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Get a Hilton Honors Diamond status match to 2025 with 14 nights – and Gold for 90 days

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If you have considered switching your hotel stays to Hilton but don’t want to go ‘cold turkey’ because you have status with your main chain, Hilton has a solution.

Hilton Honors has offered an occasional status challenge program for years, letting you leverage your elite status from Marriott Bonvoy, IHG Rewards etc for Hilton Gold or Diamond.

The challenge is now back. The number of nights required has gone up from 2022, but your ability to actually hit the number of nights needed should be better in 2023 with most countries now fully open.

Importantly, even mid-tier elites (eg Marriott Bonvoy Gold) get a fast track to Hilton Diamond.

Hilton diamond status match

Irrespective of whether your current status is mid tier or top tier, you get Hilton Honors Gold Elite status for 90 days.

You retain your Gold Elite status if you complete eight nights in the 90 days. You will be upgraded to Diamond Elite if you complete 14 nights in the 90 days.

Your status would last until 30th March 2025.

How to get a Hilton Honors status match

Via this link, you can match your existing status with another hotel loyalty programme into Hilton Honors.  You must be at least ‘mid tier’ although Hilton will define at its discretion what counts from each particular scheme.

You can definitely match from the following programmes:

  • Best Western Rewards
  • Choice Privileges
  • IHG One Rewards
  • Marriott Bonvoy
  • World of Hyatt

There is also an ‘Other’ box in the dropdown menu.

How does the Hilton Honors status match work?

The match rules are simple:

  • You will receive Hilton Honors Gold Elite status for 90 days from the date of acceptance (usually 5-7 days after you email your request)
  • To keep Gold Elite until March 2025, you need to complete eight nights for cash (reward stays do not count) within 90 days
  • To be upgraded to Diamond Elite until March 2025, you need to complete 14 nights for cash within 90 days

Note that, as well as having status in another programme, you must also have evidence of a stay within the last 24 months with that programme.

If, for example, you have Marriott Bonvoy Gold status from American Express Platinum, you would also need to show evidence of a Marriott stay within the last two years in order to be matched.

The match is only available for Hilton Silver Elite or base members. You cannot use it to get Hilton Diamond if you are already Hilton Gold.

Hilton honors status match

Is a Hilton Honors status match worth doing?

Potentially, yes.

Hilton Gold Elite is generally seen as the best mid-tier hotel status because it gets you free breakfast. In North America, you get a food and beverage credit instead of breakfast – the good news is that this can be used towards any meal or at the bar, the bad news is that it rarely covers the cost of an actual breakfast.

Hilton Diamond Elite comes with guaranteed lounge access when the hotel has a lounge, which is a good reason to push for it. You will also have a higher priority for upgrades.

Timing is key, of course. Once you are accepted, you get the benefits of Hilton Honors Gold status for 90 days.  There is no point triggering this match now unless you a stay coming up late April.

Given the fairly quick turn-around time, your best bet is to trigger the challenge when you have a trip firmed up.

You can apply for your Hilton Honors status match here. Our full review of Hilton Honors is here.

Click here for a complete guide to getting hotel elite status from UK credit cards.


How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards

How to earn Hilton Honors points and status from UK credit cards (April 2024)

There are various ways of earning Hilton Honors points from UK credit cards.  Many cards also have generous sign-up bonuses.

Do you know that holders of The Platinum Card from American Express receive FREE Hilton Honors Gold status for as long as they hold the card?  It also comes with Marriott Bonvoy Gold, Radisson Rewards Premium and MeliaRewards Gold status.  We reviewed American Express Platinum in detail here and you can apply here.

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Did you know that the Virgin Atlantic credit cards are a great way of earning Hilton Honors points? Two Virgin Points can be converted into three Hilton Honors points. The Virgin Atlantic cards are the only Visa or Mastercard products in the UK which can indirectly earn Hilton Honors points. You can apply here.

You can also earn Hilton Honors points indirectly with:

and for small business owners:

The conversion rate from American Express to Hilton points is 1:2.

Click here to read our detailed summary of all UK credit cards which can be used to earn Hilton Honors points

(Want to earn more hotel points?  Click here to see our complete list of promotions from the major hotel chains or use the ‘Hotel Offers’ link in the menu bar at the top of the page.)

Comments (47)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • ForestPark says:

    What’s the general limit people would be willing to pay for a mattress run for Diamond? I know it depends on future predicted travel patterns etc. but having lost Bonvoy Platinum last year I’m looking for viable alternatives and giving a diff hotel chain a shot. Never really been a Hilton person though.

    I’m London-based and will need 3 nights before end of June. I cannot for the life of me find anything relatively decently priced…I found 3 nights at a hotel for EUR 270 for an upcoming trip I have where I’d check in and not sleep there…but EUR 270 seems steep.

    Any input appreciated!

    • Rob says:

      The value isn’t really there. The gap between Gold and Diamond is modest and is mainly down to upgrades – and at busy hotels those are going to be thinner on the ground than previously. The only exception would be if you were at a lot of hotels with decent lounges, and even then you can always pay for a Club room which would probably be cheaper than a run.

      I would chase Marriott Platinum over Gold, because of the 4pm guaranteed check-out, lounge access and the 5 Suite Night Awards, but not Hilton Diamond over Gold.

