Best Hotel Credit Cards

How you go about comparing hotel credit cards and choosing one to apply for depends on a few individual factors:

• Your travel habits obviously matter because you need to decide whether you travel enough for a hotel credit card to make sense and, if so, whether you can commit to a single hotel chain.
• Your credit score is important, too, because most hotel credit cards require good or excellent credit for approval. If you don't know your score, you can check it for free on WalletHub.
• Your rewards preferences also play a role. Are you more interested in a big initial bonus or a card to use for years?

These should be your biggest considerations when you start looking for a hotel credit card.Once you start to narrow down your options, the following tips will help you pinpoint the right choice:

1. Convert Earning Rates to Dollars – Credit card points and miles are worth about a penny apiece on average. But values vary widely among hotel credit cards. To find out how many points you'll need for a free night at each hotel chain. And compare the amount you'd have to spend to earn that many points with the cost of purchasing a reservation in cash.
2. Get a Personalized Recommendation – WalletHub's latest report on the Best Hotel Rewards Programs includes a tool that will help you find the right hotel rewards for your individual needs.
3. Read Reviews – Hotel credit card reviews can tell you a lot about each individual offer. And you can learn more from reviews of each hotel's rewards program, more generally. For example, you can see what WalletHub's editors think of Hilton Honors, Marriott Rewards, IHG Rewards and the rest of the most popular hotel loyalty programs.
4. Consider All-Purpose Travel Rewards – Hotel credit cards require you to sacrifice flexibility by committing to a single hotel chain. General-purpose travel rewards credit cards, on the other hand, reward you at the same rate on all travel-related purchases. And they allow you to redeem earnings for any travel expense. So if you discover that you won't earn considerably more with a hotel credit card, you may opt for the more flexible option.

Hotel credit cards are definitely worth it if you travel frequently. I very much enjoy as many perks as I can when I travel. Knowing that I will receive a complimentary upgrade to a better level of a room, or some other extra amenity for using my hotel credit card, it makes those trips much more enjoyable.

As a tip, I would suggest that if you use a hotel credit card that has a points-based reward system based on the number of dollars you have charged, wait until you have racked up a large number of points before you redeem them to get the best bang for your buck. Often times, the best rewards are those with the most points value and they can equal free stays of one or more nights.

The best hotel credit card with no annual fee is the Hilton Honors American Express Card because it offers 7 points / $1 spent at Hilton properties. The Hilton Honors Credit Card also offers an initial bonus of 100,000 points for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months and up to $100 in statement credits for eligible purchases at Hilton hotels in the first 12 months (limited-time offer, ending 8/25/2021). Plus, this hotel card has a 0% foreign transaction fee, in addition to its $0 annual fee.

Best Hotel Credit Cards with No Annual Fee

Hotel credit cards with no annual fee can save you up to hundreds of dollars per year, depending on the alternative. When you're charged an annual fee, you're basically paying for any benefits and rewards built into the card. Generally, the higher the annual fee, the more benefits the card offers. However, many hotel cards with no annual fee do offer significant benefits.

The best hotel card with free nights is the IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card because it offers a free night each account anniversary and gives a 4^th night free every time you redeem your points to book a stay of 4 or more nights. Free nights are valid for any IHG booking with a redemption value of 40,000 points or less. The IHG Premier also offers 150,000 points for spending $3,000 within 3 months of account opening. The annual fee is $0 intro 1st yr, $89 after, but its perks more than cover this cost as long as you are able to take advantage of them.

The IHG Premier is not the only card that offers free nights though.

Here are the best hotel credit cards with free nights:

• Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card: Free night each account anniversary. Redeemable at any Marriott Bonvoy property worth 35,000 points or less. $125 annual fee.
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card: 3 Free Nights for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months (each night is valued up to 50,000 points). Free night each account anniversary. Redeemable at any Marriott Bonvoy property, worth 35,000 points or less. $95 annual fee.
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card: Free night each account anniversary. Redeemable at any Marriott Bonvoy property worth 50,000 points or less. $450 annual fee.
• Hilton Honors Aspire Credit Card: Free weekend night after approval and on every account anniversary, plus an additional night after spending $60,000 in a year. $450 annual fee.
• IHG Premier: Free night each account anniversary. 4th night free every time you redeem your points to book a stay of 4 or more nights. Redeemable at IHG properties worth 40,000 points or less. Annual fee: $0 intro 1st yr, $89 after.
• World of Hyatt Credit Card: Free night each account anniversary. Valid at Hyatt Category 1-4 properties. Second free night for spending $15,000 in any year. $95 annual fee.
• The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card: Free weekend night for spending $15,000 in a calendar year. Second weekend night for spending an additional $45,000 in the same year. $95 annual fee.
• Radisson Premier Visa Signature® Credit Card: Free night certificate for every $10,000 spent per year, up to $30,000, when you pay the annual fee. $75 annual fee.

