Best Hotel Credit Cards of 2023

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The information for the following product(s) has been collected independently by Business Insider: Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card - Product Name Only, Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card - Product Name Only. The details for these products have not been reviewed or provided by the issuer.

If you're thinking about opening a hotel credit card, the first step is to analyze your travel goals.

Are you a road-tripper who wants to book cheap hotels along the highway? Do you mostly use small-town hotels during trips to grandma's over summer vacation? Do you want a five-star vacation in Hawaii? Not every rewards credit card is equally suited for booking hotel stays, so the way you answer these questions will help you find the best hotel card for you.

Best Hotel Credit Cards

• Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only: Best travel card overall
• Chase Sapphire Reserve® - Product Name Only: Best travel coverage
• The Platinum Card® from American Express - Product Name Only: Best for luxury hotel perks
• Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card - Product Name Only: Best if you're not loyal to a hotel chain
• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card - Product Name Only: Best for Hilton stays
• IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card - Product Name Only: Best for IHG stays
• The World Of Hyatt Credit Card - Product Name Only: Best for Hyatt stays
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Product Name Only: Best for Marriott stays
• Wyndham Rewards® Earner Plus Card - Product Name Only: Best for Wyndham stays
• Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Product Name Only: Best for Choice Hotels stays

Let's examine the best hotel credit cards for every type of traveler and budget. You'll be astounded at the amount of value you can wring from a card that fits your spending habits.

Compare the Best Hotel Credit Cards

Best Hotel Credit Cards Frequently Asked Questions

Are hotel credit cards worth it?

Hotel credit cards are worth it if you frequent a particular chain and like earning points with its loyalty program. It's even more worthwhile if you can use the benefits a hotel card offers, such as automatic elite status, anniversary free nights (or points), and other travel perks.

How do I find the right hotel rewards credit card for me?

The right hotel credit card for you is easier to choose if you stay with a particular hotel chain frequently because you'll earn bonus points and get hotel-specific perks during your travels. That said, if you want to earn travel points and enjoy some benefits on your hotel stay but you don't stay with a single chain often, you're probably better off with a general travel rewards card, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred or Platinum Card® from American Express.

Are there hotel credit cards with no annual fee?

Yes, most of the major hotel chains offer no-annual-fee credit cards, but they typically come with smaller welcome bonus offers, lower earning rates, and fewer perks. That said, if you're totally against paying an annual fee but are loyal to a certain chain, you may want to consider a no-annual-fee hotel card. 

Hotel Credit Card Reviews

Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - Product Name Only

If you're loyal to a specific hotel brand, having a co-branded card makes a lot of sense, as it can get you complimentary elite status, bonus points, and other perks when you stay with that chain. (You'll see our top card picks for each hotel brand further down in this guide).

But if you care less about brand loyalty and more about earning as many points as possible, a general travel credit card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred could make more sense. This card earns Chase Ultimate Rewards® points (with 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards and 2x points on all other travel purchases, including hotels), which you can redeem for travel bookings through the Chase Ultimate Rewards Travel Portal or transfer to partners including Hyatt, Marriott, and IHG to book).

The Chase Sapphire Preferred also offers excellent travel insurance, so it's a good card to use for hotel bookings and airfare.

Recent updates to the Chase Sapphire Preferred include the addition of up to $50 per year in statement credits for hotels booked through Chase. If you maximize this credit, you can shave off more than half of the card's Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card annual fee.

Chase Sapphire Preferred Card Review

Chase Sapphire Reserve® - Product Name Only

The Chase Sapphire Reserve is the higher-end sibling of the Chase Sapphire Preferred, with many of the same benefits except higher earning rates (5x total points on air travel and 10x total points on hotels and car rentals purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards, after earning the $300 travel credit, and 3x points on other travel and dining) and even better travel coverage.

It includes everything from trip cancellation and trip delay insurance to primary rental car insurance. Unlike the Chase Sapphire Preferred, the Chase Sapphire Reserve includes emergency evacuation insurance. In exchange for the Chase Sapphire Reserve® annual fee, you get up to a $300 annual travel credit, Priority Pass airport lounge membership, a complimentary two-year Lyft Pink All Access membership, and more.

