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Companies frequently survey their most loyal customers for feedback on potential product changes. Late this week, Bilt Rewards sent out an email to its cardholders asking for input on possible updates to its credit card lineup.
In this post, we’ll break down the survey details and speculate on what these changes could mean for Bilt cardholders. However, we should note that Bilt emphasized that none of these options are final and may change before any updates are actually implemented.
Still, if you're a current Bilt cardholder, you'll want to submit a response to the survey to ensure your voice is heard.
Page Contents
Potential Changes to Bilt’s No-Annual-Fee Card
Bilt is considering three versions of its credit card at different annual fee levels. The no-annual-fee version would be a refresh of the existing The Bilt Mastercard®.
Option A
- 1x points on rent & mortgage
- 4x points on Bilt Neighborhood dining, Walgreens, and Lyft
- 1.5x points on all other spending
Option B
- 1x points on rent & mortgage
- 3x points on Bilt Neighborhood dining, Walgreens, and Lyft
- 2x points on gas, grocery, and dining
- 1x points on all other spending
What's different from the current card
For reference, the Bilt Mastercard offers the following earning rates for its cardholders:
- 3x points on dining
- 2x points on travel
- 1x points on rent payments without the transaction fee (up to 100,000 points each calendar year)
- 1x points on other purchases
Rewards on mortgage payments
At first glance, the most major change would be the ability for cardholders to earn points on mortgage payments. I know that homeowners (myself included) have loudly requested this change.
Reduced earnings on travel
Both versions of the potential no-annual-fee card would eliminate 2X points on general travel. This would be a big blow to the card, as its simplicity in earning categories made it a compelling offering.
Changes to dining rewards
3x points on general dining would also go away. Instead, Bilt would offer 4x points for dining at Bilt Neighborhood dining with option A, while option B would offer 3x points for Bilt Neighborhood dining spending and 2x points for all other dining.
Losing 3x points on dining would be a loss, but driving members towards Bilt Neighborhood dining options makes sense from a business perspective for the company. It's also worth noting that no other no-annual-fee card earns at least 3X transferrable points per dollar on dining.
Related: Best Credit Cards for Dining and Restaurants
Lyft ride changes
Currently, cardholders can earn up to 5x points on Lyft rides — 3x from card spending and 2x from linking your Bilt account to Lyft. Presuming the 2x points per dollar for linked Bilt and Lyft accounts continues, Option A would offer a total of 6x Bilt points on Lyft spending while Option B would continue at 5x Bilt points.
For reference, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees) and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees) earn 5x Ultimate Rewards points (and also charge an annual fee). The Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees) earns 4x Ultimate Rewards points on eligible travel purchases, though it charges a hefty $795 annual fee.
Enhanced earnings at Walgreens
Both card options would offer enhanced point earnings at Walgreens. While this change wouldn't do much for me, it will be a welcome addition to the card lineups for Options A and B for those who do their pharmacy shopping at Walgreens. With the launch of the Walgreens partnership in 2024, it makes sense for Bilt to double down on its existing relationships.
Other improved earning options
Finally, option A offers 1.5x points for all other non-bonused spending. That's a similar earning rate to the $0 offers if you pair it with an Ultimate Rewards earning credit card.
Meanwhile, Option B would stick with 1x earnings on everyday purchases but add a 2x points category for gas and grocery spend. Several cards earn 4x rewards in these categories, but it's nice to have with a no-annual-fee card.
What's unknown
While not mentioned here, I imagine there will be a card usage requirement to access 1X points on mortgage spending — similar to the requirement to make five purchases each month to earn points on the current card.
My pick
Personally, I'd choose option B, as there are enough new categories to continue earning decent rewards in categories I care about. For both cards, the addition of mortgage earnings alone would be enough reason for me to consider any annual fee Bilt card.
Bilt's Options for Potential $95 Annual Fee Cards
Bilt's second tier of surveyed card products involves an annual fee — a first for a Bilt card. Here are the options for a $95 annual fee card:
Option A
- 1x points on rent & mortgage
- 5x points on Bilt Neighborhood dining, hotels booked through Bilt, Walgreens, and Lyft
- 2x points on dining, grocery, and gas
- 1x points on all other spending
- $170 in annual partner credits:
- $60 Bilt Fitness credits
- $60 Walgreens credits
- $50 Bilt hotel credits
Option B
- 1x points on rent & mortgage
- 5x points on Bilt Neighborhood dining and Lyft
- 3x on dining and Walgreens
- 2x points on travel
- 1x points on all other spending
- $170 in annual partner credits:
- $60 Bilt Fitness credits
- $60 Walgreens credits
- $50 Bilt hotel credits
Comparing the two options
Options A and B both continue to earn 1x points on rent and mortgage. And we see the addition of $170 in annual partner credits. I'm not a fan of these types of credits, as they can be easy to forget about. Plus, a $60 credit is conveniently a multiple of 12 — meaning Bilt could be considering monthly $5 credits, which would be even harder to use.
