Which Hotel Rewards Program Is Best for Business Travelers?

Which Hotel Rewards Program Is Best for Business Travelers?

Picking a hotel loyalty program can be a very different decision for business travelers than it might be for leisure travelers. While the latter group is more likely to earn a majority of points from credit cards, business travelers tend to earn most of their rewards the old-fashioned way: through paid hotel stays.

In addition, when leisure travelers have to pay for their rooms out of pocket, they may be more likely to forgo rewards earned through the hotel in order to save a little money by booking through an online travel agency, a strategy that became especially rewarding in early 2018 with the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card and Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card. On the other hand, business travelers (who are generally being reimbursed by an employer or client) typically prefer to earn additional hotel points and elite status by booking directly with the hotel.

So how should a business traveler select his/her preferred hotel program? Today’s guide will walk through that decision-making process.

Optimizing a Loyalty Program and Credit Card

To find the best hotel rewards program for business travelers, I examined the four major hotel loyalty programs and calculated how many points travelers can expect to earn with a combination of elite status and a co-branded credit card. I’ll then use TPG’s latest monthly valuations to determine the total value of the rewards earned per dollar spent to see which program offers the greatest return.

Hilton Honors Hilton Honors offers a large variety of brands around the world, but is it the most rewarding for business travelers? (Photo courtesy of Hilton San Francisco Union Square)

The Hilton Honors program offers you 10 base points per dollar spent at most brands, though stays at Home2 Suites by Hilton and Tru by Hilton hotels earn just 5 base points per dollar spent on your room rate only. However, you can amplify your earnings by paying for your stay with one of its cobranded cards, each of which offers bonus points on these purchases plus enhanced earning rates through the automatic Hilton Honors elite status levels they confer. Even though TPG pegs Hilton points at just 0.6 cents apiece, this can still bring you a valuable return.

At the lowest level, the basic Hilton Honors American Express Card offers you 7x points at Hilton hotels and resorts and includes Silver elite status (with an upgrade to Gold status when you spend $20,000 on eligible purchases in a calendar year). Here’s how that translates to earnings:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Silver status: 2 Bonus points from credit card: 7 Total points per dollar spent: 19 Return per dollar spent: 11.4%

The next card up is the Hilton Honors American Express Ascend Card, one that awards 12x points per dollar spent at Hilton properties and confers automatic Gold status (with an upgrade to Diamond by spending $40,000 on the card in a calendar year). This tier of Hilton status gives you an 80% bonus, resulting in the following earnings on paid Hilton stays:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Gold status: 8 Bonus points from credit card: 12 Total points per dollar spent: 30 Return per dollar spent: 18%

If you do reach Diamond status (either by spending $40k or through actual stays/nights in Hilton hotels), this boosts your earning rate to 32 points per dollar spent, a return of 19.2%.

Finally, the premium Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card offers you 14x at Hilton properties along with complimentary top-tier Diamond status. With this status, you’ll earn a 100% bonus on paid Hilton stays, resulting in a very lucrative earning rate:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Diamond status: 10 Bonus points from credit card: 14 Total points per dollar spent: 34 Return per dollar spent: 20.4% World of Hyatt  Hyatt may have a limited global footprint, but it can offer some terrific rewards for road warriors. (Photo courtesy of Park Hyatt Sydney)

Another hotel program is World of Hyatt, and even though its limited footprint may be challenging for some business travelers, Hyatt points are among the most valuable hotel currencies out there (1.8 cents in TPG’s most recent valuations). Regular members will earn 5 base points per dollar spent on stays, but if you also hold The World of Hyatt Credit Card, you’ll earn an additional 4x points along with Discoverist status, which offers you an additional 10% bonus. Here’s how that translates to earning:

Base points per dollar spent: 5 Bonus points with Discoverist status: 0.5 Bonus points from credit card: 4 Total points per dollar spent: 9.5 Return per dollar spent: 17.1%

If you reach Explorist status (after 30 nights or 50,000 base points), you’ll earn a 20% bonus. Here’s how that changes your earnings:

Base points per dollar spent: 5 Bonus points with Explorist status: 1 Bonus points from credit card: 4 Total points per dollar spent: 10 Return per dollar spent: 18%

Finally, top-tier Globalist members will earn a 30% bonus on base points:

Base points per dollar spent: 5 Bonus points with Globalist status: 1.5 Bonus points from credit card: 4 Total points per dollar spent: 10.5 Return per dollar spent: 18.9% IHG Rewards Club The IHG Premier card can greatly enhance your earning rates at thousands of properties around the world.

