$50 Bonus for Opening a 529 Plan with ScholarShare – Doctor Of Credit

Update 5/22/23: Deal is back beginning today through 5/31/23 (ht Vanson and Superman):

Update 5/24/21: Deal available again for May 24 – May 31. Get a $50 bonus when you open a new 529 Plan account with a $50 contribution (and sign up for recurring contributions of $25 per month for 6 months) between May 24 and May 31, 2021. Your $50 bonus will be deposited on or before January 31, 2022.

Hat tip to reader Superman

Update 12/2/20: Deal available again, valid 12/9-12/13. This is a Target gift card. Hat tip to reader G E

Update 5/26/20: Deal is back again for many states. Valid 5/26 – 5/31 (note: dates may vary by offer). Hat tip to reader Burton

Update 5/26/19: Deal is back for Scholarshare again. Valid from May 28th until May 31st. Hat tip to reader Yosk

Update 11/30/18: Looks like the deal will return for December 5th – December 12th. So far we’ve only been able to find a working link for ScholarShare. Hat tip to reader Superman.

Update: Added Ideal and FL Prepaid offers. 

The Offer

ScholarShare link | Virginia529 link | Idaho Ideal link | Florida Prepaid link | MN Saves

In honor of “5/29 day”, various 529 plans are offering a special bonus for those opening a new 529 plan:

• Open a 529 plan with ScholarShare with $50 and get a $50 match
• Open a 529 plan with Virginia529 with $50 and get a $50 match
• Open a 529 plan with Ideal Idaho with $25 and get a $25 match
• Open a 529 plan with Florida Prepaid with $25 and get a $25 match

The Fine Print

• These offers are available nationwide
• ScholarShare is through June 1, and Virginia529 is through May 31

Our Verdict

Being that these two are offering a similar bonus, there may be similar bonuses elsewhere. I’m not familiar with the ins and outs of college plans and their tax affect – please do your own research before deciding whether to open one and which plan to choose. (People who get a state tax deduction to contribute to their own plan in their own state should do that first.)

Regardless, it could be a nice bonus for someone saving for college who was planning to open a 529 plan anyway.

Hat tip to readers Misha and to Jeffery who notes that you can open multiple accounts by having the beneficiary and account owner combination be different