Compare the Features and Benefits of Hilton Honors Surpass® Credit Card and
Capital One Quicksilver Student Cash Rewards Credit Card

With a relatively low $150 annual fee, The Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card comes with some valuable benefits, including Gold Elite status, which gets you free breakfast (or a daily food and beverage credit) on all stays at full-service Hilton hotels and resorts.

Waldorf Astoria Pedregal – Cabo, Mexico

With Hilton Honors points having an approximate value of 0.5 cents per point, you are earning roughly 6% back on Hilton stays and 3% back on select categories in the US: gas stations, gas, and groceries. Remember you’ll earn 3X Hilton Honors points on other eligible purchases, so that would be worth about a 1.5% return on spend.

The Hilton portfolio also has some amazing hotels and resorts at which you can spend your Hilton Honors points and Free Night Reward certificates. You earn a certificate for a Free Night Rewards after $15,000 in eligible spend within a calendar year

You can get value of rooms that sell for over $1,000 a night and include the Waldorf Astoria Maldives Ithaafushi and the Waldorf Astoria Pedregal in Los Cabos. You could easily make a case that simply being able to earn the lucrative Free Night Reward certificates is reason enough to hold this card.

You can also earn up to $200 back each year on eligible Hilton purchases (at a Hilton family property) when you use your Hilton Honors American Express Surpass® Card. You’re eligible to earn up to $50 in statement credits per quarter. (Terms apply.) That benefit alone more than covers your annual fee if used in full.

While we don’t recommend the Hilton Honors Surpass card as your only credit card, it certainly is worth more than its annual fee if you frequently stay at Hilton portfolio hotels and resorts.

Rates and fees for the Hilton Honors Surpass® Credit Card

As far as student credit cards go, the Capital One Quicksilver Student Cash Rewards Credit Card is an easy choice since no student card offers a flat cash back rate that is higher.

With 1.5% cash back on everything, you’re both building your credit (so you can step up to credit cards with richer rewards after you graduate, and earning a nice return on your credit card spend.

Plus, you’ll get a small cash bonus when you meet the terms of the Early Spend Bonus with your new Quicksilver Student card.

Importantly, there’s no annual fee and this is not a secured credit card.

And you do have the opportunity to earn 5% cash back on hotels and rental card booked via Capital One Travel.

All around, it’s a pretty solid student credit card!