Bilt Rewards Credit Card Review 2023

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If you are looking for the best credit card that allows you to earn rewards for your rent payments, without paying additional fees, the Bilt Mastercard® isn’t just a great choice, it’s your only choice. 

The Bilt Mastercard® offers you 1 point per dollar for all rental payments, on up to $50,000 in payments every year. There’s no traditional welcome bonus, but you can earn bonus rewards by referring friends (2,500 per successful referral), and now every fifth successful referral you make gets you an additional 10,000 points (up to 2,025,000 referral points each year) — even if you don’t have the card.

Bilt Rewards Credit Card Review: Is the Bilt Mastercard the Best Credit Card for You?

What’s unique about the Bilt Mastercard® is that you can use it to pay your rent to any landlord, anywhere, with no fees. You’ll earn points on rent payments (1 point per dollar on up to $50,000 per year), 2x points on travel, 3x points on dining, and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. However, you must make a minimum of five transactions per statement period to earn points.

The Bilt Rewards program offers a number of redemption options, including point transfers to airline and hotel partners, booking travel through its travel portal, rent discounts, fitness rewards, and merchandise.

However, if you’re not a renter, there are many other rewards credit cards that could earn you more points, miles, or cash back for your spending — with a broader range of ways to redeem your rewards.

We’re focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won’t be worth it if you’re paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it’s important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Bilt Credit Card Rewards

Bilt Rewards credit card welcome bonus

The Bilt Mastercard® doesn’t currently have a welcome bonus offer. However, Bilt members can earn bonus points for successfully referring others to open the Bilt Mastercard®. Here’s how it works:

• You’ll earn 2,500 Bilt points for each Bilt Mastercard® applicant you refer and is approved for the card
• For every five successful referrals you make, you’ll earn another 10,000 Bilt points (so 22,500 points per five referrals)
• Each Bilt member is capped at a total of 450 referral bonuses (or 90 rounds of five referrals) for a maximum of 2,025,000 Bilt points

Note that in order for a referral to qualify, the person you’re referring can’t have already had a Bilt Rewards account or opened the Bilt Mastercard®. In addition, your referral must create their Bilt Rewards account through a unique referral code you provide them, otherwise, they won’t count.

You don’t even have to have the Bilt Mastercard® to refer friends. Download the Bilt Rewards app and just click “Invite.” You can read the full terms of Bilt’s referral program here.

How to earn rewards with the Bilt Mastercard

Everyday spending

For a card with a $0 annual fee, the Bilt Mastercard® offers a respectable return rate for common spending habits:

• 1 point per dollar on rent payments (with no fees) on up to $50,000 in rent payments every year
• 2 points per dollar on travel booked directly with airlines, hotels, car rentals, or cruise lines
• 3 points per dollar on dining (including food delivery services like Uber Eats and GrubHub)
• 1 point per dollar on all other purchases

Again, earning 1 point per dollar on rent isn’t the card’s selling point — it’s the fact that you can use a credit card to pay rent with no fees. The rewards are simply a bonus.

You must make at least five purchases on the card each billing cycle to be eligible to earn rewards. Bilt wants this card to be top of mind for you each month — beyond just rent payments.

Lyft rides

Bilt Rewards and Lyft have partnered to offer bonus points for Lyft purchases. When you link your Bilt and Lyft accounts and pay with your $0 through the Lyft app, you’ll earn 5 Bilt points per dollar. If you don’t have the $0 but are still a Bilt Rewards member, you’ll earn 2 points per dollar.

Bilt Rent Day

On the first day of every month, Bilt runs a “Rent Day” promotion. On Bilt Rent Day, cardholders can earn double points on non-rent spending, up to a maximum of 10,000 bonus points, as follows:

• 6 points per dollar on dining (normally 3 points per dollar)
• 4 points per dollar on travel (normally 2 points per dollar)
• 2 points per dollar on all other spending (normally 1 point per dollar)

Rent Day sometimes includes additional promotions, like challenges and trivia questions to earn bonus points, free rent, and other perks.

How to use Bilt Rewards points

Transfer points to airline and hotel partners

What’s really exciting about the Bilt Rewards program is that you can transfer points to airline and hotel loyalty programs, and the selection of award transfer partners is comparable to more established credit card rewards programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards®, Amex Membership Rewards, Capital One Miles, and Citi ThankYou Rewards. 

All transfers are instant (except American Airlines, which can take 24 hours) and at a 1:1 ratio.

Redeem points through the Bilt Travel portal

You can use your Bilt points to book flights, hotels, rental cars, and activities through the Bilt Rewards Travel portal at a rate of 1.25 cents per point. Because it’s powered by Expedia, you can access a wide variety of travel options around the globe, and the value per point you’ll get is better than what most other bank portals offer.

