My Bilt Palladium mid-year update: What's changed since January

When Bilt announced its revamped card suite at the start of 2026, I decided to go all in on one of its new offerings: the premium Bilt Palladium Card (see rates and fees).

Now that we've passed the midpoint of the year, I decided to check in on my Bilt-focused strategy. Good news: I've earned over 130,000 Bilt Points in the last 180 days with this card (that carries a $495 annual fee).

I've had plenty of success leveraging the Bilt program, even while taking a quick detour for another card and keeping up with the statement credits from the other cards in my wallet. Let's dive into the details of how I made it happen.

How I've earned over 130,000 Bilt points in six months

Bilt is widely known as the platform for earning rewards on your housing spending, and that has always been one of my favorite parts of the program. But there's much more to the Bilt Palladium than Bilt Points on rent.

Using Point Accelerator

The Bilt Palladium earns 2 points per dollar spent on most everyday purchases (tax payments do not earn points) and 4% Bilt Cash (up to $100 of Bilt Cash earned rolls over each year).

But I've used the Point Accelerator feature to boost my earnings to 3 points per dollar spent on most purchases, which has made a huge impact on my earnings this year.

To use Point Accelerator, you'll need to redeem $200 in Bilt Cash to earn 3 points per dollar spent (up to 5,000 points per boost; your boost will expire at the end of the calendar year if you don't redeem it before then). You can do this up to five times each year.

I'm on my fourth boost, and I have $3,351 more to spend by the end of the year before it expires. I've already boosted spending by $16,649 this year. I expect to max this out before the year ends.

A high-spending year — including rent

It's been a high-spending year for my fiancé and me. We recently got engaged, hosted an engagement party and put down a deposit on a wedding venue. We've also spent plenty of time on the road (and in the air) visiting friends and family for weddings, parties and events.

In the past 180 days, we have put $36,188 on the Bilt Palladium, which has netted us 138,118 points. Rent has been our largest spending category. We've earned 1 point per dollar spent on our housing by redeeming Bilt Cash.

Leveraging the Bilt ecosystem

I'm also pleased with the number of points we've earned organically through the Bilt ecosystem. I still earn Bilt points even when I don't use the Palladium, since most of my outside cards are linked to my Bilt account.

When I dine at a restaurant included in the Bilt Dining program or attend a class with one of Bilt's fitness partners, I earn Bilt points even if I don't use my Palladium, as long as that card is linked.

You don't need a Bilt card to earn Bilt points within its ecosystem. You can set up a free Bilt account, link any of your cards, and earn Bilt points that way.

Bilt Palladium welcome bonus

Finally, I earned 50,000 points with the Bilt Palladium's welcome bonus after spending $4,000 on nonhousing purchases in the first 90 days from account opening. This gave me a solid start this year.

Why choosing Bilt Cash over housing-only rewards has paid off

When I first learned that Bilt would offer two options for earning points on housing (Bilt Cash or housing-only), I thought the housing-only tiered rewards system would work best for me.

In practice, I learned I actually preferred earning Bilt Cash on all of my Bilt Palladium purchases. As mentioned above, I've consistently used Bilt Cash to boost my Bilt points-earning. I've also used Bilt Cash to reduce the price on hotel stays I've booked through the Bilt Travel Portal.

I use about $50 in Bilt Cash each month to unlock points on my roughly $1,900 rent payment. This has been automatically applied to my account every time I pay rent since I set up my housing rewards selection, so it's become a set-it-and-forget-it perk.

Since I use my Bilt Palladium for most of my spending, it's easy for me to keep my Bilt Cash balances high enough to earn 1 point per dollar spent on rent each month.

However, if you aren't using a Bilt card consistently, it may be more difficult to keep your Bilt Cash balance high. If I only used my Bilt card every once in a while, I wouldn't have as much Bilt Cash consistently flowing, which could complicate housing rewards.

I also have to remember that just $100 of Bilt Cash rolls over year to year, so if I end the year with a high amount, I will need to redeem it before it goes away. I expect it will be easy for me to make the most of my Bilt Cash, since it's flexible and easier to redeem than I initially realized.

Taking a detour for the Chase Sapphire Reserve

We've allocated a large share of our spending to the Bilt Palladium in 2026. But I must admit that I did pause my Bilt-only journey for a limited-time offer I couldn't pass up: an elevated bonus on the Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees).

