Hilton Card Guide

Hilton is a hotel brand with a large global footprint. They guarantee connecting rooms which is a nice perk for families looking to book multiple rooms!

A Hilton co-branded credit card is a good way to earn a lot of Hilton points quickly. With the right card, you can enjoy even more benefits like free night certificates, statement credits for purchases at Hilton, or extra perks like flight credits.

Hilton offers four different credit cards. With so many options and differing benefits, it can be hard to know which one to get. To make it even more confusing, Hilton made a lot of changes to their cards in 2024. This guide breaks down the current fees and benefits of all the cards to help you decide which card is best for your travel needs.

Key Differences

The main differences between the Hilton cards are:

• Annual fee
• The number of points you earn for different purchases
• Free night certificates and credits towards Hilton purchases
• Level of status you get just by holding the card
• Extra benefits and perks

Terms apply and some benefits may require enrollment.

Annual Fee

The annual fees on the Hilton cards range from $0-$550.

High annual fees may seem intimidating, but don’t automatically dismiss a card just because of the annual fee!

The Hilton cards that come with an annual fee also come with statement credits for purchases at Hilton hotels to help you offset the fee, plus many other benefits just for holding the card.

You can get value out of those cards that far exceeds the annual fee, as long as you’re able to utilize the benefits.

Free Night Certificates and Hilton Credits

The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is the only card that comes with an automatic free night certificate just for holding the card.

You can earn a free night with the Surpass card by spending $15,000 in a calendar year. The Business card used to include an annual free night certificate, but it doesn’t anymore.

All of the annual fee cards come with statement credits for purchases at participating Hilton hotels. The amount varies depending on the card. If you stay at Hilton regularly, these credits are an easy way to recoup the annual fee on the card.

The free night certificates are really valuable because they can be used to book a standard room at any Hilton hotel.

Status with Hilton Honors™

All of the cards come with automatic Elite level status in the Hilton Honors™ program. You can get Hilton Honors™ Silver Status, Hilton Honors™ Gold Status, or Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status, depending on which card you have.

Diamond is the most valuable with more access to room upgrades and Executive lounges. Even Gold status comes with daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast (varies by region).

Note: Starting January 2026, Hilton has a new premium status tier called Diamond Reserve. Diamond Reserve cannot be earned simply by holding a credit card.

Extra Benefits

Additional benefits on the cards vary. The Aspire comes with the most benefits (and also the highest annual fee).

Card Similarities

Standard benefits for all of the Hilton cards include:

• No foreign transaction fees
• Fifth night free when booking with points

Fifth night free perk: When you book a standard room reward stay for five or more nights, every fifth night is free (up to four free nights per stay.)

This only applies to stays booked fully with points. This is a benefit for elite members only. If you hold any of the Hilton credit cards, you get automatic elite status and are eligible for this benefit!

Personal Credit Cards

Hilton Honors American Express Card

Terms apply and some benefits may require enrollment.

Key Benefits:

• Automatic Hilton Honors™ Silver Status
• Earn an upgrade to Hilton Honors™ Gold Status after spending $20,000 on the card in a calendar year
• 7x points on purchases with Hilton
• 5x points at U.S. gas stations, at U.S restaurants, and at U.S supermarkets
• 3x points on all other eligible purchases on your card

This is a great card for earning Hilton points with no annual fee. The automatic silver status makes you eligible for the 5th night free on award redemptions, which is a valuable perk.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card

Terms apply and some benefits may require enrollment.

Key Benefits:

• Automatic Hilton Honors™ Gold Status
• Earn a free night award after spending $15,000 on the card in a calendar year
• Up to $50 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made at Hilton properties (up to $200 annually)
• National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status
• 12x points on purchases made with Hilton
• 6x points at U.S. gas stations, U.S restaurants, and U.S. supermarkets.

Gold status has several perks like a daily food and beverage credit or complimentary breakfast and complimentary room upgrades.

The free night award is a nice perk if you’re able to take advantage of it, but you have to spend $15,000 on the card to earn the free night.

If you stay at Hilton several times a year, it’s easy to recoup the annual fee by using the quarterly Hilton credits. If you’re not planning to stay at Hilton that often, these credits are harder to use so keep that in mind.

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

Terms apply and some benefits may require enrollment.

Key Benefits:

• Automatic Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status
• One free night award on sign-up and each year of card membership
• Up to $200 in statement credits semi-annually for purchases made directly with Hilton (up to $400 per year)
• Up to $50 in statement credits each quarter for airline purchases made through AMEXtravel.com (up to $200 per year)
• Up to $209 statement credit annually for Clear+ membership
• National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® Status:
• 14x points on Hilton purchases

Enrollment is required for select benefits. This is a premium card that comes with premium benefits. If you stay at Hilton at least twice a year, it’s easy to make up the annual fee with the $400 Hilton credits and free night certificate.

Hilton doesn’t have a cap for free night awards so you can use them for almost any standard award night, regardless of what the cash or point price is. This makes it easy to get a lot of value out of the free night certificate! You can also earn additional free night certificates by spending on the card. You get a second certificate when you spend $30,000 in a calendar year, and a third certificate when you spend $60,000 on the card in a calendar year.

This card comes with a slew of other benefits that add value to the card if you’re able to use them. For example, book a 2-night minimum stay at hiltonhonorsaspirecard.com or over the phone and get up to $100 in credits for qualifying charges at participating Waldorf Astoria and Conrad hotels.

Business Credit Card

Business credit cards are a useful part of an overall credit card strategy. You don’t need to have a large business or an LLC to get a business credit card.

Small businesses and side hustles also count as a business! Things like selling items on Facebook marketplace, tutoring, babysitting, consulting, and selling on Etsy all qualify you for a business credit card.

To learn more about business cards and how to apply, check out our post on business credit cards.

The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card

Terms apply and some benefits may require enrollment.

Annual Fee: $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $195

Key Benefits:

• Automatic Hilton Honors™ Gold Status
• Up to $60 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made at Hilton properties (up to $240 annually)
• Executive status with National Car Rental Emerald Club
• 12x points on Hilton purchases

Enrollment is required for select benefits.

Upgrade to Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status if you spend $40,000 on the card in a calendar year. Earn 5x points on every purchase for the first $100,000 spent. After that, you get 3x points on all other eligible purchases.