7 Hotel Business Credit Cards
Editorial Note: We earn a commission from partner links on Allcards. Commissions do not affect our authors’ or editors’ opinions or evaluations. From our partners: See our advertiser disclosure here.
Traveling for business is often a long slog from one hotel to another. If you’re going to stay in hotels, you might as well sign up for a credit card that rewards you for stays. Frequent travelers can easily earn free nights. Other benefits can include discounted room rates, room upgrades, and other perks.
Speaking of perks, we also include a unique look at the value of these credit card rewards over time. You may be surprised at how much your rewards can grow if you choose to invest them for several years.
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
Our Rating: 4.3
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 175,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points (Terms Apply)
Est. Value
Up to $875
Annual Fee
$195
APR
20.24% – 29.24% Variable
Credit Req’d
Excellent, Good
Rewards: Earn 12x Hilton Honors Bonus Points on eligible Hilton purchases. Earn 5x Hilton Honors Bonus Points on other purchases made using the Hilton Honors Business Card on the first $100,000 in purchases each calendar year, 3x points thereafter. Terms Apply.
What Is the Value of Your The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card Rewards Over Time?
If you want to maximize the value of your credit card rewards, consider investing them. We call this Rewards Stacking. For example, let’s assume a business owner spends $500 each month on hotel stays and $1,000 each month on other purchases. Below we list the possible value of the annual rewards and how much they may be worth if you choose to invest them for 10 years or for 20 years.
In the scenario below we are valuing points at $0.005 each. You can learn more about how to value credit card points in our article, How Much Are Credit Card Reward Points and Miles Worth? A Guide To Loyalty Program Value.
For many of the credit cards in this article, you can get more value for your rewards if you redeem them for travel. However, for the purposes of this article, we’ll use the more conservative value to avoid inflating the investing estimates.
Regarding credit card annual fees, we’ll first consider any credits the card offers that may cancel out the annual fee. Then, if needed, we’ll subtract the annual fee from the estimated annual points value to give a more accurate investing estimate.
For the example below, if you use the $240 Hilton credit (up to $60 per quarter), you can offset the card’s annual fee. Therefore, there’s no need to adjust the estimated annual points value.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hilton Hotels | $6,000 | 12x points | $360 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $12,000 | 5x points | $300 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $660 | $10,863 | $36,568 |
Keep in mind, the numbers above only consider credit card rewards using one card. Imagine the growth if you invest rewards from more than one credit card. We talk about the 1-2-3 cash back system in this article so you can learn more about taking your rewards strategy to the next level.
We’ll continue to use a similar spending and investing scenario for the rest of the credit cards in this list so you can see the value of rewards over time. For each scenario we assume the credit card holder spends $18,000 annually. Since each credit card earns elevated rewards on different spending categories, we also divide the annual spend in a way that makes sense for each card.
Capital One Venture X Business
Our Rating: 4.9
Capital One Venture X Business
Welcome Offer
150,000 Miles
Est. Value
Up to $2,625
Annual Fee
$395
APR
N/A Variable
Credit Req’d
Excellent
Rewards: Earn 10x miles on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 5x miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Travel. Earn 2x miles on other purchases.
What Is the Value of Your Capital One Venture X Business Rewards Over Time?
In the example below, we assume points are worth $0.005 each. Also, the $300 travel credit mentioned above and the 10,000 anniversary bonus miles cancel out the card’s annual fee.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hotels booked through Capital One Travel | $6,000 | 10x miles | $300 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $12,000 | 2x miles | $120 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $420 | $6,913 | $23,270 |
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
Our Rating: 4.4
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 3 Free Night Awards (Terms Apply)
Est. Value
3 Free Night Awards
Annual Fee
$125
APR
20.24% – 29.24% Variable
Credit Req’d
Excellent, Good
Rewards: Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points on each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program. Earn 4x points at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on U.S. purchases for shipping, and on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers. Earn 2x points on other eligible purchases. Terms Apply.
What Is the Value of Your Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card Rewards Over Time?
Here’s an example of a card that also earns elevated rewards for some everyday spending categories. So instead of assuming a generic $1,000 monthly spend for other purchases, we divided the spending categories differently, but are still keeping an overall $18,000 annual spend.
For this scenario, we assume a monthly spend of $300 at restaurants, $200 at U.S. gas stations, $100 for cell phone services, and $400 on other purchases. For this card, we assume points are worth $0.008 each. If you use the anniversary free night award, that can also offset the card’s annual fee.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eligible Marriott Hotels | $6,000 | 6x points | $288 | – | – |
| Restaurants | $3,600 | 4x points | $115.20 | – | – |
| U.S. Gas Stations | $2,400 | 4x points | $76.80 | – | – |
| Cell Phone | $1,200 | 4x points | $38.40 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $4,800 | 2x points | $76.80 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $595.20 | $9,793 | $32,966 |
World of Hyatt Business Credit Card
Our Rating: 4.6
World of Hyatt Business Credit Card
Welcome Offer
60,000 Bonus Points
Est. Value
Up to $1,020
Annual Fee
$199
APR
20.74% – 27.74% Variable
Credit Req’d
Excellent, Good
Rewards: Earn up to 9 points total per $1 spent at Hyatt – 4 Bonus Points per $1 on qualified purchases at Hyatt hotels & up to 5 Base Points per $1 from Hyatt as a World of Hyatt member. Earn 2x points in your top three spend categories each quarter and on fitness club and gym memberships. Earn 1x points on other purchases.
