How to Get Hyatt Suite Upgrades (Including with Points!)

Like many major hotel chains, Hyatt offers a wide range of hotels to choose from, including over 1,000 properties across six continents. Each of the 20 Hyatt hotel brands provides a different selection of rooms, which could include both standard rooms and suites in some cases. And like most hotel guests — we want the suites!

But how do you get them? Apart from paying more money, Hyatt offers a few different ways to upgrade your room to a suite, including a new feature on their website that allows you to use points for suite upgrades. Let’s see how it works.

Hyatt suite upgrades: The basics

The Hyatt website recently gained some new functionality. It now allows you to upgrade your room to a suite with points — all through the online booking process. This is likely much easier than calling for most people and should be a welcome addition for Hyatt enthusiasts who like to book suites.

Previously, Hyatt had added the option to book suites online using points, which is different from being able to book suite upgrades online with points. Booking a suite with points lets you use points for the entire booking. Booking a suite upgrade lets you pay cash for a room and then use points for the upgrade.

Both of these new features give Hyatt customers more options as they’re browsing different Hyatt properties online.

How to upgrade to a Hyatt suite using points

Hyatt offers multiple options for booking suites, including:

• Using points for a suite: World of Hyatt loyalty program members can book suites online using World of Hyatt points.
• Using suite upgrade awards: Hyatt members can receive suite upgrade awards through milestone rewards and additional methods. These can be used for confirmed suite upgrades during the booking process. In addition, Hyatt Globalist (the highest World of Hyatt elite status) members could receive standard suite upgrades at check-in, if available.
• Using points for a suite upgrade: Hyatt members can use points to book suite upgrades online.

If you want to book a suite upgrade using points, you have to be a World of Hyatt member. However, there’s no specific elite status requirement.

Certain Hyatt properties could have both standard and premium suites available for points upgrades. But keep in mind, suite upgrades are subject to availability and could differ between different Hyatt properties. For example, a Hyatt House wouldn’t likely have the same room options as a Park Hyatt.

Follow these steps to book a Hyatt suite upgrade online with points:

1. Navigate to Hyatt.com and enter the name of the hotel you want to book. Be sure to select the “Use Points” option and then click the “Find Hotels” button.

2. Select the type of suite upgrade you want from the available options. You might have options for either a standard suite upgrade (cash + 6,000 points) or a premium suite upgrade (cash + 9,000 points) at the time of booking. If you don’t see suite upgrade options, you may have to adjust your dates or select a different property.

3. Sign into your account and finish the booking process for your room.

4. To compare the cash price of the same room (including the suite upgrade), go through the same booking process but don’t click on the “Use Points” option.

In this example, at the Grand Hyatt New York, the cash price plus points upgrade would be $277.76 and 9,000 points. Using an accepted points valuation of 1.7 cents per point, that means 9,000 points would be worth about $153 (9,000 x $0.017 = $153). So your total value would be $430.76.

The regular paid rate for the same room on the same nights is $537.78, which is a difference of $107.02. This means you net some decent value by using points for your upgrade instead of cash.

How many points do you need for Hyatt suite upgrades?

If you want to book a Hyatt suite with points, you’ll typically pay around 60% more in points for a standard suite than for a regular room. If you want a premium suite, it’s double the number of points of a standard room at the same property.

Here’s how Hyatt breaks down how many points you need for award nights depending on the Hyatt hotel category:

The number of points needed for a Hyatt suite upgrade is standard across all Hyatt properties. If you want to pay a standard cash rate for your room and then upgrade to a suite using points, you’ll need this many points per night:

• Regency Club/Grand Club room: 3,000 points per night
• Standard suite: 6,000 points per night
• Premium suite: 9,000 points per night

Regency Club and Grand Hyatt Club rooms are unique to Hyatt Regency and Grand Hyatt properties. They’re typically considered a type of standard suite, but they have lower upgrade costs (in points) compared to other standard suites.

How to earn Hyatt points

If you want to use points for suite upgrades or free night awards at Hyatt properties, you first need to earn some World of Hyatt points. Fortunately, you have multiple ways to start earning, including using credit cards, staying at Hyatt hotels, and leveraging your World of Hyatt elite status.

Credit cards

If you compare credit cards, you’ll find a healthy mix of credit card offers to choose from. This includes travel cards, cashback cards, student cards, and more. But for the purposes of earning Hyatt points, you’ll want to stick with credit cards that earn points within the World of Hyatt program or that earn flexible rewards that can be transferred to World of Hyatt.

The best hotel credit card for Hyatt enthusiasts is the The World of Hyatt Credit Card. This card offers up to 9X points at Hyatt (4 bonus points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels plus up to 5 base points per $1 from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member); 2X points on restaurants, airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships; and 1X points on all other purchases. With the generous sign-up bonus, you can earn up to 60,000 Bonus Points: earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening, plus up to 30,000 more Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent. This card has a $95 annual fee.

For more details, check out our World of Hyatt Credit Card review.

