Just getting started in the IHG Rewards Club program? Have questions about how to start earning and redeeming IHG Rewards points? This IHG Rewards Club FAQ covers answers to all of your questions about the program itself, using the IHG Rewards Club Premier credit card, and earning and redeeming IHG points.
IHG Rewards Club is the loyalty program for Intercontinental Hotels Group which has more than 5,000 properties across 17 brands. The program allows you to earn IHG points on IHG stays and other qualifying activities that can be redeemed for free IHG stays, merchandise, or transferred to partner airlines.
Yes, IHG Rewards Club is free to join at an IHG hotel or online by clicking here.
IHG has 17 brands:
The luxury brands in the IHG portfolio include:
Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express have several subtle differences. Holiday Inn Express offers more limited services than the Holiday Inn brand with more affordable prices and complimentary breakfast. Holiday Inn is popular with families as kids under 18 stay free with a parent and up to four kids aged 11 and under can eat for free any time at the Holiday Inn on-site restaurant. While Holiday Inns have on-site restaurants where kids eat free, Holiday Inn Express hotels only have free continental breakfast.
Intercontinental Hotels & Resorts and Crowne Royal hotels typically have executive lounges. You can also find lounges at Regent Hotels and Six Senses Hotels.
IHG rewards points expire after 12 months unless you have elite status in which case points do not expire as long as you maintain elite status. Learn more about when IHG points expire here.
Maintaining elite status or having a qualifying earning or redemption activity will keep your IHG points from expiring. Here's how to do it.
You can reach IHG Rewards Club customer service at 888-695-4678.
You can always check your IHG points balance by logging into your IHG Rewards Club account or using the IHG Rewards Club app.
You can find your IHG Rewards Club member number by logging into your IHG account or calling IHG customer service at 888-695-4678.
Base points are earned for IHG stays and through some partner programs and they count toward elite status. Bonus points are earned through promotions or spending with the IHG Rewards Club Premier card.
You can transfer an unlimited number of IHG points to someone else, but you will be charged a fee of $5 per 1,000 points.
You can combine multiple IHG Rewards Club accounts by contacting IHG Rewards Club customer service at 888-695-4678.
While you can book a stay for someone else using your IHG member number, you won't earn points or elite qualifying credit unless you book under your name and add them as an additional guest.
After logging into your IHG account, go to "Stays and Events" and click on "Search for Missing Past Stay." If after more than 7 days a stay has not been credited to your account, you can call customer service at 888-695-4678 or complete a Missing Points form.
When transferring IHG points to hotel partners, it can take 4-6 weeks for your transfer to complete. Transfers between IHG accounts are same-day.
There are two IHG Rewards Club credit cards: the IHG Rewards Club Premier card by Chase and the IHG Rewards Club Select card (now discontinued).
The only currently available IHG credit card is the IHG Rewards Club Premier card issued by Chase with an $89 annual fee.
If you have the discontinued IHG Rewards Club Select card, you can upgrade to the IHG Rewards Club Premier credit card and keep both cards. There are advantages to this approach as the old card offers a 10% rebate when you redeem points for stays and the new card offers a 4th night free perk.
Even if you don't stay at IHG regularly, the IHG credit card can be worth it. The free night certificate alone can more than make up for the $89 annual fee. The welcome offer is also typically enough for several nights' stays and you'll find it easy to earn free night stays with little effort.
The only way to earn IHG free night certificates is by holding the IHG Rewards Club Premier card or the discontinued IHG Rewards Club Select card. You get a free night certificate every year on your account anniversary good for any hotel that costs 40,000 or fewer points per night.
The IHG Rewards Club Premier credit card comes with several benefits. In addition to earning IHG points on all spending with bonus points on IHG stays, gas stations, restaurants and groceries, the card comes with automatic Platinum elite status. You also get a 4th night free when you book award stays as a cardholder and a free night certificate every year on your account anniversary.
No, IHG only has two credit cards, one of which is discontinued. There are no IHG Rewards Club business credit cards.
Both IHG credit cards are issued by Chase.
No, the discontinued IHG credit card has a $49 annual fee and the current IHG Rewards Club Premier credit card has an $89 annual fee.
There are many ways to earn IHG points:
You can learn more about ways to earn IHG points here.
This depends on whether you use an IHG credit card, your elite status, and how much you spend. For a $200 night stay, you can earn 2,000 to 4,000 base points plus up to 4,000 elite status bonus points and 2,000 bonus points for using the IHG credit card. You can also earn additional IHG points if you qualify for and sign up for an IHG promotion.
A qualifying stay refers to paying a qualifying rate through IHG. You need to book directly through IHG, not a third-party website, to earn a qualifying night.
You'll earn IHG points on all spending with an IHG credit card plus bonus points for spending at IHG, grocery stores, gas stations, and restaurants. You can also earn Chase Ultimate Rewards points with a qualifying credit card and transfer the points to IHG.
Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be transferred to IHG. You must have an annual fee version of an Ultimate Rewards credit card, however, such as the Chase Sapphire Preferred card, Chase Sapphire Reserve, or Ink Business Preferred card.
There are limited options for earning IHG points for shopping. You can earn IHG Rewards points for shopping with Apple through IHG, however.
