American Express · Hotel points · Amex

Hilton Honors Card: what it's really worth

The Hilton Honors Card has a no annual fee. For a typical household spending $2,070 a month, it's worth about $856 in year one and $506 each year after.

Annual fee$0

Sign-up bonus$35070,000 points after $2,000 in 6 mo

Net value · year 1$856

Net value · each year after$506

Current limited-time offers pair bonus points with a Free Night Reward; the amount varies — check Amex.

Calculate it with your own spending

Is the annual fee worth it?

No annual fee — nothing to lose by keeping it open, which also helps your credit history.

How you earn

Category	Rate	Value per $1	Per year*
Dining	5x	2.5¢	$90
Groceries	5x	2.5¢	$150
Hotels	7x	3.5¢	$34
Flights	3x	1.5¢	$18
Gas	5x	2.5¢	$45
Streaming	3x	1.5¢	$7
Everything else	3x	1.5¢	$162

*At typical monthly spending: dining $300, groceries $500, hotels $80, flights $100, gas $150, streaming $40, everything else $900. 7x at Hilton; 5x at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets and U.S. gas stations; 3x elsewhere.

Credits and perks

Automatic hotel elite status
Foreign transaction fee: none

Who it's for

Hilton points with no annual fee
Automatic Hilton Silver status
Not ideal: Big Hilton perks — the Surpass adds Gold status and credits

Can I get it?

Recommended credit: Good
American Express rules: Welcome offers are generally once per lifetime per card. Amex usually tells you before approval if you won't get the bonus.
Amex: Not accepted everywhere: less common abroad and at some small businesses. Not accepted at Costco warehouses.

Check the current offer at American Express

Updated Oct 30, 2026.