Best Western Rewards Premium Card: Not Taking New Applications
The Bottom Line
3.9
It doesn’t offer the free-anniversary-night perk often found on more expensive cards, but those beholden to Best Western can still get a lot of value from it for not a lot of money.
Rates, fees and offers
Annual fee
$89
Rewards rate
2x-20x
Bonus offer
Earn 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened.
Intro APR
N/A
Ongoing APR
APR: 23.24%-29.74% Variable
Cash Advance APR: 29.74%, Variable
Balance transfer fee
Either $10 or 5% of the amount at each transfer, whichever is greater
Foreign transaction fee
None
More details from First Bankcard
- Earn 120,000 bonus points for up to 7 free nights- 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened and 40,000 points when you spend $5,000 every 12 billing cycles.
- 20 points per $1 on Best Western purchases: 10 points as a Best Western Rewards® member, 10 points for using your Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®
- 2 points per $1 spent on other purchases
- Automatic Platinum Elite Status
Pros and Cons
Pros
High rewards rate
New cardholder bonus offer
Luxury perks
Cons
Has annual fee
No free anniversary night
Rewards have limited flexibility
Detailed Review
» The Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® is not currently accepting applications
The Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® is unavailable at this time, according to FNBO, the card's issuing bank. Existing Best Western cardholders are unaffected, however. For more options, see NerdWallet's list of the best hotel credit cards. Below is our review of what the card offers for current customers.
• • •
If Best Western is or could be your hotel bestie — which isn't too difficult, given the chain's 4,300 properties in over 100 countries — the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® deserves a look.
The card, issued by a division of First National Bank of Omaha, delivers rich bonus rewards on all purchases, plus perks such as discounts and automatic elite status, all for a reasonable annual fee of $89.
But while that fee is on the lower end among cards in its class, what you won't get is an automatic free anniversary night benefit. Other co-branded hotel cards with slightly higher annual fees offer this valuable perk, which can easily outstrip the yearly cost of card ownership.
The Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® does offer the opportunity to earn additional bonus points each year that could go toward a free night, but you must meet a spending threshold first.
Another co-branded Best Western card is the $0-annual-fee Best Western Rewards® Mastercard®, which offers less robust rewards and perks. See a full review of that card here. Both cards are issued by First Bankcard, a division of First National Bank of Omaha.
Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®: Basics
Card type: Hotel.
Annual fee: $89.
Sign-up bonus: Earn 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened.
Rewards:
20 points per $1 spent on Best Western stays (10 points as a Best Western Rewards member and 10 points for using the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®).
2 points per $1 spent on all purchases.
NerdWallet values Best Western points at 0.6 cent each. This is a baseline value, drawn from real-world data, not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 0.6 cent or more in value from your Best Western points.
In general, redeeming points for free nights at Best Western will represent the best value. Other redemption options include airline miles, gift cards, merchandise, charitable donations and more, but point values vary depending on the redemption option. For instance, transferring Best Western points to most airlines offers a poor 5:1 ratio, meaning that for every 5 Best Western points you transfer, you get only 1 mile in exchange.
APR: The ongoing APR is 23.24%-29.74%, Variable.
Foreign transaction fees: None.
Other benefits:
Automatic Platinum Elite status in the Best Western Rewards loyalty program, which gives you 15% bonus points per stay and other perks.
Compare to Other Cards
Benefits and Perks
Elevated rewards on everything
Some travel credit cards offer bonus rewards only in certain categories. Not so with the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®. You'll get the most points back, of course, for spending directly with the brand: 10 points per dollar spent on Best Western stays, on top of the 10 base points you get as a Best Western Rewards program member. (The Best Western Rewards loyalty program is free to join.) But all other spending will earn 2 points per dollar spent, so it could be a good card for everyday use, too.
Valuable sign-up bonus
The card offers the following incentive for new cardholders: Earn 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened.
If you redeemed those rewards for a room that cost 16,000 points, that would cover five nights just from the initial spending bonus. Note, however, that the hotel chain says redemptions may range from 5,000 to 70,000 points per night. So, the actual number of free nights you can get may vary depending on the hotel property you choose.
Automatic Platinum status and other perks
As a cardholder, you don’t have to work your way up to earning Platinum status; it’s automatic. This grants you 15% bonus points per stay, as well as, an exclusive reservation line and no blackout dates.
Drawbacks and Considerations
There's an annual fee
The $89 annual fee is relatively low for this kind of card, but it could still be a blocker for some. If you're a Best Western loyalist but are dead-set against paying an annual fee, consider this card's little brother, the $0-annual-fee Best Western Rewards® Mastercard®.
Here’s how they compare:
NO-FEE CARD | ANNUAL FEE CARD | |
|---|---|---|
Annual fee | $0. | $89. |
Bonus offers | 40,000 points when you spend $1,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened.. | Earn 80,000 points when you spend $3,000 in the first 3 billing cycles after the account is opened. |
Rewards |
|
|
Elite status | Automatic Gold status, which includes:
| Automatic Platinum status, which includes:
|
There's no free anniversary night
The Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® offers the chance to earn ongoing bonus points each year, but it’s not an automatic free anniversary night like you might find on other credit cards. If you're not beholden to Best Western, the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card doesn't make you meet a spending threshold to earn its free night at eligible IHG properties after each account anniversary year. It earns up to a total of 26 points per $1 spent on IHG hotel stays; 5 points per $1 spent on purchases on travel, gas stations and restaurants; and 3 points per $1 spent everywhere else. It has an annual fee of $99.
General travel cards offer more value, flexibility
If you want to be able to use your rewards on more than just hotel stays with one brand, a general travel card is a better fit. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card earns bonus rewards in a variety of popular spending categories, including dining and travel. Crucially, unlike the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard®, points are generally worth at least a full cent each — and, even better, you can redeem them on travel bookings through Chase at 1.25 cents apiece. What's more, this card has a fairer 1:1 exchange ratio when transferring points to eligible airlines and hotel loyalty programs. The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has a $95 annual fee.
How To Decide If It's Right For You
If you frequently stay at Best Western properties, the Best Western Rewards® Premium Mastercard® can be a rewarding companion. You can get even more value if you make it your go-to card for all expenses and earn the ongoing bonus every year.
But for the flexibility to hunt for the best travel deals regardless of brand, a general travel credit card can reward you more generously.
Earn bonus rewards in a variety of popular spending categories, including dining and travel. Points are worth 25% more when redeemed for travel booked through Chase — including for hotel stays — or you can transfer your points to more than a dozen airline or hotel programs. There's an awesome sign-up bonus, too. All for a reasonable annual fee.
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Methodology
NerdWallet reviews credit cards with an eye toward both the quantitative and qualitative features of a card. Quantitative features are those that boil down to dollars and cents, such as fees, interest rates, rewards (including earning rates and redemption values) and the cash value of benefits and perks. Qualitative factors are those that affect how easy or difficult it is for a typical cardholder to get good value from the card. They include such things as the ease of application, simplicity of the rewards structure, the likelihood of using certain features, and whether a card is well-suited to everyday use or is best reserved for specific purchases. Our star ratings serve as a general gauge of how each card compares with others in its class, but star ratings are intended to be just one consideration when a consumer is choosing a credit card. Learn how NerdWallet rates credit cards.