Like the Hilton Honors program, the IHG Rewards Club offers its elite members a lot of points, but these points are worth just 0.6 cents, less than those of many other programs. General members earn 10 points per dollar spent at most IHG properties, and 5 points per dollar at Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites. I’ll examine your earnings at 10x, but if you tend to stay at those two brands, you’ll need to adjust the value below accordingly.

If you have the IHG Rewards Club Premier Credit Card from Chase, you’ll then earn an additional 10 points per dollar spent at IHG properties. The card also gives cardholders Platinum Elite status, which earns another 50% bonus on top of the 10x base points. Here’s the resulting haul of points for your IHG stays:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Platinum status: 5 Bonus points from credit card: 10 Total points per dollar spent: 25 Return per dollar spent: 15%

One you surpass 75 elite-qualifying nights, you’ll reach top-tier top-tier Spire status, giving you a 100% bonus on base spending:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Spire status: 10 Bonus points from credit card: 10 Total points per dollar spent: 30 Return per dollar spent: 18% Marriott Rewards The combined Marriott/SPG/Ritz-Carlton program has some solid appeal for business travelers. (Photos by Shuttestock.com)

The newly integrated Marriott, SPG and Ritz-Carlton program offers all members 10 points per dollar spent across the combined portfolio (5x points for stays at Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites or Element properties). However, if you hold a Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card, the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express or the Starwood Preferred Guest® American Express Luxury Card, then you’ll earn an additional 6x points on your eligible purchases plus enjoy automatic Marriott elite status, boosting your rewards even further.

The Marriott Premier Plus and SPG Amex both offer you Silver Elite status, giving you a 10% bonus:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Silver Elite status: 1 Bonus points from credit card: 6 Total points per dollar spent: 17 Return per dollar spent: 15.3%

Gold status in the program is granted after 25 qualifying nights, though it’s also included on the SPG Luxury Card and can be earned by spending $30,000 in a year on either the Marriott Premier Plus or SPG Amex (this spending threshold will rise to $35,000 in 2019). Reaching this level would unlock a 25% point bonus, and if you use one of the cobranded cards for your stay, you’ll get the following earning rate:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Gold Elite status: 2.5 Bonus points from credit card: 6 Total points per dollar spent: 18.5 Return per dollar spent: 16.55%

After 50 nights (or after spending $75,000 on the SPG Luxury Card in a year), you’ll reach Platinum Elite status and unlock a 50% bonus on paid stays:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Platinum Elite status: 5 Bonus points from credit card: 6 Total points per dollar spent: 21 Return per dollar spent: 18.9%

Finally, top-tier Platinum Premier elite is earned after 75 qualifying nights and offers a 75% bonus on stays, resulting in the following earning rates:

Base points per dollar spent: 10 Bonus points with Platinum Premier status: 7.5 Bonus points from credit card: 6 Total points per dollar spent: 23.5 Return per dollar spent: 21.15% Summary

As you can see from the above calculations, if you combine elite status with a cobranded credit card at any of the four major hotel programs, you’re looking at an incredibly rewarding earning structure. Here are the various rates of return you’d get on paid stays, in ascending order:

11.4% – Hilton Silver status with no-fee Hilton Amex 15% – IHG Platinum status with IHG Premier card 15.3% – Marriott Silver status with any Marriott/SPG cobranded card 16.55% – Marriott Gold status with Marriott/SPG card 17.1% – Hyatt Discoverist status with World of Hyatt card 18% (TIE) – Hilton Gold status with Hilton Amex Ascend; IHG Spire status with IHG Premier card; Hyatt Explorist status with World of Hyatt card 18.9% (TIE) – Hyatt Globalist with World of Hyatt card; Marriott Platinum status with Marriott/SPG card 20.4% – Hilton Diamond status with Hilton Amex Aspire 21.15% – Marriott Platinum Premier with Marriott/SPG card Analysis Based solely on the rewards you’ll earn, Marriott has a slight edge for business travelers. (Photo of the London Marriott Hotel County Hall courtesy of Marriott)

The most valuable hotel rewards per dollar spent in these programs can be obtained by earning Marriott Platinum Premier status and using a cobranded Marriott or SPG card for these stays. This combination will offer you a tremendous 21.15 cents back for every dollar you spend at properties in the combined portfolio. Each one of these credit cards will also offer 15 nights of elite credit in 2019, putting you 20% of the way towards the 75-night threshold to qualify for Platinum Premier (you can only earn a total of 15 elite night credits, even if you hold multiple Marriott/SPG cards). That means you’ll have to stay at least 60 nights to reach this tier, nearly one out of of every six nights of the year!

