Wyndham has launched new rewards cards with Barclays, making their lineup richer but also more Amex-like: bigger bonuses, higher annual fees, coupon credits, and redemption discounts. It remains to be seen how well that will work with Wyndham’s customers, the way it does with American Express’s.
The Business card remains the most interesting product, but it lost the old magic last year because card-earned Wyndham Diamond no longer gets you Caesars Diamond and the associated benefits and credits there.
The new $395 Premier is a tough sell, though there’s a use case for people who will use Wyndham points at 30,000-point all-inclusive resorts and can use the bundled credits without going through too much effort. The no-fee card is meaningfully better than before, but if you’re getting a no annual fee card this shouldn’t be the one. The Plus is marginally better.
- Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier $395 annual fee with an initial bonus up to 120,000 points (90k after $6,000 spend in 120 days + 30k after $750 spend at Wyndham in 180 days). It earns 8x at Wyndham; 4x on dining, grocery, travel including gas, EV charging, air, car rental, rideshare, tolls, trains; 1x on other spend.
The card offers 25% off free night awards; Points Payback (redeem points for statement credits); 30k anniversary points after renewal annual fee; Diamond status; no points expiration; National Car Rental Executive status; a $100 Wyndham credit; up to $120 rebate on meal delivery; up to $100 on streaming; $65 warehouse credit; Global Entry/TSA PreCheck; 30k points after five nights annually.
- Wyndham Earner Business $149 annual fee with an initial bonus to 100,000 points (45k after spending $3,000 in 90 days + 55k after $500 spend at Wyndham in 180 days). It earns 8x Wyndham; 5x gas, EV charging, marketing, advertising, office supply, shipping; 1x other spend.
The card offers 20% off free nights; Points Payback; 15k anniversary points after renewal annual fee; Diamond status; National Car Rental Executive status; $65 warehouse credit and up to $50 accounting software credits.
- Wyndham Earner Plus $95 annual fee with an initial bonus up to 100,000 points (45k after $1,000 spend in 90 days + 55k after $500 spend at Wyndham in 180 days). It earns 6x Wyndham; 4x dining, grocery, travel including gas/EV/air/rental/rideshare/tolls/trains; 1x other.
The card offers 10% off free nights; Points Payback; 15k anniversary points after renewal annual fee; Diamond status the first year, then Platinum; National Car Rental Executive status; up to $50 meal delivery credit; 15k points after five nights annually.
- Wyndham Earner No annual fee with an initial bonus up to 75,000 points (30k after $1,000 spend in 90 days + 45k after $500 spend at Wyndham in 180 days). It earns 5x Wyndham; 3x dining, grocery, gas, EV charging; 1x other.
The card offers 10% off free nights, Gold status; 7,500 anniversary points after $15,000 spend.
The no annual fee card is mostly better. It gives up 5x on gas but dining and grocery improve, EV charging is added, and the initial bonus more than doubles.
The $95 annual fee card is $20 more expensive but annual points double from 7,500 to 15,000. If the card makes sense before, keeping it makes sense now. The initial bonus rises to 100k, it adds Diamond for year one, National Executive, meal delivery credits, and 15k after five nights. Gas falls from 6x to 4x, though the category bonuses overall improve.
Earner Business annual fee goes up $54, the initial bonus more than doubles, and the redemption discount improves from 10% to 20%, and it adds credits and National Executive status. But the current Business card earns 8x on gas and 5x on utilities, so 5x gas is a loss and office supplies and shipping replaces. utilities.
The premium Premier card is new and I just don’t see it for the price, honestly. The 30,000 anniversary points and $100 Wyndham credit can mostly cover the fee, but there’s just not a lot of upside for the investment. The business card is the better value, even with its annual fee increase.
Wyndham’s redemption program uses three hotel free night tiers at 7,500 / 15,000 / 30,000 points per bedroom per night. That’s not nearly as good as it used to be, and Vacasa redemptions are gone, but it means that at peak times during special events you can still get outsized value.
I value Wyndham points at around 7/10ths of a cent apiece, so these are just not top earning cards. 8x at Wyndham is good (I’d still prefer Sapphire Reserve 4x).
The business card is still good if you can generate bonus category spend and redeem at 30k properties like Wyndham Grand Cancun All Inclusive Resort & Villas; Wyndham Grand Barbados Sam Lords Castle All Inclusive Resort; Wyndham Grand Rio Mar Rainforest Beach and Golf Resort Puerto Rico; and Wyndham Grand Crete Mirabello Bay.
You can also link your Wyndham account to Caesars Rewards. Caesars points are worth a penny apiece. They allow you to transfer up to 30,000 points a year from one account to the other. So you get about 50% better redemption value for a capped number of points each year this way.
Ultimately, I have a hard time arguing these Wyndham cards are better than other hotel cards. The Premier could be ok for Wyndham loyalists who redeem at top tier resorts that naturally use the card’s credits. But it’s an expensive card for what it delivers.
The business card is still the best Wyndham cobrand, giving you Diamond, a 20% award discount, an anniversary bonus that covers about two-thirds of the card’s annual fee, and strong 5x accelerator categories.
The Plus card is decent for casual guests but I think you can do a lot better at the price point. Get a Sapphire Preferred Card or a Citi Strata Premier! Although the card is better than it used to be. Meanwhile, the no annual fee card is fine… but hardly the no annual fee card you should get and use everyday (get Bilt Blue).
Bottom-line is that Wyndham made the cards richer, but the most beloved benefit — easy Caesars Diamond from the Business card — is long gone. If you’ve read all the way to the bottom, here are secrets behind how Wyndham Rewards actually works.
Wyndham is getting more interesting, these days; like, they aren’t just La Quinta and Days Inn, anymore. They seem to be investing in premium properties in underserved transit hubs; there’s a new Wyndham Grand at the new LIM terminal in Peru (useful for overnights before or after heading out to Machu Picchu or the Amazon). Plus, their mascot is Tormund (from GoT), which is, I guess, an ‘upgrade’ from Travelodge’s Sleepy Bear. While Marriott and Hyatt seem determined to squeeze or alienate their loyal elites, there’s a real opening for a dark horse like Wyndham to capture them. Reminds me of the opportunity BILT has in the wake of Amex and Chase butchering their cards…
Is there a date when renewals are effective for increased annual fee?
Now at $149 and the noted bonus kategory downgrades, the biz cc is a tuf ask at renewal time. The 20% rebate – 5th nite free if desired – is solid if one will have five+ guaranteed Wyndham stays over a cm year. The all-inclusive angle may work for families.
Thanks Gary for the link on your previous article on Wyndham Rewards actually works. It’s the most informative piece on Wyndham I’ve seen and I refer folks to it to learn more about Wyndham Rewards.
I will keep my Business card for the 5X on Gas/EV charging but the loss of multiplier on utilities is a massive blow. The warehouse & software coupons may soften the blow but don’t make up what I was earning there. I would’ve like to see a 4th or 5th night free for cardholders and the $395 card is a hard pass.