#3 Among Other
Point Value
0.0 ¢
Program Score
0
Amtrak Guest Rewards can provide excellent value for train travel, particularly now that you can transfer Bilt Rewards points to the program.
There are several ways to earn Amtrak Guest Rewards points. This isn't much different from collecting airline miles, as the easiest ways are by traveling with Amtrak, opening one of its co-branded credit cards, or transferring points from Bilt Rewards.
Amtrak Guest Rewards members earn points on eligible Amtrak travel:
Members with Amtrak elite status can earn additional bonus points on top of these rates.
Amtrak offers two co-branded credit cards issued by First National Bank of Omaha: the Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard and the Amtrak Guest Rewards Preferred Mastercard. Both have signup bonuses, earn Amtrak points on everyday spending, and have additional rewards and benefits for Amtrak purchases.
The Preferred card also allows you to earn Tier Qualifying Points through credit card spending, which can help you reach Amtrak elite status faster.
Bilt Rewards is the only transferable points program that partners with Amtrak Guest Rewards. Bilt points transfer to Amtrak at a 2:1 ratio, so 2,000 Bilt points become 1,000 Amtrak points.
That ratio may look poor compared to the 1:1 transfers offered by many airline and hotel programs, but Amtrak points are generally worth around 2.5-2.9 cents per Amtrak point. While Bilt has a number of valuable transfer partners that could give you more value than this, transferring Bilt points can still provide 1.25-1.5 cents per point, which is still good value for the right trip.
Amtrak Guest Rewards allows members to transfer points directly to another member, but there is a fee, so this generally isn't a good way to combine balances.
Points Navigator Tip: At 1 cent per point, sharing is expensive enough that we generally wouldn't recommend transferring large balances between accounts. It can make sense if someone is just short of the points needed for a redemption, but otherwise you're usually better off keeping the points in your own account.
Special Offers Related to Amtrak .
Bilt has added Amtrak Guest Rewards as its newest transfer partner and the only rail partner of any transferable points system. Bilt points will transfer to Amtrak at a 2:1 ratio, meaning 1,000 Bilt points become 500 Amtrak points. Transfers start at 2,000 points for Blue members and 1,000 points for those with elite status, and you can make transfers in 1,000-point increments. The 2:1 ratio limits the upside, but Amtrak points are worth about 2.56¢ each toward Acela tickets, which are Amtrak's high-speed trains, and 2.9¢ each on other routes. Amtrak's points are generally fixed and mirror the cash price, so you'll generally get about 1.28-1.45¢ in value per Bilt point after accounting for the 2:1 transfer ratio. While this won't offer outsized value, this is still a useful option for topping off when the numbers make sense for a specific trip. This is the first time Amtrak has partnered with a major transferable points program since its Chase Ultimate Rewards partnership ended in 2015. We wouldn't jump on transferring points to Amtrak right away, as Bilt has frequently offered transfer bonuses for new partners on the following Rent Day. Obviously there's no guarantee we'll see an Amtrak bonus on October 1, but we should know October's Rent Day details soon, so we'd wait a few days unless you need the Amtrak points immediately.
Redeeming Amtrak Guest Rewards points isn't much different than redeeming airline miles or hotel points. The best value is generally by booking Amtrak train travel. Redemption prices are tied closely to the cash price of the ticket, and you can typically expect to receive about 2.5–2.9 cents per point when redeeming for travel.
You can use Amtrak points to book train tickets throughout the Amtrak network. Award tickets start at just 400 points, making even relatively small balances of Amtrak Guest Rewards points useful.
Because redemption prices generally track the cash price of the ticket, there aren't traditional award-chart sweet spots to hunt for. More expensive tickets generally require more points, while cheaper fares require fewer.
Amtrak also allows you to combine points and cash when booking a ticket. Points & Cash redemptions start at just 100 points, which can be useful if you don't have enough points to cover the entire ticket.
Points Navigator Tip: Since Amtrak points can provide about 2.5–2.9 cents per point toward train tickets, we generally recommend saving them for Amtrak travel rather than using them for lower-value redemption options.
Amtrak Guest Rewards points can also be redeemed for:
Train tickets will usually provide strong value, but lounge passes can also be a worthwhile redemption, particularly in New York where a $50 pass costs just 1,500 points.
Discover your points' highest-value redemption options. Use the filters to find the optimal sweet spot for your next trip.
Amtrak Guest Rewards is best for travelers who regularly ride Amtrak or have specific train trips they can use points to book. Since award prices generally track cash fares, points are easy to use and typically provide a consistent 2.5–2.9 cents per point in value.
The program has also become more useful for points and miles travelers with the addition of Bilt Rewards as a transfer partner. Bilt points transfer to Amtrak at a 2:1 ratio, which doesn't look great on the surface. But since Amtrak points have a high redemption value, you can still get about 1.25–1.45 cents per point from transferring Bilt points. You can find Amtrak redemptions for as little as 1,500 points on short routes like from Washington, D.C., to New York or St. Louis to Chicago, and even a cross-country train trip from Washington, D.C., to Los Angeles can cost fewer than 10,000 points.
Amtrak Guest Rewards is particularly useful for travelers in the Northeast and other areas with extensive Amtrak service. Frequent riders can also benefit from elite status, while Amtrak's two co-branded credit cards provide another way to earn points and receive additional benefits when traveling by train.
Amtrak Guest Rewards has four status levels, starting with the basic Member level you receive when you join. The three elite levels are Select, Select Plus, and Select Executive. You earn elite status by collecting Tier Qualifying Points (TQPs) during the calendar year.
You primarily earn TQPs through paid Amtrak travel. You earn 2 TQPs per dollar spent on eligible Amtrak travel, with a 25% TQP bonus on Business Class travel and a 50% TQP bonus on Acela First Class travel.
You can also earn TQPs through spending on eligible Amtrak Guest Rewards credit cards, providing another path toward elite status without earning all of your qualifying points from train travel.
You'll need the following number of TQPs each calendar year to reach each level:
Higher status levels provide increasingly valuable benefits, including bonus points on Amtrak travel, upgrade and companion coupons, lounge access, and other travel perks.
Below are the Amtrak Guest Rewards status levels, what it takes to reach each one, and what you receive with each level.
Your Amtrak Guest Rewards points go directly into your Amtrak account, so canceling an Amtrak credit card will not affect your existing balance. Points never expire as long as you hold either Amtrak Guest Rewards credit cards. If you cancel, though, the normal expiration policy applies, and your points will expire after 24 months with no earning or redemption activity.
Yes, but only after 24 months of no activity. If you hold one of the two Amtrak credit cards, your points will not expire as long as you hold the card. Any qualifying activity, such as earning or redeeming points, resets the expiration clock.
Amtrak Guest Rewards redemption rates largely mirror the cash price of tickets, and you can typically expect to get about 2.5-2.9 cents per point in value.
Amtrak says that reward travel begins at 400 points, and we've seen shorter routes like Washington, D.C., to Boston, Boston to New York, and St. Louis to Chicago for as few as 1,200 points and cross country trips for under 10,000 points.
Yes. Bilt partnered with Amtrak in 2026, allowing you to transfer Bilt Rewards points to Amtrak at a 2:1 ratio. That means 2,000 Bilt points become 1,000 Amtrak Guest Rewards points.
Tracking Points & Transfer Options
