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Boasting a portfolio of over 20 cards, Jarrod has been an expert in the points and miles space for over 6 years. He earns and redeems over 1 million points per year and his work has been featured in o...
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One of the best and most rewarding things about hotel co-branded credit cards is that many offer a free night certificate each year on your card’s renewal date. For many travelers, the value that they receive from these annual free night certificates completely offsets what they pay in the annual fee and then some!
Of course, not all free night certificates are created equally; some can be significantly more valuable than others, depending on how you use them. In this guide, we will take a look at the best credit cards that offer a free night certificate across 5 major hotel chains and why you should consider adding a hotel credit card to your wallet.
Why You Should Consider a Hotel Credit Card
You might be wondering, “Why should I have a hotel credit card instead of 1 that earns transferable points?” Well, while every points and miles traveler should have a transferable rewards credit card as their go-to, adding a hotel credit card can also help upgrade your travels even further!
For example, in addition to a free night certificate, almost every hotel credit card offers benefits designed to improve your hotel stay, like complimentary elite status, additional points on stays, and even credits for use at the hotel.
Having complimentary elite status with a hotel can get you perks like room upgrades, free breakfast, early check-in, and late checkout. So, if you stay with a particular hotel group at least a few times a year, you can benefit tremendously by keeping a hotel credit card in your wallet.
Here is a look at some of the best cards that can offer you a free night certificate at 5 of the most popular hotel chains.
The 8 Best Credit Cards That Offer Free Night Certificates
If you’re wondering which credit card free night certificates can offer you the most value, we’ve got you covered! Below we’ve placed a monetary value on each certificate and ranked them in descending order.
To determine a value for a given free night certificate, we took the highest point value for which a free night certificate could be redeemed and then multiplied that by our cent per point valuations for that hotel group. We then discounted that figure by 10% because a free night certificate is less flexible than its points equivalent and rounded up to the nearest whole number.
For example, 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points are worth $245 based on our valuations. But after the 10% discount, we’ve assigned the value of a Marriott free night certificate (redeemable at a hotel costing up to 35,000 points per night) at $220 due to its lack of flexibility in comparison.
We’ve also only included cards in our rankings that offer an annual free night, or points, as a benefit of holding the card and have omitted cards that require you to meet a certain level of spend in a calendar year to receive one.
Of course, any valuation for points or free night certificates is entirely subjective, so feel free to do your own analysis to determine what a card’s free night certificate is worth to you based on your personal travel habits.
With that said, here are our top 8 most valuable credit card free night certificates:
Earn 30,000 points when you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months. Plus, up to 30,000 additional points by earning 2x in the first 6 months on purchases that normally earn 1x, on up to $15,000 spent.
Annual fee of $95
Free night certificate f0r a Category 1 to 4 hotel
Earn another free night certificate after spending $15,000 on the card within a calendar year
Up to 125,000 Bonus Points: Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on your first 6 months and 50,000 Bonus Points after you stay 6 eligible paid nights at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy® through January 31, 2024.
Annual fee of $95
Free night award every year after account anniversary (valued up to 35,000 points)
Earn 3 bonus Free Night Awards after spending $6,000 within the first 6 months. Redemption level up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points for each bonus Free Night Award, at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy®. Certain hotels have resort fees.
Earn 140,000 points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months. Plus, earn up to $100 in IHG® statement credits on purchases at IHG® Hotels and Resorts in the first 12 months.
Annual fee of $99
Free night award every year after account anniversary (valued up to 40,000 points)
Earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days and earn 25,000 bonus points after spending $10,000 within the first 12 months.
Annual fee of $95
15,000 bonus points each anniversary year (enough for up to 2 free nights)
Earn 75,000 bonus points, enough for up to 10 free nights at participating properties, after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days.
Annual fee of $75
7,500 bonus points each anniversary year (enough for up to 1 free night)
$67.50 value
1. Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card ($428 Value)
The Hilton Aspire card provides 1 free night award with your new card and every year after renewal. You can earn an additional night after you spend $60,000 on purchases on your card in a calendar year.
Hilton no longer publishes an award chart, but top-tier hotels in the program can cost up to 95,000 points per night, like the luxurious Hilton Seychelles Labriz Resort and Spa.
As part of World of Hyatt’s Milestone Rewards, members can also earn an additional Category 1 to 4 free night certificate after completing 30 elite nights, and a Category 1 to 7 free night certificate after 60 elite nights. But thanks to the World of Hyatt card’s automatic 5 elite nights credits, the number of nights you’ll actually need drops to 25 and 55, respectively.
Andaz Savannah and Thompson Washington D.C., both Category 4 hotels, are great options since they are both located in popular destinations.
The lower annual fee Marriott Boundless card also offers an annual free night certificate, but it is limited to hotels costing up to 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night.
For a great use of your certificate, W Brisbane is sleek, hip property ideally located in Central Business District (CBD).
5. Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card ($220 Value)
Those with the Marriott Bonvoy Business card will earn 1 free night certificate useable at any Marriott hotel costing up to 35,000 points, plus the ability to earn an additional certificate after you spend $60,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year.
The JW Marriott Phu Quoc Emerald Bay Resort & Spa is one such property that would be eligible for your free night; it offers 5 restaurants, a spa, gym, hot tub, 3 outdoor pools, a kids’ club, and a private beach.
Hot Tip: Have free night certificates from multiple Marriott Bonvoy credit cards? You can stack those free night certificates to book a longer award stay! If you are interested in a property with a higher points cost than your certificate allows, you can also top up your certificates with up to 15,000 points.
6. IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card ($180 Value)
The IHG Premier card offers you 1 free night certificate on your account anniversary each year that can be redeemed at IHG hotels costing up to 40,000 points per night. You can also opt to top this up with an additional 15,000 points for a nicer hotel.
While IHG One Rewards no longer uses an award chart, and hotels are priced using a dynamic pricing model, there are still many great hotels in the program whose award night cost averages around 40,000 points per night.
One such example is the Intercontinental Budapest, which is one of the nicest hotels in the city and comes with views of the Danube, the second-longest river in Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage Site that separates the city into Buda and Pest.
7. Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Business Card ($135 Value)
Wyndham Rewards Earner Business cardholders receive 15,000 points each year on their account anniversary when they renew their card. Of course, you can spend these points however you choose, as points have much more flexibility over a standard free night certificate, however this is enough for 1 free night at a tier 2 Wyndham hotel or 2 free nights at a tier 1 hotel.
The Wyndham Grand Crete Mirabello Bay would be a great use of these points as it is a beautiful tier 2 property and nightly rates can reach upwards of $300 a night!
Hot Tip: Wyndham cardholders also get a 10% discount on the number of points needed for a free night, bringing the usual tiers of 7,500, 15,000, and 30,000, down to 6,750, 13,500, and 27,000, respectively.
8. Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Plus Card ($67.50 Value)
The Wyndham Rewards Earner+ card similarly offers an annual point bonus instead of a free night certificate. Each year, cardholders receive 7,500 Wyndham Rewards points that can be redeemed however they choose. Those 7,500 points are enough for a free night at tier 1 Wyndham hotel, or you could put the points towards a more expensive hotel.
While you’ll be hard-pressed to find many luxury properties in Wyndham’s tier 1 category, many can still offer great value thanks to their prime location, like the TRYP by Wyndham Mexico City World Trade Center Area that’s nestled right in the heart of the Mexican capital.
Hot Tip: For a no-annual-fee-path to bonus Wyndham Rewards points, consider the Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Card that offers 7,500 bonus points each anniversary after you spend $15,000 on purchases in a calendar year.
Final Thoughts
With the sheer number of points and miles credit cards out there, it can be easy to overlook hotel credit cards — but you should think twice before doing so! After all, if you stay with a hotel group with any regularity, you won’t just earn extra points on those stays, but you could also receive automatic elite status, room upgrades, late checkout, and of course those coveted free night certificates.
Ultimately, hotel credit cards are an excellent way to enhance your stays, and the free night certificates you receive largely offset the annual fee you pay each year. So for travelers, the question is not if you should get a hotel credit card, but which one(s) you should choose!
The information regarding the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding The World of Hyatt Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Plus Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Business Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® card, click here. For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card, click here. For rates and fees of The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card, click here.
Featured Image Credit: Hilton
Frequently Asked Questions
There are many hotel credit cards that offer a free night certificate on your account anniversary. In fact, just about every major chain offers one. Refer to the cards listed in our post for each chain for all of the details.
The best hotel credit card is the one that you get the most value from! Meaning there really isn’t a best card per se, but rather a card that is best for you based on your travel habits.
If you never stay at Marriott hotels, then it makes no sense for you to have a Marriott Bonvoy credit card, no matter how great it may be. Think about your travel patterns and the hotel group you prefer to stay with, and then get a card from that chain to help enhance those stays.
For the most part, each year on your account anniversary you will receive a certificate that is valid for select properties that cost a set number of points, though some certificates can be redeemed at any property.
You can then redeem your certificate for a free night at one of those eligible properties similar to how you would if you were booking a free night with points.
Yes, there are hotel credit cards that do not charge an annual fee. But there are none that offer a free night certificate as a benefit of holding the card. So if that is something you’re looking for, you’ll want to consider a hotel card that does charge an annual fee.
If you stay with any hotel chain at least once a year and would benefit from earning extra points on your stays, getting elite status, having perks like late checkout, and getting a free night certificate each year, then yes, having a hotel credit card is definitely worth it.
Boasting a portfolio of over 20 cards, Jarrod has been an expert in the points and miles space for over 6 years. He earns and redeems over 1 million points per year and his work has been featured in outlets like The New York Times.
Disclaimer: Any comments listed below are not from the bank advertiser, nor have they been reviewed or approved by them. No responsibility will be taken by the bank advertiser for these comments.
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