From now on, you can also pay with points on your Hilton account: Photo: Shutterstock International hotel chain Hilton announced yesterday (October 21) the launch of a new service called Pay with Points, which lets Hilton Honors members use earned points to pay eligible charges on their hotel account, not just redeem them for booking nights.
The new service is integrated into the Hilton Honors app and lets guests use points during digital check-out, without going to the front desk or involving a staff member.
According to Hilton, it is the first major hotel chain to offer such an option as part of a fully digital check-out process.
The service is initially available at 150 participating hotels across the United States. By the end of 2026, Hilton plans to expand it to more than 800 hotels, and by early 2027, a broad rollout to more than 6,000 hotels in the United States and Canada is expected.
The expansion will be gradual, with the availability of the service and the types of charges that can be paid for with points possibly varying from hotel to hotel.
At this stage, the service is not offered in all of the chain's hotels around the world, and the company's announcement does not include a date for its launch in Europe.
The new option is for Hilton Honors members with Silver, Gold, Diamond or Diamond Reserve status.
When checking out through the app, eligible club members can view their stay account, choose from available points redemption options, and use points to pay eligible charges.
The entire process is carried out on the mobile phone, even when the guest is already on their way out of the hotel.
Until now, club members could use points primarily to book stays, combine points and cash when booking, and redeem various benefits and experiences. The new option adds the ability to use points at the account-closing stage.
According to a study Hilton conducted among its loyalty club members, 70% of participants said they were interested in using points to pay for purchases during their hotel stay.
About half of respondents also noted that such an option might increase the likelihood that they would book a stay online.
Brad Anderson, vice president of Hilton Honors, explained in the company's announcement that members have been asking for more flexibility in how they use their points. He said the new service allows them to choose how to use their points even after their stay has begun, not just at the time of booking.
Hilton Honors is one of the largest loyalty clubs in the hotel industry, with more than 260 million members worldwide.
The new service joins the digital options that Hilton already offers, including check-in via the app, room selection, opening the room door using a digital key, and remote check-out.
For club members, the main innovation is the ability to use existing points to cover eligible expenses in the stay account. However, the company did not publish a uniform conversion ratio between points and money in the launch announcement, so it is worth checking the number of points required and the redemption value in the app before approving the payment.
The new benefit was launched less than a year after Hilton announced changes to its loyalty club, including the addition of a Diamond Reserve tier and changes to eligibility requirements for higher tiers.