Of the three new Bilt 2.0 cards launched in February, the $95-annual-fee Bilt Obsidian Card (see rates and fees) most resembles the now-discontinued Bilt Mastercard®. Cardholders earn elevated rewards on travel and either dining or groceries, plus rewards on rent or mortgage payments with no transaction fee.
However, the new rewards system is more complicated than the old one and requires you to put a significant portion of your non-housing spend on the card. This change is great if you're willing to commit to Bilt, but less ideal if you're a rewards optimizer and like to mix and match multiple cards. Here's what to know.
The Bilt Obsidian Card offers 3X Bilt Points on key everyday categories, like groceries (up to $25,000 per year) or dining (your 3X category choice remains in effect for the entire calendar year), plus comes with a $100 Bilt Travel Portal hotel credit (split semi-annually each calendar year).
- Earns ultra-valuable flexible rewards
- Can earn up to 1.25X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee
- High return on dining or grocery purchases
- Additional steps for no-fee rent payments
- Cap on earning bonus Bilt points for groceries
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn up to 1.25X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee.
- 3X points on your choice of grocery (up to $25K/year) or dining. Your 3X category choice remains in effect for the entire calendar year.
- 2X points on travel
- 1X points on everyday spend
- Welcome offer: $200 of Bilt Cash when you apply and get approved. At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- $100 Bilt Travel Hotel credit. Applied twice a year, as $50 statement credits, for qualifying Bilt Travel Portal hotel bookings.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.
- Earn additional points through Bilt Neighborhood Benefits™ when you use your card at Bilt's network of 50,000+ merchant partners.
Balance transfer fee
Greater of 5% or $5
Welcome bonus
New cardholders can earn $200 in Bilt Cash upon approval. At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
Benefits and perks
The Bilt Obsidian offers $100 in Bilt Travel Hotel credits each year (issued as two $50 semiannual credits) for qualifying bookings of two nights or longer through the Bilt Travel portal.
Cardholders also get travel and purchase protections*, including:
- Cellular Wireless Telephone Protection
- Purchase Assurance
- Extended Warranty coverage on items with an original warranty of 24 months or less
- MasterRental Coverage (secondary rental car coverage in the U.S.)
- Trip Delay Reimbursement
- Common Carrier Trip Cancellation and Interruption Protection
- Lost or Damaged Luggage
Finally, cardholders also get World Elite Mastercard benefits, like concierge service, and Bilt Rewards membership benefits, like free fitness classes and Rent Day offers.
*A maximum benefit amount and certain restrictions and limitations apply. Please review the Mastercard Guide to Benefits for details: https://www.biltrewards.com/terms/obsidian-card-guide-to-benefits.
How to earn and redeem Bilt Points
Bilt has two rewards currencies, Bilt Points and Bilt Cash, each with different earning and redemption options.
Earning
The Bilt Obsidian earns:
- 3X points on your choice of dining or grocery (up to $25,000 in purchases per year for the grocery category, then 1X)
- 2X points on travel
- 1X points on other eligible purchases
Rewards on housing are more complicated. You can earn points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee through one of two options:
Option 1 (housing-only option):
With this option, you can earn up to 1.25X points on housing, with the rewards rate determined by the ratio of your everyday spend compared to your housing payment amount. The minimum you earn on housing is a flat 250 points, and the maximum you can earn is 1.25X points per dollar. You won't earn Bilt Cash on everyday spend with this option.
Bilt 2.0 housing payment option 1
| Points earned on housing payment | Minimum everyday spend as a % of monthly rent/mortgage (Example $2,000 rent) |
|---|---|
| 0.5X points | Minimum of 25% of monthly payment ($500) |
| 0.75X points | Minimum of 50% of monthly payment ($1,000) |
| 1.0X points | Minimum of 75% of monthly payment ($1,500) |
| 1.25X points | 100% or more of monthly payment ($2,000+) |
Source: Bilt Rewards
Option 2 (flexible Bilt Cash):
This second option earns up to 1.25X points per dollar on housing payments, but you need to redeem Bilt Cash to earn the points ($30 Bilt Cash per 1,000 Bilt Points, or 3% of the payment in Bilt Cash). You also earn 4% Bilt Cash on all eligible non-housing spend (on top of Bilt Points earned).
Bilt 2.0 housing payment option 2
| Points earned on housing payments | Up to 1X Bilt points |
| Bilt Cash earned on Bilt card spending | 4% Bilt Cash on every purchase |
| Bilt Cash cost to earn points on housing payments | 3% of payment amount ($30 Bilt Cash per 1,000 Bilt Points) |
Tip: You can change your housing rewards selection at any time, and the change will take effect the following billing cycle. We explain how these two housing rewards systems work in more detail within our Bilt Rewards guide.
Redeeming
Bilt Points don't expire and can be redeemed for:
- 1:1 point transfers to hotel and airline partners (best value)
- Travel bookings through the Bilt Travel portal
- Student loan payments
- Rent credits
- Statement credits
- Gift cards, merchandise, fitness classes and more
Bilt Cash can be redeemed for:
- "Unlocking" Bilt Points on housing payments with the Flexible Bilt Cash option
- Hotel bookings in the Bilt Travel portal
- Third-party merchant credits (Lyft, Walgreens and more)
- Fitness classes, comedy experiences and merchandise purchases in the Bilt app
- Point accelerator: Spend $200 in Bilt Cash to earn an extra 1X Bilt Points per dollar on up to $5,000 in eligible purchases, on top of your card's regular rewards (up to 5 activations annually; expires after $5,000 everyday spend or calendar year-end)
Monthly redemption limits and additional terms apply for some options. Bilt Cash expires at the end of the calendar year in which you earned it, but up to $100 of unused Bilt Cash automatically rolls over into the next year.
