World of Hyatt Card vs. Hilton Surpass Card: The Battle of the Mid-Range Hotel Credit Cards
Although sometimes overlooked, hotel credit card can be a lucrative addition to any wallet. Many of these cards offer generous welcome offers, incredible hotel redemptions, and free night perks.
We’ll look at two mid-range hotel credit cards: Hyatt World Credit Card and Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. The World of Hyatt card has a reasonable annual fee of $95, while the Hilton Surpass card has a moderate annual fee of $150 (see exchange rates and fees).
Overview of World of Hyatt and Hilton Surpass
| World of Hyatt cards | Hilton Surpass card | |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome offer | Earn up to 60,000 bonus points: 30,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months, plus up to 30,000 bonus points by earning a total of 2 bonus points for every $1 spent in the first six months from account opening for regular purchases. Earn 1 bonus point on spending up to $15,000. | Earn 165,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after spending $3,000 on card purchases in the first six months of card membership. |
| Free night prizes | Earn a free night at a Categories 1-4 Hyatt hotel or resort every year after your cardmember anniversary and an additional Category 1-4 free night after spending $15,000 in a calendar year. | Earn free night rewards after spending $15,000 on qualifying purchases with your card in a calendar year. Terms apply. |
| Accumulate points | 4 points per dollar at participating Hyatt hotels 2 points per dollar on local travel and transportation, restaurants, airline tickets purchased directly, and fitness club and gym memberships 1 point per dollar on all other purchases | 12 points per dollar at participating Hilton hotels 6 points per dollar at US restaurants, US gas stations and US supermarkets 4 points per dollar on online retail purchases in the US 3 points per dollar on all other qualifying purchases |
| Elite status | Explorer status | Hilton Honors Gold; Upgrade to Diamond by spending $40,000 in a calendar year |
| Exchange points | Fixed award chart with nightly redemptions starting at 5,000 Hyatt points | Dynamic award chart |
| Statement credit | Do not have | Up to $200 annually (up to $50 per quarter) on Hilton purchases Terms apply. |
| Benefits | There are no foreign transaction fees Protect travel and shopping | There are no foreign transaction fees (see exchange rates and fees) Protect travel and shopping Emerald National Car Rental Club Executive Status Registration is required to receive select benefits. |
World of Hyatt Welcome Offer vs. Hilton Surpass
the Pass the Hilton Currently offering a welcome offer of 165,000 bonus Hilton Honors points after spending $3,000 on card purchases in the first six months of card membership. Hilton Title points are worth 0.6 cents, according to TPG December 2024 valuationso the welcome bonus is worth 990 USD.
Meanwhile, Hyatt World Credit Card offers 30,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first three months, plus up to 30,000 bonus points by earning a total of 2 bonus points for every $1 spent in the first six months from opening Account purchases typically earn 1 bonus point, on spending up to $15,000. World of Hyatt points are worth 1.7 cents each (according to TPG December 2024 valuation), so the welcome bonus is worth up to 1,020 USD.
The Hyatt card is issued by Chase, which means it must comply Restrictions of May 24. You will not be approved for this card if you have opened five or more personal credit cards across all banks in the past 24 months.
Winner: Hilton Honors Surpass, as it requires less spending to earn rewards.
Related: Guide for Hilton Honors Travelers And The Ultimate Guide to the World of Hyatt
World of Hyatt’s superior benefits compared to Hilton
The Hilton Surpass and World of Hyatt cards offer elite status for their respective brands, but the Hilton card goes a step further.
Pass the Hilton Cardholders receive automatic Hilton Gold status. Hilton Gold status is very valuable based on its perks at properties in the Hilton portfolio. Perks of Gold status include bonus points on stays and space upgrades to up to Executive rooms. Terms apply.
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If you spend more than $40,000 on the card in a calendar year, you’ll encounter top Hilton Diamond status until the end of the next calendar year.
Meanwhile, World of Hyatt Cardholders automatically receive entry-level Explorer status, with benefits like late checkout, priority rooms, and 10% bonus points on qualifying purchases. Explorer status as valuable as other hotel statuses but still useful.
Both of these mid-range hotel card offer free night prizes — but vary in how you earn them.
For Hilton Surpass, you will receive free free night rewards after you spend $15,000 on your card in a calendar year. You can use this free night at almost any Hilton hotel worldwide. Even Hilton’s most expensive hotels (like Conrads and Waldorfs) qualify for this free night reward. Terms apply.
The World of Hyatt card offers one Annual free night certificate at Category 1-4 Hyatt hotels, which you will receive on each account anniversary. This could be worth much more than the card’s $95 annual fee but doesn’t include many of the higher-end properties in Hyatt’s portfolio. However, you can also receive a second Category 1-4 free night certificate after spending $15,000 in a calendar year.