You can earn points by dining through the IHG Rewards Club Dining program. After registering a debit or credit card, you'll earn points by dining at participating restaurants.
You can choose to earn miles instead of points through the IHG Rewards Club program. The earning rate depends on the airline but it's usually not the best deal. For example, with Alaska Airlines, you earn just 2x miles per $1 spent at most IHG brands and 1x miles at select brands like Candlewood Suites.
It's rarely worth it to buy IHG points unless there is a promotion that reduces the cost to 0.5 cents each, you use the Points and Cash trick to buy points, or you only need a small number of points for a free night award.
The fastest way to earn IHG points is by staying at IHG, but the IHG credit card can also help you earn points in a hurry.
You can earn points on up to 9 rooms at U.S. and Canadian IHG hotels as long as all of the rooms are on the same reservation, but elite qualifying night credits are only earned for one room. Outside of North America, you only earn points for one room per reservation.
There are many ways to redeem IHG points:
Free stays at IHG hotels
Experiences through IHG Access Rewards
Transfer IHG points to airline partners
Digital rewards like movies and eBooks
Gift cards and merchandise
Learn more about ways to redeem IHG points here.
You can redeem IHG points through your IHG Rewards Club account online or through the app. Some redemption options require logging in and navigating to specific landing pages. You can see IHG redemption options and how to redeem IHG points here.
IHG free nights start at 10,000 points for a category 1 hotel. With Points & Cash, stays start at 5,000 points + $40.
IHG's portfolio of hotels are broken down into 13 categories ranging from 10,000 to 70,000 points per night.
An IHG point is typically valued at 0.6 cents each, but the value of your points depends on how they're used.
To redeem your free night certificate, log into your IHG account and select "1 Free Night" under Account Management. You will be taken to a page with a link to book your free stay by searching for a hotel at your destination. Learn more about redeeming IHG free night certificates here.
No, you can only book standard room awards with IHG points.
You can transfer IHG points to someone else in 1,000-point increments. Unfortunately, there is a high $5 fee per 1,000 points transferred.
You can transfer IHG points to 39 airline partners to book award flights, although you generally get a poor transfer rate. Learn more here.
You can redeem a free stay for someone else with IHG points if you book the reservation under your name and add them as a guest.
Yes, IHG points can be redeemed for gift cards, digital merchandise, and physical merchandise.
No, but the IHG Rewards Club Premier credit card has a 4th night free benefit when you redeem points for an award stay of at least 4 nights.
Points & Cash lets you book award stays with a combination of points and cash starting at 5,000 points instead of 10,000 points.
As longas you cancel 24 hours before you arrive (at most hotels), you will receive an instant refund on your points for a free night award.
Yes, IHG free night certificates expire 12 months after they are issued. You must book and complete your stay before the certificate expires. Learn more about IHG free night certificates here.
You can use your IHG free night certificate at any IHG brand or hotel, but the certificate is capped at category 7 hotels that cost 40,000 points or less per stay.
There are four status tiers of the IHG Rewards Club program:
Learn more about IHG elite status here.
To earn elite status, you must meet one of several requirements in a calendar year. Here's how to earn each IHG elite tier:
With Gold status, you get 10% bonus base points on IHG stays plus a small welcome amenity. Late checkout is available at select hotels but it's subject to availability.
With Platinum status, you get perks such as 50% bonus on IHG base points, space-available room upgrades, and 2pm late checkout subject to availability.
Spire status doesn't offer much above Platinum status except from an annual choice benefit, early check-in, and Hertz Five Star elite status. The choice benefit can be worth 25,000 bonus points per year.
The IHG Ambassador program is separate from the IHG Rewards Club program. You can't earn Ambassador status, you pay $200 per year for membership that offers perks at InterContinental Hotels & Resorts like a free weekend night, restaurant and bar credits per stay, and guaranteed room upgrades.
You will need to requalify for IHG elite status every year.
Unfortunately, IHG doesn't offer free breakfast as an elite status perk. The only way to get free breakfast is by staying at an IHG property that offers complimentary breakfast. Only two IHG brands offer this perk: Holiday Inn Express and Staybridge Suites.
Complimentary room upgrades are available for Platinum and Spire elite members and do not apply to award nights or upgrades to suites. You can email the hotel ahead of time to inquire about an upgrade or politely ask at check-in.
The welcome amenity offered at check-in starting at Gold elite status can include a complimentary bottle of water, choice of a snack, or points.
IHG lounges are available at certain Intercontinental Hotels and Crowne Plaza hotels and they offer complimentary breakfast, evening drinks and snacks, and other perks. Elite status does not offer automatic access to lounges, unfortunately, although Spire level members do get lounge access at a select number of Crowne Plaza hotels. You will need to pay a fee to access an IHG lounge or pay for a premium room on the lounge floor.
With Spire elite status, you get 10 am early check-in subject to availability, but you must request the early check-in on your stay preferences at booking.
No elite status comes with free parking at hotels that do charge for parking.
Unlike Hilton Honors and World of Hyatt, IHG Rewards Club does not waive resort fees on award stays.
Yes, award night stays count toward earning elite status.
No, buying points won't count toward earning elite status.