Hilton honors american express surpass card credit limit

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Hilton loyalists should hightail it to the application for the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card*. It comes with a huge welcome bonus, elite Gold status and a 10-pack of one-time-use Priority Pass lounge visits once enrolled, all for just a $95 annual fee.

But if you rarely stay within the Hilton portfolio—which ranges from budget Hampton Inns to luxurious Waldorf Astorias—or just want more flexibility when it comes to credit card rewards, consider a different option (we’ve got some suggestions for you below).

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card

Welcome Bonus

Earn 130,000 bonus points

Regular APR

18.74% - 27.74% variable

Credit Score

Good, Excellent

Pros

• Complimentary elite Gold status
• 10 complimentary Priority Pass Lounge visits each anniversary year
• No foreign transaction fees

Cons

• Annual fee
• Earning a Free Night Reward requires $15,000 in annual spending
• Points have a low redemption value aside from Hilton properties

Highlights

• Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after spending $2,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of opening the account.
• Earn a Free Night Reward from Hilton Honors after spending $15,000 on purchases on the card in a calendar year.
• Earn 12X Hilton Honors bonus points for each dollar spent on eligible purchases at hotels and resorts within the Hilton portfolio, 6X Hilton Honors bonus points for each dollar spent at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations and 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases.
• Spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on the card in a calendar year and earn Hilton Honors Diamond status through the end of the next calendar year.
• $95 annual fee
• Terms Apply.

Introduction

The Hilton Surpass is an attractive mid-range credit card for the traveler who favors Hilton brand hotels, offering many benefits for a modest annual fee. It is one of three consumer Hilton-branded credit cards offered by American Express.

Arguably the most compelling feature of the Hilton Surpass card is the instant Hilton Gold status, which ordinarily requires 40 nights or 20 stays to earn (in 2022, Hilton has reduced that requirement to 28 nights or 14 stays). Gold Status benefits include a daily food and beverage credit at participating hotels, possible room upgrades and the fifth consecutive night free on reward stays.

Although the Surpass does not offer an included annual free night like other major hotel credit cards in this price range, it does earn bonus points on spending at U.S. supermarkets, gas stations and restaurants. You can snag a free reward night, redeemable at most Hilton properties, by spending $15,000 in purchases annually on the card.

Big spenders can earn top-tier Hilton Diamond status by spending $40,000 annually on the Surpass card. Diamond is the highest level of status and includes all of the Gold benefits plus executive lounge access and suite upgrades at the hotel’s discretion. In other words, if you’re angling for status, perks and free nights, don’t want to shell out a lot for an annual fee and are OK with exclusively staying within the Hilton brand, it’s hard to top the Surpass.

Compare Hilton Honors Surpass By American Express With Other Cards

At a Glance

• $95 annual fee
• 130,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of card membership
• Free reward night after $15,000 in purchases on the card each year
• Automatic Gold elite status
• Includes 10 complimentary one time Priority Pass Select airport lounge visits with enrollment
• Authorized user cards can be added for no additional cost

Rewards

Earning Rewards

The Hilton Honors Surpass card earns 12 Hilton Honors bonus points per dollar on eligible purchases at participating hotels or resorts within the Hilton portfolio, 6 points per dollar on eligible purchases at U.S. restaurants, at U.S. supermarkets, and at U.S. gas stations and 3 points per dollar for other eligible purchases.

The card also comes with a welcome bonus of 130,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of card membership.

Redeeming Rewards

Hilton’s hotel award redemption rates are dynamic, changing with demand and seasons. With no set award chart, it’s difficult to predict how many points you would need for a Hilton stay. Dynamic pricing results in higher redemption rates during high season and lower rates during the off-season.

Hilton advertises rooms from 5,000 points per night but those are few and far between, with most nights falling in the 20,000 to 95,000 point range. Luckily, there are no blackout dates for point redemptions, which maximizes hotel availability. It may be pricey, but you’ll find a room on points if one is available for sale. Hilton also offers premium rooms and suites on points, which is not true of every hotel chain. That said, the best values are generally on standard rooms.

