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The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card delivers significant value—even if you only spend a couple of nights a year with Hilton. And now is a great time to get the card, as new cardholders can earn a welcome offer of 130,000 Hilton Honors points Hilton Honors points after you spend $3,000 in purchases in the first 6 months of Card Membership (offer ends 8/13/2025).
In October 2023, American Express refreshed the benefit offerings on this card. Altogether, the changes are mixed. How you travel will determine whether the card holds the same value it once did.
Below, we discuss the changes and why the Hilton Surpass may still be one of the most valuable hotel co-branded cards you can hold.
- Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 8/13/2025.
- Get up to $50 in statement credits each quarter for purchases made directly with a property in the Hilton portfolio on your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. That's up to $200 in statement credits annually.
- Earn 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio.
- Earn 6X Points for each dollar of purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations.
- Earn 4X Points for each dollar on U.S. Online Retail Purchases.
- Earn 3X Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card.
- Earn a Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year.
- Enjoy complimentary Hilton Honors ™ Gold Status with your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card.
- Spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on your Card in a calendar year and you can earn Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status through the end of the next calendar year.
- As a Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card Member, you can enroll to receive complimentary National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status through the link on your American Express online account. After you're enrolled, you can reserve a rental car by calling National Car Rental directly, using your travel service, or by booking online or through the National Car Rental mobile app. Terms apply.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees. Enjoy international travel without additional fees on purchases made abroad.
- $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150.
- Apply with confidence. Know if you're approved for a Card with no impact to your credit score. If you're approved and you choose to accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.
- Terms Apply.
- Rates & Fees
- 12X bonus points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio
- 6X bonus points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your card at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations
- 4X bonus points on U.S online retail purchases
- 3X bonus points for all other eligible purchases on your card
What Makes the Hilton Surpass Stand Out From Other Hotel Cards?
Most hotel cards are designed for brand loyalists, and it only makes sense to have the card if you stay a lot of nights (and spend a lot of money) with the hotel. The Hilton Surpass is a refreshing exception. In fact, we’d go so far as to say the Hilton Surpass is the best hotel card for the vast majority of travelers, particularly those that don’t already hold elite status with any of the major brands.
Related: Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card Review
Also, unlike hotel credit cards from Marriott, IHG, and Hyatt, the Hilton Surpass doesn’t have harsh restrictions that prevent you from getting approved if you’ve opened too many cards in the past two years. Holding a different Hilton co-brand card also won't affect your eligibility, making this one of the most accessible rewards cards on the market.
Recent Changes to the Hilton Surpass Card
Hilton's October 2023 changes to the Hilton Surpass include both positive and negative developments. However, if utilized correctly, we feel that the card has improved slightly overall, in spite of the negative changes. There is certainly potential for increased value, but it does require additional effort and a change in thinking about how to use this card. Let's break down what is changing.
Annual fee increase
The annual fee for the Hilton Surpass increased from the previous $95 annual fee to the new annual fee of $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $150 (Rates & Fees). Existing cardmembers will see the higher annual fee take effect for renewals on or after Feb. 1, 2024.
It's never a great thing to see an annual fee increase. As always, it's important to weigh the value of the benefits against the cost of the annual fee to see if you will come out ahead when deciding if a card is right for you.
Removal of Priority Pass benefit
Another negative change to the Hilton Surpass is the removal of Priority Pass lounge access. Previously, the Hilton Surpass offered 10 complimentary passes to visit any Priority Pass lounge per year.
If you signed up for or renewed your Priority Pass membership before Jan. 31, 2023, your passes can be used until Jan. 31, 2024. If you've enrolled or renewed between Feb. 1, 2023, and Jan. 31, 2024, you can use your passes through Oct. 31, 2024. However, there are many other premium cards that offer Priority Pass lounge access. If you have any of these other cards, the loss of this benefit doesn't sting quite so much.
New spending category: Online retail purchases
In addition to keeping the existing bonus categories, Hilton and Amex have added a new bonus category. Cardholders now earn 4 Hilton points per dollar on U.S. online retail purchases. This offers the ability to earn additional rewards through shopping portals as well.
While anything new is a welcome addition, you will often be able to get better returns from numerous other cards when spending in this category. But, if you are just trying to get your spending to the $15,000 free night threshold, then this new bonus category will certainly add some extra value.
New Hilton quarterly statement credit
An interesting and potentially valuable new benefit of the Hilton Surpass is the addition of a $50 statement credit each quarter toward eligible Hilton purchases (up to $200 annually). Eligible purchases include those charged directly with any Hilton property, including room rates and incidental charges such as room service. This credit is broader than the Hilton resort credit on the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card — which only works at Hilton resorts.
American Express often designs statement credits in a way that is intended for cardholders to not fully maximize, and this follows suit with that. This quarterly statement credit can be difficult to use if you don't travel every three months, so not all cardholders may be able to max out the full $200 every year. Factor this into your thinking when considering the overall value of this card.
New car rental elite status
Cardholders can now receive complimentary National Car Rental Executive Club Emerald Status after enrollment in the Emerald Club program. Benefits include increased access to cars for the same price as a midsize vehicle, guaranteed upgrades, and no second-driver fees.
You can also leverage the Emerald Club status to status match to other car rental companies. Check out our guide to car rental elite status. This is another valuable tool that can help if you are able to turn one elite status into many.
Hilton Elite Status Benefits
One of the best benefits of the Hilton Surpass is complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold Elite status for as long as you hold the card. Hilton Gold is far and away the best mid-tier hotel status to maintain, especially if you are not a frequent traveler. It takes just a couple stays for the value of Hilton Gold to eclipse the out-of-pocket expense of holding the card.
Hilton Gold status perks include:
- 80% bonus on points earned from stays (18 points per dollar spent).
