Best Hotel Credit Cards for Free Nights

Editor’s note: Radisson is now part of the Choice Privileges loyalty program. This content is being updated to reflect this change. In the meantime, read more about this news here.

Most of us apply for hotel credit cards based on welcome bonuses that get us lots of free nights. These bonuses are great for helping us meet short-term travel goals, but what about beyond that? We’ll take a look at the best hotel credit cards for earning free nights, with a focus on category bonuses and annual free nights.

Before breaking down the best hotel credit cards for free nights, we need to review the number of points required for a standard award night:

• Marriott Bonvoy: 5,000 – 100,000 points (includes peak and off-peak pricing).

• World of Hyatt: 3,500 – 45,000 points (includes peak and off-peak pricing).

When it comes to earning free nights via non-bonus credit card spending, the Radisson Rewards™ Premier Visa Signature® Card takes the cake. You’d have to spend just $1,800 – $14,000 on this card at 5 points per $1 to earn a free night.

When it comes to category bonuses, the Hilton cards come out ahead again. Thanks to generous bonuses in common spending categories, these cards make earning free nights even more attainable:

The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card earns 7x points at U.S. restaurants, rental car companies and flights booked directly with airlines or AmExTravel.com. Terms apply. That means you need to spend a combined $715 – $13,572 in these categories to earn enough for a free night award.

The Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card offers 4x points in some useful categories: U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and U.S. purchases for shipping. Terms apply.

To earn enough points for a free Marriott night, you’ll need to spend $1,250 – $25,000 in these categories on the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card. Terms apply.

You will also earn one Free Night Award every year after your card renewal month. Plus, earn an additional Free Night Award after you spend $60K in purchases on your card in a calendar year. Terms apply.

If you want a rewards card that offers maximum return on spending with a specific hotel chain, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card offers the most bang for your buck. At 14x points per $1 spent at Hilton hotels and resorts, you’ll need to spend just $358 – $6,786 to earn a free night.

Considering this card gets you Hilton Diamond status, you’ll also earn 20 points per $1 spent through Hilton Honors. Throw in one of Hilton’s frequent double points promos, and you’ll be racking up free nights even faster. Terms apply.

At 4x points, World of Hyatt Credit Card also offers a good return on your Hyatt spending, especially for lower category redemptions. Earning a free night takes just $875 – $11,250 worth of Hyatt spending on this card.

The IHG® One Rewards Premier Credit Card gets an honorable mention here. While the card earns just 10 points per $1 spent at IHG hotels, you’ll also earn 6x points through IHG for having Platinum status (an automatic card benefit). Factor in the 10x points you’ll earn through the IHG One Rewards program, and you’ll need just $400 – $2,800 worth of paid IHG stays to score an award night.

Annual free nights are one of the best features of hotel credit cards. All you have to do is renew your card every year by paying the annual fee and you’ll get a free night. But not all hotel credit cards are equal in terms of this benefit.

For example, World of Hyatt Credit Card restricts annual free nights to Category 1 – 4 hotels, and the Radisson Rewards Premier Visa Signature® Card offers 40,000 bonus points every year, which is equally limiting since a top-tier award night requires 70,000 points.

The winners are really the IHG® One Rewards Premier Credit Card and Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, both of which offer annual free nights that can be used at any of their respective hotels with no category restrictions. Put the annual free Hilton night to use at a property like the Waldorf Astoria Maldives, and you could get over $1,800 worth of value out of your redemption.

When it comes to earning free nights, the Hilton and Radisson branded credit cards offer the most bang for your buck. Especially when paired with an already generous rewards program.

However, credit cards like the IHG® One Rewards Premier Credit Card, World of Hyatt Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card shouldn’t be discounted, since each of them has valuable features that make earning free nights easier.