If you have upcoming travel to any of IHG’s brands — which include Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express, Crowne Plaza, Kimpton, InterContinental and Hotel Indigo — an IHG cobranded card can save you hundreds of dollars year after year.
And that’s not even factoring in these juicy welcome bonuses.
Let’s examine these welcome offers and determine which IHG One Rewards card is best for you.
IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card
Sign-up bonus: New cardholders earn 140,000 bonus points after spending $3,000 in the first three months from account opening
According to TPG’s October 2024 valuations, this bonus is worth up to $700. This is the standard welcome offer we typically see on this card.
Annual fee: $99
Earning rate: 10 points per dollar on IHG stays, 5 points per dollar on all other travel, 5 points per dollar on dining (including takeout and eligible delivery services) and gas stations, as well as 3 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
Why we like it: This card comes with a free night worth up to 40,000 points on each account anniversary and the option to top off your reward to redeem it for a more valuable night. Other important perks include automatic IHG Platinum Elite status (with a pathway to Diamond), up to $50 of United TravelBank cash per calendar year, reimbursement for your application fee to Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus every four years and more — all for a $99 annual fee.
Factoring in the card’s fourth-night-free perk (when you use points to pay for three nights and get the fourth as a bonus), you could get up to 20 award nights at IHG hotels with this one sign-up bonus. Reward nights start at just 10,000 points apiece, ranging from practical options in the U.S. to lodgings abroad in Berlin, Brazil and beyond.
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For more details, see our full review of the IHG Premier card.
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card
IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card
Sign-up bonus: New cardholders can earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $2,000 in the first three months from account opening
According to TPG’s October 2024 valuations, this bonus is worth $500. This offer is slightly below the best-ever welcome offer we have seen on the card but meets our criteria for when to apply.
Annual fee: $0
Earning rate: 5 points per dollar on IHG stays, 3 points per dollar on utilities, internet, cable, phone and select streaming services, 3 points per dollar on dining (including takeout and eligible delivery services) and gas stations as well as 2 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
Why we like it: IHG’s no-annual-fee card, the IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card, offers automatic Silver Elite status and the ability to get a fourth night free on bookings where you pay with points. Plus, the current sign-up bonus is solid for a card with no up-front, yearly cost.
For more details, see our full review of the IHG Traveler card.
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card
IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
Sign-up bonus: Earn 140,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months from account opening. TPG’s October 2024 valuations peg the 140,000 IHG points at $700.
Annual fee: $99
Earning rate: 10 points per dollar on IHG stays, 5 points per dollar on travel, dining, gas, social media and search engine advertising and at office supply stores, as well as 3 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
Why we like it: The IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card mimics many of the same great perks on the consumer version — the IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card.
For instance, the annual free night award (worth up to 40,000 points) can be topped off with an unlimited number of points, and you’ll also enjoy elite perks thanks to automatic IHG Platinum elite status. Cardholders will also receive an additional free night award worth up to 40,000 points (that can also be topped off with additional points) after spending $60,000 each calendar year.
Other benefits include reimbursement for your application fee to Global Entry, TSA PreCheck or Nexus once every four years, a fourth night free on award stays and up to $50 of United TravelBank credit each calendar year.
For more details, see our full review of the IHG Business card.
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
Reasons to get an IHG One Rewards card beyond the bonus
Earning a chunk of bonus points for adding a new card to your wallet is very enticing, but these three cards offer a lot of potential value beyond that initial haul of points.
Elite status
Every IHG One Rewards card offers some level of automatic elite status.
For example, IHG One Rewards Premier and IHG One Rewards Premier Business cardholders will earn automatic IHG Platinum Elite status. You should be able to recoup the $99 annual fee on the consumer or business version of the Premier card if you spend more than a few nights a year at IHG properties.
Fourth-night-reward benefit
All IHG One Rewards cardholders automatically get a fourth consecutive night reward. In short, the fourth night is complimentary when you redeem points for stays of four or more.
This benefit’s value depends on your travel style. This isn’t very useful for travelers who only book short hotel stays, but it can be incredibly worthwhile for travelers who stay long enough to utilize this perk. And this benefit has no cap on how many points you can save.
TPG’s October 2024 valuations peg IHG points at 0.5 cents each. Thus, a single fourth-night reward stay at a 20,000-point property saves you $100 worth of IHG points.
Category bonuses
The IHG One Rewards cards help you rack up points fast, thanks to their bonus categories — including gas, which can be an expensive recurring purchase for many households.
But it gets better than that. Since the IHG One Rewards Premier and the IHG One Rewards Premier Business grant you automatic Platinum Elite status, you’ll also earn a 60% points bonus on IHG hotel stays. IHG One Rewards members earn 10 points per dollar spent at most properties, so the 60% elite bonus provides 16 points per dollar at IHG properties. Add that to the 10 points per dollar you earn with the card and you’ll get 26 points total per dollar spent on the card on IHG hotel stays.
20% discount on buying points
Finally, if you need to top off your IHG points balance, you can get a 20% discount when you buy points with your card. Combined with the ability to top off free night certificates, this perk could be handy if you’re looking to save up your awards for aspirational stays.
Application rules
You can have multiple IHG credit cards but know that the IHG One Rewards cards, like all other Chase cards, are subject to Chase’s 5/24 rule. This means if you’ve opened five or more personal credit card accounts across all banks in the last 24 months, Chase is unlikely to approve you.
Note that you also aren’t eligible if any of these exclusions apply to you:
- For personal cards: If you currently have a personal IHG One Rewards credit card (which includes the legacy IHG One Rewards Select Credit Card that’s no longer available to new applicants) or if you received a bonus on any personal IHG credit card in the past 24 months.
- For the IHG Business card: You received a new cardmember bonus on this card in the last 24 months.
Related: The ultimate guide to credit card application restrictions
Bottom line
Even casual travelers can benefit from an IHG credit card thanks to the automatic elite status and free-night certificate you earn each year. And once you factor in these solid welcome offers, now could be a great time to apply.
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Traveler Credit Card
Apply here: IHG One Rewards Premier Business Credit Card