- 5th night free on award stays.
- Daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast (varies by brand and region).
- Access to the hotel's executive lounge at select properties.
- Space-available room upgrades.
- Earn 10,000 bonus points every 10 nights after you’ve stayed 40 nights in a calendar year.
If you want automatic Hilton Gold status, but you decide this card isn't a good fit, the The Platinum Card® from American Express includes mid-tier status with both Hilton and Marriott along with an extensive list of other benefits for a $695 annual fee (Rates & Fees).
Hilton Surpass Welcome Offer
There aren't many cards offering over 100,000 bonus points, and the Hilton Surpass is one of the best. Since you can only get a welcome offer once per lifetime on each card from Amex, it's especially important to time your application to maximize your points. See our American Express card offer history to see how the current offer compares to past offers.
- Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 8/13/2025.
A welcome bonus of this size is nothing to overlook, even though Hilton employs dynamic pricing on its award nights. Given that you can find award nights for under 10,000 Hilton Honors points at budget-oriented properties, it's possible to get a lot of mileage out of these bonus points. With the current offer, this is as good a time as any to go for a welcome offer on the Hilton Surpass.
Maximize Your Value With $15,000 in Annual Spending
The earning potential of the Hilton Surpass is where things get interesting. The best benefit of the Hilton Surpass card is earning a free weekend night certificate earned after $15,000 in purchases. Combining the value of this free night with spending in the bonus categories opens up to possibility of extracting maximum value from your spending.
With many hotel cards, free-night certificates can't be used at properties that cost more than a certain number of points. These “caps” on free nights often eliminate half of your options (i.e. all the expensive and nice properties). With Hilton, their free night certificates can be used at almost any hotel or resort worldwide, provided it's not on the list of around 50 excluded properties.
At the low end of Hilton's award chart, budget-savvy travelers can snag affordable hotels in highly sought-after destinations — leaving you plenty of points in your account for future redemptions. For extended stays, the fifth night free on award bookings will lower your cost even more.
If you want to experience Hilton's high-end Hilton redemptions, you will likely get just two or three nights maximum, with the majority of Hilton's mid-tier properties fetching between 70K and 100K points per night and higher. With the free night certificates having an uncapped value, the best bang for your buck is to use them on the most expensive points stays possible.
Related: 9 Things We Love About the Hilton Honors Rewards Program
Point values
AwardWallet users have averaged a value of approximately 0.59¢ per Hilton point on redemptions. But let's use a conservative value of 0.5¢ per Hilton point to show how the Hilton Surpass earns:
- 12 Hilton points per dollar on purchases at Hilton properties (6% return)
- 6 Hilton points per dollar on purchases at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. restaurants, and U.S. gas stations (3% return)
- 4 Hilton points per dollar on U.S. online retail purchases (2% return)
- 3 Hilton points per dollar on all other eligible purchases (1.5% return)
When comparing the earning rates to the other American Express Hilton co-branded cards, the Hilton Surpass earns the most Hilton points on purchases at U.S. supermarkets, U.S. restaurants, and U.S. gas stations, and the same amount as the other cards on non-bonused categories.
Related: Which Hilton Honors credit card is right for you?
Best spending practices
For most cardholders, the ideal annual spending pattern on Hilton Surpass card is $15,000 to earn the free night certificate, all in bonus categories if possible. This provides a huge boost in value. If you spent all $15,000 only in the 6X categories, you would have an uncapped free night certificate and 90,000 Hilton points at your disposal. This is an excellent return on your spending.
You can also earn Hilton™ Diamond status with the Hilton Surpass when you spend $40,000 on the card in a calendar year, but we wouldn't recommend it. If you want top-tier status, the more efficient option is to apply for the Hilton Aspire — which provides complimentary Hilton Diamond status as one of its flagship perks.
Instead of spending $40,000 on the Hilton Surpass, spending $30,000 on the Hilton Aspire would net you a second free night certificate — in addition to getting Diamond status automatically.
If you have both cards and the means to spend this much, the winning formula is to spend $15,000 on the Hilton Surpass and $30,000 on the Hilton Aspire, giving you two free night certificates and a boatload of points, especially if the bulk of spending is in bonus categories.
No Complex Application Rules
Unlike the overly complicated Marriott cards rules and Chase's 5/24 policy, Amex's application rules are relatively basic: You won't qualify for the welcome offer on this card if you've previously had the Hilton Surpass card or the Hilton Honors Ascend Card from American Express:
“Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this Card or the Hilton Honors Surpass Card. We may also consider the number of American Express Cards you have opened and closed as well as other factors in making a decision on your welcome offer eligibility.”
However, there is no rule preventing you from acquiring this card if you currently hold another Hilton Amex card. Many folks struggle to get back under 5/24, even committing to a conservative rewards strategy, which makes cards like the Hilton Surpass so much more valuable for long-term award travelers.
Important Note: If you already have a different Hilton card, Amex will likely offer you an upgrade — which won't earn the 130,000 Hilton Honors points point welcome offer — if you log in to your Amex account to autofill the application details. If you want to apply for a new card, you'll want to choose to “apply without logging in.”
Final Thoughts
Featuring a great welcome offer, high earning potential, complimentary Gold Elite status, and a host of other top perks for a card at a mid-range price point, the Hilton Surpass has cemented its place as one of our top hotel rewards cards.
Even with the recent changes, it is our opinion that this card has retained its value, offering the potential for further value when fully maximized. Whether you're over 5/24 and no longer qualify for Chase cards, or you want to round out your rewards card portfolio with a high-quality hotel card, you would be hard-pressed to find a better choice than the Hilton Surpass, particularly if you don't travel enough to reach elite status the hard way.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (Rates & Fees), and The Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees)
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
