Expedia One Key Rewards: The Guide

One Key is Expedia Group's shared loyalty program across Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo, letting members earn rewards and elite status no matter which of the three sites they book through. In October 2026, Expedia overhauled how the program earns and what it pays out.

There's even a new benefit where you can get free lounge access during flight delays.

What is One Key?

One Key is the unified loyalty program for three brands under the Expedia Group umbrella. It launched in the U.S. in July 2023.

This travel loyalty program allows members to earn elite status and OneKeyCash across multiple platforms and redeem at any participating website. Membership is free, and you can sign up for One Key at any time.

This program is designed to compete with airline and hotel loyalty programs by making it easy for members to earn and redeem points, no matter where they're booking a reservation. It also eliminates the problem of having rewards spread across multiple programs yet not having enough to actually book an award reservation.

Elite status is earned based on the number of trip elements, rather than the number of miles flown, nights stayed or dollars spent. This simplified qualification process also makes it easy for the occasional traveler to earn elite status.

Which websites participate in One Key rewards?

Previously, rewards programs for Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo operated independently of one another. Combining these three brands into one loyalty program allows travelers to quickly earn elite status and OneKeyCash that they can redeem at any of these three websites.

• Expedia.com is an online travel agency where travelers can make reservations for flights, hotels, rental cars, activities and more.

• Hotels.com offers deals and discounts on a wide variety of hotels, from budget-friendly properties to luxury resorts around the world.

• Vrbo.com is an online marketplace for vacation rentals, home vacations and more. With the launch of One Key, Vrbo is the first major vacation rental platform with a loyalty program.

» Learn more: How to book flights, hotels and other travel on Expedia

What are the One Key elite status levels and benefits?

There are four levels of elite status. All members qualify for One Key Blue status just for signing up. The remaining three elite status levels are earned based on the number of trip elements booked within a calendar year:

• One Key Silver: Five trip elements.

• One Key Gold: 15 trip elements.

• One Key Platinum: 30 trip elements.

Trip elements are different parts of a trip that members book through participating websites. Qualifying trip elements can include flights, hotel room nights, vacation rental nights, one-day car rentals, round-trip ground transportation or an activity ticket. Trip elements must be at least $25 (excluding taxes and fees) to qualify for elite status.

For example, if you booked a three-day car rental and two nights in a hotel, that would be five trip elements. That single trip would qualify you for One Key Silver elite status.

Elite status qualification is based on calendar-year activity, and it resets on Jan. 1 each year.

What changed in October 2026

Expedia replaced the program's old flat 2% earning rate with a tiered structure that pairs an upfront, instant discount with a separate OneKeyCash earning rate for every tier. That includes the baseline Blue tier, which previously didn't earn an instant discount percentage of its own:

However, the cashback rate that used to sit at a flat 2% for all members now ranges from 1% (Blue) up to 3% (Platinum) depending on status.

If you were a Blue-tier member relying on that old flat 2%, your standard cashback rate on most bookings has actually dropped to 1% under the new structure.

One Key Silver also includes priority traveler support and an extra perk (like food and beverage credit) at select VIP Access properties.

One Key Gold also includes complimentary room upgrades at VIP Access properties when available, plus the newly expanded Price Drop Protection and lounge-access benefits described below.

One Key Platinum also includes access to Platinum VIP support, on top of everything in Gold.

» Learn more: The best travel credit cards right now

New for 2026: lounge access, discounted CLEAR and bigger price-drop payouts

Alongside the earning-rate changes, Expedia introduced three new benefits aimed at the actual day of travel rather than the booking process itself.

Free lounge access during flight delays

Gold and Platinum members whose eligible flight is delayed by 90 minutes or more can get complimentary access to an airport lounge or another eligible airport experience. Expedia says this is launching as a pilot, so expect the details to keep evolving.

Here are a few of the conditions that must be met for you to get into the lounge.

• Your flight needs to be registered at least 24 hours before its scheduled departure, and some airlines are excluded.

• Eligible passes work at lounges in the LoungeKey network, which includes independent operators like The Club, Escape Lounges, Plaza Premium and Aspire — plus, in some cases, airport bars, restaurants, spas, gaming lounges or sleep pods. Major airline-branded lounges are generally excluded.

• If there's no lounge or alternative option available at your airport, each eligible passenger on your itinerary instead gets $20 in OneKeyCash.

• This benefit covers flights booked through Expedia between Sept. 30, 2026 and Dec. 31, 2027.

Discounted CLEAR+ and CLEAR Concierge

Through a new partnership, One Key members get tiered pricing on CLEAR+, the expedited security product available at more than 60 U.S. airports, as well as CLEAR Concierge, which is a dedicated staff member who escorts you from curb to gate.

Silver, Gold and Platinum members also get 20% off any additional CLEAR Concierge bookings beyond the two that are already included.

Expanded Price Drop Protection

Gold and Platinum members who book an eligible flight through the Expedia app can get Price Drop Protection at no extra cost. Expedia automatically checks your flight's price once every 24 hours between booking and departure, and — if the price drops — you get the difference back in OneKeyCash after your trip is completed.

How do I earn OneKeyCash?

Members earn OneKeyCash on eligible bookings through Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo, at a rate that now depends on your elite tier (see the table above) rather than a flat 2% for everyone.

However, new as of October 2026 is that standalone flights no longer earn OneKeyCash at all. Previously, flights earned a modest 0.2% per dollar spent, but that's been eliminated entirely. Flights still count as a qualifying trip element toward your elite status, and you can still use OneKeyCash to pay for an eligible flight booking, but you just won't earn new OneKeyCash from the flight purchase itself.

Some other key points about earning OneKeyCash:

• Unlike other loyalty programs, the person making the booking earns the OneKeyCash, rather than it being split among travelers on the same itinerary.

• You can earn OneKeyCash when using coupons or promotions to book your reservations, but you won't earn rewards on any portion paid with OneKeyCash or coupons.

• OneKeyCash from "Pay Now" reservations is typically deposited within three days of completing your trip. Rewards from "Pay Later" and Vrbo reservations are usually confirmed 45 days after completion, though in some cases it can take up to 90 days.

Expedia is also sunsetting its Hotel Price Guarantee benefit for new bookings, as part of what the company describes as retiring select lower-value legacy features in favor of the new perks above.

One Key credit cards

One Key has two branded credit cards, the One Key™ Card and the One Key+™ Card, both issued by Wells Fargo. These cards earn OneKeyCash on all purchases, including 3% on spending with Expedia, Hotels.com and Vrbo. That 3% comes on top of the rewards you earn by being a member of the One Key program itself. That's a significant boost in your rewards earning potential, especially for airfare, where the base rate otherwise is a mere 0.2%.

Each card also earns 3% in several popular everyday categories.

There's a card with an annual fee and one without. The annual-fee version includes a bigger bonus offer, a higher base rewards rate and a variety of other benefits. Here's how the cards compare:

How do I use OneKeyCash?

To use your OneKeyCash to book travel, follow these simple steps.

1. Visit your preferred website — Expedia, Hotels.com or Vrbo.

2. Use the OneKeyCash filter to find eligible reservations.

3. Make your preferred flight, hotel or other reservation.

4. At the payment screen, choose "Pay Now."

5. During checkout, select "Apply OneKeyCash."

6. If there's a balance, pay the remainder using other forms of payment.

OneKeyCash cannot be redeemed for "Pay Later" reservations, packages or some vacation rentals.

Members can pay for some or all of their eligible hotels, vacation rentals, car rentals and activities using OneKeyCash. However, to book a flight using OneKeyCash, you must have enough rewards to pay for the entire flight, including all taxes and fees.