Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Amex Surpass: Which lodge card is best?

In the event you love the consistency of brand-name resorts or frequently keep at Hilton or Marriott properties, carrying certainly one of their cobranded lodge bank cards could also be a good suggestion.
The Hilton Honors American Specific Surpass® Card and Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit score Card are two mid-tier merchandise with a wide range of perks, together with annual free nights, alternatives to earn a plethora of factors and automated standing for extra advantages each time you keep at a collaborating property.
However does one stand out above the opposite? This is a more in-depth have a look at how these playing cards work so you’ll be able to resolve which is best for you.
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Surpass comparability
This is a fast abstract of an important options of every card that will help you evaluate options and advantages head-to-head:
Characteristic | Marriott Bonvoy Boundless | Hilton Honors American Specific Surpass |
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Welcome supply | Earn three free nights (every night time valued as much as 50,000 factors) after spending $3,000 on purchases in your first three months from account opening. Sure accommodations have resort charges. | Earn 130,000 bonus factors and a free night time reward after spending $3,000 in purchases on the cardboard within the first six months of card membership. Provide ends July 31. |
Incomes charges |
|
|
Elite standing | 15 elite nights yearly, which grants automated Silver standing | Computerized Gold standing |
Free nights | Free night time award in your card’s annual anniversary, price as much as 35,000 factors. Sure accommodations have resort charges. | Free night time reward after spending $15,000 on the cardboard in a calendar yr |
Different advantages |
|
|
Annual charge | $95 | $150 annual charge (see charges and charges) |
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Amex Surpass Welcome supply
With the Hilton Surpass, you can begin with a suggestion of 130,000 bonus factors and a free night time reward after spending $3,000 in purchases on the cardboard within the first six months of card membership. Provide ends July 31. The factors listed below are price $780, primarily based on TPG’s valuations.
Winner: Tie. Which welcome supply is extra priceless depends upon whether or not you maximize the free nights they supply.
Associated: Listed below are the perfect bank card welcome presents
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Amex Surpass advantages
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With the Hilton Surpass, you may also get pleasure from a free night time, but it surely’s not automated. You will should spend at the least $15,000 on the cardboard in a calendar yr to earn it, translating to a minimal of $1,250 month-to-month. And because the Hilton Surpass is not essentially the perfect card for on a regular basis spending, you might be sacrificing some rewards on these purchases.
That mentioned, you need to use the free night time for nearly any property within the Hilton Honors portfolio (with only a few exceptions), probably giving the award an outsize worth.
Bonvoy Boundless cardholders get automated Silver Elite standing by advantage of the 15 elite night time credit awarded on the cardboard (when you even have a Marriott enterprise card, you’ll be able to stack these credit for a complete of 30 nights). These 15 nights put you greater than half of the best way to Gold standing, and you may earn a further credit score for each $5,000 you spend on the cardboard. And in case your spending on the cardboard hits at the least $35,000 in a calendar yr, you may routinely be upgraded to Marriott Gold standing.
As a Hilton Surpass cardmember, you get automated Hilton Honors Gold standing. You might be then upgraded to Diamond standing when you spend at the least $40,000 in a calendar yr on the cardboard. Elite standing at each lodge manufacturers comes with a listing of advantages that enhance as you progress to increased tiers — however Hilton Gold is considerably extra priceless than Marriott Silver.
Each playing cards waive international transaction charges (see Hilton Surpass charges and charges), and every comes with further advantages.
The Bonvoy Boundless consists of buy safety, baggage delay insurance coverage, misplaced baggage reimbursement protection and journey delay reimbursement insurance coverage. Customers even have entry to complimentary Visa Concierge service.
The Hilton Surpass comes with a way more restricted set of protections. Nevertheless, the most important perk right here is the flexibility to rise up to $200 in assertion credit each calendar yr (as much as $50 every quarter) for eligible Hilton purchases. By taking full benefit of this perk, you may get optimistic worth from the Hilton Surpass’s $150 annual charge (see charges and charges).
Winner: Hilton Surpass. Whereas the Bonvoy Boundless has good advantages, the Hilton Surpass’s complimentary Gold standing and as much as $200 in assertion credit for eligible Hilton purchases have it edging out its competitors.
Associated: Evaluating the perfect lodge elite standing tiers and tips on how to earn them
Incomes factors on the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Amex Surpass
In the event you’re a Marriott or Hilton loyalist, you probably want one model’s factors over one other. However when you’re not loyal to any particular lodge, here is a breakdown of what incomes appears to be like like on each playing cards.
In the meantime, in case you have the Hilton Surpass, you earn 12 factors per greenback spent at Hilton properties, 6 factors per greenback spent at U.S. eating places, U.S. supermarkets and U.S. fuel stations, 4 factors per greenback on U.S. on-line retail purchases and three factors per greenback in all places else.
For bonus classes, that is roughly double what you’d get with the Marriott card. Even with a barely decrease worth (0.6 cents per level for Hilton versus .85 cents per level for Marriott, based on TPG’s June 2024 valuations), you may most likely come out forward with factors when you use the Hilton Surpass card frequently.
Winner: Hilton Surpass. You will rack up extra rewards with the Hilton Surpass.
Associated: How and why it is best to maximize your lodge stays through the use of a number of loyalty applications
Redeeming factors on the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless vs. Hilton Amex Surpass
The most effective worth for Marriott and Hilton factors often comes from redeeming for lodge reward nights. You do produce other choices, however lodge stays usually provide the highest worth per level. Sadly, each applications not have award charts.
The vast majority of Marriott stays value between 5,000 and 100,000 factors per night time. Nevertheless, this system imposes dynamic award pricing, which means the price of all its 8,000-plus accommodations and resorts can differ.
In keeping with TPG’s valuations, you’re going to get about 0.85 cents per level on common, however the worth you get depends upon the lodge, dates and different components.
Hilton award stays usually value anyplace from 5,000 factors to 95,000 per night time, with a median worth of about 0.6 cents per level, based on TPG’s valuations. Nevertheless, some specialty properties cost as much as 150,000 factors per night time. Whereas this system would not have printed award charts, you may get a really feel for the way a lot your keep will value with Hilton’s Factors Explorer instrument.
In the event you’re operating low on factors, each applications characteristic the flexibility to mix money and factors to e-book a room. Nevertheless, when you’re a critical journey factors fanatic like TPG bank cards author Augusta Stone, it is best to calculate the worth you are getting per level for each redemption to verify these make sense. Lastly, Marriott has nearly 40 airline switch companions; whereas transferring factors to switch companions is often one of the best ways to get most worth, you are higher off utilizing your Marriott factors for Marriott stays.
Winner: Bonvoy Boundless. Regardless of Marriott’s use of dynamic pricing, you may nonetheless get extra worth with their factors.
Associated: The 29 finest Marriott accommodations on the earth
Ought to I get the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless or Hilton Amex Surpass?
Backside line
Marriott and Hilton supply compelling bank cards that may fast-track your path to free lodge visits. Relying in your journey habits and spending traits, you might profit from one and even each of those playing cards.
Savvy vacationers might not wish to depart house with out one. To study extra, learn our full critiques of the Bonvoy Boundless and Hilton Surpass.
Apply right here: Marriott Bonvoy Boundless
Apply right here: Hilton Honors Surpass
Associated: Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful vs. Marriott Bonvoy Boundless
For charges and charges of the Hilton Amex Surpass, click on right here.