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Our site may earn compensation when a customer clicks on a link, when an application is approved, or when an account is opened with our partners, and this may impact how or where these products appear. While we don't cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.
Guides
6 Hilton Diamond benefits that make the status worthwhile
Featured image by HILTON MALDIVES AMINGIRI RESORT AND SPA/HILTON
Kyle Olsen is the former points and miles reporter at TPG. He specializes in maximizing points and miles, elite status and credit cards so readers travel more comfortably and at a lower cost.
Katie Genter is a digital nomad who has traveled full time since June 2017. She writes and edits stories about points and miles, and loyalty programs, often letting her personal experiences color these stories.
also contributed to this story
November 17, 2024 • 8 min read
The cards we feature here are from partners who compensate us when you are approved through our site, and this may impact how or where these products appear. We don't cover all available credit cards, but our analysis, reviews, and opinions are entirely from our editorial team. Terms apply to the offers listed on this page. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information.Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.
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Quick summary
Hilton Diamond status is the highest elite tier in the Hilton Honors program, offering benefits like space-available room upgrades, executive lounge access and daily food-and-beverage credits or breakfast.
You can qualify for Diamond status through a set number of stays, nights or base points in a calendar year, or by meeting certain spending thresholds with eligible products.
Diamond members receive a 100% bonus on base points earned at most Hilton brands, plus the fifth night free on award stays, enhancing the value of points.
Some properties and brands limit or do not offer certain benefits, such as complimentary upgrades or executive lounge access.
What to consider
Room upgrades and lounge access are subject to availability and may be less common at U.S. properties or certain Hilton brands.
Food-and-beverage credits in the U.S. are provided per night and cannot be combined across multiple nights; outside the U.S., a daily continental breakfast is offered instead.
Diamond status extension is available for long-term members who meet specific criteria, including a minimum number of years at Diamond level and total nights or base points earned.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed breakdown of which Hilton brands offer specific Diamond benefits, plus tips for maximizing your elite status value.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
That said, there's no question that Hilton Diamond benefits can make your stay more comfortable. So, let's explore how to qualify for Hilton Diamond status and enjoy its top benefits.
Hilton Diamond status is possibly the easiest top-tier hotel elite status to get.
EMBASSY SUITES BY HILTON ARUBA RESORT
To qualify, you must complete 30 stays, stay 60 nights or earn 120,000 base points in a calendar year. However, primary cardholders of the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card enjoy complimentary Diamond status as a perk of their card.
This card offers several other great perks to offset its $550 annual fee (see rates and fees), including an annual free night award, up to $400 in Hilton resort statement credits (provided as up to $200 semiannually) and up to $200 in flight credits (provided as up to $50 quarterly).
MILORAD KRAVIC/GETTY IMAGES
If you're looking for a card with a lower annual fee ($150 annual fee (see rates and fees), you can also earn Diamond status after spending $40,000 in a calendar year on qualifying purchases using the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. Once you reach the spending requirement, your Hilton Diamond status may take 10 to 12 weeks to become effective. Once it becomes effective, you'll enjoy Hilton Diamond status for the remainder of the calendar year, in which you reached the spending requirements and the subsequent calendar year.
Elite status and upgrades often go hand in hand. As a Hilton Diamond member, you're eligible for space-available upgrades up to a junior, standard, or one-bedroom suite at most brands.
Room with a view at Hilton Los Angeles/Universal City. VICTOR ELIAS/HILTON LOS ANGELES UNIVERSAL CITY/FACEBOOK
In fairness, with the surplus of Diamond members, suite upgrades tend to be limited. In my experience, suite upgrades are far less common with Hilton Diamond status than with top-tier Marriott and Hyatt status. Hilton also sells paid upgrades to elite members even when their status should entitle them to a complimentary upgrade.
That said, Hilton Diamond status can be extremely valuable overseas. With Diamond status, I've enjoyed generous suite upgrades at Hilton-branded hotels in Indonesia, Morocco and French Polynesia.