It’s also got the ability to compare the points price of a flight booked through the portal to what you’d spend by transferring points to partners for an award flight. This can help tremendously in your decision-making process when it comes time to redeem your rewards.

Use Bilt points for Amazon purchases

Bilt added the ability to redeem points at Amazon checkout, similar to using other flexible rewards points. You can link your Bilt Mastercard® to your Amazon account and use points to fully or partially pay for a purchase. However, you won’t get a good value for your rewards this way — Bilt points are only worth 0.7 cents apiece when you redeem them for Amazon purchases.

Use points for fitness classes

Bilt Rewards partners with Soul Cycle, Rumble, Solidcore, and Y7, and you can redeem points for group classes or subscriptions.

Redeem Bilt points for merchandise

Bilt members can cash in their points in the Bilt App for home decor, art, and other exclusive items through the Bilt Collection.

Get discounts on rent with points

If you want to reduce your monthly expenses, you can cash in your points for discounts on rent payments. However, you’ll only receive a value of 0.55 cents per point.

Use points toward a down payment on a mortgage

When you’re ready to transition from renting to homeownership, Bilt will offer the opportunity to put points toward a down payment on a mortgage.

Bilt Rewards Credit Card Benefits and Features

Cell phone protection

When you pay your monthly wireless bill with your Bilt Mastercard®, you’re eligible for cell phone protection of up to $800 per claim, up to two claims per year. You’ll be subject to a $25 deductible — which is low compared to many other credit cards that offer cell phone protection.

Trip delay reimbursement

When your flight is delayed six hours or more, the card’s trip delay insurance reimburses you for reasonable expenses such as food, accommodation, and even extras like entertainment and airline lounges. You and all covered travelers are eligible to receive $200 per day for up to three days (maximum $1,800 in total per covered trip).

Auto rental collision damage waiver

When you pay for your rental car with your Bilt Mastercard® and decline the rental agency’s in-house insurance, you’ll receive primary car rental insurance for damage and theft — up to the cash value of the car. You and other drivers on the reservation will be covered.

This benefit can save you $15+ per day over opting for the rental agency’s proprietary coverage.

Trip cancellation and interruption protection

You are eligible for up to $5,000 per insured person for nonrefundable tickets you’ve paid for with the Bilt Mastercard®. Eligible travelers include you, your spouse or domestic partner, and your dependent children.

This credit card travel insurance will cover you for things like death, accidental bodily injury, or the common carrier defaulting from financial insolvency.

Purchase security

The card’s purchase protection program, Purchase Assurance Plus, covers any eligible new purchase you make with the Bilt Mastercard® against accidental damage or loss for 90 days, for up to $10,000 per claim, and $50,000 per cardholder.

Merchant discounts

Bilt Mastercard® cardholders get practical discounts with popular brands. You’ll receive $5 off your first DoorDash order each month when using this card. You’ll also get a $5 Lyft credit whenever you pay for three or more rides in a calendar month.

World Elite Concierge services

Bilt Mastercard® cardholders can access Mastercard’s World Elite Concierge, which can help with things like hard-to-get restaurant reservations or event tickets.

Bilt Rewards Credit Card Annual Fee and Other Costs

There’s no annual fee for the Bilt Mastercard®, and there are no fees to pay your rent with it. It’s also a good choice if you’re traveling abroad, because it doesn’t add foreign transaction fees. If you carry a balance, be mindful of the card’s APR (See Terms).

Like most cards, the Bilt Mastercard® charges fees for things like:

• Balance transfers: Up to 5% for each balance transfer, with a minimum of $5
• Cash advances: Either $10 or 5% of the amount of each advance, whichever is greater
• Late payments: Up to $40

How the Bilt Rewards Credit Card Compares

Bilt Mastercard vs other travel rewards credit cards

Bilt Mastercard vs other Wells Fargo credit cards

Bilt Rewards Credit Card Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Methodology: How we reviewed the Bilt Rewards credit card

We evaluated the Bilt Mastercard® in comparison to similar travel rewards credit cards and looked at various factors, including:

• Ease of use — Does the card have straightforward earning and redemption options? Are there multiple ways to use points?
• Rewards earning potential — Are the card’s bonus categories useful for everyday spending? And are any of them capped at a certain amount of spending?
• Unique perks — Does the card have features you won’t find on comparable cards? In Bilt Mastercard®’s case, for instance, it’s the only card that allows you to pay rent with no fees.
• Benefits — How do the card’s benefits, particularly its travel perks, compare to similar cards?

Read our full guide to how we rate credit cards at Insider.

Tessa Campbell

Personal Finance Reviews Fellow