Bilt Mastercard® Review: Earn Rewards on Your Rent

Note: The ability to apply for a Wells Fargo Bilt Mastercard was discontinued on November 5, 2025, and will be replaced by Bilt Card 2.0 on February 7, 2026. Existing cardholders can continue using their Bilt Mastercard through then and will be able to choose from three new card options, subject to approval via a soft credit pull. All points and Bilt membership remain the same.

For a long time, renters didn’t really have the option of paying rent with credit cards without the transaction fee.

Now that has changed with the arrival of the Bilt Mastercard®, which not only lets you pay your rent with a card, but also lets you earn points from your rent payments.

While you can connect any credit card to the Bilt Rewards system, you'll get the most value by having the branded Bilt Mastercard.

The card offers a higher rewards rate on your rent payments, plus you can earn points on dining and travel purchases, and it comes with features like travel insurance, flexible points transfers, and no foreign transaction fees.

Overview of Bilt Rewards

Earning credit card rewards is great, but some of us wish we could also put our rent on a credit card to earn even more points without the transaction fee. 

Enter Bilt Rewards, which offers you the opportunity to earn points on monthly rent payments. Rent is one of the biggest expenses for a lot of us, so that means you can quickly rack up Bilt Points, which you can then redeem for travel, fitness, or even student loan payments (with select servicers).

With Bilt, you pay your rent directly through their system — either through their resident portal if your building is part of Bilt's property network or through Bilt's own BillPay. You can connect any credit or debit card to your Bilt account, but there may be fees depending on the payment method used, which could cancel out some of the rewards you've earned.

To avoid paying those fees (and to earn more rewards), you could opt for the Bilt Mastercard.

Overview of the Bilt Mastercard

The Bilt Mastercard has no annual fee and earns you 1 point for every $1 spent on rent, versus the 1 point for every $2 you'd get with a non-Bilt credit card through the Bilt system. Plus, you don't have to pay any transaction fees on your rent payments.

The card also earns points on travel, dining, and Lyft rideshares, so if those are some of your main expenses, you can rack up even more points in addition to your monthly rent payments.

There is a catch: You'll have to use the card at least five times in each statement period to earn those points.

How To Earn Bilt Rewards 

Before applying for a Bilt Mastercard, remember that you'll need to make at least five transactions each statement period to earn points with this card — otherwise, you won’t earn any reward points. 

If you meet that minimum, purchases have at least a 1-point-per-dollar earning potential. Rent earns you 1x points, up to a maximum of 100,000 points in the calendar year. Plus, on “Rent Day” (the first of each month), points on all purchases except rent are doubled (up to a maximum of 1,000 bonus points), which is a fun perk.

Unlike other rewards programs, like Chase Ultimate Rewards® and American Express Membership Rewards®, you don't need a Bilt credit card to access Bilt Rewards — the program is free for anyone to sign up. You can also connect your Bilt Rewards app to your Rakuten account and convert cashback from Rakuten into Bilt Points.

However, you'll earn rewards even faster by also having the Bilt Mastercard.   

Bilt status levels

There are four status tiers to Bilt Rewards, based on how many qualifying points you earn in a calendar year from both rent and non-rent spending.

There's also a “Fast Track” system based on non-rent dollars spent on the Bilt Mastercard, as well as in the Bilt ecosystem, such as fitness classes booked through Bilt and at Bilt Dining restaurants with any card linked to your Bilt account.

Status Tier	Qualifying Points	Fast Track Spending
Blue	> 50,000 points	> $10,000
Silver	50,000 points	$10,000
Gold	125,000 points	$25,000
Platainum	200,000 points	$50,000

As you move up tiers, you get access to more exclusive features and offers from Bilt. For example, once you reach Silver status, you can earn interest on your points, and once you reach Gold, you can access hotel perks like room upgrades through Bilt's booking platform.

You don't necessarily need the Bilt Mastercard to move up tiers, but again, it's faster to earn rewards with the card.

How To Redeem Bilt Rewards

You can redeem Bilt Points in many ways, including to purchase fitness classes, book travel, and to instantly redeem for up to $10 in savings at checkout with Walmart, Walgreens, CVS, and CITGO.

Bilt Home Delivery, powered by Gopuff, lets you use Bilt Points for everyday items, with delivery in as fast as 15 minutes.

Plus, the Bilt Mastercard allows you to put rewards toward next month’s rent or toward a down payment on a home. 

You can also redeem Bilt Points on student loans serviced by Nelnet, MOHELA, Sallie Mae, Aidvantage, and Navient. Points can be redeemed directly toward eligible student loan payments through the Bilt website or mobile app. For every 1,000 points, you'll get $10 in redemption value.

