American Express
$785/yr net
Earns 3x on hotels, on a hotels-heavy profile after fees.
Best for hotels
The best hotel credit card
Updated July 2026 · Ranked by net annual value (rewards minus the effective fee), not by who pays us.
The "best hotel credit card" lists are full of co-brands — a Marriott card, a Hilton card, a Hyatt card. On the cash math, though, a flexible travel card usually earns more on hotel spending than a card tied to one chain.
We ranked every card against a hotel-heavy wallet by net annual value, after the effective fee, using the same engine as our calculator. Flexible cards lead because their points transfer to multiple hotel programs. Then we lay out when a co-brand's free night flips the answer.
Our pick
American Express® Green Card
$785/yr net
Best hotels card by net value for this profile, after the effective fee, earning 3x on hotels.
The catch most lists skip
Hotel co-brand cards have one benefit the cash ranking deliberately doesn't count: an annual free night. On several cards that free night books at more than the card's fee — a ~$250 fee against a night that would cost $400+ is a net win on its own, if you'll actually use it. Elite status (free breakfast, late checkout, upgrades) adds real but unpriceable value. The trade-offs are the usual ones: the free night is often capped at a points level that won't cover peak-season or top-tier properties, and the points are locked to one chain. So: if you're loyal to one hotel brand and will use the free night every year, the co-brand can beat everything here on total value; if you stay wherever's convenient, a flexible card nets more cash and books anywhere.
Top 5 hotels cards by net value
Bank of America
$648/yr net
Earns 3x on hotels, on a hotels-heavy profile after fees.
Wells Fargo
$629/yr net
Earns 4x on hotels, on a hotels-heavy profile after fees.
American Express
$611/yr net
Earns 3x on hotels, on a hotels-heavy profile after fees.
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Your spending isn't this profile.
This ranking is for a hotels-heavy wallet. Enter your own monthly numbers and we'll re-rank all 75 cards against exactly how you spend.
Run my own numbersFigures are estimates from our net-value model on a sample hotels-weighted profile, with fees counted category-aware (credits count where you'd realize them). See our methodology page. Rates and fees change — verify on the issuer's site before applying.