Best Western Rewards guide
If you’re interested in joining a hotel loyalty program that provides a mix of accessibility and value, the Best Western Rewards program is a great option to consider. Membership in this program allows you to earn points that can be redeemed for hotel stays, gift cards and more, along with plenty of other benefits like exclusive rates, no blackout dates, late checkout and early check-in. There are also two credit cards that earn Best Western Rewards points on hotel stays as well as points on general spending.
Keep reading to learn about the Best Western Rewards program’s perks and elite status tiers, how to earn and redeem points, how much points are worth and which hotel credit cards can help you earn points in this program.
Best Western Rewards basics
The Best Western Rewards program allows members to earn points through hotel stays, credit card rewards and shopping partners. Points can then be redeemed for free nights, airline miles and more. Members can also earn elite status, which comes with more hotel-related perks.
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View all travel cardsWho is Best Western Rewards best for?
If you’re a frequent Best Western customer, it definitely makes sense to join the Best Western Rewards program. It’s free to join, and you can automatically earn points on hotel stays and other purchases. You can also earn more points through spending with a Best Western Rewards credit card. While there are more lucrative travel credit cards and travel programs out there, Best Western Rewards is still a great choice for travelers on a budget looking to score some free hotel stays.
How to earn Best Western Rewards points
There are several different ways to earn Best Western Rewards points, including through hotel stays, credit card purchases and shopping with partners. Here’s a closer look at some of the most common ways to earn points:
Hotel stays
The simplest way to earn Best Western Rewards points is through hotel stays. Each time you purchase an eligible stay at a Best Western hotel, you’ll earn at least 10X points per dollar. The number of points you’ll receive is dependent on your membership tier, with higher tiers earning additional bonus points. For example, the Blue tier, which is the lowest tier offered, earns 10X points per dollar on eligible hotel stays, while the Diamond Select tier, the highest tier available, earns 50 percent bonus points per dollar.
Credit card rewards
Another great way to earn Best Western Rewards points is through credit card rewards. Best Western has two hotel credit cards: the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®* and Best Western Rewards® Mastercard. Cardholders can earn points on Best Western stays and everyday purchases and redeem points for free hotel stays.
Best Western partners
Best Western partners with a variety of different companies and retailers through which members can earn more points. Some current partners that you can earn points with include AAA, CAA, Alamo, Avis, Budget, Enterprise, National and Sixt.
Purchase points
In addition to earning points through spending, customers can also purchase points. This can make sense if you’re near the point threshold for a free stay and need a few extra points to push you over the edge. Rewards may be purchased at the rate of 1 cent per point and can only be purchased in increments of 1,000. You can purchase up to 20,000 points per day.
Earn airline miles instead
Instead of earning points, you can also elect to earn miles with participating airline partners, including (but not limited to) British Airways, United, Southwest Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.
How to redeem Best Western Rewards points
There are several ways you can redeem Best Western Rewards points, including:
Free nights
The best way to redeem Best Western Rewards points is for free hotel nights, which can be reserved at any Best Western location worldwide. Best Western Rewards also has a Pay with Points program that allows you to pay with a combination of points and cash. For every 1,000 points you redeem in this manner, you’ll get $5 off your room rate. So, if you redeem 5,000 points for a room, you’ll save $25 on the room rate.
Airline miles
Best Western Rewards points can also be redeemed for airline miles with participating airlines. You can choose an airline program and convert your points to miles at any time through the Best Western redemption mall.
Other redemption options
In addition to free nights and airline miles, there are several other redemption options available, including Best Western travel gift cards, merchant gift cards, charitable donations and rotating special offers.
How much are Best Western Rewards points worth?
According to recent Bankrate valuations, Best Western Rewards points are worth about 0.6 cents each. Still, keep in mind that the value of Best Western Rewards points varies depending on how you redeem them. In general, free nights start at 5,000 points per night.How does Best Western Rewards compare to other programs?
| Hotel program | Average point value |
|---|---|
| Best Western Rewards | 0.6 cents |
| Hilton Honors | 0.6 cents |
| IHG One Rewards | 0.7 cents |
| Marriott Bonvoy | 0.7 cents |
| Radisson Rewards Americas | 0.4 cents |
| World of Hyatt | 2.3 cents |
| Wyndham Rewards | 0.9 cents |
Best Western Rewards elite status
Best Western Rewards also offers elite status for members that frequently stay at a Best Western hotel. Plus, earning elite status is now even easier — Best Western has cut the requirements for each elite tier in half. You can now earn elite status after staying just five qualifying nights or three qualifying stays.
