Hilton Honors points normally expire 24 months from inactivity, but they can be extended whenever you have any sort of qualifying activities on your account such as earning points, redeeming points, or even purchasing points.
Whether it is one point or 1 million points, the expiration clock will reset for another 24 months.
In this article, we’ll explain the different ways to keep your Hilton points from expiring.
How To Keep Hilton Points From Expiring
Any activity that adds or deducts points from your account will keep your Hilton points from expiring. Here are some of those qualifying activities:
Staying At A Hilton Hotel
Booking awards stays or paid stays will keep your Hilton points from expiring since they respectively deduct or add points to your account.
However, keep in mind that booking a future stay beyond your expiration date will not reset the expiration clock of your points. For example, if you’re points expire on December 20, you need to book and complete the stay by December 20.
Here are the following Hilton brands where you can earn or redeem points:
- Conrad
- Canopy
- Curio
- DoubleTree
- Embassy Suites
- Hampton Inn
- Hilton
- Hilton Garden Inn
- Hilton Grand Vacations
- Home2 Suites
- Homewood Suites
- LXR
- Tapestry Collection
- Tru
- Waldorf Astoria
Bookings must also be done directly on Hilton.com and not one third-party booking sites like Expedia or Hotels.com.
Earning Points With A Hilton Co-branded Card
Earning points on your Hilton co-branded card will count as a qualifying activity to keep your points from expiring. Here are some of our recommendations:
Hilton Honors American Express
- bonus_miles_full
- 7X Points at Hilton Hotels and Resorts
- 5X Points at U.S. Restaurants, U.S. Supermarkets, and U.S. Gas Stations
- Complimentary Hilton Honors Silver Status
- No Annual Fee (Rates and Fees)
The Hilton Honors American Express is a great no-annual-fee card that earns 7x Hilton Honors points at Hilton properties and 5x points at restaurants, supermarkets, and gas stations in the U.S.
This practical card also gets you complimentary Silver status, which comes with standard perks like a fifth night free on award stays and a 15% points bonus on Hilton stays.
Plus, you have the opportunity to reach Gold status by spending $20,000 per year.
Hilton Honors Surpass American Express
- 130,000 Hilton Points Plus a Free Night Award After $2,000 in Eligible Purchases in the First 3 Months
- 12X Points at Hilton Hotels and Resorts
- 6X Points at U.S. Restaurants, U.S. Supermarkets, and U.S. Gas Stations
- Hilton Honors Gold Status
- 10 Complimentary Priority Pass Lounge Visits
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- $95 Annual Fee (rates & fees)
The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card boasts great earning potential at Hilton properties and comes with complimentary Gold elite status, which features perks like space-available upgrades, better earnings, and free hot breakfast on Hilton stays.
For an affordable $95 fee, this rewards card earns:
- 12 points per dollar at Hilton Hotels and resorts;
- 6 points per dollar at U.S. restaurants, U.S. supermarkets, U.S. gas stations; and
- 3 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
You also receive a free weekend night reward after spending $15,000 per year and 10 complimentary lounge visits to Priority Pass lounges.
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card
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- Complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status
- 12X Points at Hilton Properties
- 6X Points at U.S. Gas Stations and U.S. Restaurants
- 10 Complimentary Priority Pass Lounge Visits
- $95 Annual Fee (rates & fees)
The Hilton Honors American Express Business Card offers complimentary Gold status with the chance to upgrade to Diamond status upon hitting the $40,000 spending threshold.
For a low annual fee of $95, this business card earns 12x Hilton Honors points at Hilton properties and 6x points in several categories:
- U.S. restaurants
- U.S. gas stations
- U.S. shipping purchases
- Wireless phone services with U.S. service providers
- Flights booked directly with airlines or with amextravel.com
- Car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
The Hilton Honors Business card also offers a free night reward after spending $15,000 and a second free night reward after spending $45,000 per year.
Plus, you receive 10 free Priority Pass visits to airport lounges worldwide.
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire
The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire is a premier card packed with top-notch hotel benefits and earns 14x Hilton Honors points at Hilton hotels and resorts, and 7x points at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines.
This premium hotel rewards card has a $450 annual fee, but it comes with an automatic Hilton Honors Diamond status, which gets you a 100% points bonus, milestone bonuses, suite upgrades, free breakfast, and other top-tier hotel perks.
Plus, you receive up to $250 Hilton resort statement credits, $250 airline fee credits, and $100 Hilton on-property credit, which easily offset the card’s yearly fee.
Cardholders also enjoy unlimited Priority Pass lounge access with two guests and one free weekend night award at any Hilton hotel.
Having any of these cards is the easiest way to keep your points from expiring. Just keep your card active and make at least one small purchase every year.
Hilton Honors Dining
You can also earn Hilton points when you join the Hilton Honors Dining program.
Just link any credit or debit card to your account (it doesn’t have to be a Hilton card), browse for restaurants, dine, and pay using your linked card.
Lyft Rides
Hilton Honors members can earn and redeem points on Lyft rides. All you need to do is to link your Hilton and Lyft accounts.
You can earn 3 Hilton points per dollar on Lyft rides (economy, luxury, and extra seats. Meanwhile, you can earn 2 Hilton points per dollar for shared Lyft rides.
Car Rentals
Car rentals made through the Hilton portal (in points or in cash) will also count as a qualifying activity.
E-Reward Surveys
You can earn points by filling out E-Rewards surveys. However, the program is currently not accepting new members at this moment.
Purchasing Hilton Points
You can purchase any amount of Hilton points to generate activity on your account. The minimum amount you can purchase is $10 which will get you 1,000 points.
Shopping On Amazon Using Points
We don’t recommend this method since it doesn’t give you the best value. But if you really need to do it, you can shop on Amazon using your Hilton points at a rate of 0.2 cents per point.
Hilton Honors Experiences
Redeeming points towards Hilton Honors Experiences is a great way to enjoy unique activities while also generating activity in your Hilton account.
These experiences can range from wine tours, concerts, spa treatments, and even the GRAMMY Awards!
Donating Points
Donating Hilton points to charity through the Hilton Honors Giving Back Program will count as a qualifying activity.
Points Transfers
As a rule of thumb, you don’t do points transfers unless there’s a redemption that’s really worth it.
However, if your points are about to expire, you can always transfer points from your American Express Membership Rewards to your Hilton Honors account. Amex points transfer to Hilton at a 2:1 ration.
Things That Won't Extend Your Points
Pooling your Hilton points with family and friends will not keep your Hilton points from expiring.
Points pooling is when multiple people transfer points to a pool leader so they can come up with the required amount for award redemptions.
The pool leader is usually the person who has the highest Hilton elite status level so the other members will also benefit from the pool leader’s elite status benefits.
Comparison of Hotel Programs
Below are the points expiration policies of the major hotel programs, so you can see how Hilton compares to the competition.
