| Last updated on October 25th, 2023
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card
- 20.99% to 29.99% variable based on creditworthiness and the Prime Rate Regular Purchase APR
- 29.99% variable based on the Prime Rate Cash Advance APR
At a Glance
The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is a behemoth of a hotel card, offering new cardmembers the ability to earn a hefty Hilton Honors bonus points welcome offer after making $6,000 in eligible purchases on the card within the first three months of the account opening. This card also grants the ability to earn a whopping 14x Hilton Honors points per dollar spent on direct Hilton hotel and resort purchases.
- Best Benefits
- Rates & Fees
- Why Should You Apply?
- 14X points for Hilton hotels and resorts
- 7X points on flights booked directly with airlines or through amextravel.com, ca
- 7X points on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
- 7X points at U.S. restaurants
- 3X points on all other purchases
- Complimentary Diamond Status in the Hilton Honors rewards program
- Anniversary bonus of one weekend night
- Earn additional weekend night reward after spending $60,000 within calendar year
- $400 Hilton resort statement credit
- Regular Purchase APR: 20.99% to 29.99% variable based on creditworthiness and the Prime Rate
- Cash Advance APR: 29.99% variable based on the Prime Rate
- Cash Advance Transaction Fee: Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, whichever is greater
- Penalty APR: 29.99% variable based on the Prime Rate
- Annual Fee: $550
- Late Payment Penalty Fee: Up to $40
- Return Payment Penalty Fee: Up to $40
- You're capable and willing to spend $6,000 within the first three months of opening an account to receive the card’s welcome offer of bonus Hilton Honors points
- You wantCLEAR security fast pass
- You book stays at Hilton Resorts at least once per year
- You will make $60,000 in purchases per year
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Review
Few hotel cards can rival the earning potential of the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card. In addition to an impressive signup bonus, generous reward rates, an anniversary bonus, complimentary room upgrades, and complimentary breakfast for every stay, this card offers non-hotel related perks such as reimbursement for airline incidentals, a complimentary CLEAR security fast track membership, as well as free 2-day shipping through ShopRunner.
Although the card has an annual fee on the high end of the scale at $550, this luxury travel card provides immediate and ongoing value, making it easy for loyal Hilton customers to recoup the upfront cost.
Introductory Welcome Offer
New cardholders can immediately earn several award nights of hotel stay with the Hilton Honors Aspire Card’s generous welcome offer bonus points. Qualifying for this offer will require spending a few thousand dollars in eligible purchases on the card within the first three months of being a cardmember. The value of Hilton points will vary depending on the property, but on average are worth a little more than half a cent each. This brings the total value of the Hilton Honors Aspire welcome offer to approximately $1,000.
How to Earn Points
As the ultra-premium member of the American Express Hilton partnership, the Aspire Card earns the most rewards of any of the other cards in the family. Here’s what you can expect to earn with the card on everyday purchases:
- Earn 14X points for Hilton hotels and resorts
- 7X points on flights booked directly with airlines or through amextravel.com, on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies, and at U.S. restaurants
- 3X points on all other purchases
The most bang for your buck will come from Hilton hotel stays, offering a whopping 14X points per $1 spent. That rewards rate is double the no annual fee Hilton Honors Card.
The addition of 7X points on flights booked directly with airlines on amextravel.com, car rentals booked directly from select companies, and at U.S. restaurants is equally excellent. All these bonus categories give this card surprisingly well-rounded earning potential that could make it suitable for use as your go-to travel card.
Card Comparison
How does the Aspire from American Express compare with other premium travel card options?
 Hilton Honors Aspire® |
 Mastercard® Black Card™ |
 Chase Sapphire Reserve |
|
| Annual fee | $450 | $495 | $550 |
| Rewards | 14X points on eligible purchases within the Hilton portfolio, 7X points on qualifying travel purchases made directly with airlines or eligible rental car companies or Amextravel.com, 7X points at U.S. restaurants, and 3X points on all other eligible purchases | 2% value for airfare redemptions with no blackout dates or seat restrictions. 1.5% value for cash back redemptions. Earn one point for every one dollar spent. | Earn 5X on flights through Chase Ultimate Rewards, 10X on hotels and car rentals through Ultimate Rewards, 10X on Chase Dining, 3X on all other travel purchases, 3X on dining, and 1X on all other purchases |
| Lounge access | Unlimited visits | Unlimited vists | Unlimited visits |
How to Redeem Points
Booking award nights with Hilton brands is the simplest way to use Hilton Honors points. most free nights usually cost between 30,000 and 40,000 points. The precise amount of points varies based on the hotel category, time of stay, and the location of the property. Silver, Gold, and Diamond Elite members also receive a complimentary 5th night free when they book standard rewards stays of five consecutive nights or more.