Chase Sapphire Reserve Credit Card Review

The Platinum Card® from American Express - Product Name Only

Platinum Card® from American Express is a great card for booking hotel stays for several reasons. First, it offers complimentary Gold elite status with both Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy**. This can get you room upgrades and bonus points on your paid stays — and Gold status with Hilton even gets you free breakfast (currently offered as a food and beverage credit at US hotels.).

Plus, if you have the Platinum Card you can access Amex Fine Hotels and Resorts — a collection of luxury properties booked through Amex that offer benefits like complimentary upgrades, free breakfast, and property credits. The Amex Platinum has a $550 annual fee, but it easily can be worth it thanks to benefits like this.

American Express Platinum Card Review

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card - Product Name Only

Travelers who aren't fussy about staying at the same hotel chain every time or don't care about earning hotel points for stays should have a close look at the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. It's a premium card with a Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card annual fee, but it comes with benefits that more than justify its cost.

Most notably, the card offers $300 in credits each year toward hotels, airfare, and car rentals booked through the Capital One Travel Portal. That alone negates most of the annual fee, but there's also a 10,000-mile bonus each card anniversary (worth at least $100 in travel) that essentially offsets the rest.

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card starts off strong with a welcome bonus of Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. You can redeem Capital One miles toward travel purchases made on your card (including hotels) at a rate of 1 cent apiece, making this bonus worth Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card in stays.

Alternately, you can book hotels with miles through the Capital One Travel portal at the same rate, or pay with your card and earn 10x miles on hotel purchases. Capital One also has three hotel transfer partners — Wyndham, Choice Hotels, and Accor Live Limitless — and by transferring miles to one of these chains, you can potentially get even more value for your rewards.

This card also offers excellent travel and purchase protections, Priority Pass and Capital One airport lounge access, and a credit toward the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee.

Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card Review

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card - Product Name Only

The Hilton Honors Aspire Card is hands-down the best co-branded hotel credit card out there. For starters, with the welcome bonus offer (Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card), you can book upwards of 30 free nights, depending on the hotel category. The card also comes with top-tier Hilton Diamond status, which gets you free breakfast (currently awarded as a food and beverage credit), lounge access, and a 100% bonus on points earned via paid stays.

The Hilton Honors Aspire Card also offers a free night reward when you renew your card at your account anniversary, plus an extra free night when you spend $60,000 in a calendar year. Travelers will appreciate up to $250 in annual Hilton resort statement credits, up to $250 in annual airline incidental credits**, and Priority Pass Select membership**. 

If you don't stay at Hilton properties frequently enough to justify this card's Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card annual fee, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, with a Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card annual fee, is a better option. It earns 12x points on eligible Hilton purchases (compared to 14x on the Aspire), and like the Aspire it offers a high welcome bonus.

You can stack the Aspire's $250 resort credit with the annual night reward at Hilton Resorts to save even more on a luxury stay.

Hilton Honors Aspire Card Review

IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card - Product Name Only

The IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card is one of the best hotel cards in terms of value. It has a welcome bonus offer of IHG® Rewards Club Premier Credit Card. 

In exchange for an annual fee of $89, waived the first year, cardholders get complimentary IHG Platinum elite status, a fourth night free on award bookings of three or more nights, and a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee credit of up to $100 every four years. Additionally, cardholders earn a reward night every year, which you can use at any IHG hotel worldwide that costs up to 40,000 points per night.

If you're a small business owner, be sure to also check out the IHG® Rewards Premier Business Credit Card - Product Name Only. It's got even more benefits than the personal version of the card, and is currently offering a welcome bonus of IHG® Rewards Premier Business Credit Card - Intro Bonus (worth around IHG® Rewards Premier Business Credit Card - Featured Reward Value in IHG stays).

IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card Review

The World Of Hyatt Credit Card - Product Name Only

The World Of Hyatt Credit Card comes with free Discoverist status, which offers benefits like premium internet and 10% bonus points on paid stays. Cardholders aiming for higher status will appreciate the five qualifying night credits issued every year and the ability to earn two additional credits per $5,000 spent on the card.