What Is the Value of Your World of Hyatt Business Credit Card Rewards Over Time?
For this card, we assume points are worth $0.017 each. We do have to adjust our calculations to account for the card’s annual fee. While the up to $100 in Hyatt credits each anniversary year does help offset the cost, it still leaves $99 in annual fees. We’ll subtract that number from the estimated annual points value below.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyatt Hotels | $6,000 | 9x points | $918 | – | – |
| Restaurants | $3,600 | 2x points | $122.40 | – | – |
| U.S. Gas Stations | $2,400 | 2x points | $81.60 | – | – |
| Cell Phone | $1,200 | 2x points | $40.80 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $4,800 | 1x points | $81.60 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $1,145.40 ($1,244.40 – $99) | $18,845 | $63,439 |
IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
Our Rating: 4.6
IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
Welcome Offer
Earn 140,000 Bonus Points
Est. Value
Up to $770
Annual Fee
$99
APR
20.74% – 27.74% Variable
Credit Req’d
Good, Excellent
Rewards: Earn up to 26 total points per $1 spent when you stay at IHG Hotels and Resorts. Earn 5x points on select advertising, travel, restaurants, and gas stations. Earn 3x points on other purchases.
What Is the Value of Your IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card Rewards Over Time?
For this card, we assume points are worth $0.0055 each. As mentioned above, you can get a $200 statement credit after spending $20,000 a year on the card, which cancels out the annual fee. However, in this article, we’re assuming only $18,000 in spend per year. Well, this card also offers an anniversary free night, which also offsets the annual fee.
| Spending Categories | Total annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IHG Hotels | $6,000 | 26x points | $858 | – | – |
| Restaurants | $3,600 | 5x points | $99 | – | – |
| U.S. Gas Stations | $2,400 | 5x points | $66 | – | – |
| Travel | $1,200 | 5x points | $33 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $4,800 | 3x points | $79.20 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $1,135.20 | $18,681 | $62,885 |
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Our Rating: 4.5
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Welcome Offer
Earn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points (Terms Apply)
Est. Value
Up to $3,000
Annual Fee
$695
APR
18.74% – 27.74% Variable
Credit Req’d
Excellent, Good
Rewards: Earn 5x Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on AmexTravel.com. Earn 1.5x points on each eligible purchase at US construction material, hardware suppliers, electronic goods retailers, and software & cloud system providers, and shipping providers, as well as on purchases of $5,000 or more, on up to $2 million per Card Account per calendar year. Purchases eligible for multiple additional point bonuses will only receive the highest eligible bonus. Earn 1x points on other eligible purchases. Terms Apply.
What Is the Value of Your The Business Platinum Card® from American Express Rewards Over Time?
For this card, we assume points are worth $0.006 each. You can cancel out most or all of the annual fee by redeeming a handful of credits. According to American Express, the card has over $1,000 in business and travel value. In the example below, we’ll assume the card holder is using enough credits to offset the entire annual fee. However, you’ll need to assess whether you can also take advantage of each credit.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prepaid Hotels on AmexTravel. com | $6,000 | 5 points | $180 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $12,000 | 1x points | $72 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $252 | $4,148 | $13,962 |
Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business Card
Our Rating: 4.0
Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business Card
Welcome Offer
Earn up to 80,000 bonus points
Est. Value
Up to 10 free nights
Annual Fee
$95
APR
20.74% to 29.74% Variable
Credit Req’d
Good to Excellent 670 – 850
Rewards: Earn 8x points on eligible purchases made at Hotels by Wyndham and on gas. Earn 5x points on marketing, advertising, and utility purchases. Earn 1x points on other eligible purchases (excluding Wyndham Timeshare resort down payments).
What Is the Value of Your Wyndham Rewards Earner® Business Card Rewards Over Time?
For this card, we assume points are worth $0.01 each. Plus, the annual 15,000 anniversary bonus points can cancel out the annual fee.
| Spending Categories | Annual category charges | Rewards rate | Estimated annual points value | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 10 years | Estimate after investing rewards at 9% return for 20 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eligible Hotels by Wyndham | $6,000 | 8x points | $480 | – | – |
| Advertising | $4,600 | 5x points | $230 | – | – |
| U.S. Gas Stations | $2,600 | 8x points | $208 | – | – |
| Other Business Purchases | $4,800 | 1x points | $48 | – | – |
| Total | $18,000 | – | $966 | $15,899 | $53,522 |
How Do You Invest Rewards Not Redeemable for Cash?
For hotel credit cards, redeeming your rewards for hotel stays can give you the most value for your rewards. Consider redeeming your rewards for hotel stays, then taking the cash value and investing it. For example, let’s says you use 20,000 Hyatt points for a stay. We value those points at $0.017, which is $340. So you can put $340 in your investment account.
If your credit card offers statement credits, that’s also another easy way to redeem your rewards and put the cash equivalent into your investment account. Remember that some credit card rewards expire. Make sure to redeem your rewards before they expire otherwise, you’re throwing away free money. Also, remember to pay your credit card in full each month. Racking up interest on your card devalues your credit card rewards.
Summary
Since many business travelers stay in hotels so often, they have a strong preference for which hotels they prefer. Why not get a business credit card that rewards you for staying in a hotel you were going to stay in anyway? You can get some perks, a welcome offer, and possibly a couple of free nights. Safe travels!
Also see: Best Small Business Credit Cards