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Offers for the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card, The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card and Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card are not available through this site. Some offers may have expired. Please see our card marketplace for available offers
One of my favorite hotel credit card perks is free night certificates just for holding the card and paying the annual fee. This is an easy way for me to justify the fee, and it's fun to maximize it during my yearly travels. If you're wondering which cards offer such a perk, this post has you covered.
Here are all the hotel credit cards that provide annual free night certificates.
Page Contents
Hotel Credit Cards With Free Night Awards
| Credit Card | Annual Bonus | Annual Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card | One Free Night Reward each year on your account anniversary. Plus, earn a second Free Night Reward when you spend $30,000 on eligible purchases on your card in a calendar year and a third award after $60,000 of purchases in a calendar year. While there are some exclusions, almost all of Hilton's massive global portfolio is available for redemption. | $550 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card | 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 85,000 points) every year after account renewal month. Cardholders can earn a second 85K free night after making $60K in purchases in a calendar year, thanks to the new Annual Earned Choice Award. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $650 (Rates & Fees) |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card | Free Night Award up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in value after making $15,000 in purchases per year. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $250 (Rates & Fees) |
| The World of Hyatt Credit Card | One free night at any Category 1–4 Hyatt hotel or resort every year after your cardmember anniversary, plus, an extra free night at any Category 1–4 Hyatt hotel or resort if you spend $15,000 on your card during a calendar year. Book any standard room at a Hyatt Category 1–4 property; certificates must be booked and redeemed within 12 months of being issued. | $95 |
| IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card | One free night at any IHG property worldwide pricing at 40,000 points or less per night. As long as there is a standard room available, you can use this free night. The IHG Free Night Certificate must be booked and redeemed within 12 months from the date of issue. Cardholders can top up their Rewards Night Certificates with points from their account to redeem at properties cost more than 40,000 points. | $99 |
| IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card | One free night at any IHG property worldwide pricing at 40,000 points or less per night. As long as there is a standard room available, you can use this free night. The IHG Free Night Certificate must be booked and redeemed within 12 months from the date of issue. Cardholders can top up their Rewards Night Certificates with points from their account to redeem at properties cost more than 40,000 points. | $99 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card | 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every year after account anniversary. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $95 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card | 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every year after account anniversary. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $125 - Rates & Fees |
| The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card | 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 85,000 points) every year after account anniversary. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $450 (no longer open to applications) |
| Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card | 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every year after account anniversary. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $95 (no longer accepting applications) |
| Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card | One Free Night Reward when you spend $15,000 on purchases on your card in a calendar year. While there are some exclusions, almost all of Hilton's massive global portfolio is available for redemption. (Terms Apply) | $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $150 (Rates & Fees) |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card | 1 Free Night Award up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in value after making $15,000 in purchases per year. Cardholders can top up their award with up to 15,000 additional points to redeem at additional hotels. | $250 |
How To Maximize These Free Night Certificates
The value of your free night certificates depends heavily on how you use them. Certificates like the one from the IHG One Rewards Premier Card are comparable to those offered by Marriott's mid-tier cards and Hyatt's similar offerings. However, the free night from the Hilton Aspire stands out, as it has no points cap and can be redeemed for significantly higher value stays.
For example, I've held the Hilton Aspire for several years, consistently using the annual free night certificate at high-end properties like the Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos Pedregal. With rates now reaching up to 140,000 points per night after a recent unannounced devaluation, this certificate has saved me a substantial number of points!
Hilton Honors Free Night Reward
The Hilton Aspire offers a free night certificate without any spending requirement. It can be redeemed any day of the week for a standard room at nearly any Hilton property worldwide. The primary challenge with redeeming this certificate at luxury properties is covering the additional points needed to extend your stay. Unfortunately, certificates can’t be combined with points to take advantage of Hilton’s fifth-night free perk.
Free nights can be earned on other Hilton Honors credit cards only after reaching set spending requirements, starting at $15,000 annually. If you aim to maximize value, beachside resorts or high-end Conrad properties in major cities are excellent choices. And remember that Hilton waives resort fees on award stays.
Related: How Does The Hilton Free Night Reward Work?
(Terms Apply)
- 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
- 14X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Portfolio
- 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, car rentals booked directly through select rental companies, and at U.S. restaurants
- 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card
IHG One Rewards free night
IHG One Rewards free nights are ideal for quick stays. I've used them while positioning for a long-haul flight or before a cruise in cities like Los Angeles or Miami. These certificates can be redeemed at properties costing up to 40,000 points per night. However, IHG allows you to top up your certificate with points from your account to book higher-cost properties. This feature makes these certificates much more versatile.
