8 Things to Know About the Bilt Rewards Mastercard

Posted: 2/8/2023 | February eighth, 2023

Since popping out in 2021, the Bilt Rewards Mastercard has been an absolute game-changer for renters that like to journey. It’s the one bank card that lets you earn factors in your month-to-month lease fee — as much as 50,000 factors per 12 months, (which might pay for a round-trip flight to Hawaii, for instance).

You should use these factors like every other journey rewards factors (corresponding to these from Chase, American Specific, or Capital One), transferring them to airline or resort companions or paying for journey immediately by way of a selected portal.

However whereas the points-for-rent perk will get all the eye (and rightfully so), the Bilt Rewards Mastercard is greater than a one-trick pony.

To really get essentially the most out of this useful card (one which I believe each renter ought to have of their pockets), listed below are some key issues to know concerning the Bilt Mastercard:

1. There’s no annual price

Probably the most necessary issues to think about when opening a brand new bank card is whether or not there’s an annual price, and in that case, whether or not paying it is smart in response to your spending habits and objectives.

Many of the best travel credit cards have annual charges, and for frequent vacationers, they’re normally price it. You will get far more worth out of a card than its annual price if you happen to’re an avid flier who enjoys lounge entry, precedence boarding, checking additional baggage, or different widespread perks.

However you don’t have to fret about that with Bilt, as the cardboard at present has no price. You may earn factors in your lease utterly free of charge!

2. There’s additionally no welcome supply

Nevertheless, the flip aspect of there being no annual price is that there’s additionally no welcome supply on the Bilt Rewards Mastercard.

Welcome provides (also referred to as sign-up bonuses) are the factors you earn by spending a specific amount inside a specified time-frame after opening a bank card. For instance, you would possibly be capable of earn 60,000 factors if you happen to spend $3,000 USD inside the first three months of opening a selected card.

These provides jump-start your factors “fund” and might usually quantity to a free round-trip flight proper off the bat. Welcome provides are so very important to any good travel hacking technique that I normally advise in opposition to signing up for a card until there’s a sizable one. The truth that I wholeheartedly advocate the Bilt card, even and not using a welcome supply, ought to present you simply how nice I believe this card is.

3. There’s a minimal transaction requirement to earn factors

After opening the Bilt Mastercard, maybe an important factor to know is that you should make a minimal of 5 transactions every assertion interval to earn factors. That goes for all factors, together with the factors you’ll obtain for paying your lease.

Meaning if you happen to don’t make 5 purchases in your card that interval, you gained’t earn any factors in any respect — even if you happen to’ve paid lease by way of Bilt.

The excellent news is that there’s no minimal buy requirement, solely a minimal transaction requirement. So long as you make 5 purchases — of any measurement — in your Bilt card every month, you’ll get your factors.

4. You may earn factors on extra than simply lease

Whereas incomes factors on lease is the primary promoting level, the cardboard provides further methods to earn factors too:

• 2x factors on journey
• 3x factors on eating
• 1x factors on all different purchases

(These incomes classes are the identical as fan-favorite Chase Sapphire Preferred, for which there’s an annual price of $95 USD).

So, for instance, if you happen to use your Bilt card in the course of the month on journey or eating purchases, you’ll not solely get 2-3 occasions the factors, however you’ll additionally hit your minimal five-purchase requirement.

5. You may max out on factors earned for lease

It’s additionally price utilizing your card for purchases aside from lease due to the truth that you possibly can max out on the variety of factors earned for lease (factors for lease are capped at 50,000 per 12 months). After that, you gained’t earn any extra factors on lease for that 12 months.

Nevertheless, contemplating you earn at a price of 1 Bilt level per $1 spent on lease, you’ll solely attain the restrict if you happen to spend over $4,166/month in lease. In case your rental fee is underneath that, you don’t have to fret about hitting the restrict.

6. You may earn much more factors on lease day

On the primary day of the month, your factors incomes energy is doubled, which means that you simply’ll earn 6x factors on eating, 4x factors on journey, and 2x on different purchases (besides lease) made on the primary of the month.

Should you get into the behavior of utilizing your Bilt card for every little thing you purchase on the primary day of the month, you’ll already be that a lot nearer to hitting your 5 minimal transactions, all whereas getting much more factors to your purchases.

And whereas nobody desires extra apps on their telephones, you’ll want to obtain the Bilt app for possibilities to earn much more factors. Each lease day, there are new methods to simply earn factors within the app. These change each month, however up to now have included taking part in Level Quest, by which you earn factors for proper solutions to trivia questions.

There’s additionally the Lease Day Problem, in which you’ll enter to win a free month’s lease by appropriately finishing a fill-in-the-blank phrase in the course of the day.

Whereas a few of these alternatives don’t supply many factors, they take little or no time to finish, they usually all add up!

7. Bilt factors = American Airways factors

One more reason to amass factors is as a result of Bilt has American Airways as a switch associate — and it’s the one card that does. Since no different card provides factors that switch to American, Bilt is the one option to get AA factors with out having an AA card.

That is nice information for American Airways loyalists or vacationers with particular journeys in thoughts for which they need to use AA factors. For instance, I’m at present prioritizing my Bilt card as a substitute of my Chase Sapphire, as a result of I would like these AA factors for a visit I’m planning to Japan this 12 months (AA is a associate with Japan Airways).

Along with American Airways, you possibly can switch your Bilt factors on a 1:1 foundation to many different journey companions, together with:

• Air Canada
• Air France
• Cathay Pacific
• Emirates
• Hawaiian Airways
• Hyatt
• IHG
• Turkish Airways
• United
• Virgin Atlantic

You may as well redeem factors for health courses, like SoulCycle, Solidcore, Rumble, and Y7, and for objects within the Bilt Assortment, a curated choice of artisan house décor objects. Nevertheless, I’d advise in opposition to this, as redeeming factors for health courses comes out to round one level per cent — and you will get a a lot better redemption on journey purchases.

8. Bilt provides nice journey safety

Past its points-earning capabilities, Bilt provides strong journey safety, particularly for a no-fee card. Simply understand that you should guide journey utilizing the Bilt card to be able to obtain these advantages. The protections are just like that of different “starter” journey bank cards, just like the Chase Sapphire Most well-liked.

Listed here are the journey protections that Bilt at present provides:

• Journey cancellation safety and interruption protection
• Journey delay reimbursement (for delays of six hours or extra)
• Automotive rental collision protection
• Cellular phone safety (as much as $800 USD)
• No overseas transaction charges

Click on right here for a full breakdown of rewards and benefits and rates and fees.

Whereas these protections — like that of any card — aren’t an alternative to travel insurance (which you need to at all times get!), they’re nice perks, and also you get them at no additional price.

All in all, getting the Bilt card is a no brainer for anybody who pays lease within the US, because it’s at present the one option to earn factors free of charge on this essential month-to-month expense.

However, whereas it’s price getting for simply that profit alone, the Bilt card offers a lot of other awesome features that make it even more valuable. The power to switch to American Airways, double factors on Lease Day, new methods to earn further factors, and a well-rounded roster of journey advantages and protections make the Bilt card greater than worthy of house in your pockets. It’s grow to be certainly one of my favourite playing cards and I discover myself reaching for it rather a lot!