Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.
September 22, 2024: Hilton and Amex have increased the new cardmember welcome offer on the Hilton Honors American Express Card through 1/8/2025.
Here’s the best new cardmember welcome offer available on the Hilton Honors American Express Card.
Annual fee: annual_fees
(See Rates and Fees)
Best welcome offer: bonus_miles_full
This bonus is earned as Hilton Honors Bonus Points
In this article…
Our take: Massive bonus on a card with no annual fee
Wow. This is an absolutely massive bonus on a card with no annual fee, with a relatively modest spending requirement. You only need to spend $2,000 within six months to earn the bonus. That’s a lot less than you’d have to spend to earn this number of points on most any other card.
Although we wouldn’t couch this bonus as the “best ever” bonus (we like a previous bonus that offered a large number of points plus a free night certificate better), this is the largest number of points that we’ve seen offered since we started tracking the bonus on this card.
The other Hilton Honors credit cards also have increased welcome offers at the moment, so be sure to check those out as well, but we think you can’t go wrong with this bonus if you have a use for Hilton points.
About the card: Hilton Honors American Express Card at a glance
Annual fee: annual_fees
Foreign transaction fee: foreign_transaction_fee
(See Rates and Fees)
The Hilton Honors American Express Card typically offers an excellent welcome offer for a card with no annual fee, but if you regularly stay at Hilton, one of the other Hilton cards might be a better choice.
Welcome offer
Best welcome offer: bonus_miles_full
This bonus is earned as Hilton Honors Bonus Points
Rewards
- 7x on Hilton hotels and resorts
for eligible purchases made directly with hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio. - 5x on dining
at U.S. restaurants, including takeout and delivery. - 5x on groceries
at U.S. supermarkets. - 5x on gas
at U.S. gas stations. - 3x on other eligible purchases.
Rewards are earned as Hilton Honors Bonus Points.
Benefits
Hilton hotel benefits
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Silver Status.
Consumer insurance benefits
- Purchase protection.
Travel insurance benefits
- Car rental loss and damage insurance.
- Global Assist Hotline
Partner benefits and statement credits
- ShopRunner.
Eligibility: Are you eligible for a new Hilton Honors American Express Card welcome offer?
American Express will generally not let you earn a welcome bonus on a card if you’ve previously had the card. If you’ve ever had the Hilton Honors American Express Card or a previous version of the card, you might not be eligible to receive a welcome bonus.
American Express may also exclude you from welcome bonus eligibility based on your history with Amex, the number of cards you’ve opened or closed, or other factors. Fortunately, Amex will notify you prior to processing your application if you are ineligible for a bonus. So, even if you’re unsure whether you qualify, it can make sense to apply—your credit score won’t be affected if Amex tells you that you are ineligible for the welcome bonus and you withdraw your application.
A few notes on applying for American Express credit cards
Here are a few things that you should know about applying for American Express cards.
- Amex will let you know if you’re ineligible for the new cardmember welcome offer when applying. If you don’t qualify for a welcome offer for any reason, American Express will inform you during the application process and let you withdraw your application before they perform a “hard pull” on your credit report. If you withdraw your application, the withdrawn application will have no impact on your credit score.
- No hard pull if they deny you. If Amex denies your credit card application, they usually won’t issue a hard pull on your credit report. This means that your credit score won’t decrease because of the denied application.
- One welcome offer per card per “lifetime”. Most Amex card terms say that you’re ineligible for a welcome offer if you’ve ever had the card before. Some targeted offers do not have this lifetime language. Readers and other blogs have reported that Amex may internally define “lifetime” as 7 years—if it’s been 7 years since you’ve had a card, you might be eligible to get a welcome offer again.
- Some cards allow one welcome offer per card “family”. Some American Express cards, like the personal Platinum card or the Charles Schwab Platinum card have language that prohibits you from earning a welcome bonus if you’ve ever had a card from the same card family before.
- Maximum 5 Amex credit cards and 10 pay-over-time cards. You can have a maximum of 5 American Express credit cards at one time. In addition, you can hold up to 10 American Express pay-over-time cards (like the Platinum, Gold, and Green cards.) These limits are known to occasionally be flexible for some cardmembers, some of the time.
- You might be able to get a better welcome offer than the public offer. American Express offers some customers targeted offers. See our post on how to get the best welcome offers from American Express and try those methods before applying for an American Express card. You might be able to get an elevated welcome offer.
- Check your application status online. You can check the status of your American Express card application online through the Amex website.
Frequently asked questions
How can I keep my Hilton points from expiring?
Hilton points expire if you have 24 months with no activity in your Hilton account. Any earning or redeeming points will reset this 24 month clock, so holding and occasionally using the Hilton Honors American Express Card can keep your points alive.
Do Hilton Honors points expire?
Hilton points expire after 24 months of inactivity. You can keep your points alive by earning or redeeming any number of Hilton points.
Read more about the Hilton Honors American Express Card
American Express card disclosures
- For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors American Express Card, please visit this link: See Rates and Fees
- For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card, please visit this link: See Rates and Fees
Amex Basic Purchase Protection benefit disclosure: When an American Express® Card Member charges a Covered Purchase with their Eligible Card, Purchase Protection can help protect their Covered Purchases for up to 90 days from the Covered Purchase date if it is stolen or accidentally damaged. The coverage is limited to up to $1,000 per occurrence, up to $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.
Amex Extended Warranty benefit disclosure: When an American Express® Card Member charges a Covered Purchase to an Eligible Card, Extended Warranty§ can provide up to one extra year added to the Original Manufacturer’s Warranty. Applies to warranties of five (5) years or less. Coverage is up to the actual amount charged to your Card for the item up to a maximum of $10,000; not to exceed $50,000 per Card Member account per calendar year. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company.
Amex Basic Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance disclosure: Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance can provide coverage up to $50,000 for theft of or damage to most rental vehicles when you use your eligible Card to reserve and pay for the entire eligible vehicle rental and decline the collision damage waiver or similar option offered by the Commercial Car Rental Company. This product provides secondary coverage and does not include liability coverage. Not all vehicle types or rentals are covered. Geographic restrictions apply. Eligibility and Benefit level varies by Card. Terms, Conditions, and Limitations Apply. Please visit americanexpress.com/benefitsguide for more details. Underwritten by AMEX Assurance Company. Car Rental Loss or Damage Coverage is offered through American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc.
Advertiser disclosure: Cards and Points has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Cards and Points and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers. Compensation may affect how and where card products appear on the site. The site does not include all card companies or all available offers. Opinions, reviews, analyses & recommendations are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any of these entities. Terms apply to all credit card benefits.