Since IHG uses dynamic pricing, the number of points required for a property can vary. Keep in mind that these free night certificates must be redeemed within 12 months of issuance.
Related: How To Earn and Use IHG Award Night Certificates
- Earn 26 points total per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel
- 5X points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, gas stations, and restaurants
- 3X points per $1 spent on all other purchases
The earning for spending at IHG hotels breaks down as follows:
- Earn 10X points for being a IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card member
- Earn 6X points from IHG® with Platinum Elite Status, a benefit of having this card
- Earn 10X points from IHG® for being an IHG® One Rewards member (Being a cardholder is not required to earn this bonus for participating in the IHG® loyalty program)
- Earn 26x total points per $1 spent when you stay at an IHG hotel
- 5X points per $1 spent on travel, dining, social media search engine advertising, and at office supply stores and gas stations
- 3X points per $1 spent on all other purchases
The earning for spending at IHG hotels breaks down as follows:
- Earn 10X points for charging your stay to your IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
- Earn 6X bonus points for having IHG®Platinum Elite Status, a benefit of having this card
- Earn 10X base points for being an IHG® One Rewards Member (Being a cardholder is not required to earn this bonus for participating in the IHG® loyalty program)
Marriott Bonvoy® free night
The entry-level Marriott cards offer free night awards capped at 35,000 points. These can be challenging to use for stays in major cities during peak periods due to Marriott’s dynamic pricing model. Your best bet is to redeem these certificates during off-peak times or at high-end Marriott Bonvoy properties in regions like Southeast Asia.
Fortunately, Marriott allows you to top up certificates with up to 15,000 points, enabling redemptions at properties costing more than the certificate’s limit. This has been my go-to strategy since the feature was introduced.
Some Marriott cards offer certificates worth up to 50,000 or even 85,000 points. For instance, I’ve redeemed my 85,000-point certificate for stays at the luxurious St. Regis Bal Harbour, making it easier to justify the higher annual fees on premium Marriott credit cards.
(Terms apply)
- 6x Marriott Bonvoy® points on each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program.
- 4x Marriott Bonvoy® points on each dollar of eligible purchases made at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and on U.S. purchases for shipping
- 2x Marriott Bonvoy® points per dollar on all other eligible purchases
(Terms Apply)
- 6X points on purchases at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy
- 4X points on up to $15,000 in combined purchases per year at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets
- 2X points on all other eligible purchases
(Terms Apply)
- 6X points on purchases at Marriott Properties
- 3X points at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery
- 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines
- 2X points on all other eligible purchases
Related: The Top Hotels for Using Marriott Bonvoy Credit Card Free Nights
World of Hyatt free annual night
Hyatt’s pricing model includes off-peak, standard, and peak rates, but your World of Hyatt free night certificate can still be redeemed for a Category 1–4 property as long as a standard room is available. While many of my favorite redemptions have been devalued over the years, several sweet spots still remain.
Hyatt free night certificates expire 12 months after issuance, and the expiration is based on the stay date — not the booking date. To avoid losing out, plan ahead and book in advance!
Related: Best Category 1–4 Hotels to Redeem Your World of Hyatt Free Night Awards
- Up to 9X points total per $1 spent at Hyatt - 4X points per $1 when you use your card at Hyatt hotels & 5X points per $1 you can earn as a World of Hyatt member
- 2X points per $1 spent at restaurants, on airlines tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships
- 1X point per $1 everywhere else
- Up to 9X total points per $1 spent at Hyatt – 4X points per $1 on qualifying purchases when you use your card at Hyatt hotels & 5X points per $1 you can earn as a World of Hyatt member
- 2X points per $1 spent on fitness club and gym memberships
- 1X point per $1 everywhere else
In addition, you'll earn 2X points per $1 spent in your top three spend categories each quarter. Eligible categories include:
- Dining
- Shipping
- Airline tickets when purchased directly with the airline
- Local transit & commuting
- Social media & search engine Advertising
- Car rental agencies
- Gas stations
- Internet, cable & phone services
Final Thoughts
Your goals will dictate which free night(s) work for you, but we see the free night certificate offered by the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Card and the Hilton Aspire / Hilton Surpass offering the most value, due to the types of hotels you can use them at. However, the multitude of options available with the World of Hyatt Card makes this a winner in my book.
Which of these free night awards from credit cards is your favorite? Let us know in the comments.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (Rates & Fees), Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card (Rates & Fees), IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees), The World of Hyatt Credit Card (Rates & Fees), and World of Hyatt Business Credit Card (Rates & Fees)
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