As a Hilton Gold member, you receive the fifth night free on an award booking. So for a property that is 30,000 points per night, you would only have to redeem 120,000 points for a 5-night stay, effectively reducing your per night cost to 24,000 points.

Hilton Honors members also have the option to use a combination of points and money on a sliding scale to pay for hotel stays. The value varies depending on the booking but generally, you’ll get around 0.5 cents per point. This can be a good option if you’re short on points for a redemption.

Hilton offers a unique, free option called Points Pooling which allows members to pool their points with up to 10 other Hilton members. This is a great way to combine smaller quantities of points in order to make a redemption or to have two spouses each get a welcome bonus for a dream redemption.

You can also use Hilton points in Amazon’s Shop with Points program. Be warned that the redemption rate is a low 0.2 cents per point, so we don’t recommend using your points in this way.

Rewards Potential

Let’s take a look at how many Hilton points a typical family could earn in a year by using the Hilton Surpass Card. To do this analysis, Forbes Advisor uses data from various government agencies in order to determine both baseline income and spending averages across various categories.

The 70th percentile of wage-earning households brings in $107,908 annually, spending $6,322 on groceries, $3,849 on gas and $4,511 at restaurants, for a total of $14,682. If all of these expenses were charged to the Surpass card, 88,092 Hilton Honors points would be earned at the 6 points per dollar rate.

Annual hotel spending for our typical family is $1,110. If all hotel stays were at Hilton hotels, at a rate of 12 points per dollar spent an additional 13,320 points would be earned. If the cardholder put the remaining $17,390 that can reasonably be spent on a credit card on the Surpass, they would earn 52,170 for a total of 153,582 Honors points in addition to the first-year welcome bonus.

Possible redemptions for those points could be five nights in a mid-range Hilton (using the fifth night free benefit) or one to three nights in a more luxurious property depending on the time of year.

Use the card for at least $15,000 in purchases and you’d earn the free reward night, redeemable at almost any Hilton property, a potentially high-value perk.

Keep in mind that every family is different in their spending patterns and this example is presented only to illustrate a possible scenario. You should do the math based on your personal spending habits before applying for this, or any, credit card.

Other Card Benefits

• Foreign Transaction Fees: No additional fees are charged on purchases made abroad.
• Extended Warranty: Extends the manufacturer’s warranty by up to one year.
• Purchase Protection: Covers damage or theft for the first 90 days after purchase up to $1,000 per incident.
• Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance: Provides secondary coverage for eligible rental vehicles.
• Baggage Insurance: Covers checked and carry-on baggage if it is lost, stolen or damaged while traveling if common carrier tickets are charged to the card.
• Global Assist Hotline: Provides assistance prior to and during travel e.g. lost passport, emergency services.
• ShopRunner Membership: Free two-day shipping and returns with selected merchants.
• American Express Presales and Preferred Seating: Provides the opportunity to purchase certain event tickets prior to the public and access to preferred seating.

Fine Print

Interest Rates

• Regular APR: 18.74% - 27.74% variable
• Purchase Intro APR: N/A
• Balance Transfer Intro APR: N/A

Fees

• Annual Fee: $95
• Balance Transfer Fee: Either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
• Cash Advance: Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater.
• Foreign Purchase Transaction Fee: None

How The Card Stacks Up

Here’s how the Surpass compares to the two other consumer Hilton Honors American Express cards

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card* vs. The World of Hyatt Credit Card

The World of Hyatt Credit Card charges the same $95 annual fee as the Hilton Surpass but includes a free night up to 15,000 points, good for up to a Category 4 hotel, annually after cardmember anniversary and an additional night after $15,000 in purchases. Essentially, spending $15,000 on the Hyatt card would give you two free nights a year as opposed to one with the Hilton Surpass.

