Frequent Miler's latest team challenge, Million Mile Madness, is happening now! Follow us as Greg, Nick, and Stephen compete to earn 1 Million SAS miles by flying 15 airlines before November 23rd. Who will complete the challenge with the most Speed, Affordability, and Style?
UPDATE 8/29/18: Amex has (finally) specifically added these terms to the Ascend welcome bonus: “Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this Card or the Hilton Honors Surpass Card.” In other words, now it is official that you cannot get the Ascend bonus if you’ve had the Surpass in the past.
When Amex announced that their Hilton Surpass card would be renamed to “Hilton Honors Ascend Card from American Express”, I speculated that it might be possible to get a new welcome bonus on the Ascend as long as you closed your Surpass card before the transition. Amex representatives, though, unanimously rejected the idea. The company line was that the Ascend was not a new product. Therefore, current and past Surpass cardholders would not be eligible for a welcome bonus.
Early evidence supported the company line. As I reported in the post “Hilton Conversion Questions Answered: New Ascend bonus? 5/24 effect?,” no one who had applied for the Ascend after having had the Surpass in past had reported success getting a welcome bonus.
Since then, two key things have changed:
- Two readers have reported success getting the welcome bonus, even though they had the Surpass in the past. Both had cancelled their Surpass cards well before the Ascend name was announced. One cancelled in 2016. The other cancelled March 2017.
- Amex will now warn you during the application process if you’re not eligible for the welcome bonus. This is key because it means that there is no risk to trying. If you cancelled your Surpass card before it turned into the Ascend card, you might have a shot at the welcome bonus.
But, should you go for it?
As I write this, there are four distinct Hilton cards available and each has a welcome bonus in the 75K to 125K range. That means that it is theoretically possible to rack up around 400K points through bonuses alone. And a couple could theoretically double that. Since Hilton now allows point pooling, it would be easy to put all 800,000 points together. That’s pretty insane.
On the other hand, there are plenty of reasons not to go for it:
- Except for the business card, each Hilton card will add to your 5/24 count. This will make it harder to get approved for Chase cards in the future (details here).
- You will have to meet each card’s minimum spend requirements to earn the welcome bonus. And, remember that in some cases Amex has started enforcing rules restricting which types of purchases count. Keep in mind, though, that our Manufactured Spending Complete Guide lists techniques that are safe for meeting Amex minimum spend.
- Amex often (but not always) enforces an unwritten limit of 5 credit cards that each person can have (you can have many more charge cards though). And since the Hilton cards are credit cards they will each take up a precious slot that you might want to use for other Amex credit card.
- Hilton points aren’t the most valuable currency out there. Our Reasonable Redemption Values (RRVs) currently pegs Hilton points at only 0.45 cents each. So, while a 100K welcome bonus sounds amazing, it’s good to keep in mind that an average use of those points would be worth about $450. That’s still very good, but pales in comparison to the top offers available. See: Top 10+ Credit Card Offers.
Below you’ll find summary information about each Hilton card. Click the card’s name to go to a Frequent Miler page with more detailed information.
| Card Offer and Details |
|---|
100K points ⓘ Affiliate 100K points after $2K spend within the first 6 months. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees) (Offer Expires 1/8/2025)No Annual Fee After clicking through, be sure to choose the card you want on the landing page. Recent better offer: (Expired 7/31/24) 70K points + free night certificate after $2K spend within the first 6 months. FM Mini Review: This card isn't particularly rewarding, but it's good to keep primarily for targeted Amex upgrade offers to the Surpass card. Earning rate: ✦ 7X Hilton eligible Hilton purchases ✦ 5X US restaurants, US Supermarkets, and US gas stations ✦ 3X on all other eligible purchases Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Gold elite status with $20K calendar year spend Noteworthy perks: ✦ Free Silver status; Gold status with $20K spend. ✦ Terms Apply. (Rates & Fees) |
175K Points ⓘ Affiliate 175K after $8K spend in first 6 months. Terms apply. (Offer Expires 1/8/2025)$195 Annual Fee Recent better offer: None FM Mini Review: Easy way to secure Hilton Gold status (which offers free breakfast among other perks). Amex business cards do not count towards 5/24 status so will not hurt chances of applying for Chase cards. Earning rate: ✦ 12X Hilton spend ✦ 5X on other eligible purchases (on the first $100K in purchases per calendar year, 3X thereafter). Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Diamond elite status with $40K calendar year spend Noteworthy perks: ✦ Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status. Diamond status w/ $40K spend. ✦ Up to $240 in annual credits for Hilton purchases (Up to $60 per quarter) ✦ Complimentary National Car Rental(R) Emerald Club Executive(R) status (enroll through the link on your American Express online account) ✦ Terms Apply. (Rates & Fees) |