On top of these free nights, these cards will also earn you points on your purchases, so to maximize your hotel credit card's free nights, you should book your stays with the hotel chain affiliated with your card. If you don't plan to always stay at the same chain, consider a general travel rewards card such as The Platinum Card® from American Express or the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card.

The American Express Platinum card offers 5 points / $1 spent on prepaid hotel reservations and airfare (on up to $500,000 per year) booked through AmexTravel.com. In addition, you also get complimentary Gold status in Hilton's and Marriott Bonvoy's membership programs which will give you room upgrades and opportunities to accelerate your earning of free nights, once enrolled.

Unlike the American Express Platinum card's $695 annual fee, the Capital One VentureOne comes with a $0 annual fee, while offering 20,000 bonus miles (worth $200 in travel) after you spend $500 within 3 months from account opening. Not only that, but it also earns you 1.25 miles / $1 spent on every purchase, every day.

The most reliable ways to get free hotel rooms are to use a credit card with hotel rewards, and to join hotels' free loyalty programs. Plus, you can always ask a hotel to match a better price you've found, and checking in late can sometimes lead to free upgrades since the hotel will have a better sense of which rooms won't be needed. But for fully comped stays, credit cards and loyalty programs are your best bet.

With credit cards, there are two paths you can take. If you're not particularly loyal to any one hotel chain and value flexibility, just get a travel rewards credit card whose points or miles can be redeemed for stays at any hotel. For instance, the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and the Chase Sapphire Reserve® Card let you book hotels using rewards on their travel portals.

But if you tend to favor one hotel chain over others, the most efficient way to get free nights is with a co-branded hotel card. You'll earn the most rewards at the hotel chain in question, redeemable for free nights. And if you join the hotel's loyalty program, you'll usually get an extra point or two per dollar spent, on top of what the card gives you.

Here are the best cards to get free hotel rooms:

• Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card: 60,000 miles for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. 2x miles everywhere. Miles can be redeemed for travel statement credits, which includes hotel stays. $95 annual fee.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve®: 60,000 miles for spending $4,000 in the first 3 months. $300 annual statement credit for travel purchases, again including hotel reservations. 3 points per $1 on travel and dining (1 point per $1 on all other purchases). Redeem for hotels on Chase's travel portal, at 1.5 cents per point. $550 annual fee.
• IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card: 1 free night every account anniversary and when redeeming points for 4+ nights. 150,000 points for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. Up to 25 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel, 2 on gas stations and groceries, 1 everywhere else. Redeem for free nights. Annual fee: $0 intro 1st yr, $89 after that.
• Hilton Honors American Express Card: 100,000 points for spending $1,000 in the first 3 months and up to $100 in statement credits for eligible purchases at Hilton hotels in the first 12 months (limited-time offer, ending 8/25/2021). Up to 7 points per $1 at Hilton Honors hotel or resort, 5 Hilton points at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations, and 3 points everywhere else. Redeem points for free nights. $0 annual fee.

The easiest way to get free hotel rooms is to get a credit card that rewards you with them. That's because you'll be earning free stays with every purchase you make, not just on reservations. But you can also earn free nights by joining a hotel's loyalty program. Every time you book a stay, you'll earn points that you can redeem for free nights. Similarly, Hotels.com has its own loyalty program. Members get 1 free night for every 10 stays they book on the website.

The best travel credit cards help cardholders earn free flights, hotel stays and other travel accommodations with every purchase made. Known for big initial bonuses and rich ongoing rewards, the best travel rewards credit cards can easily save the average person more than $1,000 over the first two years of use.
 

Best Travel Credit Cards of 2021

This content is not provided or commissioned by any issuer. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of an issuer, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by an issuer. Please keep in mind that while some offers may come from WalletHub advertising partners, sponsorship status played no role in card selection. 

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The best hotel credit card bonus is up to 85,000 points by the Radisson Premier Visa Signature Credit Card. You get 50,000 points after your first purchase, plus 35,000 points for spending $2,500 in the first 90 days. You can redeem those bonus points for up to 9 free nights at hotels around the world, starting at 9,000 points per night.

You also get 40,000 points when you renew your card by paying the $75 annual fee. And you'll get 10 points for every $1 spent at the Radisson Family of Hotels, as well as 1 point per $1 everywhere else.

Of course, it's good to have a few backup options in your pocket as well. 

Here are more good hotel credit card bonus offers:

• Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card: 75,000 point bonus for spending $3,000 in the first three months. That's worth up to 10 free nights. $85 annual fee, waived the first year. 5 points per $1 at Marriott, Ritz-Carlton and Starwood hotels. 2 points per $1 on tickets purchased directly with airlines, car rental agencies and restaurants. 1 point per dollar everywhere else. 1 free night for your account anniversary. This card requires good credit.

• IHG Credit Card: 60,000 point bonus for spending $1,000 in the first three months. 10% of your rewards back when you redeem, bumping your bonus to 66,000 points. That's worth up to 6 free nights.                     $49 annual fee waived the first year. 5 points per $1 at IHG hotels and 2 at gas stations, department stores, and restaurants. 1 point per $1 everywhere else. This card requires good credit.

