Wyndham Overhauls Credit Card Lineup, Adds a New Card and Benefits, Dilutes a Popular Earning Rate

Just about 12 months ago, Wyndham posted a job on LinkedIn looking for a co-brand card director whose key responsibility would be “managing the Wyndham Rewards/Barclays credit card refresh.”

It looks like Wyndham found the right person for the job, as Wyndham and Barclays just rolled out a massive overhaul of their credit card lineup. There's a lot to unpack here, from a brand-new premium card to the dilution of a fan-favorite earning rate on another card.

Let's go card by card and take a look at what's new across the Wyndham credit card lineup.

Wyndham Credit Card Refresh: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

There's a lot changing here. This is, without question, a massive refresh of the Wyndham credit card lineup.

Before diving into the details, it's worth noting that we don't yet know when these changes will take effect for existing cardholders. With that caveat in mind, here's a look at everything that's new while we work to pin down the specifics for those who already carry one of the Wyndham Rewards cards below.

Wyndham Grand Rio Mar. Credit: Wyndham

Wyndham Rewards^® Earner℠ Business Card

Of all the Wyndham credit cards, the Wyndham Rewards^® Earner℠ Business Card gets the most attention. That's largely due to its standing as one of the best cards for gas purchases. And while it won't be dropped from that list entirely after the refresh, you'll probably at least hesitate before pulling it out at the pump.

The card now carries a $149 annual fee (up from $95) and earns Wyndham Rewards points at the following rates:

• 8 points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles
• 5 points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, gas, EV charging, marketing, advertising, office supply store and shipping purchases
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments)

To help justify the higher annual fee — and perhaps make you forget about the drop in gas earnings from 8X to 5X — Wyndham has loaded the card with new benefits on top of existing ones. Cardholders will now receive:

• An annual $65 statement credit for eligible wholesale club memberships
• Up to $50 in statement credits each calendar year on qualifying software purchases
• Complimentary Wyndham Rewards Diamond status
• A 15% discount on purchased Wyndham Rewards points
• Complimentary National Emerald Club Executive status
• A 20% discount on Wyndham Rewards award redemptions
• 15,000 bonus points each anniversary year after paying the annual fee
• No foreign transaction fees, $0 fraud liability protection, complimentary employee cards, and more

New applicants can also take advantage of the following welcome offer: Earn 45,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first 90 days, plus an additional 55,000 bonus points after spending $500 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.

Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier^® Card

Next up is an entirely new (and premium!) Wyndham credit card. As part of the refresh, Wyndham is introducing the Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier Card, which carries a $395 annual fee and comes with a slew of benefits.

The flashiest perks include:

• A one-time $100 statement credit each calendar year after spending $100 or more in aggregate at participating Wyndham brands, including Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Wyndham Grand, Dolce Hotels and Resorts by Wyndham, Trademark Collection by Wyndham, and Registry Collection Hotels
• Up to $10 in monthly statement credits on qualifying meal delivery purchases, worth up to $120 per calendar year
• Up to $100 in statement credits on qualifying streaming subscriptions each calendar year
• An annual $65 statement credit for eligible wholesale club memberships
• A complimentary subscription to Wyndham Rewards Insider
• Up to $120 in statement credits every four years for your TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee

Those benefits come on top of more traditional perks, including:

• Complimentary Wyndham Rewards Diamond status
• A 25% discount on Wyndham Rewards award redemptions
• A free night worth up to 30,000 Wyndham Rewards points after staying five or more nights in a calendar year
• 30,000 bonus points each anniversary year after paying the annual fee
• A 15% discount on purchased Wyndham Rewards points
• Complimentary National Emerald Club Executive status
• No foreign transaction fees, $0 fraud liability protection, and more

Days Inn by Wyndham Vancouver Downtown. Credit: Wyndham

The card also earns Wyndham Rewards points at the following rates:

• 8 points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles
• 4 points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, travel, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart)
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments).

Last but not least, the card comes with this welcome offer: Earn 90,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases and paying the annual fee in full, both within the first 120 days, plus an additional 30,000 bonus points after spending $750 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.

Wyndham Rewards Earner^® Plus Card

The Wyndham Rewards Earner^® Plus Card now takes its place as Wyndham's middle-of-the-road consumer card. As part of the refresh, Wyndham and Barclays increased the annual fee from $75 to $95, and the card now offers a better mix of benefits.

• Automatic Wyndham Rewards Diamond status during the first year, then Platinum status in year two and beyond
• A 10% discount on Wyndham Rewards award redemptions
• A free night worth up to 15,000 Wyndham Rewards points after staying five or more nights in a calendar year
• 15,000 bonus points each anniversary year after paying the annual fee
• Up to $25 in statement credits every six months on eligible meal delivery purchases when paying with the card, worth up to $50 per calendar year
• Complimentary National Emerald Club Executive status
• A 15% discount on purchased Wyndham Rewards points
• No foreign transaction fees, $0 fraud liability protection, and more

The card's earning rates have also been expanded:

• 6 points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles
• 4 points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, travel, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart)
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments).

Lastly, the welcome offer has also been juiced up: Earn 45,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days, plus an additional 55,000 bonus points after spending $500 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.

Wyndham Palmas Beach and Golf Boutique Resort. Credit: Wyndham

Wyndham Rewards Earner^® Card

Chugging right along, the last card Wyndham refreshed is its no-annual-fee Wyndham Rewards Earner^® Card. Thankfully, the card still carries no annual fee, but that's largely because the refresh didn't change much beyond the card art.

If you're wondering what this card offers in exchange for no annual fee, here's an overview:

• Complimentary Wyndham Rewards Gold status
• 7,500 bonus points each anniversary year after spending $15,000 on eligible purchases
• A 10% discount on Wyndham Rewards award redemptions
• A 15% discount on purchased Wyndham Rewards points
• No foreign transaction fees, $0 fraud liability protection, and more

You'll earn rewards at the following rates:

• 5 points per $1 spent on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham, including hotels through Wyndham Travel Bundles
• 3 points per $1 spent on eligible Vacation Club, dining and grocery store purchases (excluding Target and Walmart), as well as eligible gas and EV charging purchases
• 1 point per $1 spent on all other purchases (excluding Vacation Club down payments)

The following limited-time welcome offer is also available as well: Earn 30,000 bonus points after spending $1,000 on purchases in the first 90 days, plus an additional 45,000 bonus points after spending $500 at Hotels by Wyndham in the first 180 days.

Bottom Line

Even though this refresh has been on our radar for quite some time, Wyndham's credit card overhaul went well beyond what we expected. The timing of the rollout was a bit of a surprise, too.

If you're invested in the Wyndham ecosystem, there's a lot to like here. The new Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier Card packs in a substantial amount of value, and while the Wyndham Earner Business Card loses some of its shine with the drop from 8X to 5X on gas purchases, the added benefits could help offset both that change and the higher annual fee.

And it's hard to complain about elevated welcome offers, too.

As we mentioned earlier, we still don't know exactly how or when these changes will affect existing cardholders. We woke up to this news just like you did and are still digesting all of the details, so this is a story to mark as “developing.”