Bilt Adds Amtrak Guest Rewards as a 2:1 Transfer Partner

How the Bilt to Amtrak transfer works

Transfers happen in the Bilt app or on Bilt.com. Go to Rewards, open the Transfer tab, then the Rail tab, and pick Amtrak Guest Rewards. You link your Amtrak account once, before the first transfer.

Here are the rules that apply to every transfer:

• Ratio: 2 Bilt Points for 1 Amtrak Guest Rewards point
• Minimum for Blue Status members: 2,000 Bilt Points
• Minimum for Silver, Gold and Platinum members: 1,000 Bilt Points
• Increments: blocks of 1,000 Bilt Points
• Speed: usually immediate, with up to 48 hours allowed
• Reversal: none, once points leave Bilt they follow Amtrak's rules

Amtrak Guest Rewards is free to join. If you don't have an account yet, create one before you start the transfer so the link step goes through.

What your Bilt Points become at Amtrak

At 2:1, every block of 1,000 Bilt Points turns into 500 Amtrak points. The smallest possible transfer for a Blue Status member, 2,000 Bilt Points, gives 1,000 Amtrak points.

What you can book with Amtrak points

Amtrak award travel starts at 400 points, and Points & Cash bookings need a balance of just 100 points. Amtrak does not publish a fixed award chart: the number of points follows the cash fare, so it moves with the date, the route and demand.

Points also cover more than seats. Amtrak lets members redeem for lounge passes and one-class upgrade coupons, which can move a Business class ticket into Acela First class on the Northeast Corridor.

The partnership matters most in four cities: New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., all on Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. Those Northeast Corridor routes carry frequent trains and short trips, which is where a small Amtrak balance goes furthest.

When a transfer makes sense

The 2:1 ratio halves your points on the way in. Most Bilt airline and hotel partners transfer at 1:1, so a Bilt Point usually goes further with Air Canada Aeroplan, World of Hyatt or Flying Blue than on a train.

Transfer to Amtrak when:

• you have a specific trip priced in points and you're a few hundred Amtrak points short;
• you want an upgrade coupon or a lounge pass rather than a seat;
• you need activity on an Amtrak account to keep its points alive.

That last point matters. Amtrak points expire after 24 months with no points earned or redeemed, and holders of an Amtrak Guest Rewards Mastercard keep their points as long as the card stays open.

How this compares with other Bilt partnerships

Bilt has added several partners outside air and hotel travel in recent months, from the Bilt Rewards partnership with Equinox to Blacklane chauffeur rides. Amtrak is the first of these that works as a true points transfer rather than a spend or Bilt Cash benefit.

To see how Bilt's list stacks up against Amex, Chase, Citi and Capital One, read our guide to transferable points. Bilt often runs Rent Day promotions on the first of the month; we track them on our page of current transfer bonuses.

Bottom Line

Link your Amtrak Guest Rewards account to Bilt now, so it's ready when you need it. Then transfer only the exact amount for a booking you've already priced, in 1,000-point blocks, because a transfer can't be undone and the 2:1 ratio makes idle Amtrak points expensive.