In 2017, Hilton ended its longstanding relationship with Citibank, transferring its entire portfolio of Hilton credit cards to American Express. At the same time, it released its first-ever, ultra-premium card: the Hilton Aspire.
Over the last few years, Amex made some dramatic changes to the Aspire, raising the annual fee, axing lounge access, and re-jiggering the credit structure. Now that the card costs $550 a year, is the Hilton Honors juice still worth the squeeze?
Amex Hilton Honors Aspire Current Welcome Offer
| Card Offer |
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 ⓘ $913 1st Yr Value Estimate$400 Hilton resort credit ($200 per six months) valued at $280, Hilton Free Night valued at $418, $200 airline credit ($50 per quarter) valued at $160 Click to learn about first year value estimates 175K Points + free night certificate ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer Limited-time offer: 175K after $6K spend on eligible purchases in the first 6 months of card membership. Free night certificate every year - first certificate is awarded 8-12 weeks after approval. Terms apply. Rates & Fees (Offer Expires 4/15/2026)$550 Annual Fee Recent better offer: None 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. |
Amex Hilton Honors Aspire Review
The perks of the Hilton Aspire card make it one of the best values of the major hotel credit cards. The card comes with Hilton Diamond status, an annual free night certificate that can be used at almost any Hilton Honors property, and $600 in total airline and Hilton credits, a pretty generous haul that offsets the hefty $550 annual fee. Provided you can maximize all those bennies, it’s just shy of a no-brainer. That said, the poor return on regular spend means that, for most people, it should probably stay in the sock drawer – unless you’re using it at a Hilton or to get an airfare credit.
- Annual Fee: $550
- Authorized User Annual Fee: None
- What points are worth: The Amex Hilton Aspire card earns Hilton Honors points. Our current list of Reasonable Redemption Values pegs them at 0.41 cents each.
- Best Use for Points: Hilton eliminated award charts several years ago, and pricing is now extremely variable, with redemption values ranging from well over 1 cent per point to as low as 0.25. A good way to get additional value is by taking advantage of the 5th night free on standard room awards that Hilton offers to those with Silver elite status or higher. Also, Hilton’s partnership with the Small Luxury Hotels (SLH) has brought a whole new realm of exciting, “boutique” properties into the fold, usually with excellent redemption rates.
- Earning Categories:
- 14X Hilton
- 7X US restaurants
- 7X Flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, select car rental companies
- 3X Everywhere else
- Credits:
- Annual $400 Resort Credit ($200 semi-annually): Valid towards room rate or any room charges made at a Hilton resort property (full list here) as long as you pay with your Amex Hilton Aspire card upon checking out of a participating hotel.
- Annual $200 Airline Credit ($50 quarterly): Good for any airline charges, including airfare when booked through an airline or amextravel.com.
- CLEAR Credit: $209 credit towards a CLEAR membership each year.
- Additional Perks:
- Annual Free Night Certificate (cardmember year): Good for one night in a standard room at almost any Hilton Honors property in the world (see list of exclusions here).
- National Car Rental Executive Status: Lets you pick a nicer car from the Executive Aisle instead of the usual Emerald Aisle.
- $100 Luxury Property Credit: Book a 2-night minimum stay at hiltonhonorsaspirecard.com and get up to a $100 property credit at Waldorf Astoria and Conrad hotels.
- Cell Phone Insurance: $50 deductible/$800 max per claim.
- Travel Protections:
- Auto Rental Coverage: Secondary auto rental CDW (collision damage waiver). Provides reimbursement for theft and collision damage for rental cars in the U.S. and abroad.
- Trip Delay Insurance: Must pay for round-trip airfare with your Aspire Card. Provides up to $500 in reimbursements if your travel is delayed by six or more hours. Maximum 2 claims per rolling 12 months.