If you're someone with a side hustle or a small business, you might also consider the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card. This card offers automatic Discoverist elite status as well as other perks. It also earns up to 9X total points at Hyatt (4 bonus points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels plus up to 5 base points from Hyatt per eligible $1 spent as a World of Hyatt member); 2X points on your top three spend categories each quarter; 2X points on fitness club and gym memberships; and 1X points on all other purchases.

For more info, check out our World of Hyatt Business Credit Card review.

Another option for earning Hyatt points is to earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points and then transfer them to your World of Hyatt account. These flexible rewards can be earned by using some of the best travel credit cards, including the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card.

The Sapphire Preferred offers a generous sign-up bonus of 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months. You also have the opportunity to earn 5X points on travel purchased through Chase Travel℠; 3X points on dining, select streaming services, and online groceries; 2X points on all other travel purchases, and 1X points on all other purchases. All of your Chase points can be transferred to the World of Hyatt program since Hyatt is a Chase transfer partner. This card has a $95 annual fee.

For more details, check out our Chase Sapphire Preferred review.

The credit card issuer for both of these cards is Chase. American Express (Amex) cards don’t currently offer any ways to earn Hyatt points or rewards that can be transferred to the World of Hyatt program.

Hyatt hotel stays and more

World of Hyatt members can earn points on every hotel stay plus certain purchases, experiences, and other forms of travel. Here’s a breakdown of different ways you can earn points through the World of Hyatt program:

• Hotel stays: Earn 5 points per $1 spent at Hyatt properties and certain partner properties, such as Homes & Hideaways by World of Hyatt.
• Purchases at Hyatt properties: Earn 5 points per $1 spent on dining, spa, and other services at Hyatt properties.
• Meetings and events: Earn 1 point per $1 spent (up to 50,000 points) for qualifying meetings and events at Hyatt properties.
• Experiences: Earn up to 10 points per $1 spent on experiences with FIND, Lindblad Expeditions, and Exhale.
• American Airlines AAdvantage: Earn 1 point per $1 spent when you link your World of Hyatt and American Airlines AAdvantage accounts and purchase qualifying American Airlines flights. This is in addition to earning AAdvantage miles.
• Avis car rentals: Earn 500 points for qualifying car rentals with Avis.
• Purchasing points: Purchase up to 55,000 points per year in increments of 1,000.

The best option on this list for earning points for most travelers is likely staying at Hyatt properties. As long as you’re a World of Hyatt member, you’ll earn at least 5 points per $1 spent. This rate doesn’t change depending on the hotel brand — you’ll earn the same rate at a Grand Hyatt versus a Hyatt Place.

World of Hyatt elite status

World of Hyatt statuses are separated into four tiers: Member, Discoverist, Explorist, and Globalist. A Hyatt Member is the lowest tier, while a Hyatt Globalist is the highest. If you progress through the tiers, you’ll gain access to increased benefits, including bonus points on eligible purchases.

Here’s how many points you can earn for each elite status tier:

Let’s say you stay one night at an Andaz hotel that costs $200 per night. As a Member, you would earn 1,000 points for your stay, which is valued at about $17 (1,000 x $0.017 = $17) when using a 1.7 cents per point valuation.

However, someone with Globalist status would earn the initial 1,000 points and then a 30% bonus of 300 more points, for a total of 1,300 points — which offers a value of about $22.10 (1,300 x $0.017 = $22.10).

This doesn’t seem like a whole lot more. Yet it can add up for Globalist members if they have a lot of stays, especially if they’re more expensive stays.

FAQs

Bottom line

It’s important to understand how the various loyalty programs, including Marriott Bonvoy and Hilton Honors, work if you want to get as much value as you can out of them. With the World of Hyatt program, it’s typically easy to understand how to use your points for free nights and suite upgrades — which helps improve the overall experience for Hyatt guests.

As you make plans to stay at Hyatt properties, remember to use the available options for earning Hyatt points to your advantage. Certain credit cards provide a straightforward way for you to earn valuable points on purchases you could be making every day.

Big bonus points on Hyatt stays

The World of Hyatt Credit Card

4.8

FinanceBuzz writers and editors score cards based on a number of objective features as well as our expert editorial assessment. Our partners do not influence how we rate products.

The World of Hyatt Credit Card

Compare Credit Cards

Current Offer

Earn up to 60,000 Bonus Points: earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening, plus up to 30,000 more Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent

Annual Fee

$95

Rewards Rate

up to 9X points at Hyatt (4 bonus points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels plus up to 5 base points per $1 from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member); 2X points on restaurants, airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships; and 1X points on all other purchases

Benefits and Drawbacks

Benefits

• Annual free night award
• Automatic Discoverist status
• Comprehensive travel and purchase coverage
• No foreign transaction fees

Drawbacks

• Has an annual fee
• Hyatt has a smaller footprint than its competitors

Card Details

• Earn up to 60,000 Bonus Points: earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening, plus up to 30,000 more Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent
• up to 9X points at Hyatt (4 bonus points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels plus up to 5 base points per $1 from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member); 2X points on restaurants, airline tickets purchased directly from the airlines, local transit and commuting and on fitness club and gym memberships; and 1X points on all other purchases