Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card Review: A Deep Dive into Rewards, Status and Value

Picture arriving at a Hilton resort after a long flight, breezing past the check-in line with your Gold Status and settling into a room upgrade with a great view. You paid for the stay using points you effortlessly earned from everyday spending. And when the final bill arrives, your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card continues to reward you with even more points and a quarterly statement credit. For frequent Hilton travelers, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card doesn’t just earn free nights; it turns routine purchases into meaningful travel perks.

However, if you prefer more flexibility in how you earn and redeem rewards, or you don’t stay with Hilton often, you may be better off with a general travel rewards credit card. Ultimately, this card shines brightest in the hands of loyal Hilton travelers who can fully take advantage of its benefits.

Annual fee: $150

Welcome offer: Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership.

Rewards: 3X - 12X points

• Earn 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Portfolio.
• Earn 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations.
• Earn 4X Points for each dollar on U.S. Online Retail Purchases.
  
• Earn 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card.

Intro purchase APR: N/A (see rates & fees)

APR: 20.24%-29.24% Variable (see rates & fees)

Foreign transaction fee: None

Other benefits:

• Hilton Honors™ Gold status
• Path to Hilton Honors™ Diamond status
• Up to a $200 credit for direct Hilton purchases (up to $50 quarterly)
• Earn a free night reward from Hilton Honors with $15,000 spend on your card
• National Car Rental^® Emerald Club Executive^® status (enrollment required)

→ Learn more about the best Hilton Credit Cards.

• Strong welcome offer

  Earn 130,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 in purchases on the Card in the first 6 months of Card Membership. Hilton Honors points are worth around 0.5 cents per point by our estimates, making the welcome offer worth around $650*.

  This is a larger-than-average welcome offer that can score you a couple of nights at a higher-end Hilton hotel or several nights at a lower-end Hilton hotel. Also, the spending requirement is relatively low, making it a good choice if you’re on a lower budget.

  *Based on LendingTree’s value methodology

  → See all of the top credit card welcome offers.

• Excellent Hilton earning rate

  Earn 12X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your Card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton Portfolio. Earn 6X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your Card at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, and U.S. gas stations. Earn 4X Points for each dollar on U.S. Online Retail Purchases. Earn 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your Card.

  What makes this card stand out is its exceptionally high rewards rate on direct Hilton bookings. It also offers strong earnings on everyday spending categories, making the card valuable even when you’re not traveling. On top of that, its base rewards rate outperforms many other hotel credit cards. That said, redemptions are typically only worth around 0.5 cents per point, depending on how you redeem. Compared to other hotel rewards programs, this tends to be on the lower side:

  → Learn more about the Hilton Honors rewards program.

• Up to $200 annual Hilton statement credit

  The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card offers up to $50 in statement credits each quarter when you make purchases directly with Hilton properties using the card, adding up to $200 in annual savings.

  This perk can offset the card’s annual fee, but you’ll need to stay at a Hilton property at least once per quarter to fully take advantage of it. If you don’t stay at Hilton properties that often, this probably isn’t the card for you.

• Earn a free night award

  You can earn a free night at any Hilton property when you spend $15,000 on your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card within a calendar year. That’s the equivalent of spending $1,250 per month on your card.

  Unlike some competing hotel cards, this certificate has no point cap, allowing you to redeem it at even the most high-end Hilton properties. For example, you can redeem your reward at the Waldorf Astoria Amsterdam for more than $1,000 in value. In contrast, the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card‘s annual free night award is capped at 35,000 points.

• Complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold Status

  Once you enroll in the Hilton Honors program, you’ll get complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold status with the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card.

  Some of the benefits Hilton Honors™ Gold status holders receive include:

  • 80% points-earning bonus on Hilton stays
  • Fifth night free on reward stays
  • Room upgrades, if space permits
  • Daily food and beverage credit or continental breakfast

  • Late checkout
  • Complimentary Wi-Fi
  • Elite rollover nights
  • Milestone bonuses

  Typically, you need 40+ stays per calendar year to qualify for Gold Status, so this is a valuable benefit that you get just for being a cardmember.

• Path to Diamond status

  When you spend $40,000 on eligible purchases on your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card in a calendar year, you can earn Hilton Honors™ Diamond status through the end of the next calendar year. With Diamond status, you can unlock additional perks like a 100% points earning bonus on stays, premium Wi-Fi at select properties and executive lounge access at select properties.

• National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status

  With your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card, you’ll get complimentary National Car Rental^® Emerald Club Executive^® status (enrollment required, terms apply). This includes perks like faster free rental days, executive area access and guaranteed upgrades.

• No foreign transaction fee

  If you stay at Hilton properties around the world, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card is a smart choice thanks to its no foreign transaction fees. Since some cards charge around 3% for international purchases, this perk can lead to significant savings when traveling abroad.

• Benefits are limited to Hilton

  The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card is best for those who want to stick to the Hilton ecosystem to get the most value. You’ll need to stay at Hilton hotels to take advantage of benefits like elite status, and your redemption options are limited outside of Hilton stays.

