Bilt Palladium Card review: High earnings for Bilt-focused travelers
Editor's Note
The Bilt Palladium Card (see rates and fees) is the new premium offering from Bilt Rewards — and it could be an industry disruptor for frequent travelers hoping to maximize their everyday spending and earn on housing expenses.
This top-tier Bilt Rewards card earns Bilt Points, TPG's choice for the most valuable currency on the market, at the highest rate in its three-card family. It's offering a stellar welcome bonus at launch that new cardholders won't want to miss out on — especially since you'll only be eligible for one bonus per lifetime across the Bilt card portfolio.
New Bilt Palladium cardholders can earn 50,000 bonus points and Bilt Gold status (through the rest of the calendar year in which it was earned and the following calendar year) after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Cardholders also receive $300 in Bilt Cash upon approval.
The points in this offer are worth $1,100 according to TPG's January 2026 valuations. If you combine these points with the $300 in Bilt Cash, you'll receive up to $1,400 in welcome bonus value.
Bilt Palladium cardholders collect Bilt points at an elevated rate on every purchase. At the same time, the card racks up Bilt Cash, a currency redeemable in multiple ways across the Bilt platform, including for rent and mortgage transaction fees.
With a $495 annual fee, the Bilt Palladium Card charges less than many of its premium counterparts while providing solid benefits such as airport lounge access, easy-to-understand statement credits and travel-focused perks.
If you're all-in on Bilt, looking for simplicity and to collect high-value rewards on housing expenses and everyday purchases, there are plenty of reasons to take a long look at the Bilt Palladium Card. Card rating*: ⭐⭐⭐⭐
*Card rating is based on the opinion of TPG's editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.
Bilt Palladium: The basics
The Bilt Palladium Card earns transferable points and provides top-tier benefits within the Bilt Rewards program.
The main appeal of the Bilt Palladium Card is its rewards rate on everyday purchases. To maximize the benefits of this card, you'll want to use it frequently. This card earns 2 valuable Bilt points per dollar spent and 4% in Bilt Cash on everyday purchases, so you won't have to worry about memorizing bonus categories.
When you factor in TPG's valuation of Bilt points at 2.2 cents each, you'll receive up to 4.4% back in Bilt points and 4% back in Bilt Cash for your everyday purchases — a fantastic rate, especially when you consider the card's $495 annual fee (modest compared to its competitors).
This stands out when you compare the Bilt Palladium Card to other flat-rate rewards cards, such as the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card. The Venture X earns 2 miles per dollar spent on most purchases — when you factor in TPG's valuation of Capital One miles at 1.85 cents each, your return on spending comes out to 3.7% — less than the return you'll receive from spending on the Bilt Palladium.
Bilt came to fame as the platform to earn points on rent (and now mortgage) expenses, and you'll earn an unlimited up to 1 Bilt point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments with the Bilt Palladium Card. However, it's worth pointing out that you'll now be charged a 3% transaction fee on these purchases. The 4% Bilt Cash you earn from everyday spending on the Bilt Palladium Card will help offset this.
Among other redemption options inside the Bilt Rewards ecosystem, Bilt Cash can be redeemed at a dollar-for-dollar value for transaction fees on rent and mortgage payments. To break it down, if you have a $2,000 housing payment, you'll be charged $60 in transaction fees. Since you'll earn 4% Bilt Cash on everyday spending, you'll need to spend at least $1,500 on the card each month to earn that $60 back in Bilt Cash to cover this fee.
Once you collect Bilt points, you'll want to use them with Bilt's star-studded lineup of 23 transfer partners.
Unlike some of the other premium rewards cards currently available, the Bilt Palladium doesn't have a long list of complicated statement credits to maximize.
Instead, cardholders receive $400 in Bilt Travel portal credits for hotel bookings (split biannually each calendar year) and $200 in Bilt Cash each calendar year. Cardholders also receive complimentary airport lounge access through a Priority Pass membership.
Related: United cardholders can earn 2X miles on rent payments through Bilt — here's how
Bilt Palladium pros and cons
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Bilt Palladium benefits
The Bilt Palladium Card offers several key perks to help offset its $495 annual fee.
Annual benefits
The Bilt Palladium Card provides two solid annual benefits that, when combined, offset the card's $495 annual fee.
The first is a $400 Bilt Travel portal credit for hotel bookings made through the portal. This perk is split biannually each calendar year, so you'll receive $200 to use in the first six months of the year, and $200 to use in the last six months of the year.
