.twitter.com/1xxprBFyg1
— Sarah Lerner (@SarahLerner) May 16, 2021
Why Are CVS Receipts So Long?
CVS ExtraCare members are well aware that the rewards program loves to give back to loyal customers. Along with the personal information you submit when you sign up for CVS ExtraCare, CVS records and tracks your shopping history. CVS uses this data to give customers tailored coupons and benefits. Each coupon is 3-1/2 inches, so all the coupons can add extra feet to each receipt.
Over the past few years, CVS has made an effort to give customers shorter receipts through its digital receipt program. If you love your rewards but hate the literal paper trail, ask for a digital receipt and print out the coupons at home. You can also download the CVS app and adjust your digital receipt preferences so you never have to deal with an extra-long CVS receipt again.
Does CVS Have the Longest Receipts?
To find out whether all the hype around CVS having the longest receipts is real, I made a few quick purchases at my local CVS and Walgreens. I split my items into two separate purchases at each store. For the first transaction, I plugged in my rewards program information, and during the second, I didn’t. This let me investigate whether CVS ExtraCare and myWalgreens members received longer receipts.
Next, I measured the receipts and compared their lengths. The receipts with rewards program information were definitely longer. My CVS receipt that included ExtraCare rewards measured 12-1/2 inches. However, it wasn’t the longest! It was actually the receipt with the myWalgreens data that won out in terms of length at nearly 14 inches.
Just one more ExtraCare coupon would’ve put CVS over the top, but Walgreens seems to be giving CVS a run for its money when it comes to looooong receipts. Luckily, myWalgreens also has a digital receipt option!
Originally Published: June 07, 2022