In contrast, the next most valuable hotel status and credit card combination doesn’t require a single night’s stay. When you have the Hilton Amex Aspire card, you instantly receive top-tier Diamond status and earn a strong 20.4 cents of value for every dollar spent.

The next best value comes from two separate combinations, both of which offer 18.9 cents of value per dollar spent:

Marriott Platinum with a Marriott/SPG card: You can earn this status just by spending $75,000 in a calendar year on the SPG Luxury Card, or you could qualify the “hard way” with 50 elite-qualifying nights. Hyatt Globalist status with the World of Hyatt card: This status is earned through a combination of elite-qualifying nights and credits from the Hyatt credit card, which offers 5 elite nights every year plus 2 additional elite nights for every $5,000 you spend on the card.

Note that having Hyatt Explorist and Discoverist status offers nearly as much value per dollar spent: 18 and 17.1 cents, respectively.

The IHG Rewards program and the remaining mid- and low-tier statuses from Hilton and Marriott bring up the rear.

Corporate Cardholders

Bear in mind that not every business traveler has the luxury of selecting his/her own credit card when on the road for work. Many companies require all travel-related expenses to be charged to a corporate card, thus negating the bonus points for using a cobranded card at your hotel of choice. If you’re in this position, here’s a table that breaks down the earning rates and total return you’ll get at each tier of elite status for these four programs:

Program and Status Level Criteria Total Earnings Value Per Point Total Return

Hilton Silver	4-19 stays or 10-39 nights	12 points/$	0.6 cents	7.2%
Hilton Gold	20-29 stays or 40-59 nights	18 points/$	0.6 cents	10.8%
Hilton Diamond	30+ stays or 60+ nights	20 points/$	0.6 cents	12%
Hyatt Discoverist	10-29 nights	5.5 points/$	1.8 cents	9.9%
Hyatt Explorist	30-59 nights	6 points/$	1.8 cents	10.8%
Hyatt Globalist	60+ nights	6.5 points/$	1.8 cents	11.7%
IHG Gold	10-39 nights	11 points/$	0.6 cents	6.6%
IHG Platinum	40-74 nights	15 points/$	0.6 cents	9%
IHG Spire	75+ nights	20 points/$	0.6 cents	12%
Marriott Silver	10-24 nights	11 points/$	0.9 cents	9.9%
Marriott Gold	25-49 nights	12.5 points/$	0.9 cents	11.25%
Marriott Platinum	50-74 nights	15 points/$	0.9 cents	13.5%
Marriott Platinum Premier	75+ nights	17.5 points/$	0.9 cents	15.75%

When looking at the four programs in this light, there’s a pretty clear winner: the Marriott Rewards program. Its Platinum Premier and Platinum statuses will earn you a return of 15.75% and 13.5% on your stays, respectively. Meanwhile, Hilton Honors Diamond and IHG Spire both result in a 12% return, followed by Hyatt Globalist (11.7%) and Marriott Gold (11.25%). Bear in mind that you must actually reach the corresponding qualification thresholds for each of these status levels, but for the road warriors out there, that may not be too difficult.

Other Considerations

Of course, it isn’t just about the rewards structure of a hotel program. There are a few other important factors to consider as a business traveler when you’re choosing a chain to earn your loyalty:

Geographic spread: As noted above, the World of Hyatt program can be quite valuable, but it has less than 1,000 properties worldwide (Marriott has nearly 7,000). If your business trips take you to various cities, you may not always find a Hyatt property at which to stay. Convenience: On the other hand, if you frequently visit just a handful of cities or customer sites, you should take into account the convenience of the applicable properties in those areas. Even though Marriott may be the most rewarding at the top tier, it won’t do you any good if the closest property is 15 miles from your company’s corporate office. Other perks: Finally, these calculations only take into account the total value of the reward points earned, not the perks of the status itself. This can include valuable free night stays, free breakfasts and suite upgrades, so be sure to factor those into your decision-making process as well. Bottom line

Road warriors have to weigh many factors when choosing a hotel loyalty program, and this analysis has hopefully shown you where you can receive the most valuable rewards for your hotel dollars. While there are other factors that should come into play, by carefully examining these hotel programs and the rewards structures of their cobranded credit cards, you should be able to find the best combination for your needs.