All non-bonused spending with both options would earn only 1x points. That's disappointing, as one option in the no-fee category of changes teased a 1.5x Bilt points option.
The spending tiers are where things get interesting. Option A offers 5x points on Bilt Neighborhood dining, and hotels booked through Bilt, Lyft, and Walgreens spend. Option B only offers 5x points in Bilt Neighborhood dining and Lyft. It's nice to see 5x points earned from hotels booked through Bilt from Option A. Hopefully, those hotels will be eligible to earn status benefits, similar to Fine Hotels and Resorts.
Option B offers a 3x points earning tier for all dining and Walgreens spending. It's nice to see 3x dining return here, even if it's now behind a “paywall” of a $95 annual fee.
For the 2x points category, Option A offers dining, grocery, and gas categories for earning, while Option B offers 2x points for travel. Again, great to see 2x points for travel return, though now for an annual fee.
My pick
If I had to choose, I'd pick option B for the broad dining and travel earning categories. However, if choosing between no-annual-fee and $95 annual fee options with these stated benefits, I'd pick the no-annual-fee card.
New Bilt Premium Credit Card Options
Finally, a third option for current cardholders asked for feedback on two options for a $550 annual fee credit card.
Option A
- 1x points on rent & mortgage
- 5x points on hotels booked through Bilt, Bilt Neighborhood dining, Lyft, and Walgreens
- 4x points on direct flight bookings
- 2x points on dining
- 1x points on all other spending
- $380 in annual partner credits:
- $200 Bilt Travel hotel credit
- $120 Bilt Fitness credit
- $60 Walgreens credit
- Priority Pass membership
Option B
- 1.25x points on rent & mortgage
- 5x points on hotels booked through Bilt, Lyft, and Walgreens
- 4x on Bilt Neighborhood dining
- 3x on direct flight bookings
- 2x points on grocery and gas
- 1x points on all other spending
- $380 in annual partner credits:
- $200 Bilt Travel hotel credit
- $120 Bilt Fitness credit
- $60 Walgreens credit
- Priority Pass membership
Comparing the two options
Both card options would offer up to $380 in annual partner credits plus a Priority Pass membership.
Option A offers the standard 1x points on rent and mortgage, but option B offers 1.25x points on rent and mortgage. For those with large rent or mortgage payments, this could mean a big boost in their Bilt points balance each year.
Option A keeps the same 5x points categories as Option A from the $95 annual fee card but adds a 4x points category for direct flight bookings. While not as strong as the 5 Membership Rewards points earned by The Platinum Card® from American Express, it's still a compelling offering. This card option would also earn 2x points on dining and 1x points on all other spending.
Note: 5X earning rates on flights purchased directly with airlines or via American Express Travel® using The Platinum Card® from American Express are limited to the first $500,000 spent annually. After this limit, you'll earn 1X.
Option B only earns 5x points at Hotels booked through Bilt, Lyft, and Walgreens. You'd earn 4x points at Bilt Neighborhood dining and 3x points on direct flight bookings. Finally, you'd earn 2x points on gas and groceries plus 1x points on all other spending.
My pick
I'm not in love with either of these options for my wallet. My mortgage isn't so hefty that the 0.25 extra points are worth the annual fee, and there are other cards out there offering similar earning benefits. Earning points on mortgage payments alone with a no-annual-fee card seems like the most groundbreaking offer from any of these options.
Final Thoughts
I think it's wise of Bilt to survey its existing membership for feedback on future card offerings. The data gained from this exercise will better inform what their loyal base wants (and doesn't want) from future card iterations. If you're a current Bilt cardholder, be sure to check your email and respond to the survey with your preferences.
Hopefully, we'll see the next evolution of the Bilt Card reward its cardholders with more Bilt points they know what to do with. But the most exciting option here is a no-fee way for me to earn rewards on my mortgage payments.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (Rates & Fees), Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (Rates & Fees), and Chase Sapphire Reserve® (Rates & Fees)
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