What Choice Hotels Membership Gives You
Choice Hotels membership is a free rewards program that lets you earn points when you stay at any of their hotel brands. You don't pay to join, and you start earning when ready on your first night. The points accumulate in your account and convert to free nights, room upgrades, or other rewards depending on which membership tier you reach.
Choice Hotels owns multiple brands — Comfort Inn, Quality Inn, Clarion, Sleep Inn, Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn, and MainStay Suites are the main ones. When you book at any of these properties under your membership account, every dollar you spend earns points. The exact earning rate depends on which brand you're staying at and what membership level you've reached.
The program is tiered. You start at the base level (sometimes called "Member"), and as you accumulate nights or points in a calendar year, you move up to Silver Elite, Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, or Diamond Elite. Each tier unlocks better perks — more points per dollar, may provide room upgrades, late checkout, and other benefits.
Key Takeaways
- Choice Hotels membership is free to join and you begin earning points on your first stay at any Choice brand property.
- Points earned convert to free nights, room upgrades, or other rewards, with earning rates that increase as you reach higher membership tiers.
- You reach higher tiers by accumulating a certain number of nights or points in a calendar year, and benefits reset each January.
- You can book directly through the Choice Hotels website or app, or through a hotel card that's linked to your membership account.
- Points do not expire as long as you have account activity at least once every 24 months.
How to Join and Link Your Account
Go to the Choice Hotels website and click the membership sign-up link. You'll enter your email address, create a password, and provide your name and phone number. The whole process takes about two minutes. Once your account is created, you receive a membership number when ready — you don't have to wait for anything to arrive in the mail.
If you have a Choice Hotels credit card, log into your card issuer's website and look for the option to link your rewards account. This connection means every purchase on the card — not just hotel stays — earns points toward your Choice membership. The card issuer will ask for your Choice membership number, which you can find in your Choice account under "My Profile" or on any confirmation email.
When you book a hotel, always sign into your membership account before completing the reservation. If you book as a guest without logging in, that stay won't count toward your points or tier status, even if you provide your membership number at check-in. The booking has to be tied to your account from the start.
Understanding Membership Tiers and What Each One Offers
You start at the base Member level with no requirements. Once you complete 10 nights in a calendar year, you move to Silver Elite. At 25 nights you reach Gold Elite, at 40 nights you reach Platinum Elite, and at 70 nights you reach Diamond Elite. Alternatively, some brands allow you to reach tiers by earning a set number of points instead of nights — the program counts whichever milestone you hit first.
Each tier comes with specific perks. At Silver Elite you get a 10% point bonus on all stays. Gold Elite adds may provide room upgrades (subject to availability) and 20% bonus points. Platinum Elite includes late checkout until 4 p.m., 50% bonus points, and priority customer service. Diamond Elite, the highest tier, adds a free night certificate each year (valid at most properties), 75% bonus points, and room upgrades to the best available room.
Your tier status is active from January 1 through December 31 each year. On January 1, your night and point counts reset to zero, and your tier drops back to Member unless you've already earned enough nights or points in the new year to maintain a higher level. This means if you reach Diamond Elite in November, you'll drop back to Member on January 1 unless you've already started accumulating nights toward the next year's tiers.
How Points Work and What They're Worth
Base members earn 10 points per dollar spent on a room. Silver Elite members earn 11 points per dollar, Gold Elite earn 12 points per dollar, Platinum Elite earn 15 points per dollar, and Diamond Elite earn 17.5 points per dollar. These are the base rates; your actual earnings also include any bonus points from your membership tier and any promotional offers running at the time of your stay.
Points redeem for free nights. The cost in points varies by property and season — a free night at a budget property like Econo Lodge might cost 15,000 points, while a free night at a Clarion or Comfort Inn could cost 25,000 to 40,000 points depending on the location and time of year. You can see the exact point cost for any property before you book by searching on the Choice Hotels website and filtering for "Rewards" redemptions.
