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Harvard College students will pay an extra 25 cents per load of laundry this semester, at $1.75 a cycle. The price increase comes as the College replaced Crimson Cash laundry payment — operated through students’ Harvard IDs — with a mobile app.

On-campus laundry and printing services exclusively used Crimson Cash until July 1, when laundry locations officially switched to the new One Tap Away app, which students can access through QR codes posted on laundry machines.

But the new system’s higher costs have drawn frustration from students, who said the change felt “not entirely necessary.” Several students expressed dissatisfaction with the payment system — which requires students to load a minimum of $10 — though some praised the convenience of mobile pay.

“I had been anticipating the system change, and I figured that would make it a lot more efficient,” Joelle D. Yoon ’28 said. “And then I realized it was $1.75 and I was like, ‘Oh, they snuck that one in.’”

And unlike Crimson Cash, where students could add the exact amount for one or two loads of laundry, students have to add at least $10 at a time to avoid an extra charge.

“If you put in any amount below $10 they take a small processing fee,” Yoon said. “I was like, ‘Well, that’s a little annoying.’”

“If your funds are even 25 cents lower than what you would need for that cycle, you can’t top up the exact amount you’d need,” Sairam Pantham ’28 said. “You have to top up like $10 at a time.”

Students also argued that the switch was not needed because of the One Tap Away app’s similarities to Crimson Cash — both systems require students to deposit money into a third party account.

Pantham said he had expected Harvard to replace Crimson Cash with a system that would draw directly from students’ bank accounts, which he said “would make a lot more sense.”

“Crimson Cash is actually a more effective way of doing whatever One Tap Away does,” he added. “So I think that’s kind of stupid, and I think that’s a reason why some students have complaints.”

The new price reflects a standard across all Harvard laundry locations, according to a College spokesperson, including graduate schools like the Law School and Medical School.

“The Harvard Strategic Procurement team negotiated the pricing with the vendor and in line with current market,” the spokesperson wrote in a statement. “The final agreement was reviewed and approved by all as part of the Crimson Cash Transition.”

Despite hesitance at the price increase, some students said they appreciated the new payment app’s automatic timer and notifications.

Emily C. Igwike ’28 said it is more convenient to pay for laundry via phone than through HUID cards. She also pointed to the app’s built-in laundry management tools, including machine availability and laundry cycle status, as helpful new features.

“I’m already used to doing transactions on my phone with Apple Pay, and it’s almost like doing Apple Pay but for my laundry, which is kind of cool,” Igwike said.

Harvard first announced plans in June 2024 to phase out Crimson Cash, citing decreased usage of the program. Off-campus merchants stopped accepting Crimson Cash last summer, and Harvard University Dining Services retail locations stopped accepting the form of payment at the end of the fall 2024 term.

Laundry expenses have long been a source of dissatisfaction among undergraduates, with some students arguing that laundry should be free or subsidized.

The Harvard Undergraduate Association’s previous administration allocated funding in November for free laundry detergent in 45 laundry centers across campus and created a “Laundry Grant” through which students can apply to be reimbursed for laundry machine expenses.

“I was surprised that they increased the prices too, and I wasn’t really sure why,” Laasya Nagumalli ’28 said of the change to laundry payment. “I was a little annoyed because honestly I think that laundry should be free.”

Pantham said the frustration from students about the new increased price may also be the “built-up resentment” toward the College. He said many students expect Harvard’s endowment to foot the bill instead of charging undergraduates with minor fees.

Though the 25-cent increase is a small change, “laundry can add up pretty quickly,” Igwike said.

“Hopefully they can make changes to that, but if not, then I have to just budget a little bit more for doing more laundry, or just be more conservative with the laundry loads,” she added.

—Staff writer Megan L. Blonigen can be reached at megan.blonigen@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X at @MeganBlonigen.