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The Bilt Mastercard® burst onto the scene in 2021 with an irresistible offer: Earning rewards on rent payments without paying any transaction fees or an annual fee (Rates & Fees). Holders of the Bilt Mastercard can earn up to 100,000 Bilt Points in a calendar year from rent payments.
Plus, the Bilt Mastercard earns 3X points on dining, 2X points on travel, 1X on all other purchases, and even 0.5X on home purchases through the new eXp Realty partnership — all as long as you use your card to make five purchases during a statement period. If you do not make five purchases, you will not receive any points for your transactions but rather just 250 points.
Let's explore our full review of what the Bilt Mastercard offers.
Page Contents
Bilt Credit Card Pros
- Earn 1X points per $1 spent for paying rent without incurring transaction fees, up to 100,000 points per calendar year.
- Earn up to 5X points on Lyft when you link your Lyft account and Bilt account.
- Earn 3X points on dining and 2X points on travel (On the first day of each month, these rates double to 6X for dining and 4X for travel; earn up to 1k points)
- Access special monthly Rent Day promotions.
- Earn Bilt points that you can transfer to Alaska Airlines, Hyatt, Turkish Airlines, and more.
- No annual fee (Rates & Fees).
Bilt Credit Card Cons
- Requires five purchases on the card in a statement period to earn points.
- If you forget to make five purchases, you will only receive 250 points for that month (regardless of rent payment or the amount paid on other transactions).
- No published welcome bonus.
- Earns 1X points per $1 spent on non-bonused purchases.
Bilt Credit Card Welcome Offer
The Bilt Mastercard does not currently have a welcome offer. However, new cardholders are often targeted to earn 5X Bilt points on all purchases for the first five days after their card arrives. So, keep a close eye on your email account the day your card arrives. But we should mention that you are not guaranteed to receive this offer.
Bilt Credit Card Benefits
Despite not charging an annual fee, the Bilt Mastercard offers compelling perks that set it apart from other top no-annual-fee cards.
No transaction fees for paying rent
The Bilt Mastercard lets you earn points on rent payments without paying the costly transaction fees tacked on by apartments and rental communities. Bilt offers multiple methods for paying rent without fees.
- Bilt Rewards Alliance: If your apartment complex is a Bilt partner, you can use Bilt's app or website to pay for rent.
- Other properties with online payment: If your apartment is not partnered with Bilt but you still pay rent via online payment portal, you can use an account and routing number that Bilt has generated for your Bilt account to pay for rent via ACH.
- Properties without online payment: If your landlord doesn't have an online payment portal, Bilt will even mail a check to your landlord directly from Bilt to pay for rent — still letting you earn rewards for doing so.
- Venmo, Paypal, and Zelle: If you pay your landlord via Venmo or Paypal, Bilt states in a support article that you can pay your rent in the app by pressing the “Pay Rent” tab. While the article does claim that the pay rent tab does not support Zelle rent payments, Bilt has told me and some Redditors that they can send screenshots of rent payments on Zelle to their support team each month, and Bilt will award points. However, we are unsure if Bilt's support team will only do this for existing customers moving from an apartment with a supported payment method to one that strongly prefers or requires Zelle payments.
Note that you must also make five purchases using your Bilt Mastercard during your statement period to earn any points.
Related: How Does Bilt Stack Up for Earning Rewards by Paying Rent?
Bilt Rent Day
Another unique feature of the Bilt Mastercard is its monthly Bilt's Rent Day promotions. Rent Day occurs on the first day of each month and typically includes double points earned on all purchases (up to 1k points), excluding rent and home purchases, and a game show where you can enter to win free rent for the month.
Additional promotions vary from month to month. Some examples include temporary status with an airline or hotel or transfer bonuses to reward programs.
Travel Insurance
Even though the Bilt Mastercard does not charge an annual fee, it still offers several travel protections:
- Trip interruption/cancellation insurance: If your trip is canceled or interrupted for a covered reason, you can receive up to $5,000 reimbursement for a nonrefundable ticket.
- Trip delay reimbursement: Receive $200 per day (up to $1,800 max) if your trip is delayed six hours or more due to reasons including weather, mechanical trouble, or airport staffing delays.
- Auto rental collision waiver: If you pay for your rental car with Bilt, you receive coverage for collision and theft incidents.
Purchase and shopping protection
- Cell phone protection: Receive up to $800 of protection (subject to a $25 deductible) if your phone is damaged or stolen, as long as you pay your phone bill with the Bilt Mastercard.
- Purchase theft and damage protection: If an item bought with the Bilt Mastercard is stolen or damaged within 90 days of purchase, Bilt will cover damages up to $10,000 per claim.
Bilt Mastercard Earning Rates
The Bilt Mastercard earns points at the following rates:
- 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
However, on Rent Day (the first day of each month), the Bilt Mastercard earns double points on all purchases, excluding rent and home purchases. Thus, the rates are as follows:
- 8x on Lyft (2x for having a connected Bilt account + 6x for paying with your Bilt card)
- 6x on dining
- 4x on travel
- 2x on other purchases, excluding rent and home purchases
You can earn up to 1,000 bonus points through enhanced multipliers on Rent Day.
Additionally, the Bilt Mastercard does not charge foreign transaction fees on travel purchases (Rates & Fees). If you're making a travel purchase that is not in US Dollars, you will not be charged a fee by Bilt to convert that purchase to dollars.
Redeeming Points With the Bilt Mastercard
So, how can you use Bilt Points? Let's take a look.
