7 Hotel Credit Cards That Offer Free Night Certificates

You could easily level up your next trip using a hotel credit card. Typically, a hotel credit card offers a range of travel benefits, including the potential to earn welcome offers and bonus rewards.

Even better, several hotel cards provide cardholders with exclusive perks you won’t find on any other type of rewards card. If you’ve ever wondered how to stay at hotels for free, the answer lies with hotel credit cards that help you earn bonus free nights.

This includes credit cards such as the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card, the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card, the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card, and The World of Hyatt Credit Card.

Key takeaways

• There are hotel credit cards that enable cardholders to earn free night certificates. These certificates can typically be earned by meeting certain requirements, such as holding the card for a year, reaching spending thresholds, or renewing the card annually.
• Major hotel chains like Hilton, IHG, Marriott, and Hyatt have branded credit cards that offer free night certificates.
• Most hotel credit cards come with an annual fee, a cost you should consider when deciding which card to choose. The annual fee can vary depending on the card and its benefits.
• Free night certificates might come with restrictions. They may limit eligible hotels, have blackout dates, or require specific point redemption levels.

Hotel credit cards that offer free night certificates

Here are hotel credit cards that offer free nights:

• Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
• Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card
• IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card
• Marriott Bonvoy Business^® American Express^® Card
• The World of Hyatt Credit Card

What is a free night certificate?

Hotel credit cards will often award cardholders with a free night certificate once they’ve met certain requirements. The way you can be awarded a free night certificate depends on the credit card.

Certain credit cards offer a free night certificate once you’ve had the card for a year and then each year thereafter. This would amount to receiving a free hotel stay each year on your card’s anniversary date. With this method, cardholders rarely have to do anything other than pay the card’s annual fee, so it’s an easy way to accrue free hotel nights every year.

Other cards may have certain spending requirements (in addition to an annual fee) before you can get your free hotel night. You would need to spend the specified amount to receive a free hotel night.

Terms and conditions can vary by the hotel loyalty program, but you’ll often see restrictions on the type of hotel you can stay when you use a free night certificate. Because higher-tier hotels usually cost more for stays, you can expect most free night certificates to apply at low- to mid-tier hotels.

However, not every free night certificate functions the same way. Take the Hilton Free Night Reward, for example. Other than a specific list of excluded hotels, you can use this free night certificate to stay at any Hilton hotel that has availability. Award nights like this make it that much more important to research all your credit card options and make sure you pick the one most valuable to you.

To learn more about offers available from hotel credit cards, we’ll dive into the specific details next.

Hotel credit cards that offer free night certificates

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

With the Hilton Honors Aspire, you receive a free weekend night reward soon after opening the card and each year after renewal. You can earn an additional free night after making $30,000 in purchases and a third after making $60,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year. In total, you can get up to three free nights a year at a vast majority of more than 6,100 Hilton properties worldwide.

If you’re a fan of Hilton properties and luxury travel perks, this could be the right card for you. Earning Hilton Honors bonus points on all your purchases makes it easy to rack up rewards for award nights, plus you receive complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond status. Diamond status is the highest tier in the Hilton Honors loyalty program and includes perks such as executive lounge access, premium Wi-Fi, and 100% bonus points on stays.

With the bonus points, you earn a whopping 34 points for every $1 spent on most Hilton hotel stays. That’s 14X points on eligible purchases within the Hilton portfolio from your Aspire card, 10X base points as a Hilton Honors member, and 10X bonus points for Diamond status.

Explore more benefits in our Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card review.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card

The Hilton Honors Surpass offers a Free Night Reward after you spend $15,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year. This is much less than the $30,000 of spending required on the Hilton Honors Aspire, but the Surpass also doesn’t offer you a free anniversary night each year. However, the lower $150 annual fee makes the Hilton Honors Surpass a lot more affordable than the Aspire.

If you like the Hilton brand and want to avoid a high annual fee, the Hilton Honors Surpass could be a good fit for you. You can earn Hilton points and receive great benefits, including complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status (enrollment required). Gold status members receive free continental breakfast, space-available room upgrades, and 80% bonus points on stays.

Your total points haul for most Hilton stays would be 30 points per $1 spent. You earn 12X points on eligible purchases at participating Hilton hotels or resorts with your Surpass card, 10X base points as a Hilton Honors member, and 8X bonus points for Gold status.

Explore more benefits our Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card review.

IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card

Receive a free reward night after each account anniversary year with the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card. This anniversary night is valid at IHG hotels around the world that have a current point redemption level of 40,000 points or less.

If you’re loyal to the IHG brand, you might consider using the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card to book a hotel room at more than 5,800 properties worldwide. Apart from earning valuable IHG points, cardholders also enjoy complimentary Platinum Elite status in the IHG One Rewards program. As a Platinum Elite member, you receive a free reward night when you redeem points for any stay of at least four consecutive nights. You also save 20% on points you purchase with your IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card.

Explore more benefits our IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card review.

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card

Enjoy a free night award after each account anniversary with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card. This free night starts after your first year as a cardholder and is valid at any Marriott property with a point redemption level of 35,000 points or below.

For Marriott fans, the Bonvoy Boundless provides an ideal opportunity for earning points for more award nights. Cardholders also automatically receive Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status. Silver Elite members receive priority late checkout, 10% bonus points on stays, and free Wi-Fi.