- Trip Cancellation and Interruption Insurance: Must purchase a round-trip ticket entirely with your Aspire Card. Up to $10,000 per trip/$20,000 per 12 consecutive-month period.
- Purchase Protections:
- Return Protection: 90 days from date of purchase. Max $300/item, $1000/year.
- Purchase Protection: 90 days from the purchase date. Provides reimbursement for accidental damage, theft, or loss.
- Extended Warranty: One extra year added on to warranties of 5 years or less. Maximum of $10,000 per item and $50,000 per cardmember account/calendar year.
- Who’s this card for? Anyone who stays at Hiltons enough to maximize the credits, earn an annual free night certificate, and reach Hilton Honors Diamond elite status.
- Is the Hilton Honors Aspire card a keeper? If you stay in Hilton Resorts even one time each year, then the card’s benefits probably outweigh the $550 annual fee, once you factor in the annual free night award and diamond status. As a rule, it’s probably not a good idea to use it for spending anywhere other than at Hilton properties or for airfare (to trigger the $200 in airline credits each year).
Amex Hilton Honors Aspire Pros and Cons
Pros
- Cardholders receive Hilton Diamond Status
- Credits alone can more than make up for the annual fee of the card
- The annual free night certificate is probably the most powerful of any hotel brand, as it can be used at almost any Hilton property worldwide
- Airline credits are easier to use than other Amex cards, since they can be applied directly to airfare
Cons
- High annual fee ($550)
- Not a good card for regular spending
- Breaking up credits semi-annually and quarterly makes them harder to use for some
- Travel protections lag behind many other premium cards
- No airport lounge access
- Hilton Honors points are among the least valuable of any hotel program currency, and have been subject to a brutal series of devalutations at high-end properties over the last year
Related Cards
| Card Offer and Details |
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![](http://cdn.nextinsure.com/imaging/opt/a5e33401-8d6f-4ae8-b471-5da085075406.jpg?w=300" alt="The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card" />) ⓘ $971 1st Yr Value Estimate$240 Hilton credit ($60 per quarter) valued at $180, Hilton Free Night valued at $418 Click to learn about first year value estimates 175K Points + free night certificate ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer Earn 175k Hilton Honors bonus points plus a free night reward after you spend $8k in purchases on the Hilton Honors Business Card in the first six months of card membership. Terms apply. (Rates & Fees) (Offer Expires 4/15/2026)$195 Annual Fee Recent better offer: None FM Mini Review: Easy way to secure Hilton Honors™ 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 Points thereafter). Card Info: Amex Credit Card issued by Amex. This card has no foreign currency conversion fees. Big spend bonus: Hilton Honors™ Diamond elite status with $40K in eligible purchases in a calendar year Noteworthy perks: Automatic Hilton Honors™ Gold status. Diamond status w/ $40K in eligible purchases in a calendar year ✦ Up to $240 in annual credits for eligible 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) |
ⓘ $913 1st Yr Value Estimate$400 Hilton resort credit ($200 per six months) valued at $280, Hilton Free Night valued at $418, $200 airline credit ($50 per quarter) valued at $160 Click to learn about first year value estimates 175K Points + free night certificate ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer Limited-time offer: 175K after $6K spend on eligible purchases in the first 6 months of card membership. Free night certificate every year - first certificate is awarded 8-12 weeks after approval. Terms apply. Rates & Fees (Offer Expires 4/15/2026)$550 Annual Fee Recent better offer: None 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 in eligible purchases 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 (Up to $50 per quarter for purchases directly with airlines or via Amex Travel) ✦ Up to $209 CLEAR+ fee credit per calendar year ✦ Up to $100 on-property credit w/ Aspire Card package ✦ Terms Apply See Rates & Fees See also: Amex Hilton Aspire In-Depth Review |
