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If hotels are like a second home to you, it pays to think wisely about which credit card you use. A co-branded hotel credit card will get you bonus rewards and valuable benefits with a specific hotel group.
See our list of the best credit card bonuses here.
However, these co-branded cards will only let you redeem your rewards within the hotel chain. If you don’t want to limit yourself, check out our guide to the best credit cards by spending category.
We cover our favorite hotel credit cards below, both co-branded and for general travel.
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Best premium card for earning |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | Best mid-tier card for earning |
| The Platinum Card® from American Express | Best card for luxury hotels |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card | Best overall Marriott card |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card | Best low-cost Marriott card |
| Hilton Honors American Express Card | Best overall Hilton card |
| Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card | Best low-cost Hilton card |
| IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card | Best overall IHG card |
Hotel Credit Card Features
When considering a hotel credit card, you should keep in mind the following:
- Welcome bonus
- Earning potential
- Elite status perks
- Recurring benefits
- Category bonuses
- Spend bonuses
We took into account all of the above when we made compiled our list of the best hotel credit cards of 2020.
The Best Hotel Credit Cards This Year
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® is the best premium card for earning on hotel spending.
CHASE SAPPHIRE RESERVE®
The Chase Sapphire Reserve® card is offering 80,000 bonus points (worth up to $1,600 in travel per our valuations). You’ll need to spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening to qualify for the bonus. These 80k points are redeemable for $1,200 toward travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
This is a premium travel card with a premium annual fee of $550. But, you’ll receive premium benefits such as 5X points on air travel, 10x points spent on hotels and car rentals when you purchase travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards® immediately after earning your $300 annual travel credit, 3X points on all other travel and dining, and 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
The card also features an application fee credit (up to $100) for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®, access to 1,300+ airport lounges with Priority Pass Select, and 50% more in travel redemption through Chase Ultimate Rewards. With Pay Yourself BackSM, your points are worth 50% more for existing purchases in select, rotating categories.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is the best mid-tier card for earning on hotel spending.
CHASE SAPPHIRE PREFERRED® CARD
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card currently has an offer for 60,000 bonus points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Redeeming the 60,000 bonus points through the Chase Ultimate Rewards program, which is praised by users, will get you $750 in value towards travel. The 60K bonus points are worth $750 because you get 25% more value whenever you redeem for airfare, hotels, car rentals and cruises through Chase Ultimate Rewards.
Even better, strategize with Chase Ultimate Rewards points transfer partners to potentially get even more value. Each point can be worth up to 2 cents apiece (60k points = ~$1,200). Read more on this here.
The Platinum Card® from American Express is the best card for luxury hotels with high welcome bonus points. Check out our guide to American Express Membership Rewards® to find out what else you can do with these bonus points.
THE PLATINUM CARD® FROM AMERICAN EXPRESS
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Platinum Card® from American Express has a special offer for 100,000 Membership Rewards points after you spend $6,000 in purchases within your first 6 months.
Membership Rewards® points are some of the most valuable in the market. Redeeming these points by booking travel through American Express or by redeeming for gift cards will give you a standard 1 cent per point value. The 100k bonus points are worth $1,000 going this route.
You can potentially get more value by transferring your points to Membership Rewards travel partners. Using this strategy can get you up to an average value of 2 cents per point. Get around $2,000 in value with 100,000 points this way. Read more on this here.
With this card, earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
The biggest drawback to this card is the $695 annual fee (see Rates & Fees, Terms Apply), which puts it in the premium class of credit cards. The card has a market because it offers premium travel benefits, such as 5X points for flights (up to $500,000 on these purchases) and eligible hotels, access to 40+ Centurion Loung and Studio locations worldwide, up to $200 airline fee credit annually, and an annual Walmart+ membership. These benefits are given as statement credits.
For frequent travelers, the added benefits make sense in terms of value and added luxury.
*Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel. Starting January 1, 2021, earn 5X points on up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year.
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card is the best overall card for Marriott hotels.
MARRIOTT BONVOY BRILLIANT™ AMERICAN EXPRESS® CARD
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card has an offer for 75,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months. We value these 75k points at around $675.
