IHG Credit Card Welcome Offer: Earn 140,000 Bonus Points

The IHG Rewards Premier Business Credit Card is a brand-new business credit card from Chase designed for business owners who want to earn hotel rewards on their purchases. This is the first IHG business credit card offered, and it’s packed with benefits and a valuable welcome offer.

First, once you’re approved for the card, you can earn up to 140,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on qualifying purchases in the first three months from account opening.

The card comes several benefits, including:

• Cardmembers earn a Free Night certificate on their account anniversary date each year.
• Automatic IHG® Rewards Platinum Elite status, with potential to earn Diamond Elite after spending $40,000 on qualifying purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year.
• Earn 10,000 bonus points and a $100 statement credit after spending $20,000 on qualifying purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year.
• $100 credit towards enrolling in either Global Entry or TSA PreCheck
• Up to $50 United® TravelBank Cash each calendar year to use on United Airlines
• World Elite Mastercard for Business benefits which include a 24/7 complimentary business assistant and access to Mastercard Priceless experiences

As you spend on the card, you will earn:

• Up to 26X IHG points per dollar spent on stays at IHG Hotels & Resorts
• 5X IHG points per dollar spent on travel and at gas stations, restaurants and dining, social media and search engine advertising and at office supply stores
• 3X IHG points per dollar spent on all other purchases

This means after spending $3,000 for the welcome offer, you’ll have at least 149,000 IHG points. And with many travel rewards experts valuing IHG points at one-half cent per point (.005), you’ll have approximately $750 in rewards to spend on hotel rooms.

The card has a modest $99 annual fee.

The IHG® Rewards Premier Credit Card offers very similar benefits compared to the business card.

Once you’re approved for the card, you can earn up to 140,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 on qualifying purchases in the first three months from account opening — the same bonus as the business card.

The card comes with the following benefits:

• Cardmembers earn an Anniversary Free Night certificate on their account anniversary date each year
• Automatic IHG® Rewards Platinum Elite status, with potential to earn Diamond Elite after spending $40,000 on qualifying purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year
• Earn 10,000 bonus points and a $100 statement credit after spending $20,000 on qualifying purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year
• Up to $50 United® TravelBank Cash each calendar year – Cardmembers can use TravelBank Cash on United Airlines purchases
• Travel insurance
• World Elite Mastercard benefits

As you spend on the card, you will earn:

• Up to 26X IHG points per dollar spent on stays at IHG® Hotels & Resorts
• 5X IHG points per dollar spent on travel
• 5X IHG points per dollar spent on dining and at gas stations
• 3X IHG points per dollar spent on all other purchases

The update to the card also comes with a small hike in annual fee — from $89 to $99.

The IHG® Rewards Traveler Credit Card is a slight step-down from the Premier cards, but still offers great value for occasional travelers.

As you get started with this card, you can earn 120,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 on qualifying purchases in the first three months from account opening.

With this card, you’ll have:

• Automatic IHG Silver Elite status
• Pathway to elite status – Cardmembers can now earn IHG® Rewards Gold Elite status after spending $20,000 on purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year.
• 10,000 bonus points after spending $10,000 on purchases and making one additional purchase each calendar year.
• World Mastercard benefits
• Travel insurance coverage
• Free DashPass membership for DoorDash orders.  Activate by March 31, 2022
• No foreign transaction fees

As you spend on the card, you will earn:

• Up to 17X IHG points on stays at IHG® Hotels & Resorts
• 3X IHG points per dollar spent on utilities, internet, cable, phone, and select streaming services
• 3X IHG points per dollar spent on dining and at gas stations
• 2X IHG points per dollar spent on all other purchases

The card has no annual fee.

In addition, you may consider signing up for a credit card with transferable rewards to IHG like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card. When you earn Chase Ultimate Rewards®, you can transfer them directly to IHG at a 1:1 ratio, plus a number of other airline and hotel partners for added flexibility. This is a great strategy to use in case your rewards balance needs a few thousand more points to lock in a reservation.

However, as you’re planning your travels, it’s important to keep in mind your IHG rewards have value to them. Many travel rewards experts online value each IHG point at one-half cent. So if you’re spending 30,000 points on a room, the cash price should be roughly $150. It isn’t a ‘requirement’ per se, but you should spend your points akin to how you spend money.

Lastly, one strategy to maximize your points is to save enough points for a four-night trip. When you use your IHG points to pay for an entire four-night stay, the fourth night is completely free — however this perk is only available to IHG credit card holders. So if your room costs 30,000 points per night for four nights, your entire stay will only cost 90,000 points, instead of 120,000 points.

The new IHG business credit card, as well as the elevated bonuses on its consumer cards are solid hotel credit cards to earn rewards for your next vacation. With modest annual fees, solid benefits and a wide variety of hotel properties you can redeem rewards at — these cards are a great fit for nearly many travelers. However, just be sure you’re able to earn these welcome offers responsibly.