Best Hotel Credit Cards
Selected by WalletHub Editors from 1,000+ credit cards — Sep 11, 2018
Hotel credit cards aren’t quite as popular as their airline-affiliated counterparts, perhaps because airfare tends to be more expensive than lodging. Nevertheless, the right hotel rewards card can make the perfect complement to the wallet of a brand-loyal frequent traveler.
One of the main impediments to profiting from hotel credit card points — aside from infrequent patronage — is that all of the chain-specific offers that are currently available require good or excellent credit for approval. Those who do not qualify should focus on cost-effective credit building – in other words, prioritize approval and a lack of fees over rewards – in order to save as much money as possible until truly rewarding offers are in the cards.
But if you’re in the position to take full advantage of a hotel credit card, just browse the offers below to see what type of bounty awaits you. We compared more than 1,000 offers based on initial bonuses, ongoing earning rates, fees, and other perks to identify the best cards for different types of travelers (some of which may come from WalletHub advertisers). Check them out so you can check-in for free next time you go out of town!
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.
One of the main impediments to profiting from hotel credit card points — aside from infrequent patronage — is that all of the chain-specific offers that are currently available require good or excellent credit for approval. Those who do not qualify should focus on cost-effective credit building – in other words, prioritize approval and a lack of fees over rewards – in order to save as much money as possible until truly rewarding offers are in the cards.
But if you’re in the position to take full advantage of a hotel credit card, just browse the offers below to see what type of bounty awaits you. We compared more than 1,000 offers based on initial bonuses, ongoing earning rates, fees, and other perks to identify the best cards for different types of travelers (some of which may come from WalletHub advertisers). Check them out so you can check-in for free next time you go out of town!
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.
One of the main impediments to profiting from hotel credit card points — aside from infrequent patronage — is that all of the chain-specific offers that are currently available require good or excellent credit for approval. Those who do not qualify should focus on cost-effective credit building – in other words, prioritize approval and a lack of fees over rewards – in order to save as much money as possible until truly rewarding offers are in the cards.
But if you’re in the position to take full advantage of a hotel credit card, just browse the offers below to see what type of bounty awaits you. We compared more than 1,000 offers based on initial bonuses, ongoing earning rates, fees, and other perks to identify the best cards for different types of travelers (some of which may come from WalletHub advertisers). Check them out so you can check-in for free next time you go out of town!
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.
WalletHub's Best Hotel Credit Cards for 2018:
- Biggest Bonus: Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card
- Any Hotel: Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
- Free Anniversary Night: IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
- Business Travelers - Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express
- No Annual Fee - Wyndham Credit Card with No Annual Fee
- Students - Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card for Students
- Bad Credit - Best Western Secured Credit Card
One of the main impediments to profiting from hotel credit card points — aside from infrequent patronage — is that all of the chain-specific offers that are currently available require good or excellent credit for approval. Those who do not qualify should focus on cost-effective credit building – in other words, prioritize approval and a lack of fees over rewards – in order to save as much money as possible until truly rewarding offers are in the cards.
But if you’re in the position to take full advantage of a hotel credit card, just browse the offers below to see what type of bounty awaits you. We compared more than 1,000 offers based on initial bonuses, ongoing earning rates, fees, and other perks to identify the best cards for different types of travelers (some of which may come from WalletHub advertisers). Check them out so you can check-in for free next time you go out of town!
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.
WalletHub's Best Hotel Credit Cards for 2018:
- Biggest Bonus: Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card
- Any Hotel: Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card
- Free Anniversary Night: IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card
- Business Travelers - Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express
- No Annual Fee - Wyndham Credit Card with No Annual Fee
- Students - Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card for Students
- Bad Credit - Best Western Secured Credit Card
Best Hotel Credit Cards for Specific Chains
Best Hotel Credit Cards for Specific Chains
Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card Proceed 2 Reviews
Wyndham Credit Card with No Annual Fee 127 Reviews
Best for No Annual Fee: Wyndham has the best overall loyalty rewards program, according to WalletHub’s research. And its no annual fee credit card is great for loyal customers who want to earn free nights faster at no extra cost. The perks come quickly for new cardholders, as you’ll receive 15,000 points bonus after your first purchase. And the benefits keep rolling in, with Wyndham purchases yielding 3 points per $1 spent and all other spending getting you 1 point per $1. Plus, Wyndham points are worth more than the average hotel’s rewards, giving you an average of 1.3 cents per point when redeemed for Wyndham reservations, based on WalletHub’s research. That means this card’s initial bonus is worth about $195, and you’ll earn roughly 3.9% back on Wyndham purchases.