There are other perks and benefits available with the Bilt Mastercard, like free shoe rentals for classes booked with points at SoulCycle, and Cellular Telephone Protection* when you pay your phone bill with the card. 

Travel benefits in particular are excellent:

• Book travel with points through the Bilt travel portal
• World Elite Mastercard Concierge Service* to assist with unique travel experiences
• Trip Cancellation and Interruption Protection*
• Trip Delay Reimbursement*
• Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver*
• Transfer points to over 20 travel partners, including Air France/KLM, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Japan Airlines, Qatar Airways, Southwest, Turkish Airlines, United, Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, World of Hyatt, and more

READ MORE: How To Transfer Your Bilt Points

Bilt also has its own platform for booking luxury accommodations, called Bilt Home Away from Home (only available to Gold and Platinum tiers). Bookings include privileges like:

• Room upgrade upon arrival (subject to availability)
• Daily breakfast for two
• Early check-in and late check-out (subject to availability)
• Exclusive $100 food & beverage credit (at select hotels)
• Additional benefits at select properties
• Bilt’s concierge platform, which includes access to a dedicated travel advisor

What We Like About the Bilt Mastercard 

One big feature of the Bilt Mastercard is that it’s truly unlike any other credit card out there. No other card lets you pay rent without incurring a transaction fee, and even using a third-party app like Plastiq means paying a fee. 

This card caters to renters, which is excellent because your rent may be eating up a large percentage of your budget. You can earn points on rent and even redeem points towards a credit on your next rent statement or towards a down payment on a home.

BiltProtect lets you pay rent without using your credit limit, by pulling the full rent payment directly from a linked bank account. 

Plus, the ability to use your points to help repay your student loans is a huge benefit. If your rent is $1,000 per month, that's $10 each month you could put towards your student debt.

What We Don’t Like About the Bilt Mastercard  

The Bilt Mastercard is a solid rewards card, as long you’re the target customer. But having to use the card five times each statement period may be a downside, especially if this isn’t your sole credit card. 

Another big downside is the lack of a welcome bonus. Welcome offers are often worth hundreds of dollars, even with no annual fee. So it's a bummer to not earn a welcome bonus with this card. 

While the rewards are certainly valuable, if you’re not renting, there are other cards with great earning potential on dining and travel.

Who Should Get the Bilt Mastercard? 

The ideal customer for the Bilt Mastercard is someone who wants to earn credit card rewards with their rent payments. With rent possibly being your highest recurring expense, earning 1x points on it is a huge deal. 

You also might want to consider this card if you’re saving up to buy a house. Putting your rewards toward your down payment on a home is one of the best ways to redeem Bilt Points. 

LEARN MORE: Bilt Rewards

Who Shouldn’t Get the Bilt Mastercard? 

It’s probably clear that you may not want the Bilt Mastercard if you don’t rent property, since the biggest draw of this card is the unique chance to earn rewards on rent without incurring transaction fees. 

While it’s an excellent card and Bilt Rewards are certainly valuable, if you’re not interested in things like fitness classes and redemptions toward a down payment on a home, you might look elsewhere. Other rewards cards offer similar earning potential on travel and dining. 

COMPARE: Best Rewards Credit Cards 

Alternatives to the Bilt Mastercard 

For comparable travel rewards and perks, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is one of our favorite options. 

Like the Bilt Mastercard, you’ll earn increased rewards on dining and travel, get coverage for trip delay or cancellation, and can transfer your points 1:1 to several travel partners.

While you won’t get the rent benefits that you get with Bilt, the Sapphire Preferred does come with a generous welcome offer.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card is a great travel card for both beginners and experienced points collectors, since it has a low fee and lets you transfer points to several hotels and airlines at a 1:1 ratio. 

For travel perks, it outshines the Bilt Mastercard for lounge access (two complimentary passes per year) and a credit to help with the cost of TSA PreCheck® or Global Entry.

However, it does charge a fee and doesn’t have as robust travel insurance coverage. 

FAQs

Bottom Line: Is the Bilt Mastercard Worth It?

If you're a renter, Bilt Rewards can help you earn rewards on your rent payments, while also helping you to boost your credit score by reporting your rent payments to the credit bureaus.

Even though you can connect any credit card to your Bilt account, you'll get the most benefit by having the Bilt Mastercard. It comes with plenty of travel perks, like no foreign transaction fees, travel coverage, and the ability to transfer Bilt Points to travel partners like Cathay Pacific, Turkish Airlines, United, Southwest, Marriott, and IHG.

There are other travel credit cards out there that offer even more benefits (like lounge access and TSA PreCheck), but those cards typically come with an annual fee.

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* Please review the Bilt World Elite Mastercard® Credit Card Guide to Benefits for details.

Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. This content has not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of the entities included within the post.