• Capital One Venture: 50,000 bonus miles for spending $3,000 in the first three months. The bonus is worth $500 when redeemed for travel, including hotels.                       $95 annual fee, waived the first year. 10 points per $1 at Hotels.com/venture, and 2 on all other purchases. This card requires good credit.

A hotel credit card bonus can save you serious money if you're a frequent traveler. And since all the chains behind the major hotel credit cards operate around the globe, you can redeem your points for free nights anywhere you want. Radisson operates hotels in over 50 North American locations, as well as 16 South American, and 20+ Asian and African. Marriott has 5,301 hotels around the world. And IHG operates in over 100 countries.

The best hotel credit card for bad credit is the Discover it® Secured Credit Card Card because it accepts people with a bad credit score, offers 1 - 2% cash back on purchases, and matches all cash back earned the first year. Discover it® Secured Credit Card also has a $0 annual fee and a 0% foreign transaction fee, making it a low-cost way to satisfy a hotel's credit card requirement wherever you stay.

When you have bad credit, hotel credit card options are limited. There are no co-branded hotel credit cards for bad credit at this time. The Best Western Secured Credit Card no longer accepts applications, as of October 2018. It had a $300 deposit requirement and offered 50,000 points bonus after your first purchase. It also gave 3 points per $1 spent on Best Western stays.

There are unsecured cards for bad credit. But they often come with high fees that reduce your initial spending power, with credit limits that will likely start at just $300 or so anyway. Having sufficient available credit is crucial when booking hotels. Hotels often place a “hold” of $50-$200 per day on your account for incidentals. If the hold exceeds your credit limit, the booking may not process or you could be subject to an over limit fee. Secured cards are a better option because you usually can add to the deposit to increase your spending power. You should be able to get enough credit to cover hotel costs and their holds.

Best Credit Cards for Bad Credit for Hotel Bookings:

• Discover it® Secured Credit Card
• Secured Mastercard® from Capital One
• Harley-Davidson® Secured Credit Card
• Credit One Bank® Platinum Visa® for Rebuilding Credit

Even though the best hotel credit cards for bad credit cards are secured cards, keep in mind that your primary objective should be to rebuild credit rather than earn hotel rewards.

By using your secured card responsibly and making timely payments, you can eventually qualify for a better hotel credit card. The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is among the best hotel credit cards. This card requires a minimum of good credit.

The easiest hotel credit card to get is the Capital One QuicksilverOne Credit Card because you can get approved with limited credit history, and using this credit card for hotel purchases will earn you 1.5% cash back. Plus, Capital One will review your account for a credit line increase after you make the first 5 monthly payments on time. This card has a $39 annual fee.

The Capital One QuicksilverOne Credit Card isn't just good for hotels. You can use this card anywhere, and you should: you'll get 1.5% cash back on every purchase you make, no matter which category it falls into.

Keep an eye out for the following key terms and potential restrictions when looking into a hotel rewards program. Doing so will simplify your search for a hotel credit card and help you get the most from whichever card you choose.

1. Earning Rate – The number of points that you'll earn for each $1 that you spend is obviously quite important. And hotel credit cards generally offer different earning rates for different purchase categories. Some credit cards also require you to sign up for bonus rewards in certain categories on a quarterly basis.

2. Rewards Tiers – With certain credit cards, you earn rewards at a particular rate until you've spent a predetermined amount, at which point the rewards will come in at a faster or slower pace. While this type of tiered rewards program is not that common with hotel loyalty programs, it's something to watch out for as it can affect your overall earning rate.

3. Cost of a Free Night – How quickly you'll earn hotel points doesn't mean much if you don't know how much they're worth. So find out how much a free night costs, in terms of both points and dollars.

4. Redemption Limitations – Do you have to cover the full cost of a reservation with points, or can you use “cash,” too? Do you need more points for nights at nicer hotels? Are any dates, hotels, or types of rooms off-limits? It's important to ask yourself these sorts of questions because they speak to the usability of a given hotel's rewards.

5. Initial Rewards Bonus – Many hotel rewards credit cards offer a large number of bonus points for spending a certain amount during the first few months your account is open. This can get you at least a couple free nights right off the bat.

6. Expiration Dates – Oftentimes, hotel points will expire if there's no activity on your account for a certain period of time. This is one reason why only frequent travelers should get hotel credit cards. Regularly making purchases and redeeming your rewards keeps you safe from expiration dates.

7. Status Points – Some hotel chains have multiple credit card offers. The number of status points each provides, both initially and on an ongoing basis, could be a deciding factor between them. But annual fees generally rise along with status-point earning rates. So only focus on this feature if you stay at a particular hotel chain regularly. Doing so will allow you to get value from fringe benefits like complimentary breakfast and room upgrades.