Here are the qualifications and benefits for each status tier:
| Status tier | Blue | Gold | Platinum | Diamond | Diamond Select |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifications to achieve status tier | N/A | 5 nights, 3 stays or 5,000 points | 7 nights, 5 stays or 7,500 points | 15 nights, 10 stays or 15,000 points | 25 nights, 20 stays or 25,000 points |
| Bonus points for eligible stays | 10X points | 10% | 15% | 30% | 50% |
| Points never expire | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| No blackout dates | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Exclusive reservation line | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Free night redemptions count toward elite status | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Early check-in | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Late checkout | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Exclusive member rates | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Complimentary water and points upon arrival | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Current status level maintained through March 31, 2024 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Best West Rewards airline transfer partners
Best Western Rewards has more than 10 airline transfer partners. The program’s transfer partners, and the Best Western Rewards points to airline miles/points transfer rates, are below:
| Airline program | Transfer rate (hotel points:airline miles/points) |
|---|---|
| Aeroplan | 5,000:1,000 |
| Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan | 5,000:1,000 |
| Asia Miles | 5,000:1,000 |
| Asiana Airlines Asiana Club | 5,000:1,000 |
| Air France / KLM Flying Blue | 6,000:1,000 |
| Avianca LifeMiles | 5,000:1,000 |
| Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards | 5,000:1,200 |
| Aeromexico Club Premier | 5,000:1,600 |
| Aer Lingus AerClub | 5,000:1,000 |
| British Airways Executive Club | 5,000:1,000 |
| Iberia Plus Avios | 5,000:1,000 |
| MilleMiglia | 6,000:1,000 |
| Vueling Club Avios | 5,000:1,000 |
Top credit cards that earn Best Western Rewards points
If you’re interested in earning Best Western Rewards points through a credit card, Best Western offers two cards: the Best Western Rewards Premium Mastercard and Best Western Rewards Mastercard. These rewards credit cards earn points on both Best Western hotel stays and everyday purchases.
Best Western Rewards Premium Mastercard
The Best Western Rewards Premium Mastercard* offers a welcome bonus of 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first three billing cycles. It also offers 40,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 every 12 billing cycles — which means you could earn up to seven free hotel nights in bonus points. Note that this card comes with an $89 annual fee.
As for its rewards structure, you’ll earn up to 20X points on Best Western purchases (10X as a cardholder and 10X points as a Best Western Rewards member) and 2X points on all other purchases. Other perks include automatic Platinum elite status, 10 percent off room rates, early check-in, late checkout, no blackout dates, an exclusive reservation line, free FICO score access and no foreign transaction fees.
Best Western Rewards Mastercard
The Best Western Rewards Mastercard comes with no annual fee, and you can earn a welcome bonus of 40,000 points when you spend $1,000 in the first three billing cycles. Plus, you can earn 20,000 bonus points when you spend $5,000 every 12 billing cycles, which means you could earn up to three free hotel nights. You’ll also earn 13X points on Best Western purchases (3X as a cardholder and 10X points as a Best Western Rewards member) and 2X points on all other purchases.
The card also comes with perks like automatic Gold status, 10 percent off room rates, early check-in, late checkout, an exclusive reservation line, no blackout dates, no foreign transaction fees and free FICO score access.
FAQs about Best Western Rewards
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One of the best features of Best Western Rewards is that points never expire. This means that even if you only earn a moderate amount of points per year, you can continue to save them up until you have enough to redeem.
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Sort of — Best Western Rewards members can only share points with other members who have the same physical address. Alternatively, you could gift a free night to family members.
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Yes, you can buy Best Western Rewards points at the rate of 1 cent per point. Points can only be purchased in increments of 1,000 (maximum of 20,000 points per day).
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The information about the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.