Best Western Secured Credit Card 2 Reviews
Best for Bad Credit: If you want a hotel credit card tied to a specific chain and have less-than-good credit, this is just about your only option. Fortunately, it’s a very good one. You get 5,000 points bonus, worth about $34.50 toward a free night, after your first purchase. You’ll also earn 3 points per $1 spent on Best Western stays and 1 point per $1 on all other purchases. Plus, you can claim a 10% discount on reservations by booking Best Western Rewards Rate rooms at bwrcarddiscount.com.
Bear in mind, however, that this card is available to people with bad credit because it requires you to place a refundable security deposit of at least $300. The amount of your deposit becomes your credit limit, preventing you from overspending. There’s also a $29 annual fee.
Bear in mind, however, that this card is available to people with bad credit because it requires you to place a refundable security deposit of at least $300. The amount of your deposit becomes your credit limit, preventing you from overspending. There’s also a $29 annual fee.
IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card 2 Reviews
Best For Frequent Travelers (International) : Cardholders receive a bonus of 100,000 Points + $50 Statement Credit for spending at least $3,000 during the first three months, plus one free night after each account anniversary. High-spenders can also get 10,000 more bonus points each account year by spending $20,000 and making at least one more purchase after crossing that threshold. And all of that is in addition to 10 points per $1 spent at IHG properties; 2 points per $1 at grocery stores, gas stations and restaurants; 1 point per $1 on everything else; and complimentary IHG Platinum Elite Status.
There is an $89 annual fee but no foreign transaction fee.
There is an $89 annual fee but no foreign transaction fee.
Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express Proceed 133 Reviews
Best For Business: The Starwood Business Card offers 100,000 points when you spend $5,000 within three months of opening an account. You also get up to 6 points per $1 spent on purchases and 1 free night after each account anniversary. You don’t need to worry about paying an annual fee the first year, either ($95 after).
Best Hotel Credit Cards for Any Hotel
While many hotel and airline rewards credit cards are affiliated with specific travel providers, meaning their points and miles can only be redeemed with that particular company or one of its transfer partners, another class of rewards cards offers generic points and miles that can be redeemed for any travel-related expense. This flexibility makes such cards quite useful to travelers who aren’t loyal to a given hotel chain, and their stand-out value should have even broader appeal. The best offers in this category are as follows:
Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card Proceed 2,410 Reviews
Best Overall: $500 initial bonus redeemable for any travel-related expense, the miles equivalent of 2% cash back across all purchases as long as you redeem for travel, no first-year annual fee ($95 thereafter) and no foreign transaction fee.
Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card for Students 272 Reviews
Best For Students: 25,000-point initial bonus, 3 points for every $1 in purchases made through the Bank of America Travel Center, excluding insurance purchases, 1.5 points per $1 on everything else and no annual fee.
Tips for Finding the Best Hotel Credit Card
- See How Much You Spend on Hotel Rooms: You need to determine whether hotel reservations represent a big enough portion of your total spending to warrant getting a hotel points card tied to a specific chain. After all, a card offering everyday cash back or general-purpose travel rewards could also help you save on hotel stays, plus everything else you buy. And such a card would provide much more flexibility.
