How does the Hilton free breakfast for Gold and Diamond elites work, and who gets a food and beverage credit instead?

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• Hilton Honors used to offer free breakfast for all members with Gold and Diamond elite status.
• Hilton now provides a food and beverage credit for Gold and Diamond elite status holders staying at US properties.
• Hilton's food and beverage credits can be either great or detrimental, depending on the hotel.
• Read Insider's guide to the best hotel credit cards.

One of Hilton's most lauded and customer-friendly policies has been its free breakfast benefit for all members with Hilton Gold or Diamond elite status.

Hilton's breakfast offering has changed over the past couple of years, for better or worse. Many US properties no longer receive "free" breakfast. Instead, they issue daily "food and beverage credit," which may or may not cover your entire breakfast bill.

This is still an extremely valuable benefit for two reasons:

1. Breakfast can be very expensive if you're staying at a luxury resort like a Waldorf Astoria or Conrad brand
2. Elite status is easy to earn simply by holding specific Hilton credit cards like the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card - Product Name Only and The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card - Product Name Only

Three Hilton credit cards are also offering increased welcome bonuses through April 5, 2023:

• Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card - Product Name Only — Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card - Intro Bonus
• The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card - Product Name Only — The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card - Intro Bonus
• Hilton Honors American Express Card - Product Name Only — Hilton Honors American Express Card - Intro Bonus

Let's take a closer look at Hilton's breakfast benefit.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

How does the Hilton food and beverage credit work?

Many Hilton hotel brands offer free breakfast to all guests. Even if you have no elite status, you won't have to pay for breakfast when staying with Embassy Suites, Hampton, Tru, Homewood Suites, Home2 Suites, and any all-inclusive locations.

For all other brands, Hilton issues a daily food and beverage credit to Gold and Diamond elite status members when staying in the US. These credits are worth between $10 and $25 per day, depending on the hotel brand with which you're staying. You'll receive twice that value for double occupancy, and the credits don't roll over from one night to the next — so use them or lose them.

You'll receive $10 per day ($20 if double occupancy) when staying with:

• Hilton Garden Inn

You'll receive $15 per day ($30 if double occupancy) when staying with:

• Hilton
• Tapestry
• Signia
• DoubleTree
• Canopy
• Curio
• Motto

In the following markets, you'll receive $18 per day at the above seven hotel brands ($36 if double occupancy):

• Boston
• Chicago
• District of Columbia
• New York City
• San Francisco
• Key Largo
• Key West
• Los Angeles
• Hawaii

You'll receive $25 per day ($50 if double occupancy) when staying with:

• Conrad
• LXR
• Waldorf Astoria

To be clear, food and beverage credits are only doled out at Hilton hotels located within the US as a replacement for the MyWay complimentary continental breakfast. If you travel internationally as a Gold or Diamond elite status member, you'll still get a blanket "free breakfast" at Hilton hotels.

Winners and losers of Hilton's food and beverage credit

Depending on where you stay, you may prefer Hilton's food and beverage credits over free breakfast. After all, free breakfast doesn't always mean you can have anything on the menu. Many hotels offer a continental breakfast or buffet with the option to upgrade to menu items.

Also, Hilton's food and beverage credits can be used for any food at the hotel, including the proper menu. You don't even have to use them for breakfast. You can use it for:

• Any onsite restaurants, including third-party outlets
• The hotel market
• Room service
• Alcohol
• Taxes and gratuity

These credits are certainly more flexible than a simple "free breakfast" policy. But depending on where you stay, you may find yourself paying more than before. Hotels like Waldorf Astoria often charge $40+ per person for their lavish breakfast buffet. A $25 credit won't offset the full price of your breakfast.

Another thing to keep in mind is that Hilton issues a maximum of two food and beverage credits per room per day. Free breakfast (though perhaps not necessarily intended to work this way) has historically been given to all occupants of a room at many properties — even if there are more than two guests. For example, a family of four staying in one room may receive free breakfast for everyone. Now, you're handcuffed by two food and beverage credits for everyone.

In other words, these credits may be enough for families to reevaluate their hotel brand strategy.

Which credit cards offer free breakfast/food and beverage credits via Hilton elite status?

If you have a Hilton credit card that charges an annual fee, you've already got Hilton elite status. But did you know that there are a couple of non-Hilton Amex cards that also grant you status lofty enough to qualify for free breakfast?

Below are all the cards that net you either free breakfast or food and beverage credits with Hilton:

What to know about Hilton free breakfast

There are plenty of hotel credit cards that offer hotel elite status as a benefit to cardholders. But only Hilton partners with credit cards that automatically provide a level of status high enough to include free breakfast at all hotels.

Hilton is currently offering food and beverage credits between $10 and $25 per person (maximum two per room) depending on the hotel brand. When traveling overseas, you can still benefit from the "free breakfast" policy without having to mess with credits. That can save you a small fortune if you're heading to an expensive location like Bora Bora or Seychelles.