 ⓘ $895 1st Yr Value Estimate$200 Hilton credit ($50 per quarter) valued at $150, Hilton Free Night valued at $418 Click to learn about first year value estimates 130K Points + free night certificate ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer Limited Time Offer - Earn 130k bonus points plus a free night reward after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the card in the first 6 months of card membership. Terms apply. Rates & Fees (Offer Expires 4/15/2026)$150 Annual Fee Recent better offer: None 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, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations ✦ 4X U.S. Online Retail Purchases ✦ 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: Free night award after $15K in eligible purchases in calendar year ✦ Hilton Honors™ Diamond status with $40K in eligible purchases in a calendar year ✦ Terms apply Noteworthy perks: Automatic Hilton Honors™ Gold status. Hilton Honors™ Diamond status w/ $40K in eligible purchases in a calendar year ✦ Up to $200 in Hilton credits ($50 per quarter) ✦ Terms Apply |
 ⓘ $668 1st Yr Value EstimateHilton Free Night valued at $418 Click to learn about first year value estimates 70K Points + free night certificate ⓘAffiliateThis is an affiliate offer. Frequent Miler may earn a commission if you are approved for this offer Limited Time Offer - Earn 70k bonus points plus a free night reward after you spend $2,000 in purchases on the card in the first 6 months of card Membership. Terms apply. Rates & Fees (Offer Expires 4/15/2026)No Annual Fee Recent better offer: 100K points after $2K spend in first 6 months (Expired 1/14/26) 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 in eligible purchases in calendar year Noteworthy perks: Free Silver status; Gold status with $20K in eligible purchases per calendar year ✦ Terms Apply. |
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Aspire is still a keeper-card. So long as you use the FNC for decent redemption, you cover the AF each year. Diamond status for free breakfast is a bonus. The $50 each quarter for airlines (still works for UA TB). The $200 semi-annual resort credit is also awesome so long as you plan ahead to use it. I hope Hilton and Amex keep this as-is for a while, because it rocks.
There is a current 130k + FNC (and NLL) offer so listing the Surpass at only 130k is not very nice and contradicts Frequent milers policy of showing the best offered which is disappointing
Our understanding is that these are hacked links. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re dangerous to use, but we never use them on the best offers page and have become much more hesitant to feature them in posts at all.
If you can share a public link with us (that doesn’t go directly to an application page), we’d happily feature it. We haven’t found one yet.
After a frustrating experience trying to use a free night certificate and then having to fight to reclaim up to $200 of a benefit that was clearly advertised on the card, we ultimately decided to cancel the card altogether.
The back and forth between Hilton and American Express over who “owns” the certificate was exhausting. One pointed to the other, and we were stuck in the middle playing ping pong between two massive companies. For a premium product, that level of confusion and lack of accountability just isn’t acceptable.
Hilton really needs to rethink its customer service approach for 2026 and beyond. The loyalty landscape has evolved, and frequent travelers expect clarity, ownership, and seamless benefit delivery, especially when annual fees and brand promises are involved.
As a 51 year old traveler with elite status across multiple hotel programs, I gave Hilton a fair shot. We tried. It just isn’t our thing. Maybe the ecosystem works for others, but for us, the time, effort, and energy required to extract basic card benefits simply isn’t worth it.
At the end of the day, loyalty programs should feel rewarding, not like a part time job.
What $200 benefit? The resort credit? Which resort? You didn’t provide any specific details that may be useful for the rest of us.
Yes, Amex aspire comes with $200 each 6 months benefit when used at Hilton “ $400 Hilton Resort Credit
Enjoy up to $200 in statement credits semi-annually on eligible purchases made directly with participating Hilton Resorts using your Hilton Honors Aspire Card”
Most high annual fee cards are worthless when it comes to EVERYDAY spending and also have become COUPON books.
I’ve always thought Hilton left a lot of credit card money on the table by devaluing their program so much (a zillion miles for a decent hotel redemption, stiffing top elites breakfast in the USA, etc.). Personally, I’ve pretty much abandoned the program. With a better loyalty program, Aspire would be a WAY more interesting card.
just got Aspire AND Surpass and would have wanted these FNC offers instead of the marginally more HH points (pesos?)