With the points bonus, you earn 10% more points on top of the 10 base points per $1 spent on eligible Marriott purchases. So for a $300 stay, you could earn a total of 5,100 points. That’s 3,000 (300 x 10 = 3,000) base points, 300 points (3,000 x .10 = 300) from the 10% bonus, and 1,800 points from your Marriott Bonvoy Boundless (up to 17X points on hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy).

Explore more benefits our Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card review.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant^® American Express^® Card

Similar to the Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card also offers a free night award every year after your account anniversary. One huge difference, though, is that you can use the free night award from this card for any Marriott property that has a point redemption level of 85,000 points or below (whereas the Boundless restricts you to 35,000 points and below).

If you want to earn award nights at Marriott hotels and also receive luxury perks, the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant could be an ideal candidate for you. It comes with Priority Pass Select membership, TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fee credit (up to $85 for TSA PreCheck every 4.5 years, or up to $120 for Global Entry every four years), and up to $300 ($25 per month) in statement credits for eligible worldwide dining purchases (enrollment required for select benefits). In addition, you receive complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status, which offers enhanced room upgrades, free breakfast, lounge access, late checkout, and 50% bonus points.

With 50% more points, you can earn a lot more at most Marriott hotels. For a $300 stay, you can earn a total of 6,300 points. It’s 3,000 (300 x 10 = 3,000) base points, 1,500 points (3,000 x .50 = 1,500) from the 50% bonus, and 1,800 points from your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant (6X points on hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program).

Explore more benefits our Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card review.

Marriott Bonvoy Business^® American Express^® Card

With the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card, receive a free award night every year after your account anniversary. You can also earn an additional free night if you spend $60,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year. Both of these award nights can be used for one night each at any Marriott property that has a point redemption level of 35,000 points or below.

Business travelers who like to stay at Marriott properties can use the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card for its valuable benefits and earning potential. Cardholders receive complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status, 15 Elite Night Credits, and access to the Marriott Bonvoy Air+Car transfer program.

Explore more benefits our Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card review.

The World of Hyatt Credit Card

The World of Hyatt Credit Card allows you to receive one free night every year after your cardmember anniversary. This free night can be used at any Category 1 through 4 Hyatt hotel around the world. Hyatt hotel categories range from Category 1 to Category 8, with Category 8 being the highest. Category 4 hotel award nights typically start at 15,000 points per night. You can earn another free night at any Category 1 through 4 Hyatt hotel if you spend $15,000 during your cardmember anniversary year.

As the only Hyatt credit card available, the World of Hyatt Credit Card has no other Hyatt-branded cards to compete against. Fortunately, this card by itself provides heaps of value for Hyatt loyalists. Because Hyatt award nights start at just 5,000 points, it’s fairly straightforward to quickly earn points toward award nights within the World of Hyatt loyalty program. Travel insurance coverage and no foreign transaction fees are added cardmember bonuses.

Explore more benefits our The World of Hyatt Credit Card review.

Bottom line

As you can see, there are many different hotel credit cards available that come with free nights. It should be easy to pick a card that earns you hotel points for your favorite hotel brand. The best hotel credit cards, though, will also earn you bonus points on stays and other travel expenses. They’ll also offer perks like complimentary room upgrades or travel credits.

If you’re looking for a card that has more well-rounded rewards or the option to transfer points to travel partners, then consider a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card. It’s one of the best travel credit cards available and earns lucrative Chase Ultimate Rewards points on every purchase.

Finally, keep in mind that you don’t have to pick just one of the best travel credit cards out there — sometimes having multiple cards can earn you the most in travel rewards and benefits.

Easy-to-Earn Unlimited Rewards

Bank of America^® Travel Rewards credit card

Benefits

Card Details

• $0 annual fee
• Simple, flat-rate rewards
• Flexible redemption options
• Up to 75% preferred Rewards bonus potential
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• Earn unlimited 1.5 points per $1 spent on all purchases, with no annual fee and no foreign transaction fees and your points don't expire as long as your account remains open.
• 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases.
• Use your card to book your trip how and where you want - you're not limited to specific websites with blackout dates or restrictions.
• Redeem points for a statement credit to pay for travel or dining purchases, such as flights, hotel stays, car and vacation rentals, baggage fees, and also at restaurants including takeout.
• 0% Intro APR for 15 billing cycles for purchases, and for any balance transfers made in the first 60 days. After the Intro APR offer ends, a Variable APR that’s currently 18.74% - 28.74% will apply. A 3% Intro balance transfer fee will apply for the first 60 days your account is open. After the Intro balance transfer fee offer ends, the fee for future balance transfers is 4%.
• If you're a Bank of America Preferred Rewards® member, you can earn 25%-75% more points on every purchase. That means instead of earning an unlimited 1.5 points for every $1, you could earn 1.87-2.62 points for every $1 you spend on purchases.
• Contactless Cards - The security of a chip card, with the convenience of a tap.
• This online only offer may not be available if you leave this page or if you visit a Bank of America financial center. You can take advantage of this offer when you apply now.

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Intro Offer

Earn 25,000 online bonus points after you make at least $1,000 in purchases in the first 90 days of account opening - that can be a $250 statement credit toward travel purchases

Annual Fee

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Why we like it

• The Bank of America^® Travel Rewards credit card is great for individuals who enjoy earning rewards and traveling.

• Cardholders will enjoy the flexibility to redeem points with no blackout dates and receive a statement credit to pay for travel and dining purchases.

• Earn 1.5X points on all purchases everywhere, every time.

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