The Hyatt card offers 9 points total per dollar spent at Hyatt - 4 bonus points per dollar spent at Hyatt hotels and 5 base points per dollar from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member. Earn 2 bonus points per dollar spent at restaurants, on airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, on local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships and 1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases, so earning points on every spending is slower on this card than with the Hilton Surpass. However, Hyatt awards are priced considerably lower than Hilton, with many awards available for 3,500 to 8,000 points per night, topping out at 40,000 per night for their most upscale properties. This means that Hyatt points are typically worth more than Hilton points.

The card comes with Hyatt Discoverist status which has limited usefulness, the most valuable benefits being preferred room upgrades, 2 PM late checkout and bonus points on American Airlines bookings. Notably, it does not include a food and beverage credit. Cardholders receive five elite night credits annually, providing a headstart on status qualification. Uniquely, the Hyatt card provides the ability to earn additional elite qualifying nights through purchases. Every $5,000 in purchases earns two elite night credits which could help in those situations where you are just short of qualifying for higher levels of status.

One of the drawbacks of Hyatt is its limited footprint. Overall, there are far fewer Hyatt properties than Hilton. So while the free anniversary night is a nice perk from this card, it’s not of much value if there are no Hyatts located in your probable destinations.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card* vs. Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card

Another mid-tier co-branded hotel card option to consider is the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card. The Marriott hotel portfolio is among the most expansive in the world, which means you’re likely to find one of their properties wherever your travels take you. The Boundless card carries a $95 annual fee and also comes with a free night worth up to 35,000 Bonvoy points.

The Boundless card earns 6 points per dollar at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels, 3 points per dollar spent each year (up to $6,000) on combined grocery stores, gas stations and dining purchases and 2 points per dollar on all other purchases. It also comes with Marriott Silver status, which has minimal benefits and does not include breakfast.

Owning the Marriott Bonvoy credit card automatically gives you 15 elite night credits, which gets you a head start on the 25 nights needed for Gold status. Alternatively, spending $35,000 on the card earns Marriott Gold status. But Gold isn’t much more useful as the most valuable perks, like free breakfast, only come with Platinum status, requiring 50 nights to earn.

Choosing this card may not fast-track occasional travelers to elite status, but you’re more likely to find a use for the free night certificate that comes as an annual benefit with the card.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card* vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

If your main goal is a card that will let you earn free nights, and you aren’t particular about which brand or earning elite status in exchange for your loyalty, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card will likely be a better alternative than a co-branded card.

Like the others, it has a $95 annual fee but it earns Ultimate Rewards points which are highly flexible and can be taken as cash back at a value of a penny per point or redeemed for travel of nearly any kind (like flights, hotels, rental cars and cruises) at a value of 1.25 cents per point when booked through Chase’s travel center or when used on eligible purchases with Chase’s Pay Yourself Back tool.

This kind of flexibility may be more useful to those who travel occasionally and don’t want to be locked into a hotel brand or even a hotel when it comes to using their rewards. The Sapphire Preferred card earns 5 points per dollar on travel purchased through Chase Ultimate Rewards®, 3 points per dollar on dining, select streaming services, and online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs), 2 points per dollar on all other travel purchases and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. But keep in mind that each point is worth 1.25 cents when used to book travel through Chase, which may ultimately give you more value than a hotel card.

Is The Card For You?

The Hilton Surpass is a lucrative choice for travelers who are Hilton loyalists and value Hilton Gold status. Otherwise, choose a more general purpose rewards card. For those who prefer Hilton and typically lodge at one of the higher-end properties, like the Waldorf Astoria or Conrad hotels, then Gold status is more valuable due to the food and beverage credit and possible room upgrades. If your tastes are more budget-minded and include places like the Hampton Inn or Hilton Tru, where breakfast is always included in the room rate, then the Gold status that comes with the card may not be as useful for you. However, you can still benefit from the fifth night free on award stays.

Ultimately, choosing the right hotel credit card depends on the traveler and their travel patterns and preferences.

To view rates and fees for Hilton Honors American Express Card, please visit this page.

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