The alternative program, the aforementioned “tiered multipliers,” ties your housing rewards to how much you spend outside of housing payments. The more you spend relative to your monthly housing bill, the higher your earning rate on that spending:
- Spending 25% to 49.99% of your rent unlocks 0.5x points
- Spending 50% to 74.99% unlocks 0.75x
- Spending 75% to 99.99% unlocks 1x
- Spending more than 100% unlocks 1.25x
For example, let’s say your rent is $2,000 per month. Using the Bilt Palladium on purchases that are not housing-related and add up to an equivalent amount—at least $2,000, in this case—would unlock the highest tier, allowing you to earn 2,500 points on paying your rent (that’s 125%, or 1.25x, of 2,000). Lower spending thresholds yield proportionally fewer points:
- Spending $500 to $999 a month on non-housing purchases then earns you 1,000 Bilt points on $2,000 spent on rent
- Spending $1,000 to $1,499 unlocks 1,500 Bilt points
- Spending $1,500 to $1,999 unlocks 2,000 Bilt points
- Spending $2,000 or more unlocks 2,500 Bilt points
Both systems feel clunky, but Bilt Cash is relatively simpler for most users because it requires less tracking and calculation. You just have to earn enough Bilt Cash to “unlock” or pay for the points you want to earn for making your monthly housing payments.
Who is the Bilt Palladium for?
The Bilt Palladium works best for those new to premium credit cards who want a mix of lifestyle perks and travel benefits. The card offers a strong lineup of benefits that offset its $495 annual fee, including a $200 credit every six months that you can spend on Bilt’s travel portal; an annual $200 in Bilt Cash, which can be spent on travel, dining, health and wellness, or unlocking housing rewards; and Priority Pass lounge access. Beyond its core benefits, the Bilt Palladium heavily gamifies your bills. The Bilt Neighborhood network rewards cardholders with extra points at participating restaurants, retailers, and fitness studios. (Think Soulcycle classes, Walgreens, Lyft, and more.)
Promotions like Bilt Rent Day on the first day of each month offer yet another way to collect additional rewards with double points on all non-housing spend, on up to 1,000 bonus points. So if you spend $500 on travel with the Bilt Palladium on Bilt Rent Day, you’ll effectively earn 4 Bilt points per dollar—1,000 base points at 2x per dollar, plus an additional 1,000 points for the Rent Day promotion.
The Bilt Palladium also offers solid travel perks on par with the lower tier of premium rewards credit cards: Bilt partners with more than two dozen airlines and hotel programs including Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Marriott, and Hyatt, giving users several great ways to redeem points for flights and hotel stays. The Palladium also includes travel protections covering common disruptions like delays, lost baggage, and rental car issues.
Where the Bilt Palladium falls short
The Bilt Palladium’s biggest drawback is its complexity. While the layered rewards system can be lucrative, especially if you put all your non-housing spending on the card, it’s much more challenging to track and optimize compared to other premium cards, which can be a dealbreaker for users who prefer simplicity. The card also faces stiff competition. Other premium travel credit cards like the Capital One Venture X offer similar benefits for a slightly lower annual fee, with far simpler rewards systems.