Woman using a laptop — KSENIYA OVCHINNIKOVA/GETTY IMAGES

To earn 150,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points, I had to spend $6,000 on the Sapphire Reserve in the first three months from account opening (offer no longer available). The current offer for the Chase Sapphire Reserve allows new cardholders to earn 100,000 bonus points after spending $6,000 on purchases in the first three months from opening an account.

I continued to use Bilt for rent. Since I opted in to earn Bilt Cash, I had more than enough to unlock my rent points without having to worry about putting spend on my card.

Leveraging my favorite transfer partners

I haven't completely drained my Bilt points balance in 2026. This year, I've used it as a bank for transfers to my favorite airline loyalty program: Atmos Rewards.

I love booking American Airlines award flights through Atmos Rewards, which start at 4,500 points for short domestic hops. With this partner, I've visited friends in New York, and I also helped book a last-minute return flight for my mom and me after a trip to Chicago.

Eventually, I plan to splurge with my high Bilt balance, and this is where World of Hyatt could come in. I've considered redeeming points to book trips with my fiancé for the rest of the year and beyond.

Plus, we will have to plan a honeymoon. I want to book two business-class seats for my fiancé and me — especially since he's never flown in a lie-flat seat.

We still have time to plan, but I've been dreaming of four to five nights at an all-inclusive property in Mexico. The Bilt Palladium's 1:1 Hyatt transfer ratio would shine here.

I would love to find availability at the Hyatt Zilara Riviera Maya, with rates starting at 20,000 points per night. The Secrets Puerto Los Cabos Golf & Spa Resort has also been on my radar for as few as 25,000 points per night.

Redeeming $400 in hotel statement credits

The Bilt Palladium comes with one statement credit: a biannual $200 hotel credit redeemable only in the Bilt travel portal.

I've already redeemed both of my statement credits. In June, I booked two nights at The Westin Atlanta Perimeter North for a weekend trip to visit family and friends. My $200 credit reduced my stay to $119.

In early July, I stacked my $200 credit with a $100 Bilt Cash redemption to take $300 off two nights at The Hiatus Clearwater Beach, Curio Collection by Hilton, for an upcoming family beach trip. I paid $306 out of pocket for this stay.

I love how easy it is to add Bilt Cash to top off the hotel credit. Plus, I can use this statement credit toward any hotel booked in the Bilt travel portal, so I like that I'm not limited to a list of hotels. These $400 statement credits help offset the Bilt Palladium's $495 annual fee.

My card strategy for the rest of 2026

Since I'm not currently working on any welcome bonus spending requirements, we transitioned most of our everyday spending back to Bilt Palladium.

But it's worth noting I don't use my Bilt Palladium for absolutely everything. I use other rewards cards in my wallet when I have statement credits I need to redeem, for instance.

Overall, I plan to reevaluate after I max out my Point Accelerator spending and return to earning 2 Bilt points per dollar spent on purchases. If I've accumulated a large enough Bilt Cash balance to keep earning rent rewards without tracking my spending, I may shift spending to keep earning rewards across those cards.

Other cards on my radar

As a rewards credit card enthusiast, I keep an eye out for high welcome bonuses. There are cards that could tempt me away from Bilt if they launched a compelling limited-time offer.

I'm keeping my eye on the Citi Strata Elite℠ Card (see rates and fees). I'd like the ability to transfer Citi ThankYou points to American Airlines at a 1:1 ratio.

I'm also considering the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (see rates and fees). I fly AA most often and could benefit from a cobranded card, but I would likely downgrade another premium card before adding it.

Bottom line

My Bilt Palladium is the star of my wallet when it comes to earning points, since getting 3 points per dollar on everything is unmatched in my setup. Plus, Bilt partners with two of my favorite programs (Atmos Rewards and Hyatt), so I have plenty of redemptions at my fingertips.

There are limitations to this strategy, especially if you value broad airport lounge access (the Bilt Palladium only provides Priority Pass) or more statement credits to help offset the card's $495 annual fee. Plus, if you aren't interested in placing a lot of focus on the Bilt Palladium, you may find it difficult to earn points on your housing costs.

For me, this works well, and I am excited to check in at the end of the year to see how much I've earned.

To learn more, read our full review of the Bilt Palladium.

Apply here: Bilt Palladium Card

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

My Bilt Palladium mid-year update: What's changed since January