165K points ⓘ Affiliate 165K points after $3K spend within the first 6 months. Terms apply. (Offer Expires 1/8/2025)$150 Annual Fee Recent better offer: (Expired 7/31/24) 130K points + free night certificate after $3K spend within the first 6 months. FM Mini Review: Easy way to secure Hilton Gold status (which offers free breakfast among other perks). Those who want Diamond status may be better off with the Aspire card. Earning rate: ✦ 12X Hilton spend ✦ 6X U.S. restaurants, US Supermarkets, and US gas stations ✦ 4X U.S. Online Retail Purchases ✦ 3X on all other eligible purchases Base: 3X (1.44%) Dine: 6X (2.88%) Gas: 6X (2.88%) Grocery: 6X (2.88%) Shop: 4X (1.92%) Brand: 12X (5.76%) Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: ✦ Free night award after $15K spend in calendar year ✦ Diamond elite status with $40K calendar year spend ✦ Terms apply Noteworthy perks: Free Gold status. Diamond status w/ $40K spend. ✦ Up to $200 in Hilton credits ($50 per quarter) ✦ Terms Apply. (Rates & Fees) |
175K Points + free night certificate ⓘ Friend-Referral 175K after $6K spend in first 6 months. Free night certificate every year - first certificate is awarded 8-12 weeks after approval. Terms apply. (Offer Expires 1/8/2025)$550 Annual Fee Information about this card has been collected independently by Frequent Miler. The issuer did not provide the details, nor is it responsible for their accuracy. FM Mini Review: This card is loaded with valuable perks that are more than worth the card's annual fee if you stay in Hilton resorts at least twice per year. Earning rate: ✦ 14X Hilton spend ✦ 7X US restaurants, flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, select car rental companies ✦ 3X on all other eligible purchases ✦ Terms & Limitations Apply. Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Additional free night awards after $30K and $60K spend in calendar year Noteworthy perks: ✦Annual Free Night Reward every year upon renewal ✦ Free Diamond Status ✦ Up to $400 Hilton Resort Credit per calendar year ($200 semi-annually) ✦ $200 Flight Credit ($50 per quarter for purchases directly with airlines or via Amex Travel) ✦ $199 CLEAR (R) Plus fee credit per calendar year ✦ $100 on-property credit w/ Aspire Card package ✦ Terms Apply. See Rates & Fees See also: Amex Hilton Aspire In-Depth Review |
![](http://cdn.nextinsure.com/imaging/opt/a5e33401-8d6f-4ae8-b471-5da085075406.jpg?w=300" alt="The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card" />)
![](http://cdn.nextinsure.com/imaging/opt/0fb236dd-aecb-49ed-9f28-94aaf0efd9a2.png?w=300" alt="Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card" />)
Want to learn more about miles and points? Subscribe to email updates or check out our podcast on your favorite podcast platform.
Today I received an email offer from Amex for 150K Hilton bonus. I was thinking just to try to apply then stop when that usual warning message popped up. But no, I was approved for a new Ascend card while I am still keeping my old Surpass ( applied in late 2016) . Does that mean I just wasted one slot of my */24? Any new DP that one can get another welcome bonus when they already had their Surpass? If I cancel the new card today, will a new account not be showing on my credit report?
This sounds like what happened to me with my SPG card. I did get the bonus despite recently having the same card. I can’t promise the same would happen for you, but it’s worth a shot. If, instead, you cancel today I’d guess that it would never show up on your credit report, but I’m not at all certain about that.
Hi Greg. Just an update. I have received the bonus for my 2nd Ascend card. Funny thing is they posted it even before i received the actual card.
I was looking into this issue today, as I was thinking of applying for the Ascend while previously having the Surpass.
However, I found the following language in the Ascend card T&Cs: “Welcome offer not available to applicants who have or have had this Card or the Hilton Honors Surpass Card.” So it appears sometime in the last couple months Amex got tired of giving out signup bonuses on the Ascend to those who previously had a Surpass, which then prompted them to add a Surpass card reference to the Ascend T&Cs.
Wow, good catch! And thanks for sharing. I’ve updated the top of the post with this info.
I automatically received an ascend stud when Citi stopped providing a Hilton card. You think I could request the welcomebonus? I think they told me no when I inquired on the phone?
No, you would have to sign up new for a welcome bonus but you probably won’t be eligible. You’re better off with one of the other Hilton cards
I don’t think I’ll get the offer if I apply. I canceled my Citi Hilton Reserve but canceled it November, 2017 before it could be converted to Ascend. Once in a while I still get email from Amex that if I refer someone for Hilton Ascend I would get 25,000 points. Just this morning they sent me an email, so I think Amex already have information that I’ve had (or still have) the product.
One other reason maybe not to apply for the Surpass (based on my observation of 4 family members- 2 did the Ascend sign-up offer, 2 have not)– Amex a few times a year offers the no-fee members a comparable sign-up bonus to upgrade. they’ve done this, got the points, reverted back to the no-fee, then 6 months later got another upgrade offer (which they repeated the same steps successfully).
however, the 2 members that did the Ascend sign-up (and still hold that card in addition to a no-fee card), have NOT been offered upgrade offers. my speculation is that Amex sees there is at least one Ascend in the profile, so it doesn’t offer the upgrade on the no-fee card.
another words, the irony is that one may get MORE points by churning upgrades on the no-fee version than getting the new card– and it doesn’t could as a HP or an Amex slot!
True, but for those without the no fee card, they could sign up for the Ascend and later downgrade it and then they should get the same upgrade offer
I closed my card before Ascend was announced and AMEX pop-up still says that I won’t get the bonus.
Do you remember what month you closed the card?