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150,000
Points as welcome offer
Up to 14x
Points
$450
Annual fee
17.24% to 26.24%
Purchase APR (variable)
Annual fee | $450 |
---|---|
Welcome offer | 150,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months |
Rewards | 14x points on Hilton, 7x on flights, car rentals and US restaurants and 3x points on all other purchases |
Purchase APR | 17.24% to 26.24% variable |
Balance transfer APR | N/A |
Minimum Credit Score | 680 |
Issuer | American Express |
Review by
Kevin Joey Chen was a credit cards, banking and investments writer for Finder. His work and analysis have appeared on CNN, U.S. News & World Report, Business.com, Lifehacker and CreditCards.com.
Because conditional credit card approval is automated on the website, you may get a decision on your application within 30 seconds. If there are issues with your application, it may take a few business days to a few weeks to hear back.
After you’re approved, you’ll typically receive your card within seven to 10 business days.
Using the industry’s standard redemption value of 1 cent for every point, 150,000 points are typically worth $1,000. But Hilton Honors™ Bonus Points tend to be worth much less than that — around 0.5 cents a point. Given that rate, 150,000 points are worth around $500. That’s still a good welcome offer, even if you can potentially find better ones.
Earn 7x points at US restaurants, on flights booked directly with airlines or through American Express Travel, and on car rentals booked directly through select car rental companies. These are slightly different mid-tier reward categories than you’ll find with the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card.
Earn 3x points on all other eligible purchases.
With the Hilton Honors™ Aspire Card, this certificate is complimentary. With the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, you need to spend $15,000 on purchases in a calendar year to receive the Weekend Night Reward.
If this is important to you, you might prefer the Hilton Honors™ Aspire Card over the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. The latter only offers 10 complimentary visits to Priority Pass™ lounges each calendar year once you enroll. After you use those visits, you’ll need to pay $27 per additional visit.
For an idea of how far your points will go, here are a few Hilton properties and their point equivalents as of September 2018 on the Hilton Honors website:
When you book a two-night minimum stay through the Hilton Honors™ Aspire Card site, you’ll receive up to $100 in credits for qualifying charges at participating hotels. Qualifying properties include the Waldorf Astoria® Hotels & Resorts and Conrad® Hotels & Resorts.
Hilton Honors™ offers robust perks even for basic members, such as digital check-in, complimentary in-room Wi-Fi and late checkout. Still, there are benefits to earning Diamond. You’ll receive a 100% bonus on the Hilton Honors™ Base Points you earn, as well as your fifth night free when you book a reward stay of five nights or more with all points.
You’ll also receive gifts at select properties, such as complimentary refreshments and room upgrades. At Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts, you’ll receive a daily continental breakfast for you and one eligible guest. And at Conrad Hotels & Resorts, Curio properties, you’ll get access to the Executive Floor Lounge.
Through the Baggage Insurance Plan, your luggage is covered against loss, damage or theft.
When you pay for a car rental with your Hilton Honorsâ„¢ Aspire Card and decline the collision damage waiver, the vehicle is covered against damage or theft.
Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card | Hilton Honors™ Aspire Card | |
---|---|---|
Annual fee | $95 | $450 |
Welcome offer | 150,000 points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months | |
Points: Hilton Portfolio spending | 12x | 14x |
Points: Mid-tier rewards | 6x points at US restaurants, US supermarkets and US gas stations | 7x points at US restaurants and on eligible flights and car rentals |
Points: Other eligible purchases | 3x | 3x |
Status upgrade in Hilton Honorsâ„¢ | Gold | Diamond |
Priority Passâ„¢ entries, enrollment required | 10 entries | Unlimited |
Weekend Night Reward | Spend $15,000 in a calendar year | Complimentary |
Statement credit | No | Yes; $250 Hilton resort, $250 airline fee after you select a qualifying airline and $100 Hilton on-property credit |
To apply for the Hilton Honorsâ„¢ Aspire Card, you must be:
Information you’ll need:
To complete the application, you’ll need to provide information that includes:
You’ll have a better chance of being approved for the Hilton Honors™ Aspire Card if you apply with a good to excellent credit score of 680 or higher. If you have a high income and excellent credit, your likelihood of approval is strong.
Here are a few other factors that might affect your odds of approval:
The American Express Company has been accredited with the Better Business Bureau since 1948 and earns an overall A+ rating as of August 2021. However, 90% of its reviews are negative and it has nearly 4,000 customer complaints. Amex cardholders in general complain of rude customer service reps, missing statement credit and issues disputing charges.
The company earns a Trustpilot score of 1.9 out of 5. Many negative reviews cite unhelpful customer service and inflexible company policies. Positive reviews say the company employs pleasant customer service representatives. Overall, your mileage may vary with American Express customer support.
A $450 annual fee is quite a chunk of change, but you may find it’s a fair price for this premium card. If you’re a frequent traveler and a Hilton regular, you’ll like the rewards you’ll earn. And if you can use the card’s airline and hotel credits, the card will effectively pay for itself.
You’re not limited to just Hilton rewards when it comes to travel credit cards. Take your time and compare other travel rewards cards to find the right fit for your travel lifestyle.
To determine the average value of an Hilton Honors point, we looked at the equivalent dollar value a redemption option would cost in the Hilton Honors Rewards program. We calculated this average across all redemption options available through Hilton to reach the approximate value you can expect when redeeming these points on average. In this case, the average value of a single Hilton Honors Bonus Point came out to 0.5 cents per point.
Remember that your points could be worth more or less depending on what you redeem them on, so this figure should be used as a general guide.
Images: AmericanExpress.com