Bilt Rewards: A Beginner's Guide to Earning Points on Rent

For most people, rent is the single biggest monthly expense — and until Bilt Rewards came along, it earned you nothing. Bilt’s whole pitch is letting you earn transferable points on rent with no transaction fee, then move those points to airline and hotel partners like any premium currency. For renters, it’s close to free money. Here’s how it works.

The core idea: points on rent

With the Bilt Mastercard, you can pay your rent — even to landlords who don’t accept credit cards — and earn points on it, without the 2–3% processing fee that normally makes paying rent by card a losing proposition. That’s the unique hook: a huge recurring expense that earned nothing now builds a stash of valuable, transferable points every month.

You also earn on dining, travel, and other everyday spending, and there’s a quirk worth knowing: Bilt requires you to make at least five transactions per statement for your points to post, so use the card a few times beyond rent each month.

Rent Day — the monthly bonus

On the first of every month (“Rent Day”), Bilt runs elevated earning and special promotions — doubled points on non-rent spending and periodic transfer bonuses to partners. Savvy Bilt users time bigger purchases and point transfers around Rent Day to squeeze out extra value.

The transfer partners

Bilt’s value, like Chase and Amex, comes from 1:1 transfers to airline and hotel partners. Its lineup is strong and growing, including Alaska’s Atmos Rewards, World of Hyatt, Air France-KLM Flying Blue, Avianca LifeMiles, Turkish Airlines, United (via a unique arrangement), and more — with Etihad Guest among recent additions. The Hyatt and Alaska/Atmos partnerships in particular make Bilt genuinely useful for high-value redemptions, not just a rent gimmick.

What the points are worth

Bilt points carry the same upside as other transferable currencies — commonly around 2 cents each when transferred to the right partner for a premium redemption. But the real story is the source: you’re earning these valuable points on money you were going to spend on rent anyway, which makes the effective return exceptional for renters.

The smartest ways to use Bilt

• Pay rent with the Bilt card to earn on your biggest expense fee-free — the core reason the program exists.
• Hit five transactions a month so your points actually post.
• Transfer to Hyatt or Alaska/Atmos for the best-value redemptions.
• Time transfers and big spending around Rent Day to capture bonuses.

Bottom Line

Bilt Rewards is a must-know for renters: it’s the only program that earns valuable, transferable points on rent with no fee, then lets you move them 1:1 to strong partners like Hyatt, Alaska’s Atmos Rewards, and Flying Blue. Pay rent with the card, remember the five-transactions-a-month rule, lean on Rent Day promotions, and you’ll turn your single biggest bill into premium travel.

Part of our complete Points & Miles guide. Not sure what your points are worth? See the latest points valuations or run the numbers with our free calculators.