  → If you prefer to stay at a variety of hotels or want more flexibility with your travel rewards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card is a strong alternative. It earns valuable Chase Ultimate Rewards^® points, which can be redeemed for travel through the Chase Travel^SM portal, transferred to more than 10 hotel and airline partners (including Hyatt, Marriott and IHG) or cashed out for 1 cent per point.

• Requires $15,000 in annual spend for free night award

  To earn a free night stay, you have to spend $15,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year. Some hotel credit cards — like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless^® Credit Card and World of Hyatt Credit Card — automatically give you a free night every year.

• Dynamic pricing complicates redemption

  Hilton uses a dynamic pricing model for award redemptions, meaning the number of points required for a free night can vary widely based on demand, location and timing. There’s no fixed award chart, which can make it harder to predict how many points you’ll need for a stay. As a result, it’s more difficult to plan redemptions or maximize value compared to programs with consistent pricing tiers.

• No Priority Pass lounge access

  Unlike some travel credit cards, the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card no longer includes Priority Pass lounge access. This means you’ll miss out on access to airport lounges worldwide, a popular perk for frequent travelers looking for added comfort, food and Wi-Fi during layovers. If this benefit is important to you, you might consider a card with a higher annual fee, like The Platinum Card^® from American Express (see rates & fees) or the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card.

  → See all of the top credit cards with airport lounge access.

• Travel insurance isn’t as robust as other cards

  You’ll get the following travel insurance and purchase protections with the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card:

  • Car rental loss and damage insurance¹
  • Baggage insurance plan²
  • Global Assist Hotline (terms apply)
  • Purchase protection (terms apply)
  • Extended warranty³

  While these benefits are decent, they fall short of what many competing cards provide. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card offers primary rental car insurance and trip delay or cancellation insurance (terms apply), which can spare you from purchasing a policy.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card vs. Hilton Honors American Express Card

The Hilton Honors American Express Card is a good card if you don’t travel much but enjoy Hilton properties or if you want to try out a Hilton credit card without committing to an annual fee (see rates & fees).

While the card doesn’t offer the same level of rewards or premium perks as higher-tier Hilton cards, it still provides strong earning potential on both Hilton stays and everyday purchases. You’ll also receive complimentary Hilton Honors™ Silver Status, which includes a 20% bonus on base points, fifth night free on standard reward stays and elite rollover nights (terms apply).

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card vs. Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express

On the other hand, if you’re open to paying a higher annual fee in exchange for top-tier Hilton benefits, the Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express could be a great fit.

Despite its steep $550 annual fee, the card offers exceptional value with perks like complimentary Hilton Honors™ Diamond Status, up to $400 in annual Hilton resort credits, up to a $100 property credit, up to $200 in annual flight credits (up to $50 quarterly) and up to a $209 CLEAR^® Plus Credit (enrollment required, subject to auto-renewal) (terms apply to all benefits). There’s also higher earning rates on Hilton stays, travel, dining and other purchases, making it easier to rack up points and earn free nights even faster.

Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card offers greater flexibility, allowing you to earn and redeem points without being locked into a single hotel loyalty program.

At face value, it may seem less rewarding than the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card because it has a lower earning rate, but the points you can earn are much more valuable. You get up to a 75% bonus on Chase Travel^SM redemptions, and you can transfer points at a 1:1 ratio to more than 10 airline and hotel loyalty programs. And since you can redeem points for travel with any hotel brand, you aren’t limited to staying with Hilton.

The Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card also offers better travel and purchase protections, including trip cancellation and interruption insurance, baggage delay insurance, trip delay reimbursement, primary rental car insurance and purchase and return protection. On the downside, it doesn’t offer any hotel perks or airport lounge access.

The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass^® Card is best for people who already stay at Hilton properties or would make use of the card well enough to benefit from the perks. The welcome offer, complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold status and elevated point earning opportunities are good for those who travel frequently for business or pleasure.

This card sits in the middle tier of Hilton’s credit card lineup. If you travel infrequently, the $0-annual-fee Hilton Honors American Express Card may be a better fit, while frequent travelers seeking premium benefits and more opportunities to earn Hilton stays might prefer the Hilton Honors Aspire Card from American Express. However, if you’re looking for greater flexibility in how you redeem your points, a general travel rewards card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred^® Card could offer more value.

We use an objective rating and ranking system that compares features across a large set of credit cards (over 200 of them from over 50 issuers). We use calculations to estimate the value of each card for the average cardholder, based on LendingTree and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

• Average value over two years (80% of rating): We calculate the value of rewards and perks for the average cardholder using U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and an annual spend of $20,000, minus the annual fee. This value includes the card’s sign-up bonus, annual bonus (including free night certificates) and travel perks like lounge access and travel credits. We look at the average rewards earned over two years to balance out a card’s ongoing value with its first-year value.
• Flexibility of rewards (15% of rating): We consider how easy the rewards are to use, looking at factors like expiration dates, minimum thresholds to redeem, blackout dates and the availability of flexible redemption options like travel statement credits and cash back.
• Other features (5% of rating): We also compare a card’s benefits, such as purchase protections, travel protections and elite status benefits against benefits from other cards.