The American Express Membership Rewards program has just launched a new points transfer bonus, which is one we’ve seen several times in the past. For some this will represent a good value, but I wouldn’t say it’s a slam dunk.
In this post:
Transfer Amex points to Hilton Honors with 30% bonus
Through Monday, September 30, 2024, the Amex Membership Rewards program in the United States is offering a 30% bonus when you transfer points to Hilton Honors.
Points ordinarily transfer between the programs at a 1:2 ratio, meaning that during this promotion, points transfer at a 1:2.6 ratio. In other words, you get 2,600 Hilton Honors points for every 1,000 Amex Membership Rewards points transferred.
There are lots of great credit cards in the US that earn Amex Membership Rewards points. When it comes to transferring Amex points, you can expect that conversions to Hilton Honors are typically instant. Make sure that you see the bonus at the time that you make the transfer, as it should be reflected before you confirm it.
On average we see a few transfer bonuses every year from Amex Membership Rewards to Hilton Honors. The bonuses are typically 25-30%, but sometimes we’ve also seen a 40% bonus.
Should you transfer Amex points to Hilton?
Personally I value Amex points at ~1.7 cents each, while I value Hilton Honors points at ~0.5 cents each. Based on my valuation of points and the 1:2.6 transfer ratio, you’re getting about 1.3 cents of value per Amex point. While not the most exciting offer, it’s also not bad, and for many it could prove to be worthwhile.
It’s worth noting that my valuation of points is intended to be conservative, and there are always ways to get hugely outsized value by using points properly.
Hilton does often sell points for 0.5 cents each, and I’ve written about some of the best ways to redeem Hilton Honors points. If you don’t otherwise have easy ways to earn Hilton points, I think there are circumstances where it could make a lot of sense to transfer Amex points to Hilton with a specific use in mind.
For example, this could be worth it if you’re able to find standard room award availability at one of Hilton’s top properties, like the Waldorf Astoria Maldives, Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos, Waldorf Astoria Beverly Hills, or Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam.
Earn points with Hilton Amex Cards
There are so many great uses of Amex points, so personally if at all possible I’d try to earn Hilton Honors points through other methods. In addition to being able to buy points outright, it’s worth being aware of the co-branded Hilton Amex credit cards.
Bottom line
Through September 30, 2024, Amex is offering a 30% bonus when you transfer points to Hilton Honors, meaning the transfer ratio is 1:2.6. This has the potential to be a good deal with a specific use in mind, though personally I’d rather acquire Hilton points in other ways, and save my Amex points for something else.
Do you plan on transferring Amex points to Hilton with a 30% bonus?
These cent per point comparisons are idiotic. Amex is best only on flights. This is true. Booking a flight using points is much more difficult and has much less availability than booking a Hilton hotel stay. That has to count for something.
@Ben: It does not matter whose valuation of points one uses, what's quoted above is and...
@Ben: It does not matter whose valuation of points one uses, what's quoted above is and will remain the same nonsense that I have now pointed out ad nauseam.
You are not dealing just with "cents". You are dealing "cents per two different points currency denominations" (MR points and HH points), which cannot simply be ignored to allow you to combine, compare or mix the just "cents".
It means that 1.7cents/MR point cannot be straightforwardly divided by 0.5cent/Hilton point to get their ratio. Look at the denominators; they are different !!!
This is correct because it is apples and apples:
-- 1.7cents/MR point : 0.5cent/MR point yields a ratio of 1:2.6
-- 1.7cents/Hilton point : 0.5cent/Hilton point yields a ratio of 1:2.6
This (what you did) is incorrect because it s apples and oranges:
-- (1.7cents/MR point) : (0.5cent/Hilton point) does not yield a ratio of 1:2.6 ...
...until or unless you figure out how to convert MR points to Hilton points (or vice versa), so that you can compute the ratio in which the denominators are all in MR points or in Hilton points.
(1.7cents/MR point) : (0.5cent/Hilton point) will yield a ratio of 1:2.6 only if you claim is that 1 MR point = 1 Hilton point (i.e., the two currencies are interchangeable), which I am sure you are not claiming.
It is kindergarten-level math, so enough already!
Apples and oranges have different values, just like MR and Hilton points do. You can compare them, but it’s first grade math.
While SLH is also dynamically priced, you can get 1cpp per Hilton point fairly reasonably. Therefore, you can achieve 2.6cpp per Amex MR with this transfer bonus. Not to mention fifth night free adding 25% more cpp
I know these are cookie-cutter articles meant to be reused every time there's a promo, but I'd recommend updating the content at least a little bit to stay up with the times.
Completely agree - I am making some fantastic SLH redemptions & am transferring 300k MRs now to replenish my HH stash