Update 5/12/23: Doctor of Credit shared a new link for the Hilton Honors no annual fee card that’s actually better than the public version. The new link shows 80,000 Hilton Honors points, 10,000 better than the public offer, but still with the same $1,000 minimum spend. While I would still prefer the Surpass or Business cards, this is an excellent deal for a card with no annual fee with so little spend required. This is the offer you’ll now see on our best offers page.
Three of the American Express Hilton Honors credit cards have limited-time welcome offers that include both a free night certificate (FNC) and a substantial tranche of Hilton points. Even the no annual fee Hilton Honors card now comes with a FNC after completing the minimum spend. These new offers represent some of the best we’ve seen on the Hilton cards when you combine the bonus points and the certs.
The Offers & Key Card Details
For more card information and to find an application link, see our dedicated card pages by clicking the names of the cards below.
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Quick Thoughts
Hilton has possibly the most flexible and easy to use free night certificates of any major hotel chain. You can use them for a standard room at almost any Hilton property worldwide, regardless of what the nightly cost is in cash or points. Originally, these certs were only applicable towards weekend stays, but during the pandemic, Hilton made them available for use any day of the week, a change that was made permanent in 2022.
The offers on the business card and the Surpass are the most attractive to me. Each of these gives 130K+ of Hilton points combined with a free might certificate, and for very reasonable minimum spend (especially the $2K min spend on the Surpass). In addition, both of these cards can earn another FNC by putting $15K total spend on the card during the cardmember year, an especially lucrative proposition if you can concentrate that spend in the one of the numerous 6x categories. The Business card has the added sweetener of not counting towards your Chase 5/24 count.
Keep in mind that each Hilton card is considered a separate product, so it’s possible to get a welcome offer on all four cards without running afoul of Amex’s “one welcome offer in a lifetime rule.” For some reason, the Aspire card continues to operate on a separate track from the other three, so its unchanged welcome offer now mimics the current offer on the Business card.
Note that these offers are available via referral, so if you’re in 2-player mode you can add even more points to the total haul. You don’t even need a Hilton card to refer someone, as referrals are possible from Membership Rewards (MR)-earning cards as well (ie, Amex Platinum, Gold, etc). Some folks are finding referral offers as high as 30K MR for referring a new cardholder, which is a significant addition to the Hilton offers.
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Anyone know how long the ‘free night’ certificate is good for- 6 months? A year?
for the new business card
Can I apply for the hilton honors and surpass at the same time and get bonus for both?
Any DP’s loading Serve with any of these Amex Hilton cards? Does it trigger a cash adv fee?
You don’t even need a Hilton card to refer someone, as referrals are possible from Membership Rewards (MR)-earning cards as well.
Please expound. I don’t see that as an option in my AMEX Gold account.
If you make a referral from a card that earns MRs such as a gold, the referral link that the person you refer to receives gives the option of choosing any card.
Awesome, thanks!!
FYI, DoC has a link with 80k + FN for the no-AF card.
Hmm.. none of my referral links work, and I can’t generate any new one..
My referrals only pull up this offer for consumer cards, but biz is still without the certificate. What is everyone else’s experience? Are your referrals for hilton biz card generate the offer with a FNC?
Dumb question, I applied for the surpass card about 3 years ago, then downgraded to the Hilton honors no annual fee card, and still have it open. Can I cancel that card then re-apply since I never “signed up” for this card? Or has downgrading cost me a sign up bonus for this product?
If I am not mistaken, you are now ineligible for the bonus unfortunately
Bagira is correct.
Can P2/P3 use a Free Night Certificate for a stay by P1?
Sorry for crossposting from the FB group, but I just saw this article.
A question about the 7 year “lifetime” for Amex cards.
I’ve had the $0 AF Hilton card since 2007. At the cost of using up a 5/24 I’m thinking of closing the account and reapplying for the 70K points and Free night certificate.
Will closing and reapplying work to get the SUB?
Is there a min period I need to wait for before applying?
Yes, you need to wait 7 years.
7 years after closing? Darn I should have done it years ago!
If I downgraded a previous Surpass card to the no-fee Hilton card, am I eligible to receive the bonus if I sign up for the no-fee Hilton card?
Unfortunately, no. That said, I have heard of some folks having been able to successfully apply and not get the “you’re not eligible for this welcome offer” pop-up. So, there’s no harm in trying because they’ll tell you before they do a credit check.
But, I wouldn’t get my hopes up.
I’m interested but am worrying about the MSR. Do you want to consider writing a post specifically on manufactuing spending for Amex? Many “buying gift cards” techniques don’t seem to be safe given Amex has become so anal about it…
I don’t think it’s quite the issue that it used to be (or was thought to be). I know lots of folks (including me) that do a ton of gift cards in reaching Amex subs. They won’t give rewards at Simon Mall and you could stay away from obvious things like giftcards.com, but we haven’t heard of mixing in gift cards with other spend being a problem.
Thanks. Meaning that I can buy gift cards from supermarkets/gas stations/Lowe’s/Home Depot/Office stores to reach the Amex spending requirement, right?
I have the Amex Hilton Surpass consumer card. Applied and just got approved for the Amex Hilton Business Card with 150K points + free night cert bonus with 4K spend in 3 months
The offer on the business card is actually 150k not 130k.
Where do you see it listed as 130K? I couldn’t find it…I see 150K on the offer.
Tim – I think they’re referencing this line in the article “The offers on the business card and the Surpass are the most attractive to me. Each of these gives 130K+ of Hilton points combined with a free might certificate, and for very reasonable minimum spend (especially the $2K min spend on the Surpass).”
Has anyone had any luck getting these offers matched? I applied for the Hilton Biz card in late April and now the offers are much better.
Amex is not very accommodating when it comes to matching the higher offers. I got the bonvoy biz card last year with 75k bonus and the following week it was increased to 125k. They said SOL.
Ditto.
Ugh, similar situation. Just opened Surpass cards for a nephew and niece.