Compared to Surpass, you’re essentially getting two nights free versus one night at a Hilton hotel – with the caveat that the Hilton night could be at a super high-end hotel.
overcome also offers up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year at qualifying Hilton hotels. Cardholders receive up to $50 in statement credits each quarter when using Hilton Surpass made directly with Hilton hotels. Qualifying purchases include room rates and incidentals at Hilton properties.
Additionally, Surpass cardholders receive Emerald Club Executive status with National Car Rental and various travel and shopping protections. The card does not charge foreign transaction fees, which is also a big benefit when used outside the US
Meanwhile, the World of Hyatt card also offers some purchase and travel protections, and doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees. You can also earn five elite-qualifying nights per year with the card, with the opportunity to earn even more elite credits. Plus, every $5,000 spent on the card will earn you two additional qualifying nights.
Winner: Pass Hilton. While World of Hyatt offers a free night certificate with no spending requirement, Surpass comes with superior elite status and a $200 Hilton statement credit per calendar year.
Related: The best Hyatt Category 4 hotels to maximize your free night award certificate
Earn points with World of Hyatt vs. Hilton Surpass
With Pass the HiltonYou will receive Hilton Honors points at the following rate:
- 12 points per dollar at participating Hilton hotels
- 6 points per dollar on dining in the US restaurantWE gas station and American supermarkets
- 4 points per dollar on online retail purchases in the US
- 3 points per dollar on all other qualifying purchases
Based on TPG December 2024 valuationThis equates to returns on spending of 7.2%, 3.6%, 2.4% and 1.8% respectively.
Meanwhile, World of Hyatt cards Earn bonus points with the following categories:
This equates to a return on spend of 6.8%, 3.4% and 1.7%, respectively, according to TPG’s December 2024 report. valuation.
Winner: World of Hyatt. TPG December 2024 review valuationWorld of Hyatt points are worth much more than Hilton points, and both cards have very similar earning structures.
Related: What is the best Hilton card for you?
Redeem points with World of Hyatt vs. Hilton Surpass
Your best bet for both of these cards would be to redeem hotel stays with each respective brand.
Hilton has a much larger global reach than Hyatt, so consider that when deciding which card is better for you.
With Hilton Honors, there’s no award chart to determine how many points you need for a particular stay. This makes it difficult to determine how many points you need until you’re ready to apply. However, Hilton has one Point Explorer tool allows you to check the maximum number of points needed to book a standard room at a specific property or for multiple properties in a specific area.
Meanwhile, the best way to redeem World of Hyatt points is to get free nights and upgrades. You also have the option to redeem points for dining, spa visits, Lindblad Expedition and other experiences, but you’re almost always better off using points for hotel rooms.
Redemption for standard rooms starts at 3,500 points per night at Category 1 hotel and 35,000/night at category 8 hotels.
Overall, awards tend to cost less than other programs, and there are some great opportunities to get more value from your Hyatt points than from Hilton.
TPG Managing Editor Matt Moffitt redeem your Hilton Honors points for three- and four-star hotels abroad because they offer better redemption value than U.S. hotels. He aims to book a five-night stay so he can take advantage of the fifth night free award that comes with it Hilton co-branded card.
Winner: World of Hyatt, thanks to its fixed award chart offers cheaper redemption options.
Related: The best hotel cards come with a free night every year
Should I buy World of Hyatt or Hilton Surpass?
Hyatt fans will want to go along for the ride World of Hyatt cards because it offers lower annual fees, cheaper redemptions, and free night certificates without any spending requirements. However, Hilton enthusiasts can find it Overcome Higher annual fees (see exchange rates and fees) is easier to understand when considering the benefits of superior elite status, Hilton statement credits, and larger asset footprint.
Related: 6 reasons I love my World of Hyatt Card and plan to keep it for a long time
Bottom line
At the end of the day, which card is better for you may depend on brand and loyalty. In general, the World of Hyatt program is more lucrative, but the Hilton Gold elite status benefits and path to Diamond status may also be more appealing to you.
Another thing to consider is that the Hilton Honors and World of Hyatt programs work with transferable currencies. You can transfer Amex Membership Rewards Points Go to Hilton and you can transfer Chase the ultimate bonus score to the Hyatt. Transferable points are a powerful tool, so if you don’t have enough points for a particular program, you can easily transfer points from another program you’re balancing.
To learn more, read our full reviews World of Hyatt And Pass card.
Register here: Pass Hilton
Register here: World of Hyatt cards
For Hilton Surpass card rates and fees, click This.
