AwardWallet receives compensation from advertising partners for links on the blog. Terms Apply to the offers listed on this page. Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits. The opinions expressed here are our own and have not been reviewed, provided, or approved by any bank advertiser. Here's our complete list of Advertisers.
We've long revered Hilton Honors Gold as one of the best mid-tier hotel elite statuses one can earn. It's among the easiest to achieve, is consistently rewarding, and offers a slew of cost-saving benefits. If Hilton is your brand of choice, it's worth the effort to go for Gold.
Here's all you need to know about Hilton Honors Gold benefits and why it's Hilton's elite status sweet spot.
Hilton Gold Benefits
Hilton Gold members can enjoy a boatload of perks on stays at eligible properties, including:
80% bonus points
Earn 10 base points per dollar spent on most Hilton purchases plus an 80% bonus; that's a total of 18 points per dollar. On stays at True and Home2 properties, you'll earn nine points per dollar spent — five base points plus four bonus points.
Related: Do Hilton Honors Points Expire?
Space-available room upgrades
Enjoy complimentary space-available upgrades to a better room — up to the Executive Floor.
Daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast
Take advantage of daily food and beverage credits (depending on the brand you're staying at) within the United States or complimentary continental breakfast in non-U.S. hotels.
Milestone bonuses
After you've spent 40 nights in a Hilton property in a calendar year, you'll earn a 10,000-point bonus every 10 nights.
Fifth night free on award stays
An underrated perk, if there ever was one, you'll pay the equivalent of four nights when redeeming Hilton Honors points for a five-night stay.
Related: How To Get and Maximize the Hilton Honors 5th Night Free
Waived resort fees
Hilton will waive the resort fees on reward stays. This perk can offer substantial savings on both long and short-term stays at resort properties.
Elite rollover nights
Extra nights earned above Gold status will roll over for a head start on next year's status re-qualification.
Other benefits
Hilton Honors Gold elites can also enjoy the following:
- Guaranteed Hilton Honors discount rate
- All-inclusive spa discount
- Complimentary bottled water
- Free Wi-Fi
- Digital check-in and checkout
- Choose your room in the mobile app
How To Get Hilton Honors Gold Status
Travelers have three primary ways to earn Hilton Gold status: through qualifying activity, holding a credit card that offers the status as a perk, and via gift.
Earning Hilton Gold status through stays
The most traditional route to Hilton Gold status requires a fair amount of travel. You can earn Gold after staying 40 nights at a Hilton property, completing 20 stays, or earning 75,000 base points. All activity must take place within the calendar year to count for status. And to make things easier, rollover nights from the year prior year count toward status.
Hilton Honors members earn 10 base points per dollar spent at Hilton Hotels. Note that stays booked through third-party online travel agencies (OTAs, such as Hotels.com or Expedia) aren't eligible for earning points, nor can you enjoy the benefits of elite status on stays booked through OTAs.
A plus side is that award stays using points and free nights do count as qualifying nights and stays toward status.
Get Hilton Gold benefits through credit cards
The easiest path to Hilton Gold status is carrying a credit card that offers complimentary status as a perk. Presently, four credit cards offer Hilton Gold status for as long as you carry the card and pay the annual fee. Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits.
- Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card
- The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
- The Platinum Card® from American Express
- The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
You can also pay your way to Gold status with the no-annual-fee Hilton Honors American Express Card by spending $20,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year (Rates & Fees).
Related: Which Hilton Honors Card Is Right for You?
Gifting Hilton Gold status
You also can pick up Hilton Gold status by having it gifted to you. This is possible for a Diamond status holder who has spent 60 nights or more in a Hilton property in a calendar year. After the 60-night threshold is met, Hilton will send an email with a claim code and instructions on how to gift status.
Can You Earn Hilton Gold Status for Life?
There's no lifetime Hilton Honors status program for Gold or Silver — only Diamond.
You can achieve Lifetime Diamond after holding the status for 10 years. Better yet, the years don't have to be consecutive. You'll also have to complete a second milestone, such as earning two million base points or staying a combined 1,000 paid and reward nights.
If you enjoy Hilton Gold status and are loyal to the brand, it's worth weighing how much extra effort it'll take to get to Diamond annually. The perks are more rewarding than Gold, and on a long enough timeline, you can earn the status for life.
Related: Using Hilton Credit Card Spending for Elite Status
Is It Worth Earning Hilton Gold Status?
If you stay at Hilton properties a handful of times per year, Hilton Honors Gold status is an investment that will pay dividends. Earning 80% more points on stays means more award nights in your future. Even better, leveraging Hilton's fifth-night-free benefit is an easy way to make your Hilton points go further, saving you a substantial amount of money in the process. However, that assumes you can find a reasonably priced award night. Sometimes, that's a significant challenge in and of itself. And sometimes, you aren't staying in the same place for five nights.
Hilton regulars will also appreciate the complimentary continental breakfast and daily food and beverage credits, given how expensive breakfast at hotels can be. If you travel with a family, the savings on this perk alone will become even more pronounced — even if your credits don't cover the entirety of your meal.
Space-available upgrades are nice when you can get them, but they're hard to bank on. With these, it's a classic case of “your mileage may vary.” It's long been reported that getting upgraded at a U.S. property is more rare than at a property abroad. And in personal experience, that's mostly true. Traveling at off-peak times is an easy way to boost your chances of getting an upgrade. But sometimes, it's also worth inquiring with the front desk if you don't have an upgrade clear upon check-in.
Ultimately, if you're in it for the savings and the occasional added comfort of an upgrade, Hilton Gold status is likely worth the cost it takes to achieve. But if you're just looking for free upgrades, you might be disappointed.
Final Thoughts
For Hilton loyalists, Gold status is worth a look. Hilton Gold benefits include earning more points, saving by taking advantage of complimentary breakfast, getting waived resort fees on award stays, and occasionally enjoying an upgrade. What's not to like about that?
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Hilton Honors American Express Card (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.