Suite at the Waldorf Astoria Cancun in Mexico. HILTON
Just be aware that upgrades are up to the hotel's discretion and based on availability when you arrive. Note that Embassy Suites by Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton by Hilton, Tru by Hilton, Spark by Hilton, Homewood Suites by Hilton, Home2 Suites by Hilton, Hilton Grand Vacations, Motto by Hilton, Napua Tower at Grand Wailea, Imperial Floor at Rome Cavalieri, Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi, Conrad Maldives Rangali Island and Hilton Maldives Amingiri Resort & Spa don't offer complimentary upgrades.
You and up to one additional registered guest can select a $10-$25 food-and-beverage credit per night as a MyWay benefit at most brands in the U.S. This often isn't enough for an entire meal, but it can help offset the price of breakfast, drinks or dinner.
Unfortunately, most Hilton properties do not allow you to use the food-and-beverage credit cumulatively. So, for a four-night stay, you must use the credit daily rather than redeeming four nights' worth of food-and-beverage credits on one charge.
I usually choose breakfast as a MyWay benefit when it's an option. KATIE GENTER/THE POINTS GUY
Outside the U.S., Diamond members and up to one additional registered guest can select daily continental breakfast as a MyWay benefit at most brands.
In addition to the previously discussed food-and-beverage or continental breakfast perk, Hilton Diamond members receive access to the executive lounge at some properties. Within the U.S., executive lounges at Hilton properties are notoriously rare.
The executive lounge at Hilton Tokyo Bay. MATT MOFFITT/THE POINTS GUY
Still, this benefit can be nice to have. At some international properties, guests with Diamond status enjoy access to handsomely decorated club lounges with complimentary afternoon snacks, evening hors d'oeuvres, and alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages.
Hilton Diamond members enjoy a 100% bonus on the base points they earn from stays. This bonus means Hilton Diamond members get 10 extra points per dollar spent at most Hilton brands. However, Hilton Diamond members only get 5 additional points at Home2 Suites properties outside of China and Tru properties worldwide, as these brands earn at a lower rate.
HILTON GARDEN INN NEW YORK WEST 35TH STREET/FACEBOOK
If you stay at an Embassy Suites for $200 per night, you will earn an extra 2,000 Hilton points per night as a Hilton Diamond member. Based on TPG's November 2024 valuations, those extra points are worth about $12.
Members with Hilton Honors elite status receive everyfifth night free (up to four free nights per stay) when they book a standard-room award stay entirely with points.
HILTON.COM
Whether traveling to an expensive resort like the Conrad Bora Bora Nui in French Polynesia or a more modestly priced property (such as the one above), the fifth-night-free benefit can help you get more value from your Hilton points.
Select Hilton Diamond members who won't meet the standard requirements to qualify for Diamond status can request to extend their status for one year with Diamond status extension. Here's a look at the requirements for the Diamond status extension:
The guest must be a current Hilton Diamond member with status that will expire March 31 of the following year.
The guest must have held Diamond status for at least three years. (The years do not have to be consecutive, but years in which you used a status match to achieve Diamond status don't count.)
The guest must have stayed at least 250 nights with Hilton (paid and reward nights are both eligible) or earned at least 500,000 base points since joining Hilton Honors (points earned via bonuses, promotions, and cobranded credit cards don't count).
SOFIE DELAUW/GETTY IMAGES
You can request a Diamond status extension reminder here.
Hilton Diamond benefits can save you money and make your travels more enjoyable.
Some properties in Hilton's portfolio recognize members with Diamond elite status far more than others. Nonetheless, when you consider that Diamond status can instantly be yours as a primary cardholder of the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card (or after spending $40,000 in a calendar year on the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card), there's no wonder so many travelers have and enjoy Hilton Diamond status.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Surpass Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Hilton Honors Aspire Card, click here.
Comments
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