Transfer to partners
Bilt Rewards points are very valuable. Not only does Bilt transfer to most of its partners at a 1:1 rate, but it also is the only rewards program that can transfer points to Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (besides Marriott Bonvoy, but that's at a 3:1 ratio). This makes Bilt Rewards critical for taking advantage of incredible Alaska Mileage Plan sweet spots. Unlike Delta and United, Alaska still publishes an award chart for its mileage redemptions — and this chart can be especially useful on partner airlines.
Bilt is also one of a few card programs that transfer to Turkish Airlines, which also has multiple sweet spots for redeeming miles that set it apart from other airlines' mileage programs. In addition, Bilt is one of two programs that transfer to Hyatt — and there's tons of value in leveraging Hyatt's sweet spots as well.
Unlike other credit card travel portals, Bilt's travel portal also has the option to search for hotel award availability with Bilt transfer partners. You can easily check how many points are needed to redeem a plane ticket or hotel stay without having the headache of checking multiple travel partners to find prices.
Here is the current list of Bilt's airline and hotel partners:
Bilt travel portal
You can also use Bilt's travel portal to redeem points for flights without transferring. This typically is not the best way to redeem Bilt points, however, because points are generally worth less per dollar when booking with a portal versus transferring to a partner airline. In addition, Bilt's travel portal already makes it easy to see point availability on other airlines.
The Bilt Collection
Each quarter, Bilt offers unique home decor items — letting cardholders style their home or apartment by spending Bilt points. This is also typically not a great way to redeem Bilt points, as most items can be found at a better value by spending cash.
Rent and down payment
Bilt points can be used to pay rent and even make down payments on homes. These are solid redemptions, with each point being valued at 1.5 cents each.
Pay with points
You can use points earned from your Bilt Mastercard to pay for Amazon purchases. However, because one point equates to one cent spent at Amazon, this is not a solid redemption.
Fitness
Finally, Bilt also allows for points to be transferred toward fitness classes, starting at 1,600 points per class. These redemptions are also poor compared to travel redemptions.
Application Restrictions
We aren't aware of any notable application restrictions for the Bilt Mastercard. Since the card doesn't offer a welcome bonus, Wells Fargo's restriction of one credit card bonus per 15 months won't be a factor.
The biggest restriction will be your credit score and history. You'll need to have good to excellent credit to be approved for the Bilt Mastercard. You have a high likelihood of being approved if you have healthy credit and few recent applications.
Related: Understanding Rewards Credit Card Application Rules and Restrictions
Cards That Compete With the Bilt Mastercard
There really isn't a card like the Bilt Mastercard. It is the only card that allows you to earn points on rent payments without incurring transaction fees and is a no-annual-fee card that offers high-end perks. Personally, I use it frequently alongside two other premium credit cards.
With that said, some cards compete with the Bilt Mastercard‘s earning rates:
- If you're under 5/24 with Chase, the Chase Freedom Flex℠ card earns 5% on rotating bonus categories (up to $1,500 per quarter), 5% on travel purchased through Chase, 3% on dining at restaurants and drugstore purchases and 1% on other eligible purchases. The Bilt Mastercard earns 3x on dining and 2x on travel — which doesn't need to be booked through a specific travel portal. The Freedom Flex charges $0 annual fee. More details are in our Freedom Flex review.
- If you want more travel benefits and are willing to pay an annual fee, the American Express® Green Card offers 3X Membership Rewards® points on all eligible travel, plus 3X Membership Rewards® points at restaurants worldwide. The card offers an annual $199 CLEAR credit. The Amex Green Card charges an annual fee of $150 . See our Amex Green Card review for more information. Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits.
- If you also want points for groceries and are willing to pay an annual fee, the Citi Strata Premier℠ Card offers 10X points per $1 on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through CitiTravel.com; 3X points per $1 spent on airfare and other hotels; and 3X points at gas stations, EV charging stations, restaurants, and supermarkets. This card has plenty of valuable benefits, and you can transfer the points you earn from spending and the sign-up bonus to 21 travel partners. Check out our Citi Strata Premier review to learn more
- Earn 5% on up to $1,500 on combined purchases in bonus categories each quarter you activate
- Earn 5% on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards
- Earn 3% on dining at restaurants, including takeout and eligible delivery services
- Earn 3% on drugstore purchases
- Earn 1% on all other purchases
- 3x Membership Rewards® on travel
- 3x Membership Rewards® at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S.
- 3x Membership Rewards® on transit including trains, buses, ferries, subways, and more
- 1x Membership Rewards® on other purchases
- 10X points per $1 on hotels, car rentals, and attractions booked through CitiTravel.com
- 3X points per $1 spent on airfare, and other hotel purchases
- 3X points per $1 spent at gas and EV charging stations
- 3X points per $1 spent on dining at restaurants, including cafes, bars and lounges
- 3X points per $1 spent at supermarkets
- 1X points per $1 spent on all other purchases
Final Thoughts
The Bilt Mastercard is a must-have for individuals who want to earn points for rent payments without paying transaction fees. In addition, the card offers solid earning rates, monthly promotions, and unique travel partners.
Not to be overlooked, Bilt's enhanced travel portal also enables Bilt Mastercard cardholders to search Bilt's travel partners for flight and hotel redemptions, so they know exactly which program to transfer points to without spending tons of time finding the right price. And if you are looking to buy a home and want to earn credit card points, Bilt's partnership with eXP Realty is the way to go; you'll earn a boatload of valuable rewards.
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