Here’s a list of brands where you can book your says:
| Canopy by Hilton | DoubleTree | Hilton Hotels & Resorts | Homewood Suites |
| Conrad Hotels & Resorts | Embassy Suites | Hilton Garden Inn | LXR Hotels & Resorts |
| Curio Collection by Hilton | Hampton by Hilton | Home2 Suites by Hilton | Motto by Hilton |
| Tapestry Collection | Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts | Signa by Hilton |
Other ways to redeem include:
- Shopping: Honors points are redeemable towards merchandise through the dedicated Hilton Honors Shopping Mall, for gift certificates with some of the largest merchants in the world, or shopping with Amazon.
- Share or Pool Points: Hilton also allows members to either share their points with loved ones through gifting or pooling points with friends or family to help reach expensive redemption goals.
Hilton Honors points also transfer to 40+ airlines and other travel partners. Here’s a list of current Hilton transfer options:
| AeroMexico | Air New Zealand | China Eastern Airlines | Ethiopian Airlines |
| AirAsia Big | All Nippon Airways | Delta Airlines | Eurowings |
| Air Canada | British Airways | Emirates | Eva Air |
| Air France | Cathay Pacific | Etihad | Hainan Airlines |
| Iberia | KLM | Qatar Airlines | Turkish Airlines |
| Japan Airlines | Korean Air | Saudi Airlines | United Airlines |
| Jet Airways | Malaysia Airlines | SAS Scandinavian Airlines | Virgin Atlantic |
| JetBlue | Qantas | Singapore Airlines | Virgin Australia |
Related Article: The Ultimate Hilton Honors Program Guide
Card Perks
Regardless of how much you spend (or don’t), you’ll receive one weekend night’s stay every year, just for being a cardholder. And in case you didn’t already have a reason to use the Hilton Honors Aspire Card as your primary credit card, you can earn an extra free night’s stay after spending $60,000 per calendar year. That’s two free nights at a Hilton Hotel or Resort simply for owning this card.
The Hilton Honors Aspire Card also provides a number of statement credit opportunities and creates even more ways for cardholders to recoup the cost of the card’s annual fee:
- Hilton credits: Up to $400 in statement credits annually for eligible purchases made with the Hilton Honors Aspire Card directly at participating Hilton Resorts (up to $200 in statement credits semi-annually),
- Flight credits: Up to $200 in statement credits annually on eligible flight purchases (up to $50 in statement credits each quarter) made on the Hilton Honors Aspire Card and
- CLEAR credits: $189 in statement credits per calendar year after members sign up and pay for a CLEAR Plus membership (subject to auto-renewal) with the Hilton Honors Aspire Card (see terms)
The airline fee credit covers incidental charges such as checked baggage, in-flight purchases, or change fees. If you stay at a Waldorf Astoria or Conrad hotel, you can get up to $100 in credit to further boost your savings.
Hilton Diamond Status
Another enticing benefit is complimentary Diamond status – the highest tier of Hilton Honors membership. This includes a swath of swanky perks like executive lounge access, late check-out, elite status gifting, and more. However, the most notable perk of Diamond status is a 100% bonus on points earned for every dollar spent that continues to expedite the earning of a complimentary hotel stay.
With a base earning of 10X per dollar spent, simply being a Diamond-level member would make $1 worth 20 points. When this is combined with the 14X points from being a Hilton Honors American Express Aspire cardholder, it brings the total value of $1 spent at a Hilton location to a whopping 24 points.
For more information on the Hilton Honors hotel loyalty program, check out: The Ultimate Guide to the Hilton Honors Loyalty Program.
American Express Ratings
Here is what people are saying about American Express as a bank and credit card issuer:
| BestCards | Better Business Bureau | TrustPilot |
|
3.5/5 |
2/5 |
1.5/5 |
Should You Apply for the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card?
Overall, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is definitely a credit card to be considered if you’re looking for hotel perks. This card makes it incredibly easy to earn free-night stay from everyday purchases – not just travel-related ones – and the very rewarding structure of the Hilton loyalty program.
Additionally, once you are on-site the Hilton Honors Aspire Card continues to significantly enhance your hotel experience through the complimentary Diamond status, which by itself is a fantastic value. While the $550 annual fee may seem high, those who take advantage of the statement credits and the perks of Diamond status will immediately recover those costs.
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