World of Hyatt Business Credit Card review: Great benefits for big spenders

Overview of the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card is a mid-range hotel credit card that can offer serious value to Hyatt loyalists looking to spend their way toward status benefits or unlock the 10% points discount feature. However, there are trade-offs to consider before putting that much money into a credit card that doesn’t offer free overnight certificates or a higher default rate. Card rating*: ⭐⭐⭐½

* Card rating is based on the opinion of TPG editors and is not influenced by the card issuer.

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The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card from Chase offers exciting benefits aimed at small business owners who are Hyatt loyalists. If you have excellent credit of 670 or higher and are focused on earning World of Hyatt points and status, this could be a great card for you.

The Hyatt Business Card lacks some of the features we’ve come to expect from hotel credit cards, such as higher status and free night certificates to celebrate your account anniversary. However, it offers a powerful set of benefits for business owners interested in using their own benefits approach. If you can take advantage of these spending-based benefits, the card easily justifies its $199 annual fee. Otherwise, this card may not be a long-term keeper for you.

Here’s what you need to know before applying.

World of Hyatt Business Card Cards Advantages and disadvantages of cards

World of Hyatt Business Credit Card welcome offer

Currently, new World of Hyatt Business Credit Card applicants can earn 60,000 Bonus Points after spending $5,000 in purchases in your first three months from account opening.

TPG’s August 2024 peg rates World of Hyatt points at 1.7 cents each, making the full bonus worth an impressive $1,020.

Keep in mind that this card is subject to Chase’s standard application rules, including the Chase 5/24 rule — although opening this card will not add to your 5/24 number.

Related: Best time to apply for these popular Chase cards based on offer history

Benefits of the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

The World of Hyatt Business Credit Card offers several key benefits:

• Up to $100 in Hyatt credits per year: Get a $50 statement credit when you use your card to spend $50 or more at Hyatt hotels and resorts (up to two times a year for a total of $100 in annual credits)
• Status of your Discoverist and up to five employees: As a key account manager, you will receive automatic Discoverist status with World of Hyatt and earn five Discoverist Development Rewards, which you can give to employees.
• Earn status-related residency credits by spending: You’ll earn five qualifying night credits for every $10,000 you spend each calendar year.
• Ability to get 10% discount points: If you and your employees collectively spend at least $50,000 in a calendar year, you’ll earn 10% bonus points up to a total of 200,000 World of Hyatt points redeemed for free award nights, Points + Cash stays, room upgrades, dining services and -spa and Get experiences for the remainder of the calendar year
• Hyatt Leverage Membership: You’ll receive a complimentary Hyatt Leverage membership, which includes discounts on regular room rates at all participating Hyatt hotels
• There are no foreign transaction fees

Also, it’s disappointing not to see a higher rate or free night certificate in this list of benefits. However, those who stay at Hyatt properties regularly will benefit from Hyatt credit memberships and Hyatt Leverage. And if your small business spends enough money with this card, you can enjoy easy access to status and 10% discount points.

Related: Am I eligible for a business credit card?

Earn points on the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

As a Hyatt World Business cardholder, you’ll earn 4 points per dollar spent at Hyatt hotels, participating Small Comfort Hotels of the World and on Experiences booked through Hyatt.

And you’ll earn 2 points per dollar spent on fitness club and gym memberships and on your top three spending categories each quarter through Dec. 31, 2024. As of Jan. 1, 2025, that will change to your top two categories each quarter. Categories include:

Earnings rates are automatically adjusted to the categories where you spend the most each quarter, so there’s no need to choose your preferred categories. Beyond your bonus tiers, you’ll earn 1 point per dollar on all other purchases.

While this stands out as one of the few cards that earn bonus points for gym memberships, you’ll find many other cards with better features for earning other bonus categories. If you’re not focused on reaping the benefits of spending more money on this card, your best bet would be to use it alongside other cards to increase your chances of earning a bonus.

Related: The best cards for each bonus category

Uses points on the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

As expected of a cobranded hotel card, the best use of the World of Hyatt points you’ll earn on the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card is to cover stays at Hyatt properties. You can do this by covering your entire stay, combining part of your stay with points using Hyatt’s “Points + Cash” tier option, or using points to upgrade to a paid stay.

One of the best things about the World of Hyatt program is that it still uses a published award chart, so you can plan ahead to know how many points you’ll need for your stay. However, each category has a different ratio of normal, peak and off-peak dates.

To get the most value from your points, spend them at the high or low end of the award chart. TPG content director Summer Hull prefers to stay at the higher end, getting more value out of her points by using them to stay at Hyatt resorts or city properties that would otherwise be out of her budget. Conversely, you can increase your score by staying at the bottom end of the award chart. With options as low as 3,500 points, I prefer to stay in Tier 1 Hyatt properties if I can stretch my points as much as possible.

You also have the option of redeeming your World of Hyatt points for mid-range Avis rental cars at 6,000 points per day, redeeming them for dining, spa or meeting credits at Hyatt properties, redeeming them for experiences, or transferring them to certain airline programs. However, you’ll typically get less than our August 2024 estimate of 1.7 cents per point with these redemption options, so we recommend using your points to cover Hyatt stays if possible.

Related: The ultimate guide to redeeming Hyatt points

What cards compete with the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card?

If you’re looking for more benefits or a different salary structure, one of these options may be a better fit.

• If you want Hyatt benefits for a low annual fee: The World of Hyatt Personal Credit Card earns bonus points on Hyatt purchases and offers automatic Discoverist status and a path to higher status with a low annual fee of $95. For more details, see our full World of Hyatt card review.
• If you want to get more out of buying your business: The Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card earns 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 in combined purchases in the regular travel and business categories. It earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, which you can transfer to World of Hyatt and any of Chase’s 13 other hotel and airline partners. For more details, see our full Ink Business Preferred review.
• If you’re looking for more common travel benefits: The Chase Sapphire Reserve® comes with complimentary airport lounge access, a $300 annual travel credit, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit and comprehensive travel protection. As an Ink Business Preferred, you can transfer your points to World of Hyatt or any other Chase partner. For more details, see our full Chase Sapphire Reserve review.

For more options, see our full list of the best business credit cards and the best travel credit cards.

Related: World of Hyatt card vs. World of Hyatt business card

Is the World of Hyatt Business Credit Card worth the annual fee?

If you can apply two Hyatt statement credits to your World of Hyatt Business Credit Card, you’ll get $100 in value on that one credit. That brings your effective annual fee down to just $99. While the shape of the Discoverist isn’t remarkable in itself, the fact that you can feed five others is solid – though whether that (and other benefits) are enough to justify the out-of-pocket costs is up to you.

That said, the fact that the card doesn’t offer a free annual credit card and includes high status spending requirements means you can get more value out of a different card.

Bottom line

The current welcome offer and value from ongoing benefits make the Hyatt Global Business Card worth acquiring for small business owners who frequent Hyatt locations. This is especially true if you are not a Globalist but can make a difference by spending money.

However, those who don’t often stay at Hyatt properties or want more benefits with a lower spending requirement will want to go with a different card.

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Apply here: World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

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