Cardholders also receive a free night certificate on their account anniversary every year, valid at Hyatt Category 1 to 4 hotels. You can also earn a second free night after you spend $15,000 or more on purchases in a calendar year.

Chase also offers a Hyatt card for small-business owners, too. The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card comes with more perks but charges a higher annual fee — you can find out more in our World of Hyatt Business credit card review.

World of Hyatt Credit Card Review

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Product Name Only

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card is a welcome bonus of 75,000 bonus points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Insider estimates Marriott points to be worth 0.7 cents apiece — making this bonus worth up to Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card in travel.

This card includes solid perks for a mid-tier hotel credit card, including a free night each year after your cardmember anniversary at Marriott Bonvoy hotels that cost up to 35,000 points per night. Marriott has added the ability to "top-off" these certificates with up to 15,000 Marriott points — giving you the freedom to use your anniversary Free Night Awards for hotel nights that cost up to 50,000 points.

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card Review

Wyndham Rewards® Earner Plus Card - Product Name Only

The Wyndham Rewards® Earner Plus Card offers good benefits, including Platinum elite status, which comes with benefits like upgrades on Avis car rentals, early check-in, and a status match to the Caesars Rewards program. Each year after your account anniversary, you'll also receive 7,500 bonus points (with no spending requirement). The annual fee is a moderate Wyndham Rewards® Earner Plus Card.

It earns a solid 6 Wyndham points per dollar on eligible Wyndham purchases and at gas stations, 4 points per dollar at Wyndham Timeshare properties and at restaurants and grocery stores (excluding Target and Walmart), and 1 point per dollar on everything else (excluding Wyndham Timeshare resorts down payments). You'll also get discounts on both paid and points bookings with Wyndham hotels.

Wyndham Rewards Earner Plus Credit Card Review

Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Product Name Only

The Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Product Name Only is one of two new Choice Hotels credit cards from Wells Fargo, and it's a great deal if you like to stay at brands like Comfort Inn, Cambria, and Ascend Collection Hotels.

It's currently offering a welcome bonus of Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Intro Bonus. That's enough for up to 11 free nights at Choice properties, and worth around Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Featured Reward Value in stays, based on Insider's valuations.

Cardholders receive 20 elite night credits each year (enough for Choice Platinum elite status), 30,000 points each card anniversary (worth around $210 in stays according to our valuations), a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit, cell phone protection, and World Elite Mastercard benefits. There's an annual fee of Choice Privileges® Select Mastercard® - Annual Fee, but it can be well worth paying year after year — especially since you can get much more value than that from the anniversary points alone.

Choice Privileges Select Mastercard Review

Why You Should Trust Us: How We Chose the Best Hotel Credit Cards

Personal Finance Insider analyzed dozens of hotel cards, looking at benefits, annual fees, rewards, and ancillary benefits to arrive at our final list of the very best options.

Many hotel brands offer various "tiers" of credit cards. For example, in addition to the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card with a Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card annual fee, there's the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, which has a Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card annual fee and includes Platinum elite status and up to $25 per month in statement credits for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide. There's also the new Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card and Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card with a Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card annual fee.

When more than one personal credit card was available from a top hotel chain, we chose the card that offers the most value to an average guest, not someone who travels every weekend.

Additionally, some hotel credit cards offer a free night after each account anniversary or for meeting spending thresholds. These nights can be worth much more than the cards' annual fees, and make them worth keeping year after year.

For instance, we chose the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card as the best credit card for Marriott stays, because it balances a moderate annual fee with a few valuable perks and an incredible welcome bonus offer. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card has more perks to justify its annual fee, but it's harder to recommend to everybody — with benefits such as Priority Pass Select airport lounge access, it's more geared toward frequent travelers.

On the other hand, we named the Hilton Honors Aspire Card, with a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card annual fee, the best card for Hilton stays, because it comes with several statement credits that can effectively reduce the fee — and it offers the highest level of Hilton elite status as a complimentary benefit to cardholders. 

You can learn more about how we rate credit cards at Insider.