Meal Plans 101

Meal plans are purchased each semester. In the spring semester, resident students will automatically be assigned the same meal plan they had in the fall but can change during the designated add/change period. University Apartment and commuter students are not auto-assigned the same meal plan, but may sign up for a meal plan every semester.

The myUnlimited Meal Plan will allow for unlimited meal swipes during every scheduled meal period, 7 days a week. The plan also includes Discount Dollars. Students with a myUnlimited Meal Plan can use Discount Dollars at all retail locations and receive a 40% discount on applicable products.

The base cost covers utilities, maintenance, repairs, rent, and the labor needed to support the food service program. These costs have always been compenents of the total meal plan prices; we are just being more transparent about the costs and breaking it down so you can see how your Discount Dollars are calculated. Once you pay the base cost, you get the remaining amount in Discount Dollars. With Discount Dollars, you get discounts which are activated at resident (60%) and retail (40%) dining locations when you use your meal plan. myFlex Meal Plan student can add up to $500 more Discount Dollars without paying any additional base cost. Since myChoice is a minor meal plan for nonresident student only and has a lower base rate, additional Discount Dollars cannot be purchased.

Discount Dollars are part of your chosen plan and are set up as a declining balance account on your ID card. Discount Dollars are like Munch Money, but Munch Money does not activate the deep discounts at dining locations and does not come with a meal plan (Munch Money can be added separately, if desired). Each time you use your ID card at a dining location, your meal plan's Discount Dollars will get activated and the venue-specific discount (60% at all resident dining rooms [myFlex and myChoice only] and 40% at retail brands) will automatically be calculated and the balance will be debited for your purchase. Your Discount Dollars' remaining balance will appear on the register display and your receipt. Also, your meal plan is tax free, so you will also save an additional 8% on all discounted sale prices. Only Discount Dollars activate the 60% and 40% discounts; other campus funds (i.e., Munch Money, Podium, Campus Gold, F/S Dining Plan) will not.

Discount Dollars come with your meal plan. When using Discount Dollars, you "unlock" the deep discounts at all dining locations (60% at resident dining rooms and 40% at retail brands). Up to $500 more Discount Dollars can be purchased each semester with a myUnlimited or myFlex meal plan. No additional Discount Dollars can be purchased with a myChoice meal plan. Lastly, Discount Dollars cannot be purchased outside of purchasing a myUnlimited and myFlex meal plan. Munch Money is optional and does NOT come with your meal plan. You can add tax-free Munch Money to make purchases at 518 Market or in vending machines (i.e., locations that do not activate discounts with Discount Dollars). A Podium account can also be used for these purchases, but Podium does not provide tax-free spending. A meal plan is not required to purchase Munch Money. You can add as much Munch Money as you want per semester, but a minimum of $25 is necessary to start an account. Both Discount Dollars and Munch Money carry over from fall to spring semester but expire at the end of the spring semester.

The main reason to add a Munch Money account is to make tax-free food-related purchases at places that do not activate a discount, i.e., vending machines and 518 Market. A Podium account can also be used for these purchases, but Podium does not provide tax-free spending. We strongly suggest that you add either Munch Money or Podium for vending or 518 Market purchases. You do not want to waste your Discount Dollars on purchases that do not activate a discount. You can also pay with credit at these locations.

You should never use your Discount Dollars for purchases that do not activate discounts, i.e., vending and pre-packaged goods. We recommend to go online (www.ualbanyid.com) and add either Munch Money or Podium dollars. Or, you can pay for these purchases with cash or a credit card. When you use your ID card in the vending machines, the machines are programmed to look for Munch Money first, then Podium and lastly, Discount Dollars. When buying pre-packaged goods in retail (e.g., 518 Market), the cashiers are trained to ask you what tender you want to use so you can avoid using Discount Dollars on non-discounted items.