This card earns 6 points per $1 at hotels participating in the Marriott BonvoyTM program and 3 points at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines. You’ll receive 2 points per $1 spent on all other purchases.
You’ll get a Free Night Award (redemption level up to 50,000 points) every account anniversary year, and up to $300 in statement credits each year for eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott BonvoyTM program. Resort fees may apply. Other benefits include unlimited airport lounge visits with the Priority Pass Select membership and no foreign transaction fees.
This premium card comes with an Annual Fee of $450. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.
The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card is the best low-cost card for Marriott hotels with a generous welcome bonus and high earning rate on Marriott spending.
MARRIOTT BONVOY BOUNDLESS® CREDIT CARD
The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card from Chase has an offer for 3 Free Nights after spending $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.
New to the card, you will earn 3x Bonvoy points on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on grocery stores, gas stations, and dining. The card is also offering an Elite Night Credit towards Elite Status for every $5,000 spent.
The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card earns 17 points for every $1 spent at over 7,000+ participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels. You’ll receive 2 points per $1 spent on all other purchases.
You’ll get a Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every account anniversary year and automatic Silver Elite Status. Additionally, you’ll receive 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year.
This card has no foreign transaction fees and the annual fee is $95.
The Hilton Honors American Express Card is the best overall card for Hilton hotels.
HILTON HONORS AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Hilton Honors American Express Card has a welcome bonus offer for 80,000 Hilton Honors Points when you spend $1,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of Card Membership. Our valuation puts the 80k points at around $480 in value ($0.006 per point).
This Hilton credit card earns 7 Hilton Honors points per $1 spent directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Honors portfolio of brands. U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas station spending earns 5 Hilton Honors points per dollar. All other purchases will earn 3 Hilton Honors points per dollar.
Other features include no foreign transaction fees and free Hilton Honors Silver Status. This card has no annual fee. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.
*Terms apply.
The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card is the best low-cost card for Hilton hotels.
HILTON HONORS AMERICAN EXPRESS SURPASS® CARD
Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.
The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card has an offer for 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points when you spend $2,000 within 3 months of account opening. The total 130k bonus points are worth around $780 per our valuation.
Earn 12 points per $1 spent on a hotel or resort within the Hilton Portfolio. This chain of hotels consists of over 5,000 locations. Earn 6 points per $1 on purchases at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations. All other purchases will earn 3 points per $1.
Other benefits include complimentary Gold Status and a Weekend Night Reward after you spend $15,000 on purchases in a calendar year.
The card has an annual fee of $95 (See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply).
*Terms apply.
The IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card is the best overall card for IHG hotels with a generous welcome bonus.
IHG® REWARDS CLUB PREMIER CREDIT CARD
The IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card has an offer for 140,000 bonus points and 1 Free Night when you spend $3,000 within the first 3 months. Our valuation puts these 140k points at around $700 without considering the value of the Free Night.
This card earns up to 26 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel. Earn 5 points per $1 spent on purchases at gas stations, grocery stores, and restaurants. Earn 3 points per $1 spent on all other purchases.
After each account anniversary year you’ll get a Free Night at eligible IHG hotels worldwide. Redeem points for any stay of 4 or more nights and you get a free reward night.
Also, get a Global Entry or TSA Pre✓® Fee Credit of up to $100 every 4 years as reimbursement for the application fee charged to your card.
Get automatic Platinum Elite status with this card. The annual fee is $89 a year.
Additional Guides
While we focused on hotel credit cards in this post, you’ll want to choose a card with additional earning potential that matches your spending behavior. For our guide on the best credit cards in other categories, check out these other posts:
Also, get some tips on How To Stay At A Luxury Resort For Cheap here.
Bottom Line
It might make sense to go for a co-branded hotel credit card if you like to stay with a particular hotel group. You’ll get to enjoy VIP perks and earn points towards free nights quickly.
But if you aren’t committed to a hotel chain, then you’ll want a card that earns transferable points, like the Amex Green Card or Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. For further reading, check out Best Credit Cards For Earning Points & Miles By Spending Category.
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