Is a Bilt Card Worth a 5/24 Spot
Ever since we learned of the Bilt Cash devaluation coming in 2027, we’ve heard the same question over and over. “Should I get a Bilt Card now?” If you’re over 5/24, it’s go time. But if you’re under 5/24, well, it’s more complicated. While we previously have not typically recommended a Bilt Card for those under 5/24, the deadline to opt out of the upcoming rewards updates changes things. There is now an urgency to get a Palladium Card that didn’t exist before. The 2027 system will make the card a lot less valuable—and will also make it harder to offset the $495 annual fee. So, is a Bilt Card worth a 5/24 spot now? There’s no black-and-white answer anymore. The nuances will depend on your card lineup and your spending patterns. Let’s dig in.
Refresher: What’s Changing With Bilt in 2027?
Bilt Rewards is making massive changes in 2027. You can read about all of them here, but the biggest updates involve Bilt Cash.
Under the Current Flexible Bilt Cash System:
Cardholders earn 4% back in Bilt Cash on everyday spending. That Bilt Cash can then be used to unlock additional points on rent and mortgage payments (redeem 3 cents of Bilt Cash for 1 point, or $43 Bilt Cash to earn 1x points on a $1,433.33 mortgage). It can also be redeemed for other benefits, like the uber-valuable Points Accelerator (spend $200 Bilt Cash to earn an extra point per dollar on up to $5,000 in spending up to five times per year) or other perks like hotel stays, Blade and Blacklane rides and more.
From 1/1/27 On:
That system is being retired for new cardholders. Instead, they will earn up to 1.25x Bilt Points on rent and mortgage payments without needing to accumulate Bilt Cash to unlock those earnings. Earning even 1x requires spending the equivalent of at least 75% of your housing payment on the card. The chart below shows how much spending is required to unlock each tier.
| Points on Housing | Minimum everyday spend as a % of monthly rent / mortgage (Example of $2,000 rent) |
|---|---|
| 0.5x points | Spend at least 25% of monthly housing payment ($500) |
| 0.75x points | Spend at least 50% of monthly housing payment ($1,000) |
| 1x points | Spend at least 75% of monthly housing payment ($1,500) |
| 1.25x points | Spend the same or more as your monthly housing payment ($2,000) |
New cardholders will also receive annual Bilt Cash credits instead, deposited on the cardholder’s account anniversary date, and will have an opportunity to keep earning $50 of Bilt Cash for every 25,000 Bilt Point milestone. Bilt Obsidian and Palladium Cardholders who want to use the Points Accelerator will still be able to do so in $200 Bilt Cash increments. But that would leave them with much less Bilt Cash to work with for hotels, Blade rides and other redemptions. For Palladium Cardholders, that means fewer opportunities to offset the $495 annual fee. Thankfully, existing cardholders can opt out of these changes and stick with the old system. But there’s a deadline looming. You have to be a cardholder before 1/1/27 to be able to do so. Welp, it looks like we have a conundrum!
How to Evaluate If a Bilt Card Is a Fit
Is a Bilt Card worth a 5/24 spot for you? This will be highly variable and will depend on where you are in your award travel journey. Let’s look at several different potential scenarios you might fall into.
What If You Are Under 3/24?
As of September 16, 2026, there is a new 3/24 rule for business card applications by sole proprietorships. It effectively means you must be 2/24 or under to hope to be approved for a Chase business card. This means a much more limited window to get cards like Chase Ink Business Preferred, Chase Ink Cash, Chase Ink Unlimited and the Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business, as well as the bank’s co-branded business cards. If you are a sole proprietor and still haven’t rounded out your Chase business card lineup, you shouldn’t really even think about a Bilt Card.
The Palladium Card’s 50,000-point SUB is valuable, sure. But it pales in comparison to the 75,000-300,000-point offers you can get on the aforementioned Chase business cards. Once most award travelers are 3/24, it’s unlikely you’ll get back under soon (or ever). Don’t miss out on Chase business cards while you can still get them. One super important thing to keep in mind is that, as always, we don’t know what the future holds. Hypothetically speaking: What if you burn a 3/24 spot on Bilt now, and then later the Flexible Bilt Cash system suddenly gets retired for everyone? Wouldn’t you then regret burning a precious 3/24 spot on this card? And as we know, devaluations can happen at any time.
What If You Are Under 5/24?
This is where more of the nuance comes in. The traveler who is under 5/24 but already has 10 Chase cards is in a very different situation than a newbie. Someone who is under 5/24 and is still missing key Chase personal cards like Chase Sapphire Preferred, a Chase Sapphire Reserve or both should still be cautious when considering a Bilt Card. In fact, if they’re close to getting back under 3/24 and don’t already have cards like Chase Ink Business Preferred, Chase Ink Cash or the Chase Ink Unlimited, they should consider trying to get back under and at least getting however many Inks and/or co-branded business cards they can get approved for.
But if you have been in the game for several years and already have the Ink cards, the Sapphire cards and the co-branded cards you want, keep calm and carry on toward a Bilt Card. We tell people all the time to get the Chase cards you want—and then leave 5/24 in the rearview window. No regrets!
What If You Are Over 5/24?
Are you very close to getting back under 5/24? See the 5/24 section above. Reevaluate your card lineup, considering any holes or cards still on your wishlist before deciding if it’s worth it to just stay over 5/24 and get a Bilt Card. But if you’re not close to getting back under, well, what are you waiting for? In its current format, this card remains one of the most valuable earners on the market. We think it is a no-brainer for just about everybody.
What About Housing Payments?
Don’t overthink all the housing payment stuff, even if that was a big part of the fanfare during the card’s launch this year. Much of the value in the Palladium Card is in how quickly you can rack up points when using Bilt Cash to purchase the Points Accelerator. And then, the fun redemptions you can grab with your remaining Bilt Cash are the cherries on ToP that help justify the annual fee.
As awesome as it sounds to earn points on your rent or mortgage, housing payments are not these cards’ biggest earners. Imagine you have a $2,000 mortgage. Under the Flexible Bilt Cash system, you could redeem $60 Bilt Cash each month to earn 1x points on your payment, for a total of 24,000 points per year. Under the 2027 system, you would need to spend $1,500 per month ($18,000 annually) in non-housing purchases to earn that same 1x. First of all, imagine how many hundreds of thousands of points you could earn by putting that $18,000 in spend toward SUBs instead. If you’re a low spender and/or have a low mortgage, that’s all the more reason to A) Get the card before 2027, when you still have the opportunity to earn in the old system, or B) Skip it entirely if you’re under 3/24 or under 5/24 and are still missing a lot of key Chase cards. Simply put, the opportunity to earn on housing payments alone is not enough to make a Bilt Card worth using a 5/24 slot.
Is a Bilt Card Worth a 5/24 Spot: ToP Thoughts
So, is a Bilt Card worth a 5/24 spot? There is no end-all, be-all answer to this question. It depends heavily on your specific card lineup and situation. Under 3/24 and don’t have cards like the Chase Ink Business Preferred and the Chase Ink Cash? It’s more important to get the Chase business cards you can first. I know it’s hard, but try to avoid the Bilt FOMO. On the other hand, if you’re under 5/24 but already have a lot of Chase cards, you should strongly consider grabbing a Palladium Card before this year ends. Once you do, be sure to opt out of these changes so you can keep earning under the old system. Do you need help deciding whether to get a Bilt Card? Feel free to make a post with your card lineup on the Facebook group. We’re happy to help!