No, Discount Dollars only come with a purchased meal plan and more (up to $500) can be added on the myFlex and the myUnlimited plans. Munch Money is an optional tax-free account you can add to your ID card if you want to purchase items at 518 Market or in vending machines. Podium dollars can also be used to purchase items in 518 Market and vending, but Podium is not tax-free like Munch Money. Since deep discounts are offered with the meal plan, have prices been increased to make up the difference? No! The base cost covers the operating costs. All menu pricing is carefully reviewed annually and compared to local, regional and national pricing. Rest assured, pricing has not been djusted to counteract the discounts. That's what makes the myMeal Plans such a great value!

No limits! You can use Discount Dollars at any dining location during its hours of operation.

Once you purchase a meal plan, you just need to order your food and beverage in retail or swipe into a dining room and the venue-specific discount will automatically be calculated and the purchase price will be debited from your balance on your ID card.

You can add up to $500 more in Discount Dollars per semester to your myFlex or myUnlimited meal plan. Additional Discount Dollars cannot be added to a myChoice plan.

No, the base cost is completely covered by the initial meal plan purchase price. When you purchase more Discount Dollars (up to $500 per semester), you will have the full amount of added Discount Dollars to spend.

No, there are no more fixed amount of resident dining meal swipes with the myFlex and myChoice plans. If you have one of these plans and want to eat in a resident dining room, it will be 60% off the door price (you pay $5.06 as opposed to $12.65 and no tax!). The myUnlimited plan will allow scheduled meal period access to the resident dining rooms.

All resident students, University apartment students, and commuter students can purchase the myUnlimited meal plan. UAlbany first year students living in resident halls are required to have a myUnlimited meal plan. The myUnlimited Meal Plan #1 will be automatically assigned to resident first year students but can be changed to the #2 plan up until 10 business days after the start of the semester.

UAlbany non-first year traditional housing residents, University apartment residents, and commuter students can purchase a myFlex meal plan. UAlbany non-first year students living in resident halls are required to purchase a myFlex plan and will automatically be assigned the myFlex Meal Plan #2. Resident non-first year students can change this plan to any other myFlex meal plan option (#1 - #5) up until 10 business days after the start of the semester.

Only University apartment and commuter students can purchase the myChoice Meal Plan, and no additional Discount Dollars can be added to this meal plan. This is considered a minor meal plan meant for students that do not live in resident halls and who have kitchens at home. It gives them an opportunity to explore campus dining. University apartment and commuter students can change their myChoice meal plan up to 10 business days after the start of the semester.

The myChoice plan is considered a minor, exploratory plan. It is less expensive than the myFlex plan, but additional Discount Dollars can't be added and only one myChoice meal plan can be purchased per semester. If you plan to dine on campus 2-3 times per week, a myFlex plan may be a better choice. I am a non-first year resident student trying to choose the right meal plan. Please tell me what are the main differences between the myUnlimited and myFlex plans? The myUnlimited plans all scheduled meal period access to the dining rooms and a small amount of Discount Dollars (more can be added). If you plan to dine more frequently at resident dining rooms, the plan would be the right one for you. If you plan to dine mostly at retail locations, then a myFlex plan would be a better fit.

During the first two weeks of each semester, you can use CBORD Mobile ID App or UAlbanyID.com with your NETID & Password. After the 10th day of classes, please email IDCard@albany.edu.

Yes, you can change a meal plan up until 10 business days after the start of the semester. Please note that all resident hall students are required to be on a meal plan. Freshmen living in a resident hall are required to have a myUnlimited Meal Plan. The myUnlimited Meal Plan #1 will be automatically assigned to resident freshmen but can be changed to the #2 up until 10 business days after the start of the semester. Non-freshmen living in resident halls will automatically be assigned myFlex Meal Plan #2 and can change this plan to any other myFlex Meal Plan option (#1-#5).

Please refer to the UAlbany change/refund policy.

Discount Dollars carry over from fall to spring semester but expire at the end of the spring semester.

No, you get to keep all your Discount Dollars until the end of the spring semester, they will then expire if unused.