The basic rules of thumb are that you should only make a co-branded hotel card your primary spending vehicle if you spend at least 20 nights in that chain each year. Supplementing an existing card with hotel plastic when a big initial bonus is available could be a great move as well. But you should have plans to use that bounty for a hotel stay within six months of account opening. Otherwise, the points could lose value or be forgotten over time. - Decide How Long You Want to Keep Your New Card: Your plans for a new hotel credit card will dictate how you evaluate offers. If you think you’ll have the card for only a year or two, then you should focus more on initial rewards bonuses. But if you have no timetable for closing your account, regular rewards earning rates and ongoing amenities such as room upgrades will be more important.
- Double-Check Hotel Point Redemption Values: There’s often little rhyme or reason to the number of points needed to book a free night. The clearest trend you’ll find is that reward nights during peak season and weekends tend to provide the least value. Hotel credit card users also have several other redemption options. They often include gift cards, merchandise, statement credits and special experiences.
So figuring out how much hotel points are worth, whether redeemed for free nights in your favorite destinations or something else, is essential to getting good value from your earnings. This may seem like a lot of work. But it’s worth it if you want to avoid money-losing surprises. - Learn About the Reward Night Booking Process: Start by confirming that a given hotel chain actually has properties in all your favorite travel destinations. Then check out customer reviews as well as the redemption page on the chain’s website. Feedback from previous guests is a great screen against obvious limitations. And doing a little digging online gives you the chance to scan the fine print for less obvious drawbacks.
Finally, if you’re thinking about getting a hotel credit card tied to a particular chain, you’d better get acquainted with that hotel’s overall loyalty program. Anyone can join a hotel rewards program for free, but having the credit card to match helps boost your benefits. Some hotel rewards programs are better than others, though, just like hotel credit cards.
Below, you can find a breakdown of how the major chains performed in WalletHub’s latest analysis.
Best Hotel Rewards Programs for 2018
| Best for… | Hotel Rewards Program | WalletHub Score | Number of Hotels |
| Overall | Wyndham Rewards | 72.30 | 7,930 |
| Points That Won’t Expire | Best Western Rewards | 65.12 | 4,195 |
| International Travel | Marriott Rewards | 62.44 | 6,400 |
| Fewest Earning Limitations | Club Carlson | 59.80 | 1,154 |
| Rewards Value | La Quinta Returns | 59.32 | 894 |
| Transfer Partners | Hilton Honors | 56.24 | 5,168 |
For more, including a custom calculator that will help you identify the right loyalty rewards for your needs, check out WalletHub’s complete report on the Best Hotel Rewards Programs.
It’s also understandable if you want to take a closer look at the top hotel rewards cards, now that you’re more familiar with how to go about choosing and using them. Please find a summary below.
Here are the best hotel credit cards:
| Best For… | Card Name | Annual Fee | Credit Required |
| Biggest Bonus | Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card | $95 | Good |
| Any Hotel | Capital One® Venture® Rewards Credit Card | $0 for 1st yr, $95 after | Good |
| Free Anniversary Night | IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card | $89 | Good |
| Business Travelers | Starwood Preferred Guest® Business Credit Card from American Express | None 1st yr, $95 after | Good |
| No Annual Fee | Wyndham Credit Card with No Annual Fee | None | Good |
| Students | Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card for Students | None | Limited History |
| Bad Credit | Best Western Secured Credit Card | $29 | Bad |
There aren’t many hotel rewards credit cards for people with fair, limited or bad credit. So if you have less-than-good credit, your options are likely limited to secured cards as well as credit cards with rewards that don’t emphasize hotel stays.
You can see if your credit is good enough for elite hotel rewards by checking your latest credit score for free on WalletHub. You can also check out our editors’ picks for the best overall rewards credit cards to see which of these offers made the cut.
Community Discussion
Finding Best Hotel Credit Cards can be tough. But you’ve got the knowledgeable WalletHub community on your side. We encourage everyone to share their knowledge while respecting our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that editorial and user-generated content on this page is not reviewed or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution. In addition, it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure that all posts and questions are answered....show moreshow less
When it comes to ongoing rewards, users earn 12 points for every dollar spent on Hilton reservations, 6 points per dollar at U.S. restaurants, supermarkets, and gas stations and 3 points per dollar on all other purchases. This card charges a $95 annual fee and has no foreign transaction fee.