Featured image by DuKai photographer / Getty Images.

Amex Introduces New Business Gold Card With 4x on Select Categories, Points Rebate & More

Amex long had one of our favorite business credit cards on the market in the Business Gold Rewards Card, thanks to strong earning rates, a solid welcome bonus and a waived annual fee for the first year. But the past tense in that previous sentence is there for a reason: The Business Gold Rewards Card is no longer accepting applications. Instead, Amex is introducing a new Business Gold Card with improved earning rates, new bonus categories, a variety of value-added perks and an intriguing unique new feature that allows businesses to know they’re always earning the highest rewards in the areas they spend the most.

With the new American Express® Business Gold Card, you’ll automatically earn 4x points on your top two areas of business spending each month from six possible categories — meaning you don’t have to pick just one category for the entire year. You’ll also get new perks like a 25% Pay With Points airfare rebate, along with many of the existing perks of the old Business Gold Rewards. However, it’s not a card for credit card churners, and you’ll also pay more for it annually, so you’ll have to determine if the cost is worth the increased earning rate and benefits for your business.

Earning Structure

The Business Gold Card keeps the customizable approach to bonus categories from the old BGR, but takes things one step further by letting you earn 4 points per dollar on your top two select spending categories on a monthly basis, so you no longer have to choose one single category for the entire year. Amex will automatically determine your top two categories of business spend every month by using all posted account transactions that fall into the six categories (listed below). That’s a terrific feature for businesses who don’t want to have to worry about chasing bonus categories or guessing what their spending pattern will look like an entire year in advance.

Even better, the top earning rate for the card is now 4x Membership Rewards points, compared to 3x on the Business Gold Rewards card. Based on TPG’s valuations, earning 4 Amex points per dollar equals a return of 7.6%, which is the highest return of any business card on the market for some of these categories. Another positive: The new Business Gold Card includes US restaurants as a bonus category. This wasn’t available on the BGR, and it’s a great opportunity for companies to rake in points on a wider array of expenses than the more stereotypical business categories of shipping and advertising.

Earning Rate	Business Gold Rewards (Old)	Business Gold Card (New)
4x	N/A	4x on your top two spending categories (on up to $150,000 per year combined across all categories) each month from this list: Airfare purchased from airlines US purchases for advertising in select media US purchases made directly from select technology providers of computer hardware, software, and cloud solutions US purchases at gas stations US purchases at restaurants US purchases for shipping
3x	3x on the first $100,000 per year in purchases in the category of your choice from this list: Airfare purchased from airlines US purchases for advertising in select media US purchases at gas stations US purchases for shipping US computer hardware, software and cloud computing purchases	N/A
2x	2x on the first $100,000 per year in each of the 4 remaining categories.	N/A
1x	On all other spending	On all other spending

The annual cap on bonus earnings is $150,000 per year across all categories combined, compared to $100,000 per year per category with the BGR. While it’s a higher cap and a higher top earning rate (4x vs. 3x), you’ll max out at 600,000 Membership Rewards points per year before you drop to an earning rate of 1 point per dollar for all purchases. With the old Business Gold Rewards card, you could theoretically max out at 1,100,000 points before dropping to an earning rate of 1 point per dollar for all purchases. But it’s unlikely that most businesses were able to max out all five categories on the BGR every year, so in some ways, the new Business Gold Card trades unused earning potential for a bonus rewards scheme that lets you accumulate points more quickly and flexibly.

Benefits Get a 25% rebate when you pay with points to book first and business-class airfare on any airline, such as a Delta One suite.

The Amex Business Gold Card will keep a number of the perks from the old BGR card, and adds two new ones as well:

25% Pay with Points Rebate — You’ll get 25% of your points back when you use points at Amex Travel to pay for first or business-class airfare on any airline, or economy-class tickets with an airline you can select each year. This is similar to the Business Platinum® Card from American Express, which offers the same perk with a 35% rebate. This is a perk that could come in handy for businesses who don’t want to fuss with searching for award availability, as it means you’ll get 1.33 cents per redeemed point (rather than the standard 1 cent) and can book any flight that’s available for a regular cash price. Plus, flights booked this way are treated as revenue tickets, so you’ll earn both redeemable miles and elite credit on them. Automatic Enrollment in Pay Over Time — As a card member, you’ll automatically be enrolled in Pay Over Time, which offers an extended payment option for purchases over $100. You’ll be charged high interest rates, which we don’t recommend, but it could be something to consider for a business that needs extra cash flow. Amex touts this as a great option for businesses who want the flexibility of a traditional credit card, rather than the issuer’s typical charge card model, which requires you to pay off your balance in full each month.

