Bilt Rewards will now let you pay your rent with more credit cards — is it worth it?
TPG founder Brian Kelly is a Bilt adviser and investor.
Continuing to break the mold of traditional rewards programs, Bilt Rewards has once again raised the bar and added a new feature for renters. As a Bilt member, if you pay rent, you can now pay this expense with other credit cards aside from the Bilt Mastercard® (see rates and fees). Therefore, you can double dip and earn Bilt Points and the rewards offered on your card. But, before you start swiping your credit card, there is a catch.
Keep reading to find out more about Bilt's latest rent feature and if it's worth it.
Related: Bilt Rewards program: Guide to earning points on rent, transfer bonuses, dining and more
Earn Bilt points: You can now pay rent with any credit card
With no transaction fees on rent payments (see rates and fees), paying rent with the Bilt Mastercard is an easy way to earn transferable points. Renters can earn 1 point per dollar spent on rent (up to 100,000 points annually) as long as at least five transactions are made on the card each billing cycle (see rewards and benefits).
However, if you don't have the Bilt card, the rewards program now lets you pay your rent with more credit cards. In a press release, Bilt announced that Visa, Mastercard and Discover cardholders will earn 1 Bilt point per dollar spent, in addition to the rewards your individual card earns. For Amex cardholders, you'll earn 1 Bilt point for every $2 spent, in addition to the rewards your card earns.
Unfortunately, starting July 21, all cards will drop to earning 1 Bilt point per $2 spent on rent. This doesn't affect the rewards you earn with your credit card, but it's a big hit to the value proposition of paying rent with Bilt.
But there is a drawback to using a credit card aside from the Bilt card — you will incur a 3% transaction fee for third-party cards used on rent payments. So, with a 3% fee, is it worth it? Well, it depends on which card you use.
Let's say your rent is $2,000, and you decide to pay it with your Citi Double Cash® Card (see rates and fees). Since you will be charged a 3% transaction fee, you will pay $2,060 out of pocket and earn 1,000 Bilt points after July 21. Additionally, since the Citi Double Cash Card offers 2% cash back on every purchase (1% cash back when you buy, plus an additional 1% as you pay for those purchases), you will earn about $41 cash back from your card.
Bilt points are worth 2.05 cents apiece per our May 2025 valuations, so you'll earn $20 of value in Bilt points and $41 cash back from your Citi card — for a total of about $61 in value in this scenario. If you subtract the $60 fee (from the 3% transaction fee), you'll have gained just $1 in value. That said, you might get more value from the cash back earned with your Citi Double Cash if you also have a premium Citi card, as you can turn your cash back into transferable points.
Likewise, it's important to note that TPG's valuation is based on transferring your Bilt points to one of its 18 airline and hotel partners to maximize their value. If you redeem your 1,000 Bilt points for cash back at 1 cent per point, you're only getting a return of $10 in rewards. Therefore, your Citi card rewards plus your Bilt points are worth $41. This would not be the best option as you would have paid $60 to earn just $41 in value.
So, it's important to note what card you use to pay your rent and ensure that you maximize the value you get from your Bilt points. Even with the lower-earning rate rolling out at the end of July, it might be worth paying your rent with a credit card that helps you make progress toward elite status goals or a new welcome bonus.
Earning Bilt points can unlock more rewards
Aside from transferring your points to Bilt's airline and hotel partners to book travel, you can earn elite status with Bilt by meeting the following point thresholds:
- Blue: Basic membership
- Silver: 50,000 Bilt points
- Gold: 125,000 Bilt points
- Platinum: 200,000 Bilt points
As you unlock elite status, you'll earn access to better Rent Day promotions, such as bonus transfers. Most recently, Bilt offered an up-to-100% transfer bonus with Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards.
Related: What is Bilt Rewards Rent Day?
Bottom line
Bilt is all about adding flexibility for its members. In March, the program announced a new rent payment platform, BillPay by Bilt, and teased the possibility of earning rewards on mortgage payments. With the latest addition, Bilt is continuing to roll out new features and enhance its program to make it more user-friendly for those wanting to earn rewards with Bilt but not be tied to opening a credit card to use Bilt's loyalty program.
See Bilt Mastercard rates and fees here.
See Bilt Mastercard rewards and benefits here.