In addition, you'll receive $200 in Bilt Cash each calendar year. Bilt Cash can be used at a dollar-for-dollar value to cover multiple types of payments within the Bilt Rewards platform, including transaction fees on rent and mortgage payments.
Bilt Neighborhood Benefits
When you use the Bilt Palladium Card with one of the 50,000-plus merchants included in the Bilt network, you'll receive additional Bilt points for every dollar spent.
These merchants include restaurants, select pharmacies (such as Walgreens), Lyft and some fitness studios.
Lounge access
Bilt Palladium cardholders receive a complimentary Priority Pass membership, which provides access to Priority Pass's network of more than 1,800 airport lounges across the world.
This perk alone is valued at $469 per year.
World Legend Mastercard benefits
The Bilt Palladium is a World Legend Mastercard, which means it comes with a host of benefits provided by Mastercard, including:
- Access to Mastercard Concierge, Mastercard ID Theft Protection and Mastercard Zero Liability
- Global emergency services
- Partner benefits with merchants such as Instacart, Lyft and Peacock
Related: Best lounge access credit cards: 4 picks for frequent flyers
How to earn and use Bilt points and Bilt Cash on the Bilt Palladium
Earning Bilt points and Bilt Cash
The Bilt Palladium Card is a simple yet high-value transferable rewards card. You'll earn:
- 2 points per dollar spent on everyday spending
- Up to 1 point per dollar spent on rent and mortgage payments
- 4% Bilt Cash earned on everyday spending (can be used to waive rent and mortgage transaction fees, among other redemptions)
When factoring in TPG's valuation of Bilt points at 2.2 cents apiece and the dollar-for-dollar value of Bilt Cash, this results in an 8.4% return on everyday spending. Plus, you'll receive up to a 2.2% return on rent and mortgage payments.
Redeeming Bilt points and Bilt Cash
Bilt points can be redeemed to book travel through the Bilt Travel portal, purchase items from the Bilt Collection, book fitness classes, pay for amazon.com purchases directly or use them to help cover the cost of next month's rent.
While there are many redemption options, they don't yield a value that matches our valuation of Bilt points at 2.2 cents apiece. You'll find that value (or better) when you transfer Bilt points to partners, which is our favorite way to redeem them.
Bilt Cash can be redeemed inside Bilt Rewards for expenses such as transaction fees on rent and mortgage payments, fitness classes, home delivery orders, hotel bookings, Lyft rides, and more.
Bilt Cash is going to play a major role in offsetting transaction fees on rent and mortgage payments. That's why it's important for prospective cardholders to make sure they can use this card for many of their everyday purchases.
It's worth noting that most Bilt Cash expires at the end of each calendar year, as just $100 in Bilt Cash will roll over into the next year.
Transferring Bilt points
The best way to use your Bilt points is to take advantage of Bilt's 23 airline and hotel transfer partners. Our favorite partners include Atmos Rewards, Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards, United Airlines MileagePlus and World of Hyatt. These programs are among TPG's most highly valued, and leveraging these partners can result in some seriously fantastic redemptions.
If you have Blue status with Bilt Rewards, you will need to transfer at least 2,000 points for each partner. If you have Silver, Gold or Platinum Bilt status, you'll have to transfer a minimum of 1,000 Bilt points. Transfers must be done in 1,000-point increments.
Remember that you'll receive Bilt Gold as part of this card's welcome offer.
In the past, I've loved transferring Bilt points to Atmos Rewards to book American Airlines flights. Atmos Rewards' distance-based award charts offer fantastic value on many routes, including premium-cabin flights to London for 55,000 points and a one-way business-class flight to Japan for 60,000 points.
World of Hyatt also offers high-value redemptions through its award chart, including stays at the Great Scotland Yard Hotel for 21,000 points per night or Miraval Austin for 57,500 points per night.
Related: The best Hyatt all-inclusive resorts in the world
Where the Bilt Palladium could fall short
You'll receive the most value from the Bilt Palladium Card if you make it your everyday spending card. Ideally, you'll want to earn enough Bilt Cash each month to help offset transaction fees incurred by making rent or mortgage payments through Bilt.
If you aren't renting or paying a mortgage, find the combination of Bilt points and Bilt Cash complicated, or live outside of a city where you can enjoy many of Bilt's local events and benefits, you may be better off with a different rewards card or even a cash-back card.
