Posting here for reference... the mods are more than welcome to fold it into the 2010 FAQ if they want to.
Q. What is the actual "value" of a dining plan credit?
A. Based on the face value price of the various dining plans, I've come up with a rough estimate as to the "break-even" value of each type of plan credit. If you're interested in how I came up with these numbers, read on; if you just want the numbers themselves, skip to the end.
Important note: all credit "values" should be compared to OOP costs
after taxes (menu price + 6.5%) (7% at some value resort food courts).
Let's start with basic assumptions. For the QSDP and DxDP, I value the "resort mug" at $0. I do this for a couple of reasons, the most straightforward being that a non-zero valuation would need to be spread out over the number of nights of the plan. Also, it's likely something I personally wouldn't buy if it wasn't included for free in the package. Obviously, other people may place a value on it, but it does confuse the math. The other main assumption is that the "break even" value of a snack credit is $3.00, regardless of whether it's for a child or an adult. We have enough "unknown" variables in these equations (4 unknowns in 3 equations) that we need to make one assumption, and since a snack credit is identical across all plans and has a fairly narrow range of possibilities, guessing here is the best bet. If you choose to value a snack credit differently, then simply carry this value through the remaining calculations below. I'll also round up plan costs to the nearest dollar (a $0.01/night/person difference is, I'm sure you'll agree, negligible).
From these assumptions, we can value the QSDP and DxDP credits directly. At $32/night for QSDP, the break-even point is $26 after snacks, so a CS credit has a $13 break-even point. At $72/night for DxDP, the break even point is $66 after snacks, so a DxDP meal credit has a $22 break-even point. (By the same math, kids' CS credits cost $2 and DxDP credits cost $5.)
Now that we have CS and snack values, we can determine basic DDP TS credit values. For non-peak, the $42/night for adults becomes $26 after deducting $3 for a snack and $13 for a CS credit; that $26 is the TS credit value. During peak season, the extra $5/night goes straight to the TS credit value, making it $31. Again, similar math for kids' credits yields $7 non-peak and $8 peak for a TS credit.
You might be slightly confused as to why a DxDP credit is actually valued at less than a DDP TS credit even though the DxDP credit includes an appetizer (where applicable) and the basic TS credit doesn't. There are two reasons -- first, DxDP credits get the benefit of buying "in bulk", that is, a larger "order" is often at a lower "per unit" price. Also, note that DxDP credits can be used for CS as well as TS, which pushes the average down a bit.
To summarize, based on the assumptions and calculations above, the "break-even" value (after tax) of each plan credit type is:
- (All Plans) Snack credit $3 adult, $3 child
- QSDP or DDP CS credit $13 adult, $2 child
- DDP TS credit $26/$31 for non-peak/peak adult, $7/$8 for non-peak/peak child
- DxDP Meal credit $22 adult, $5 child
If you want to compare credit values to pre-tax prices (at 6.5% sales tax), use:
- (All Plans) Snack credit $2.82 adult, $2.82 child
- QSDP or DDP CS credit $12.21 adult, $1.88 child
- DDP TS credit $24.41/$29.11 for non-peak/peak, $6.57/$7.51 for non-peak/peak child
- DxDP Meal credit $20.66 adult, $4.69 child
You have responded in such a professional way to a question that has been asked at least 80 times in a row. (It's a good thing I'm not the moderator I'd have told people off by now. 
)
!
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If I'm understanding this list correctly, I would have to eat at least $22 per meal for the DxDP to break even. If I spent less than $22 per meal, I would be paying more than I'm actually using.
