About the Kiplinger Readers’ Choice Awards
The Kiplinger Readers’ Choice Awards aim to recognize and celebrate the best products and services in the personal finance arena. We asked you, our Kiplinger community, to help us name the products and services you think have delivered excellent value in the past year.
The survey results, which we’re sharing here in our second annual Readers’ Choice Awards, offer valuable insight into which providers shine when it comes to your everyday interactions and experiences with them. Our Awards recognize excellence in everything from credit cards, banks and brokers to insurers, tax software and financial apps. For each category, we’ve listed an overall winner that earned the highest score. We’ve also highlighted other products and services that earned above-average scores for various criteria we asked readers to assess.
By voting, our community has helped us form our guide to the very best financial products. These are the products and companies that you think stand out from the crowd.
Kiplinger Readers' Choice Awards: Hotel Credit Card Rewards Programs
Each hotel chain below earned top marks from our readers for their credit card programs. Frequent guests can get great value from these cards, earning extra points for hotel stays and other purchases. Plus, enjoy benefits such as free-night awards and elevated loyalty status. Readers evaluated hotel card programs on customer service, how likely they would be to recommend the card program to others and how satisfied they are overall with the card program.
OVERALL WINNER: World of Hyatt Credit Card
Outstanding for:
- Customer service
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
Our readers gush about the World of Hyatt credit card. “Best rewards of any card, as far as I can tell. If only there were more Hyatts!” one survey respondent says.
For a $95 annual fee, cardholders earn nine World of Hyatt Bonus points per dollar spent at Hyatt hotels; two points per dollar on restaurant spending, airline tickets, local transit and gym memberships; and one point per dollar on other spending. You also get a free night at an eligible property yearly, an additional free night if you spend $15,000 on the card in a calendar year and automatic Discoverist loyalty status.
IHG
Outstanding for:
- Customer service
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
IHG brands include well-known hotels such as Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Kimpton. Chase issues two personal cards on behalf of IHG: IHG One Rewards Traveler and IHG One Rewards Premier ($99). You can rack up points quickly—cardholders earn up to 17 and 26 points per dollar spent at IHG hotels and resorts, respectively — but point values are generally lower than with competing programs.
The Premier card also rewards five points per dollar spent on travel and hotels, at gas stations, and at restaurants, and three points per dollar on all other spending. Plus, Premier cardholders get one free hotel night each year and a fourth night free after you redeem points for a consecutive four-night stay.
Marriott Bonvoy cards
Outstanding for:
- Customer service
- Most recommended
- Overall satisfaction
Frequent guests of Marriott hotels can get good value out of the credit card program. Cards issued by Chase include Marriott Bonvoy Bold, Boundless ($95) and Bountiful ($250). American Express has two co-branded cards, Bevy ($250) and Brilliant ($650), with Marriott. Several readers expressed appreciation for the free one-night stay the Boundless card offers yearly.
“You definitely get the value out of the fee,” says one respondent. Marriott Bonvoy points are quite flexible: You may redeem them at Marriott properties or transfer them to the frequent-flier programs of 38 airlines, including American, Delta, Southwest and United.
Choice Privileges cards
Outstanding for:
- Most recommended
The Choice Privileges credit card program rewards stays at a wide variety of hotel brands, such as Radisson, Quality Inn and EconoLodge. Wells Fargo issues two cards for the program: the Choice Privileges Mastercard and the Choice Privileges Select Mastercard ($95). Each card offers strong earnings rates on hotels, gas, phone plans, grocery stores and home improvement stores. The Select card provides a 30,000-point bonus each year.