If you are interested in applying for a Bilt card, but the Bilt Palladium Card isn't what you're looking for, you can also consider the no-annual-fee Bilt Blue Card (see rates and fees) and mid-tier Bilt Obsidian Card (see rates and fees) for $95 a year. Both of these options provide different earning rates within Bilt Rewards that could be worth considering.
Bilt Palladium Card vs. Bilt Obsidian Card
The Bilt Obsidian Card is the mid-tier Bilt Rewards card positioned for travelers who are interested in collecting Bilt points across multiple bonus categories. It's a better option for cardholders who are open to maximizing bonus categories, since it earns 3 points per dollar spent and 4% Bilt Cash on your choice of dining or grocery expenses (on up to $25,000 in spending per calendar year) and 2 points per dollar spent on travel. You'll earn 1 point per dollar spent on all other purchases.
If you spend more frequently on a wide variety of purchases, it makes more sense to pick up the Bilt Palladium Card, since it earns a flat 2 points per dollar spent on purchases other than rent and mortgage payments.
Related: How to pick the right travel credit card for you
Is the Bilt Palladium worth it?
The Bilt Palladium Card is a great choice if you're ready to make Bilt the center of your award strategy. For many, earning points on rent and mortgage payments with the ability to offset transaction fees via Bilt Cash earned through spending will make sense.
Plus, the card makes premium perks simple, as it doesn't require memorizing numerous bonus categories or a lengthy list of statement credits.
However, if you aren't in a position to prioritize the Bilt Palladium Card, you may want to consider going in another direction. It's hard to reap the full benefits of Bilt Rewards (and avoid the downfalls of transaction fees on housing payments) if you aren't spending enough on the Bilt Palladium to rack up enough Bilt Cash to offset the transaction fee.
Additionally, if you frequently spend in specific categories, such as food and travel, it may be worthwhile to consider another card within the Bilt family, like the Bilt Obsidian Card.
Related: You can earn Bilt Rewards points when shopping online through Rakuten
When to apply for the Bilt Palladium
The Bilt Palladium Card's introductory bonus is a strong launch offer.
New cardholders can earn 50,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening. Cardholders also receive $300 in Bilt Cash upon approval.
TPG's valuations place the value of these points at $1,100. Combine this value with the $300 in Bilt Cash, and you can receive up to $1,400 from this welcome offer.
If you want to amass a stash of valuable travel rewards quickly, it's a great idea to jump on this offer. Remember that you'll only be able to earn one bonus in a lifetime across all Bilt cards.
Related: The best credit card welcome bonuses this month
Other cards to consider instead of the Bilt Palladium
The Bilt Palladium Card may not be the best choice for everyone, so here are other options to consider if you're in the market for a transferable rewards card with different benefits.
- If you want broader lounge access: The American Express Platinum Card® provides industry-leading lounge access thanks to its American Express Global Lounge Collection, which will get you into many more lounges than you'd receive access to with the Bilt Palladium Card alone. To learn more, read our full review of the Amex Platinum.
- If you want bonus categories and more statement credits: The Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees) allows cardholders to earn more rewards in certain popular spending categories and provides many more lifestyle-oriented statement credits than the Bilt Palladium Card. To learn more, read our full review of the Sapphire Reserve.
- If you want to pay a lower annual fee: The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card charges a lower $395 annual fee and earns Capital One miles at an elevated, flat rate similar to that of the Bilt Palladium Card. To learn more, read our full review of the Venture X.
For additional options, see our list of the best travel credit cards.
Related: Current Bilt cardholders: Key dates and deadlines as Bilt transitions to new card options
Bottom line
The Bilt Palladium Card caught our eye thanks to its ability to earn one of the most valuable reward currencies on the market at a high rate.
If you want to center your travel rewards strategy on Bilt Rewards and use the card for the majority of your everyday expenses, the Bilt Palladium Card is a great choice for you. The value you'll receive from swiping this card is exceptionally high, so as long as you're able to work out the math using Bilt Cash on transaction fees on rent or mortgage payments, you'll certainly come out far ahead with this card.
However, if you don't see yourself using the Bilt Palladium Card as your primary spending card, you risk coming out behind in transaction fees with housing payments. The Bilt Palladium Card works best if it's the main card in your strategy, so be sure to weigh the pros and cons for your situation before adding it to your wallet. Otherwise, you may be better off with another rewards card instead.
Apply here: Bilt Palladium Card
For rates and fees of the Bilt Palladium Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Bilt Blue Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Bilt Obsidian Card, please click here.