Bilt transfer partners
Bilt has 23 transfer partners – 18 airlines and five hotels:
Bilt Rewards transfer partners
| Bilt Rewards transfer partners |
|---|
| Avianca Lifemiles |
| Atmos Rewards (Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines) |
| Air Canada Aeroplan |
| Aer Lingus Aer Club |
| Accor Live Limitless (3:2) |
| British Airways Club |
| Cathay Pacific Cathy |
| Iberia Club |
| Etihad Guest |
| Emirates Skywards |
| Flying Blue (Air France and KLM) |
| Hilton Honors |
| IHG One Rewards |
| Japan Airlines JAL Mileage Bank |
| Mariott Bonvoy |
| Qatar Airways Privilege Club |
| Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards |
| Air Portugal TAP Miles&Go |
| Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles |
| United Airlines MileagePlus |
| World of Hyatt |
| Wyndham Rewards |
| Virgin Red |
Rates and fees
The Bilt Obsidian Card charges a $95 annual fee (see rates and fees), plus $50 for each authorized user. There are no foreign transaction fees.
The card has a 10% introductory APR on new purchases for the first 12 billing cycles after account opening. The regular variable APR is 26.74% to 34.74%.
Card comparison
Bilt Obsidian vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Like the Bilt Obsidian, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) has a $95 annual fee, an annual hotel credit and lots of travel benefits.
The Sapphire Preferred earns 5X points on Chase TravelSM purchases; 3X points on dining, online grocery purchases (excluding Walmart, Target and wholesale club) and select streaming services; 2X points on travel and 1X points on everything else.
It's a good alternative for anyone who likes the Bilt Obsidian's travel perks and rewards structure on non-housing purchases, but prefers a more established card from a major financial institution.
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card packs a punch for a $95 annual fee card, offering annual travel credits, comprehensive travel protections and more.
- You can transfer rewards to all of Chase's travel partners including World of Hyatt, Southwest Rapid Rewards and many more
- Long list of travel and shopping protections
- $50 annual Chase Travel hotel credit
- Has an annual fee
- Requires a high credit score
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn 75,000 bonus points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
- Enjoy benefits such as 5x on travel purchased through Chase TravelSM, 3x on dining, select streaming services and online groceries, 2x on all other travel purchases, 1x on all other purchases
- Earn up to $50 in statement credits each account anniversary year for hotel stays through Chase TravelSM
- 10% anniversary points boost - each account anniversary you'll earn bonus points equal to 10% of your total purchases made the previous year.
- Count on Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Lost Luggage Insurance and more.
- Complimentary DashPass which unlocks $0 delivery fees & lower service fees for a min. of one year when you activate by 12/31/27. Plus, a $10 promo each month on non-restaurant orders.
- Member FDIC
Balance transfer fee
Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater
Bilt Obsidian vs. Bilt Blue Card
The Bilt Blue Card (see rates and fees) is Bilt's only no-annual-fee card, earning 1X points on all non-housing purchases. Its housing rewards structure is the same as the Bilt Obsidian.
Though less rewarding than the Bilt Obsidian and many no-annual-fee credit cards from competitors, the Bilt Blue is the only card that lets you earn up to 1.25X points on rent or mortgage payments for no annual fee and with the potential for no transaction fee.
In addition to its rewards rate, the Bilt Blue comes with perks like no foreign transaction fees, cellular wireless telephone protection and a $100 Bilt Cash bonus upon approval. At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
The Bilt Blue Card offers a solid entry card to the world of Bilt, offering 1X on everyday purchases without charging an annual fee.
- Earns ultra-valuable flexible rewards
- No annual fee
- Can earn up to 1.25X points on rent and mortgage payments
- Additional steps for no-fee rent payments
- Bilt Cash redemptions are complicated
Highlights
Highlights shown here are provided by the issuer and have not been reviewed by CNBC Select's editorial staff.
- Earn up to 1.25X points on rent and mortgage payments with no transaction fee.
- 1X points on everyday spend
- Welcome offer: $100 of Bilt Cash when you apply and get approved. At the end of each calendar year, any Bilt Cash balance over $100 will expire.
- Bilt Point redemptions include airlines, hotels, future rent and mortgage payments, Lyft rides, statement credits, student loan balances, a down payment on a home, and more.
- Earn additional points through Bilt Neighborhood Benefits™ when you use your card at Bilt's network of 50,000+ merchant partners.
- Other benefits: No foreign transaction fees, Cellular Wireless Telephone Protection, Purchase Assurance, MasterRental Coverage (See Guide to Benefits)
Balance transfer fee
Greater of 5% or $5
Is the Bilt Obsidian Card worth it?
The Bilt Obsidian is one of the few cards that let you earn rewards on rent or mortgage payments with no transaction fee. But to do so in any meaningful capacity, you'll need to put significant non-housing spend on the card.
The card's bonus categories, including travel and either dining or groceries, will likely be useful for many people, but it's not a great choice if you don't spend a lot on those categories.
If you like to mix and match multiple cards for maximum rewards, do some careful math to determine whether earning points on housing with the Bilt Obsidian is worth the opportunity cost of additional rewards on everyday spending from competing cards with higher rewards rates.
In other words, you'll likely need to make the Bilt Obsidian your primary card for spending to get the most out of it, but it can be very rewarding for the right spender.
Money matters — so make the most of it. Get expert tips, strategies, news and everything else you need to maximize your money, right to your inbox. Sign up here.
Why trust CNBC Select?
At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every credit card review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit card products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics.
Catch up on CNBC Select's in-depth coverage of credit cards, banking and money, and follow us on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and X to stay up to date.
