Hilton’s welcome offer just got both better and worse | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

If getting a Hilton credit card has been on your radar, there’s a new development you’ll want to pay attention to.

American Express and Hilton just rolled out new welcome offers on two of the most popular hotel credit cards in the country, and the changes are a mixed bag.

Both the no-annual-fee Hilton Honors card and the mid-tier Surpass card now offer a Free Night Reward as part of their sign-up bonuses. However, one of those cards has seen a significant reduction in bonus points to accommodate the new perk.

You have until April 15, 2026, to decide if the trade-off is worth it, and the answer depends entirely on how you travel.

The no-annual-fee Hilton card now gives you a free night, but fewer points

The entry-level Hilton Honors American Express Card still has no annual fee, making it one of the most accessible hotel cards on the market. The new welcome offer gives you 70,000 Hilton Honors bonus points plus a Free Night Reward after spending $2,000 in six months.

That sounds generous until you compare it to the card’s previous offer, which was 100,000 bonus points with no free night, and the same $2,000 spending requirement. You are giving up 30,000 Hilton Honors points, which are worth roughly $150 at a standard industry rate of about 0.5 cents per point.

The question you need to ask yourself is whether a single free night at a Hilton property is worth more than that $150 in points value.

The Surpass card kept its points and added a free night on top

The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card tells a completely different story, and it is the better deal of the two if you are willing to pay its $150 annual fee. New applicants earn 130,000 Hilton Honors bonus points plus a Free Night Reward after spending $3,000 in six months on purchases with the card.

The point total here did not change from the card’s previous welcome offer, which means this is a pure upgrade for new applicants. The card also comes with complimentary Hilton Honors Gold status, which gives you room upgrades when available and 80% more bonus points on stays.

You also get up to $200 in annual statement credits for purchases made directly at Hilton properties, up to $50 per quarter, automatically applied.

Your free night could be worth $100 or $500, depending on how you use it

A Hilton Free Night Reward can be redeemed at properties that require between 5,000 and 250,000 points per night for a standard room. That range is enormous, and your actual value depends entirely on where and when you choose to redeem the certificate for a stay.

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If you book a Hampton Inn in a mid-size city during a slow week, your free night might save you $100 or so before taxes and fees. If you redeem it at a Waldorf Astoria, Conrad, or an all-inclusive Hilton resort during peak season, that same certificate could be worth $400 or more.

Hilton’s Free Night Reward includes all applicable resort fees and taxes on the cost of the room for the redeemed night, the company’s website states. That resort-fee waiver is something Marriott does not consistently offer on its own free-night awards, giving Hilton a real edge here.

Hilton Honors points are worth less per point than most hotel loyalty currencies

Industry analysts generally value Hilton Honors points at about 0.5 cents each, though smart redemptions can push that closer to 0.7 or even 1.0 cents. Hilton uses dynamic pricing for award stays, meaning the number of points required for a given room fluctuates with demand and season.

“I’ve maximized free night certificates from the Hilton Honors Aspire to stay at some of Hilton’s top properties worldwide, including the Conrad Maldives, Conrad Bora Bora, Waldorf Astoria Los Cabos, Waldorf Astoria Grand Wailea and Conrad Punta de Mita.”— Carly Helfand (TPG’s director of content for credit cards.)

For context, Hyatt points are typically worth about 1.7 cents each, and Marriott points hover around 0.7 cents per point, according to travel rewards analysts. That does not mean Hilton points are bad; it just means you need a lot more of them to book the same-quality room at comparable properties.

The 70,000 bonus points on the no-fee Hilton card are worth roughly $350, while the 130,000 on the Surpass card are worth approximately $650.

Picking the right card depends on how often you stay at Hilton properties

If you stay at Hilton hotels once or twice a year and want a simple card with no recurring cost, the no-fee Hilton Honors card is a solid entry point. The 70,000 points plus a Free Night Reward still represent a strong welcome offer for a card that charges you absolutely nothing to hold.

Key questions to ask before you apply:

Do you have a specific Hilton property in mind where you could maximize the value of a Free Night Reward certificate during peak season?
Would you prefer the flexibility of 100,000 points you can split across multiple stays, rather than one free night at a single hotel?
Are you planning enough Hilton stays this year to justify the Surpass card’s $150 annual fee through quarterly statement credits and Gold status?
Can you comfortably meet the $2,000 or $3,000 spending requirement within six months without carrying a balance on your new credit card?

If you travel frequently and already stay with Hilton several times a year, the Surpass card is the stronger pick because it keeps its bonus and adds a free night.

A no-annual-fee Hilton card offers strong value for occasional stays, while frequent travelers may benefit more from premium perks and rewards.

The Aspire and Business cards also have elevated offers through April 15

Hilton’s entire American Express portfolio is running elevated welcome bonuses right now, and two other cards deserve your attention if you travel often.

Current Hilton Amex welcome offers at a glance:

Hilton Honors Aspire Card ($550 annual fee): 175,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 in six months, no Free Night Reward in the welcome offer, but the card includes an annual Free Night Reward automatically.
Hilton Honors Business Card ($195 annual fee): 175,000 bonus points plus a Free Night Reward after spending $8,000 in six months on eligible purchases made with the card.

The Aspire card is the top-tier option and comes with automatic Diamond elite status, up to $400 in annual Hilton resort credits, and $200 in annual flight credits. American Express only allows you to earn one bonus per card in a lifetime, so timing your application during an elevated offer period, such as this one, matters significantly.

Three things you should know before applying for any Hilton card right now

Rushing into a credit card application without understanding the fine print could cost you more than you save on your next hotel booking. The offer expires on April 15, 2026, so if you miss this deadline, the welcome offers will likely revert to standard terms, and there is no guarantee the free night perk will return.

Hilton devalued its points in September 2025. Several popular redemption properties saw their award prices jump significantly, which means your points do not stretch as far as they did a year ago at some luxury resorts.

Your credit score will take a small temporary hit. Applying for any new credit card triggers a hard inquiry on your credit report, which typically lowers your score by five to ten points temporarily.

If you are planning a major financial move, such as refinancing a mortgage or applying for an auto loan, in the next few months, consider waiting to apply.

The bottom line for travelers weighing Hilton’s new welcome offers

Hilton gave you something new with one hand and quietly took something away with the other, at least on the no-annual-fee card specifically. The Surpass card is the clear winner here because it kept its 130,000-point bonus intact and added a Free Night Reward on top of the existing offer.

The no-fee Hilton Honors card is still a valid option if you want a low-commitment entry point into the Hilton loyalty ecosystem without paying annual fees to hold it. Just know that you are trading 30,000 points for a free night, and whether that is a good deal depends on how strategically you plan to use that certificate.

Book your free night at a premium property during peak season, and you could come out well ahead of the old offer in raw dollar savings. Use it at a budget property during a slow period, and you might end up wishing you had those 30,000 points back for future stays across multiple trips.