Other perks like access to the Hotel Collection, the Travel Collection, Amex Offers and travel and purchase protection coverage will carry over from the old BRG card to the new Business Gold.

Welcome Bonus

The points-minded among us definitely won’t be fans of this next bit of news, but Amex is clearly leaning away from big welcome bonuses with their new cards in favor of rewarding increased regular spend. The new Business Gold Card isn’t offering a welcome bonus in the form of Membership Rewards for signing up. Instead, new card members will get:

Up to 1 free year of ZipRecruiter Standard Up to 1 free year of G Suite Basic for up to 3 users

Both of these benefits come in the form of statement credits once you make the purchase, so you’ll pay for ZipRecruiter and G Suite Basic on your card and then receive credit for them shortly afterward. Amex values these two perks at up to $3,100, but naturally, your mileage will vary based on how useful these services are to your business.

We’ll be doing deep dives into these two services to give you a better sense of the value proposition they offer, but here’s the quick scoop on each. ZipRecruiter is a tool for posting jobs and finding employees, with features like one-click posting to job boards such as Job.com and Topix, and access to a database of more than 12 million resumes. G Suite Basic includes various collaboration tools like cloud sharing, video conferencing and online document editing. Amex says it leaned heavily on its customers’ feedback and preferences when designing the value proposition of this new card, so non-travel-focused businesses could find complimentary access to these two services worthwhile as a welcome bonus.

Annual Fee

The Amex Business Gold Card comes with a higher annual fee — $295 a year versus the old $175 per year — and it’s no longer waived the first year. That’s a hefty increase, and along with the lack of a points-based welcome bonus, it means that folks who would have gotten the old card purely for the bonus and a free first year almost certainly won’t be interested in this new version.

On the other hand, if you’re a business looking for opportunities to increase the points you earn on your ongoing purchases, the 4x rate means it won’t take much in the way of spend to offset that higher annual fee. Since TPG values Membership Rewards points at 1.9 cents apiece, a business would only have to spend $3,881 in the 4x categories to earn $295 in points. Many businesses easily have that kind of spending in a single month. Of course, you’d also want to take into account the other cards available to you with similar bonus categories, but depending on your business’ credit card inventory, this card could make sense even with the higher annual fee.

Existing Business Gold Rewards Card Members

If you already have the the Business Gold Rewards Card, you won’t automatically be converted to the new Business Gold Card. You can either request a conversion, or you can choose to keep your Business Gold Rewards card, even though it’s no longer open for applications.

Additionally, if you have another Amex business charge card, such as the Business Platinum Card or the Business Green Rewards Card from American Express, you can request a conversion to the Business Gold Card.

As the new Business Gold Card is in the same card family as the old BGR, if you have or have had the BGR, you won’t be eligible to earn the ZipRecruiter or G Suite credits on this new card.

Bottom Line

The new Business Gold Card introduces a great rate of 4x Membership Rewards points on your top two select spending categories per month, which is a unique feature that gives you much more flexibility than the old Business Gold Rewards card, which locked you into one category for 3x points. Plus, the card offers US restaurants as a bonus category, bringing it in line with the personal American Express® Gold Card and its recently introduced 4x earning rate at US eateries.

The $295 annual fee is a significant jump from $175 on the BGR, and the Business Gold Card isn’t offering a points-based welcome bonus, relying instead on statement credits at two popular business services. But the ability to get a 25% Pay With Points rebate on airfare booked through Amex is pretty significant — previously, Amex only offered this on the Business Platinum and Business Centurion cards, which have significantly higher annual fees.

Overall, Amex is making a firm distinction with this card between the “one and done” churner who wants to grab a quick bonus and then dump the card, and a small business who’s willing to pay to keep a credit card for the long term bonus rewards. For the former, this new card will be a pass. But for the latter, the American Express Business Gold Card is worth a good look.