Chat rep said they can’t match
I this a HUCA situation or does AMEX not match- can’t find any evidence of that policy through google search and don’t remember any prohibition…
Is the eligible Hilton resorts list expanding? Currently, hilton.com/resorts shows fewer Conrad and Waldorf Astoria hotels than the specific website for Hilton Honors Resort Credit eligible hotels. https://www.hilton.com/en/p/hilton-honors/resort-credit-eligible-hotels/
Can anyone confirm?
The list got smaller then suddenly a week later resorts that were removed had been added back. I always check on the list before booking.
Is the upgrade free night still working, or not?
Sometimes yes, sometimes no. There’s some people that get it every time they upgrade, some that get it every other upgrade and some that don’t seem to ever get it.
Thanks. Had an upgrade offer a few years ago and got it, but now not sure i want to chance it without a good upgrade offer.
[…] Frequent Miler – American Express Hilton Honors Aspire Credit Card Review (2023) […]
Question on the semiannual credit
I’m sure this is a no brainier but want to verify this is broken into 1/1-6/30 then 7/1-12/31?
We have stays in March and first week of a June.
TIA
Yep, it is.
If I book a Hilton resort for next year (like March) today, will it trigger the $200 credit for the second half of 2023 today or will it not trigger the credit until I complete the stay in Mar 2024? Wondering because I would like to book a stay at a Hilton resort in December this year and get 2023 credit, but would also like to go ahead and book another stay at a Hilton resort in March 2024 and use the credit then as well.
It will go by whenever the card is charged. If you booked a prepaid rate, it should apply, but it won’t if it’s a normal rate that doesn’t charge the card until checkout. I’ve been able to call the hotel directly and ask to make a deposit on my stay when I’m trying to time-shift the credit like that.
This is not correct. I booked a prepaid rate at a US Hilton and the credit was refused. Having said that, I booked a prepaid rate at a European Hilton and the credit was given. It appears US prepaid rates are charge by Hilton Corporate and will not show as a resort and even providing the folio for the stay will not get them to change their mind. International Hilton prepaid stays seem to be charged by the individual hotels and will trigger the credit
Did you ever reach out to Amex to try and get the credit applied? It’s possible that it varies from property to property, but I’ve never had any issue getting the credit on prepaid charges at US properties. That’s usually how I use it.
I did reach out to Amex, repeatedly. First rep said he tried but couldn’t credit it because it had not been 8-12 weeks (AMEX system wouldn’t let him), second rep flat out denied it and quoted the terms, which actually do disallow prepaid reservations. I did, a few years ago, get the credit at Hotel Del Coronado on a prepaid reservation that was partially non-refundable and the charge was processed by the Del, but this one was completely non-refundable and was processed by Hilton corporate.
Right, I made that same mistake and then read the terms! Not suppose to work on non-refundable.
I have not used the airline credit for 2023 yet. I paid the annual fee renewal in Sept at the old fee. Alaska is my chosen airline. If I buy a lounge membership for Alaska, will I get the credit for 2023 and get the new benefit after 1/1/2024? I have purchased the lounge membership at this time of the year in the past, but I have had to call 60 days after the purchase to get my credit, it has never in the last 3 years posted automatically. If it doesn’t post, I will have to call in 2024. Do you think I will have problems getting the credit?
Yes, you will. You can also get the new quarterly benefit of $50 as well for Q4 2024. I also use Alaska for my Amex credits and, just as an FYI, you don’t need to wait 60 days to call or chat AMEX. You can do it after 14 days. I usually set a reminder to contact them on the 15th day after the charge posts.
Unfortunately, AMEX cards are getting weird in posting credits. I had resort credit in 2022, posted in 5 days. Used resort credit 2 weeks ago, still nothing. Same with AMEX offers. I did online chat after 2 months, rep was clueless, gave him a bad review and suddenly credit appeared next day.
