Get a free Chicago CityKey card. As of April 25, 2019 there are still free CityKey cards available. In order to get a card you need to make an appointment at the Office of the City Clerk, City Hall, 121 N LaSalle, Room 107 Monday-Friday 9AM-430PM Appointments fill up quickly. Search for appointments here. They also offer Mobile Printing events from time to time. Those are listed here. Currently not available.
The card is worth $18+
The main value in the CityKey card is one free basic admission to the Field Museum. Retail value: Chicago Resident General Admission Adults $18, Children (3-11) $11, Seniors (65+) $15, Students $15.
Free admission = $24 savings! Cha-ching!
What is Chicago CityKey card
The new ChicagoKey card is a municipal ID that can be used for: ID purposes in the city, a Ventra card, a Chicago Public Library card and to receive a hodgepodge of discounts. The card is intended for people who can’t get a regular ID but is available to all residents of the City of Chicago. The first 100,000 cards are free. After that they’re $10, under 18 $5 and free for age 65+. What interests me in this card are the discounts!
How to get a card
To get a card I printed and filled out the application, made an appointment online, and gathered up my documents. More info
Link the CityKey card to your Ventra account
The CityKey card is printed onto a zero balance Ventra card so you can add it to your Ventra account. Personally I don’t want to be waiving my address around in public so I won’t use it for that purpose.
Use it as a Library card
When you apply for CityKey you can put your library card number on the application so they are linked. I don’t carry my library card. I just use my drivers license.
City of Chicago Pharmaceutical benefits
When you fill out your application you can check a box to join and it’s free. The discounts are on name-brand and generic prescription drugs at participating pharmacies. I emailed the City Clerks office about this (they issue the card) and got no response. Check back for update.
Discounts
The discounts are what I’m interested in with this card! Here’s what caught my eye are:
- Broadway in Chicago: Discounts on a show-to-show basis. Discount theater tickets.
- Chicago Children’s Museum: $2 off regular admission at the museum’s admissions desk. Free museum days.
- Field Museum: All CityKey cardholders will be granted one free basic admission visit for themselves and immediate family (no limit on number of family members) within one calendar year of their card being issued. Free museum days. Retail value: Chicago Resident General Admission Adults $18, Children (3-11) $11, Seniors (65+) $15, Students $15. Free day at the Field
- Goodman Theatre: 50% off Mezzanine tickets which is already available to everyone.
- Joffrey Ballet: 10% off tickets to select performances. Joffrey frequently has discount tickets on Goldstar.
- Navy Pier: 20% off pier park attractions. The Ferris Wheel is $16 adults/$13 children 3-11. Illinois Resident Rates from Nov. 1- Mar 31 are $13/$11. So 20% off is a good deal. There’s also this discount,
- Entertainment Benefits Group: CityKey has partnered with Entertainment Benefits Group to offer new benefits for CityKey cardholders. You can create an account with your CityKey ID number and email address. I checked out the “deals” and wasn’t impressed. Examples:
Discount AMC passes $11.00 each with tax and fees. You can do better here.
Hotels: I tested rates in Vegas and they were about 5% higher than if you search Vegas hotel websites directly.
Gift cards were sold at full price. No discount!
Full price Sam’s Club memberships. You can get $20 off here.I didn’t test everything. I’m not confident that there are any deals here. Other categories are Theme Parks, Shows and events, Ski resorts, and rental cars. It’s too bad but if you’re shopping in any of these categories you might want to consider this as another website to check but I doubt any deals will come up - Here are all the discounts.
Summary
This card is currently free. Sign up now before the free cards are gone. The one free day at the Field Museum is worth $24 per person. The pharmaceutical benefit (whatever it is because there is currently no info) is also worth signing up for even if you never end up using it because it’s free.
