Meal Plan FAQs

Tufts Dining meal plans, JumboCash, and RhinoBucks are linked to your Tufts ID.

• Meal plan holders use their Tufts ID to swipe into our dining centers or use meal swipe equivalency at one of our retail locations. 
• The Tufts ID is also used for JumboCash purchases with our off-campus partners.

First-year students are auto-enrolled in the Premium Plan for their school.

• First-year Arts and Sciences, and Engineering (AS&E) students will be automatically enrolled in the Tufts Premium Plan.
• SMFA students living on the Medford/Somerville campus are auto-enrolled in the Tufts Premium Plan, but may choose to opt into the SMFA Premium Rhino Bucks Plan instead. Please contact the Dining Office to do so.
• SMFA students living on the Boston campus are auto-enrolled in the SMFA A Plan.

 

 

Meal swipes do not carryover between semesters, so use them don’t lose them!

Check your meal swipe balance at jumbocash.net

See this handy chart to know the weekly balance to hit zero by the end of the semester. 

Meal plans are offered by semester.

• Your Fall meal plan will expire when the dining centers close after Fall semester final exams.
• Your Spring meal plan will expire when the dining centers close after after Spring final exams.
• Note: Graduating seniors on a meal plan will automatically receive a equivalent meal plan for Senior Week
• See Important Dates for more information.

Please Note:

• Meal swipes included with SMFA A & B Plan are weekly and expire at the end of the day every Friday.
• JumboCash does carryover between semesters and academic years. See JumboCash information here.
• Unused Fall semester SMFA Café Meal Money and Rhino Bucks included in your meal plan roll over to Spring semester. Meal Money and Rhino Bucks included in your meal plan left in your account at the end of the school year are non-refundable, so be sure to use everything up before the end of Spring semester.
• Graduate/Fletcher and Faculty/Staff meal swipes never expire.

 

 

Premium meal plan holders:

• Up to 10 swipes per day
• Of the 10 total swipes, a maximum of 1 per meal period may be used at a retail location that accepts meal swipe equivalency (Hodgdon, Kindlevan, Pax et Lox, SMFA Café, Late Night at Commons).
• Students can use multiple swipes per meal period at Carmichael and Dewick, up to the daily limit
• Each swipe used will be deducted from your plan’s 400 swipe per semester total

All other meal plans holders:

• Up to 6 swipes per day
• Of the 6 total swipes, a maximum of 1 per meal period may be used at a retail location that accepts meal swipe equivalency (Hodgdon, Kindlevan, Pax et Lox, SMFA Café, Late Night at Commons). 
• Students can use multiple swipes per meal period at Carmichael and Dewick, up to the daily limit
• Each swipe used will be deducted from your semester total.

The meal periods are defined as:

• Breakfast: Open-10:59 am
• Lunch: 11:00 am-4:59 pm
• Dinner: 5:00 pm-Close
• Commons Late Night: Friday & Saturday 9:00pm–12:30am

 

Meal swipes are used to enter our all-you-care-to-eat dining centers, Fresh at Carmichael and Dewick-MacPhie. A swipe also has a cash value –or equivalency (amount depends on the meal period)–that can be used in certain Tufts Dining retail locations. 1 swipe will be deducted for each equivalency used.

• 2023–24 Meal Swipe Equivalencies:
  • Breakfast: $7.98
  • Lunch: $13.62
  • Dinner: $14.97
  • Commons Late Night: $13.62
     
• Meal Swipe Equivalency may be used in these Tufts Dining retail locations:
  • Hodgdon
  • Kindlevan Café
  • Pax et Lox Glatt Kosher Deli  
  • SMFA Café
  • Commons Late Night (Fri + Sat only)
     
• Meal plan holders may use 1 equivalency at a retail location during the Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner meal periods.

* Please note: Grad/Fac 25-Meals and the weekly meal swipes included with SMFA A & B Plan are not eligible for equivalency. They may only be used at Carrmichael or Dewick-MacPhie dining centers.

Guest Swipe Policy: Guest swipes are separate, additional swipes and do not draw down your meal plan balance

• Premium Plan: 8 guest meals per semester
• 220 Plan: 6 guest meals per semester
• 160 Plan: 6 guest meals per semester
• 100 Plan: 6 guest meals per semester 
• 80 Plan: 2 guest meals per semester 
• 40 Plan: 0 guest meals per semester 

JumboCash, Meal Money, and Meal Swipe balance(s):

• Log onto www.jumbocash.net to check your balances and make sure you’re good to go.

Rhino Bucks:

• Go to www.rhinocard.com

 

We work to make Tufts Dining an inclusive place for all. In 2021, Tufts Dining won the Best Campus Dining Award from FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education)

Our Tufts Dining Dietitian will work with each Staar-Center registered student to understand each student’s needs. We can provide students with information about our menus, recipes, and ingredients, how to navigate the dining halls for options, and the resources to assist in making a meal plan work.

See more about Food Allergies on our website.

Kosher and halal information can be found on the Tufts Dining website.

Short answer: yes

• Carmichael and Dewick-MacPhie dining centers are all-you-care-to-eat. Students may take seconds while in the dining center (or thirds! Our food is yummy, we know).
• Please keep in mind that Tufts Dining strives to reduce food waste. We request that all patrons take only what they can reasonably eat.
• Food selected by each student must be either consumed while in the dining center or taken out in one of our reusable takeout containers. Please see the next FAQ for our Meal Plan Takeout rules.
• Students may take a hand-held cookie, ice cream cone, or whole fruit when leaving the facility.

 

• All of our retail locations (Commons Marketplace Hotung Café, Hodgdon, Kindlevan Café, Pax et Lox Glatt Kosher Deli, Tower Café, Mugar Café, and SMFA Café) offer takeout food.
• Our dining center (Carmichael and Dewick-MacPhie) takeout program is available to meal plan holders. See the dining center greeter for more information.

 

Yes! Carmichael or Dewick-MacPhie accept cash, JumboCash, and credit cards.

Door price with Tufts Student ID (no tax):

• Breakfast - $9.91
• Lunch/Brunch - $16.92
• Dinner - $18.60

Others (includes 7% State & Local Meals Tax):

• Breakfast - $10.60
• Lunch/Brunch - $18.10
• Dinner - $19.90

 

Thanks for asking. Important Dates and deadlines can be found on our website.

Sure thing! Swipes can be purchased in increments of 10-swipe meal blocks.

Purchase extra swipes for your meal plan at the Tufts Marketplace.

Access to healthy, nutritious food is a critical part of life. The Tufts community values taking action to solve important issues and being supportive of each other’s needs. When circumstances arise that interfere with access to food, our community comes together to support one another. Find additional food resources on the Tufts Student Life website.