I upgraded my Hilton card to the Aspire back in July. I was charged the fee of $379, difference of fee already paid and am being told that I do not get the free night certificate???? Thoughts or suggestions? Thanks.
Well, that is not good news. I upgraded two no-fee Hilton cards to Aspire within the past 12 months – one with an anniversary date in Jan 2023 and the other in May (I think) 2023. In both cases, like you, I paid a pro-rated annual fee until the anniversary date, and the normal (then $450) annual fee thereafter. In both cases I received, soon after upgrading, a night because of the upgrade (this is how it is labeled on the Hilton site) and, six weeks or so after the anniversary dates, an anniversary night (again, so labeled on the Hilton site).
So when you are speaking about “the” free night certificate, what are you talking about exactly? It sounds like the unannounced upgrade night – I only knew about it because of one of Tim’s earlier posts – is a thing of the past. As for your anniversary night, that will come after your anniversary date, which I infer (given the $379 fee) is probably not until May 2024.
Thanks for the info. I will look for the earlier post. I must have missed it. I was talking about the free night you get for upgrading to the card. I probably should have waited to upgrade closer to anniversary. Feel like I paid a lot and didn’t get all of the perks. Appreciate the input 🙂
You do not get a free night for upgrading (unless you got a specific upgrade offer). You will get a free night after the card’s anniversary and after you pay the annual fee.
Until recently (apparently), you did get a free night for upgrading without an offer – at least some of us did. Now that Hilton shows each free night on line, you can clearly (I can clearly) see nights labeled for card upgrade. I am not posting the link here (avoid moderation), but if you Google back somewhere just over a year ago, you can see this is a post by Tim (and comments) about his experiences upgrading their Hilton cards to aspire.
So maybe Hilton/Amex have put a stop to this unintended generosity. My recollection is that as far back as Tim’s article, some people were saying – like Beechy, that they were not getting the upgrade night. So it is also possible that this may have been a YMMV thing all along. More DPs welcome!
Do you know if Hilton actually stopped awarding a FNC for upgrading a card to the Aspire? Thx.
It’s now in the upgrade terms and conditions that you get a cert when you upgrade…the first time. Subsequent certs on the same card are YMMV.
I upgraded my Surpass to an Aspire in September. Just got my free night (~9 weeks later). Anniversary date isn’t until January (and so I’ll get another free night in ~March).
Upgrade free night seems to be alive still.
does Priority Pass from Aspire really include restaurants as stated in the Pros section of this post?
Thought that was Chase only…
All AMEX cards have discontinued restaurant credit and Aspire will discontinue priority pass next year. Bummer !
My huge complaint about the changes in the Aspire card are that the $50 per quarter for ANY kind of flight credit went into effect immediately, but they said that the $250 per year anything-but-the-flight credit would be still in effect. I almost immediately got $50 of credits for the taxes and upgraded seat on ff tickets on my chosen airline, but when I put a $30 baggage fee on the card, it didn’t come off. ALL those fees which were refunded coded as “Passenger Ticket” rather than “Additional Collection,” which is how all the refunded fees on the Platinum cards had coded. Has anyone finished up their $250 refund on their selected airline since this change suddenly occurred? How did any refunds earlier in the year code in the original charge on this Hilton card? Thanks. I really wanted to figure out a way to still use that $250 credit from the old perks.
My chosen airline is United and I put $50 for United travel bank and $56 for a seat selection on American. Both were credited in 10 days at $50 each.
Thanks, this is helpful. Now I wonder if it is just Alaska’s coding that doesn’t say “Additional fees” or whatever, and trigger the credit.
Not sure about Alaska but I have used it for United every possible way without any problems, travel bank, seat upgrade, baggage and an actual ticket. Shows on my statement as United Ticketing Houston.