American Express and Hilton have four co-branded credit cards. These cards offer valuable benefits for those who stay at Hiltons with any frequency, so if you travel often, it’s worth having (at least) one of these cards in your wallet.
In this post:
Hilton Honors Amex Card: 80,000 points
The Hilton Honors American Express Card has no annual fee (Rates & Fees), and has a welcome offer of 80,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $2,000 within the first six months.
Beyond the welcome offer, the Hilton Honors Amex Card features the following perks in the long run:
- 7x points for eligible spending at Hilton hotels
- Hilton Honors Silver status for as long as you have the card
- Hilton Honors Gold status when you make $20,000 in eligible purchases on the card in a calendar year
Read a full review of the Hilton Honors Amex Card.
Hilton Honors Surpass Card: 130,000 points
The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card has a $150 annual fee (Rates & Fees), and for has a welcome offer of 130,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $3,000 within the first six months.
Beyond the welcome offer, the Hilton Honors Surpass Card features the following ongoing benefits:
- 12x points for spending at Hilton hotels
- Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as you have the card
- Hilton Honors Diamond status when you make $40,000 in eligible purchases on the card in a calendar year
- Up to $200 in Hilton credits per year — up to a $50 statement credit for Hilton stays per quarter
- A Hilton free night reward when you spend $15,000 on the card in a year
- National Emerald Club Executive status (Enrollment required)
Read a full review of the Hilton Honors Surpass Card.
Hilton Honors Business Card: 130,000 points
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card has a $195 annual fee (Rates & Fees), and the card has a welcome offer of 130,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $6,000 within the first six months.
Beyond the welcome offer, the Hilton Honors Business Card features the following perks in the long run:
- 12x points for spending on eligible Hilton purchases
- 5x points on other purchases made on the first $100,000 in purchases each calendar year (3x points thereafter)
- Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as you have the card
- Hilton Honors Diamond status when you make $40,000 in eligible purchases on the card in a calendar year
- Up to $240 in Hilton credits per year — up to a $60 statement credit for Hilton stays per quarter
Read a full review of the Hilton Honors Business Card.
Hilton Honors Aspire Card: 150,000 points
The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card has a $550 annual fee, and the card has a welcome offer of 150,000 Hilton Honors points after spending $6,000 within the first six months.
Beyond the welcome offer, the Hilton Aspire Card features the following ongoing benefits:
- 14x points for spending at Hilton hotels
- Hilton Honors Diamond status for as long as you have the card
- Up to $400 in Hilton resort credits annually — up to a $200 statement credit for Hilton resort stays semi-annually
- Up to a $200 flight credit annually — up to a $50 statement credit for flights booked directly with airlines or through Amex Travel once per quarter
- Up to a $199 CLEAR® Plus credit annually — enroll in CLEAR and charge it to your card, and you’ll be reimbursed up to $199 per year
- A Hilton free night reward every year, a second one when you spend $30,000 on the card in a year, and a third one if you spend $60,000 on the card in a year
- National Emerald Club Executive status
Read a full review of the Hilton Aspire Card.
The information and associated card details on this page for the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card has been collected independently by OMAAT and has not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Are you eligible for Hilton Honors Amex cards?
Anecdotally Hilton Honors Amex cards are pretty easy to be approved for:
- Each of these cards is considered a separate product, so you’re eligible for the welcome offer on each card, within the typical “once in a lifetime” rule
- The standard American Express card application rules apply, including that you’re generally limited to having five Amex credit cards at a given point (this doesn’t include charge cards and hybrid cards)
- For those with excellent credit, I find Amex credit cards to be among the easiest to be approved for
- If you are worried about Chase’s 5/24 rule, applying for the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card won’t count as a further card toward that limit
Which Hilton Honors Amex offer is best?
If you’re trying to decide which of these offers makes the most sense, here are a few considerations:
- If you’ve already had a Hilton Honors Amex card, pick up a card that you haven’t had before, so you’re eligible for the welcome offer
- If you’re looking for a personal card, you really can’t go wrong with the Hilton Honors American Express Card or Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card; I’d say the latter is worth the annual fee, given the better bonus and incremental perks
- Personally I think the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is worth the fee, especially if you stay at Hilton resorts at least once every six months
- If you’re looking for a business card, the Hilton Honors American Express Business Card is your best bet, and fortunately, it’s a great card with a solid bonus
Bottom line
If you’re looking for a no annual fee card, then the Hilton Honors American Express Card is for you. Meanwhile, if you’re looking for a card with stronger perks and an even better bonus, I recommend the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card or Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card. The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card is also an option for small businesses.
Do you plan on picking up a Hilton Honors Amex with these bonuses?
The information and associated card details on this page for the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card has been collected independently by OMAAT and has not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
The following links will direct you to the rates and fees for mentioned American Express Cards. These include: Hilton Honors American Express Card (Rates & Fees), The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card (Rates & Fees), and Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card (Rates & Fees).
Tempted by the Surpass, but it's only been 4-5~ years since I cancelled my last one, and I'd also taken advantage of Citi's Hilton card getting rolled over to Amex. I guess worst case I just get PUJ.
Would people say that 70k+FNA is better than 120k? I think 120k is the best Amex Hilton no-AF card offer.
Has anyone been offered bonus points for upgrading their plain Hilton Amex to a Surpass or Aspire recently? The upgrade "offers" we now see on our Hilton Amex cards are simply to pay the higher annual fee and get the perks but no mention of any bonus points that used to be fairly generously and frequently offered.
I got an upgrade offer for NAF Hilton to Surpass in late February- 70K points for $3K spend in 3 months. Took it quickly because I’d been planning on upgrading it anyways-I have some European stays coming up where the annual fee is way less than the breakfast costs would be without its Gold status.
Yes, I was offered 75k point for 3k spend in 6 months to upgrade from basic Hilton card to the Surpass.
AMEX really does have the best welcome offers in the game. Not even close. Cheers.