You can also use points for room upgrades, airline miles transfers (through partner programs), or gift cards. The point-to-dollar value varies depending on what you're redeeming for, so it's worth comparing before you decide. Some members find that redeeming for free nights at off-peak times gives better value than other options.
Earning Points With a Choice Hotels Credit Card
A Choice Hotels credit card earns points on every purchase you make, not just hotel stays. Most Choice cards earn 3 to 4 points per dollar on all purchases, though the exact rate depends on which card you have and which bank issues it. These points go directly into your Choice Hotels membership account and count toward both your point total and your tier status.
Credit card sign-up bonuses typically offer 40,000 to 75,000 bonus points after you meet a minimum spending requirement in the first few months. That's often enough for one or two free nights at a mid-range property. Annual fees vary — some cards charge $95 or $99 per year, while others have no annual fee. Compare the card's earning rate, annual fee, and sign-up bonus against how often you stay at Choice properties and how much you'd spend on the card overall.
The card and your membership account are separate products. You can have a membership without a card, and you can have a card without using it for hotel stays. But linking them means all your spending feeds into one rewards balance, which makes it easier to reach higher tiers and accumulate points faster.
How to Redeem Your Points for a Free Night
Log into your Choice Hotels account and go to the "Redeem Rewards" or "Book with Points" section. Search for the property, dates, and room type you want, just as you would for a regular booking. The search results will show you the point cost for each option. Select the room you want and complete the booking using your points balance instead of a credit card.
Your points are deducted from your account when ready, and you receive a confirmation number. You'll check in at the hotel the same way you would for any other reservation — show your ID and confirmation number at the front desk. The hotel has no way to know you paid with points rather than cash; from their perspective it's a normal booking.
Free night certificates (which Diamond Elite members receive annually) work differently. These are separate from your points balance and have specific terms — they're usually valid for one year from the date you receive them, and they cover the room rate only, not taxes or resort fees. You redeem a certificate by calling Choice Hotels customer service or booking through the website and selecting the certificate as your payment method.
What Happens to Your Points and Tier Status
Points do not expire as long as your account has activity at least once every 24 months. Activity means any stay at a Choice property, any credit card purchase (if you have a Choice card), or even logging into your account. If your account goes inactive for 24 months or longer, your points may be forfeited. To be safe, make at least one stay or one card purchase every two years.
Your tier status resets every January 1, regardless of how many nights you accumulated the previous year. If you reach Diamond Elite in December, you start back at Member on January 1. However, any nights or points you earn in early January count toward your tier for that new year, so you can climb back up quickly if you have travel planned.
If you have a Choice credit card, the card's benefits (like annual free night certificates or anniversary bonuses) operate on the card's anniversary date, not the calendar year. So even if your membership tier resets in January, your card benefits may renew in a different month depending on when you opened the card.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to use a credit card to earn points?
No. You can earn points on every stay just by booking under your membership account, even without a credit card. A card straightforward lets you earn points on everyday purchases too, which accelerates your progress toward higher tiers and larger point balances.
Can I transfer my points to someone else or combine accounts?
You cannot transfer points between accounts or combine two memberships into one. Points belong to the account they were earned in. If you have multiple family members staying at Choice properties, each person should have their own membership account to earn their own points.
What if I book a hotel and forget to sign into my membership account?
That stay will not earn points or count toward your tier status. You can sometimes add your membership number to a reservation after booking but before check-in by calling the hotel or logging into your Choice account, but the safest approach is to always sign in before you complete your reservation.
Do I earn points on taxes and resort fees?
Points are earned on the room rate only, not on taxes, resort fees, or other charges added at checkout. So if your room costs $100 but taxes and fees add $25, you earn points only on the $100 room rate.
What's the difference between Choice membership and a Choice credit card?
Membership is the rewards program itself — it's free and you earn points on stays. A credit card is a separate product that earns points on all purchases and may offer additional perks like annual free night certificates or elite night bonuses. You can have one without the other, but linking them gives you faster point accumulation.