FULL LIST OF EDITORIAL PICKS:
BEST HOTEL CREDIT CARDS
Click the card name to read our review. Before applying, confirm details on the issuer’s website.
The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card is a worthwhile card whose benefits — especially a free night every year — can easily make up for its annual fee. Not only does Marriott have a wide selection of locations, both economy and upscale, but the card doesn't limit you to using points only for hotel stays. Read our review. Our pick for Easy redemption
The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is probably the best-known general-purpose travel credit card, thanks to its ubiquitous advertising. You earn 5 miles per dollar on hotels and car rentals booked through Capital One Travel and 2 miles per dollar on all other purchases. Miles can be redeemed at a value of 1 cent apiece for any travel purchase, without the blackout dates and other restrictions of branded hotel and airline cards. The card offers a great sign-up bonus and other worthwhile perks. Read our review. Our pick for: Point transfers to hotel programs
For a reasonable annual fee, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns bonus rewards (up to 5X) on travel, dining, select streaming services, and select online grocery purchases. Points are worth 25% more when you redeem them for travel booked through Chase, or you can transfer them to about a dozen airline and hotel partners. The sign-up bonus is stellar, too. Read our review. If you're loyal to hotels under the Hilton umbrella, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card can more than pay for itself despite relatively low rewards-point values. You’ll be able to hold on to your automatic Gold status as long as you’re a cardholder, making it easier to rack up rewards and earn free stays. Read our review. Our pick for Holiday Inn/IHG
If you stay at the brands of InterContinental Hotel Group, the IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card can be well worth its annual fee for the free anniversary night alone, and you’ll enjoy Platinum Elite status as long as you have the card. Read our review. Hyatt isn't as big as its competitors, but the World of Hyatt Credit Card is worth a look for anyone who spends a lot of time on the road. You can earn a lot of points even on non-Hyatt spending, and those points have a high value compared with rival programs. There's a great sign-up bonus, free nights, automatic elite status, and more. Read our review.
Our pick for Best Western
If you’re a fan of Best Western-owned hotel properties, the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® offers solid rewards. But while you will get elite status, you won’t be getting the free anniversary nights that cards with annual fees usually offer. Read our review. The Wyndham Rewards® Earner℠ Plus Credit Card offers plenty of value for Wyndham loyalists, not to mention rich rewards on dining and grocery store purchases. You'll also get automatic Platinum status, plus anniversary points that could net you a free night every year. Read our review. Rewards points on the Radisson Rewards Premier Visa Signature® Card might be less valuable than those from other major hotel chains, but frequent guests at Radisson hotels won’t have trouble stockpiling a bunch of them, especially with a generous annual points bonus. For Radisson loyalists, it’s the card to have. Read our review. Our pick for Premium hotel card
The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card comes with a steep annual fee, but its rich rewards (especially on travel and dining) and generous perks make it a near-must for hardcore Hilton loyalists. Enjoy airline and resort credits, airport lounge access, automatic elite status, free weekend night awards, and much more. Read our review. The $0-annual-fee Hotels.com® Rewards Visa® Credit Card has a baffling rewards system and doesn't offer a free anniversary night. But you'll get a relatively decent rewards rate, and you won't be tied to a single hotel chain. Read our review. Our pick for Hotel cards for small business
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card is an outstanding small-business hotel credit card — though a little unusual. It comes with rich ongoing rewards, automatic elite status with Hilton, and 10 free visits to select airport lounges each year (a rare perk for hotel cards). Rather than automatically granting a free night each year, like most hotel cards with annual fees, you have to spend at least $15,000 per calendar year to earn a free weekend night. Terms apply. Learn more and apply.
How much is a hotel point worth?
By Sam Kemmis, the NerdWallet travel rewards expert
Hotel credit cards earn loyalty program points every time you use the card, but the value of these points depends both on the hotel chain that issued them and how you redeem them.
To better understand what points are worth, NerdWallet researched the cash prices and reward-redemption values for hundreds of hotel rooms. See our valuations page for our findings.
Our valuations are different from many others you may find. That’s because we looked at the average value of a point based on reasonable price searches that anyone can perform, not a maximized value that only travel rewards experts can expect to reach.
Use these values as a baseline for your own redemptions. If you can redeem your points for the values listed on our valuations page, you are doing well. Of course, if you are able to get a higher value, that’s even better.
To view rates and fees of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, see this page. All information about the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card has been collected independently by NerdWallet. The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is no longer available through NerdWallet.
All information about the Hotels.com® Rewards Visa® Credit Card has been collected independently by NerdWallet. The Hotels.com® Rewards Visa® Credit Card is no longer available through NerdWallet.
Methodology
NerdWallet's credit cards team selects the best credit cards in each category based on overall consumer value. Factors in our evaluation include fees, promotional and ongoing APRs, and sign-up bonuses; for rewards cards, we consider earning and redemption rates, redemption options, and redemption difficulty. A single card is eligible to be chosen as among the "best" in multiple categories. Learn how NerdWallet rates credit cards.