      • ForestPark says:

        Interesting…I’m thinking the same. Also on the Marriott Platinum point, I’m ‘lucky’ enough to be able to get the status through the US card (albeit for a hefty fee…).

        Have some upcoming trip to SE Asia this winter period, most of which will likely be Thailand. If only we had a good route to Hyatt status! Am now pondering Hilton vs Bonvoy footprint + benefits for status to see if it’s worth doing either of these options.

    • Carlos says:

      Check Tripadvisor and you will see even Diamond members do not get the status recognition as you would expect.

    • Carlos says:

      IIRC diamond members were able to get fresh juice for breakface whilst lowly gold,silver and normal members were not. I presume they use carton juices for breakfast

    • Karl says:

      Depends if you have any stays upcoming where there could Diamind could be advantageous.

      Last year we stayed in the Reykjavik Hilton. The spa was complimentary for Diamond, along with a fairly generous lounge. Saved us about £100pp/day if you make use of the spa, eat in the lounge to save a meal cost, as well as a few drinks which can be £+++ in Iceland.

    • Jay says:

      Book 3 nights at a cheap Hampton in Birmingham @ £60ish a night, lend the log in to your app to a ‘friend’ so they can do digital check in and digital key. They use the key to enter the room so it doesn’t show as a ‘No Show’ and you get 3 nights whilst you stay at home and don’t have to endure Hampton in Birmingham. You then change the log in password and all done and dusted.

  • Julia says:

    I have a Hilton Barclaycard and Gold status comes with so Im always missing out on these status matches. I can put 14 nights in Hiltons direction but 42 nights right off the bat just wont happen. We would probably keep up Diamond status as well as we use lounges when in the Middle East. Oh well looks like we,re going back to the HGI by the Emirates Mall.

    • Carlos says:

      How is the HGI over there?

      • Julia says:

        Hi Carlos. Its very nice but it isn,t a resort hotel. Rooms are well situated and quiet, laundry is free and bring or buy detergent, staff very helpful, breakfast plentiful but can get busy. Quick walk to the Mall via the Kepinsky lobby. Pool area a little baren and pool itself shallow and on the small side. I paid 130,000 points for 5 nights and didn,t regret it. Happy to recomend.

    • Bigmaggot says:

      You could always phone and ask if you have a Diamond challenge on your account

    • Aston100 says:

      Open a new account and do the status match with that. Afterwards, combine the two accounts through the Hilton website.

  • Carlos says:

    Trying to get Hilton Barclaycard to renew my Gold Status, after speaking to Hilton directly they have said the report hasnt been sent and is usually automatic. Met the requirement for £10k spend

    Is anyone else facing this problem? Currently Silver until this has been fixed.

  • dan_a_man says:

    Hilton just baffles me. I wonder about the percentage of people who actually earned Diamond through staying 60 nights. No credit cards, no double elite nights promotions, no status match – just what loyalty programs are designed for – loyalty. Been Diamond now for several years straight and cant see the value (anymore). In particular when we look at the value a luxury travel agent can bring or e.g. Marriott Platinum in contrast. HHonors actually punishes loyal guests… Had 60 nights rolled over into last year and stayed another 38, but started this year with 0 while my current Diamond also prevents me from taking such a “match” as an extension of Diamond into 2025. Outside of Asia the non-guaranteed benefits dont really exist anyway.

    • ianM says:

      Yeh it’s a kick in the teeth for those like us who earn it through days and stays.

      I think Diamond is very good, especially in the UK where there are some decent exec lounges although Covid put paid to a lot of them. Not worth much in US altho I just got an upgrade to a premium room in an Embassy Suites

      • C says:

        Agreed. Absolute farce. Every man (woman) and their proverbial dog has Diamond these days. Lounges are rammed, no upgrades, it’s a shambles.
        I’m a long term Diamond, earned through annual stays, sadly Diamond is now a give away picked up through a proverbial box of cornflakes.

  • RH says:

    I disagree, we just got back from the Conrad Maldives and diamond got us a nice upgrade, excellent breakfast and an hour of free alcohol a day which I took great advantage of. It meant I hardly bought any more alcohol in the evening and saved me around $32 a glass of wine!

    • dougzz99 says:

      So you go somewhere really expensive, then binge drink for an hour, to avoid paying more to drink at a leisurely pace you’d more enjoy. I really don’t get it.
      Do you really like the Maldives that much.

  • Paul Bainbridge says:

    I have been staying at Hilton Worldwide since 1975 working in USA for 10 years staying every week in many Hiltons including Waikiki Beach Hawai .Last Vegas each week plus staying at Hilton London Metropole for 35 years in the 90s 3 times a week plus introducing Groups to the Hilton
    I have requested and promised Permanent Diamond Status for the past 4 years. W
    Loyalty on this amount of time deserves me a Card for being such a good Customer over the past 47 years and still booking all year round
    I also tried to book Hilton Hampton Liverpool with my friends for a family room I was given a price .my friend checked through booking .com and recieved the same price as mine.so were is the Loyalty price of being a Diamond member since 2001 .the benefits are going down year by year with the Loyalty programme
    PB

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