There’s a few major movie theater subscriptions out there these days. And they all do a pretty good job of saving you money at the theater. One of them is Regal Unlimited, available at Regal Theaters all around the US.

While there’s definitely room for improvement in the small things, Regal Unlimited delivers a solid value for subscribers. Let’s break down how it does it and what can be improved.

Regal Unlimited Savings

The main perk of Regal Unlimited and services like it is saving money on movie tickets. And if you’re near a Regal Theater that you like, you won’t be disappointed. Here’s a breakdown of the pricing.

There’s some caveats to this pricing worth mentioning. When you make ticket reservations through the app, you still pay a $0.50 convenience fee. And if you want to go to a theater that isn’t covered by your plan, that is a $3 per ticket surcharge. Both of these I feel should be factored into the price of the service rather than tacked on in very specific situations.

But the value it provides is evident immediately. The starting prices of $19 per month is going to service most moviegoers very nicely. If you see more than 2 movies per month and you've got a nice Regal Theater near you, Regal Unlimited is something to consider based on pure value.

But there’s more to it than that.

Regal Unlimited Perks

Like all of these theater subscriptions, Regal Unlimited doesn’t stop at tickets.

The biggest perk it provides is discounts.

Concessions will be a 10% discount. For me a large popcorn and drink is essential so every bit of savings counts.

Also, if you want to get other screen types like IMAX or 40 X, then you only pay a surcharge rather than full price. From what I can tell, the specific surcharge varies from theater to theater. Regardless, those tickets can get pretty expensive and boiling it down to a surcharge is a tremendous benefit.

Finally, there's the regal crown reward systems. On the surface, it's pretty standard. Whenever you spend money at regal and attach your rewards account to it, you accumulate points that you can redeem. Regal system is one of the best in my opinion, if only because they give you special digital cards to show off.

You can redeem the rewards for concessions, and, most importantly, free tickets. Before Regal Unlimited existed, I used to game the reward system with MoviePass 1.0, and get so many free tickets that I could treat my friends to the movies on a whim. obviously times are different now.

Regal App Experience

Most of your time using this service will be through the Regal app on your phone. This experience can vary wildly.

The app is well designed enough. It’s easy to find the theater or movie you’re looking for and get tickets for them. It also makes the Crown Rewards system easy to access and redeem offers from.

I also like having a digital Crown Card. It’s a small thing, but it gamifies the experience a bit, making me want to get new card looks and climb the rewards ladder. It is an aesthetically pleasing experience all around.

However, in my own usage, the app will go through periods of extreme slowness. Not nearly as bad as MoviePass or Cineopolis, but not the fast and fluid AMC app either. This would happen both on cell reception and on home Wi-fi, so it’s not simply a loading issue.

These periods don’t last, but they tend to be when a big movie premieres in my area, which is when I most NEED it to work.

Again, this is not a huge problem; these periods tend to last 48 hours at most. But it happened consistently enough in my testing to where I felt obligated to point it out.

Overall, the app is functional, but there are some issues that need to be fixed.

Pricing Commitment

The biggest disadvantage of Regal Unlimited compared to its competitors is the fact that it requires a 3 or 12 month commitment. If you want to cancel the subscription early, you will incur a termination fee. This fee is much higher than what is offered by some of Regal Unlimited's competitors.

Both MoviePass and AMC Stubs A-list let you pay month by month. This means that if a month is coming up or you want to save some money or you wdon't need it, you can just cancel. I think for most people, that flexibility is a huge plus.

Of course, paying a lump sum upfront can also be considered a perk. I personally like paying month-to-month so I can cancel at anytime. Your mileage may vary.

Wrap Up

Overall, Regal Unlimited is a great way to save money on tickets and get discounted concessions too. While there are some improvements that could be made, I think that it will be serviceable for most moviegoers.

If a Regal Cinema is the main movie theater you like to go to, then this will be a tremendous value to you.

If, however, your favorite theaters are AMC or another chain, then Regal Unlimited shouldn’t pull you away from them. In a world where AMC Stubs A-List and MoviePass exist, you should pick your favorite theater(s) and pick a service from there.

For myself, I use MoviePass to go between a Regal Theater and a nicer, small-chain theater that’s a little further away. That flexibility really works for me and comes out cheaper. But I also game both theaters’ rewards systems to where I get extra tickets outside of MoviePass. Since I typically see 2 movies a month (more during the Summer and Fall), this works for me.

But for Regal lovers and frequent moviegoers, Regal Unlimited provides a good experience and incredible value.