Key Points:
- Bilt Rent Day happens on the first of every month and offers double points on rent payments plus exclusive bonus opportunities that can multiply your earning rate.
- Strategic participation can turn your rent payments into 10,000+ points monthly through stacking promotions with everyday spending categories.
- The best rewards come from combining Rent Day bonuses with transfer partners like American Airlines and Hyatt where points value 1.5-2 cents each.
Paying rent typically feels like throwing money away. But what if your biggest monthly expense could fund your next vacation? That's exactly what Bilt Rent Day delivers—a monthly opportunity to supercharge your rent payments and everyday spending into valuable travel rewards.
New to Bilt? Check out our complete Bilt Rewards review to understand how the program works before diving into Rent Day optimization.
On the first day of every month, Bilt transforms from a solid rent rewards card into a points-earning powerhouse. Understanding how to maximize these 12 annual opportunities can mean the difference between earning a few thousand points yearly and banking enough for multiple premium flights or hotel stays.
Ready to get started? Apply for the Bilt Mastercard here and start earning on your next rent payment.
What Is Bilt Rent Day?
Bilt Rent Day is a monthly promotion occurring on the 1st of each month where Bilt Mastercard holders earn double points on rent payments and gain access to exclusive bonus earning opportunities. While the standard Bilt card earns 1x point per dollar on rent (up to 100,000 points annually), Rent Day doubles this to 2x points without requiring any extra steps.
The promotion runs for 24 hours starting at 12:01 AM ET on the first of each month. You don't need to register or activate anything—the bonuses automatically apply to eligible transactions posted on that date.
Beyond doubled rent points, each Rent Day features rotating bonus categories and special promotions. These typically include limited-time transfer bonuses to airline and hotel partners, elevated earning rates on specific spending categories, and exclusive redemption opportunities.
The real value comes from stacking opportunities. A typical Rent Day might offer 2x points on rent, 5x points on dining, and a 50% transfer bonus to American Airlines. Smart players combine all three to maximize their monthly haul.
For more on how Bilt stacks up against other rent payment options, see our guide to earning credit card rewards on rent.
How Bilt Rent Day Works
The mechanics are straightforward but timing matters. To earn Rent Day bonuses, your transactions must post (not just process) on the first of the month. This creates an important distinction between when you make a purchase and when Bilt officially records it.
For rent payments, Bilt processes your payment on the date you schedule it. If you set your rent payment for the 1st, it posts that day and earns double points. However, many landlords require rent by the 1st, so setting your payment for that date might cut it close for your lease terms.
The smarter approach: Schedule your rent payment for the 1st to capture Rent Day bonuses, but communicate with your landlord about your payment timing if they're strict about processing dates. Most property managers care about when they receive funds, not when you initiate payment. Since Bilt processes same-day for most landlords using their network, this rarely creates issues.
For bonus category spending, the posting date determines eligibility. A restaurant charge made late on the 31st might not post until the 2nd, missing the Rent Day window entirely. To guarantee bonus earnings, make purchases early on the 1st or check with merchants about their posting timelines.
Monthly Rent Day Bonus Structure
Every Rent Day includes a base promotion plus 2-3 additional bonus opportunities:
Guaranteed Benefits:
- 2x points on rent (up to your monthly limit)
- Access to exclusive transfer bonuses
- Special redemption rates for select partners
Rotating Promotions (varies monthly):
- Elevated category bonuses (typically 3-5x points on dining, travel, or fitness)
- Transfer partner bonuses (25-100% extra points when transferring)
- Statement credit opportunities (spend $X, get $Y back)
- Sweepstakes entries for luxury experiences
Bilt announces each month's specific promotions about a week in advance through their app and email. The highest-value bonuses often require meeting spending thresholds across multiple categories, rewarding cardholders who strategically shift their monthly spending to the 1st.
Maximizing Your Rent Day Strategy
The difference between casual Rent Day participation and strategic maximization can easily mean 50,000+ extra points annually. Here's how to extract maximum value from every Rent Day.
Timing Your Rent Payment
Your rent payment timing strategy depends on your landlord's payment requirements and the specific Rent Day promotions. For standard months with 2x rent points, the calculation is simple: $2,000 rent × 2 points per dollar = 4,000 points instead of the usual 2,000.
But special months change the equation. When Bilt offers transfer bonuses to premium partners, your rent points become significantly more valuable. For example, a 50% transfer bonus to Hyatt means those 4,000 Rent Day points effectively become 6,000 Hyatt points—enough for a Category 4 hotel night worth $250+.
Always schedule rent payments for Rent Day unless:
- Your landlord charges late fees that exceed point value (rare with Bilt's same-day processing)
- You've already hit your annual 100,000-point rent earning cap
- You're strategically saving your rent payment for a future Rent Day with better bonuses
Some advanced players track Rent Day promotions across months and shift flexible expenses accordingly. If March offers standard 2x rent but April features a 100% transfer bonus to American Airlines, paying April rent on April 1st could double your points value for that payment.
Stacking Category Bonuses
The real Rent Day magic happens when you stack multiple promotions simultaneously. A typical high-value Rent Day might offer:
- 2x points on rent (your $2,000 payment = 4,000 points)
- 5x points on dining (vs. standard 3x)
- 50% transfer bonus to American Airlines
If you strategically shift $500 in monthly dining spending to Rent Day, you earn an extra 1,000 points (5x vs. 3x on $500). Combined with your rent bonus, that's 3,000 extra points in one day. Transfer those 7,000 total points to American with the 50% bonus, and you've got 10,500 AAdvantage miles—enough for a domestic roundtrip flight.
The stacking formula:
- Identify the month's highest-value bonus categories
- Delay discretionary spending in those categories until the 1st
- Front-load monthly spending that matches bonus categories
- Time transfers to coincide with partner bonuses
- Meet any spending thresholds for tiered bonuses
This requires planning your monthly spending calendar, but the payoff is substantial. Someone strategically using Rent Day all 12 months can earn 30,000-50,000 more points annually than passive cardholders—that's 2-3 additional domestic flights or 4-5 extra hotel nights.
Transfer Partner Optimization
Bilt partners with eight major loyalty programs: American Airlines, United, Air Canada, Virgin Atlantic, Hyatt, IHG, Hawaiian Airlines, and Turkish Airlines. Rent Day transfer bonuses typically range from 25-100% depending on the partner and promotion.
The key is understanding baseline point values before deciding whether a transfer bonus is worthwhile. Our complete guide to Bilt transfer partners breaks down the math, but here's the quick reference:
High-Value Transfers (aim for these):
- Hyatt (baseline ~2.0 cents per point) - Learn how to maximize Hyatt points
- American Airlines for premium cabin awards (~1.8 cents) - Best uses for AAdvantage miles
- Virgin Atlantic for partner awards (~1.6 cents)
Moderate-Value Transfers:
- United for domestic travel (~1.3 cents)
- Air Canada Aeroplan (~1.4 cents)
- Turkish Airlines for Star Alliance awards (~1.5 cents)
Lower-Value Transfers:
- IHG (~0.5 cents per point)
- Hawaiian Airlines (~1.0 cents)
A 50% transfer bonus to IHG might sound appealing, but even with the bonus, you're getting about 0.75 cents per Bilt point—well below what you'd earn transferring to Hyatt without any bonus. Always calculate the post-bonus value against baseline values of your best transfer partners.
The transfer timing strategy: Don't transfer points on Rent Day just because a bonus exists. Transfer when you have a specific redemption planned where the bonus partner offers the best value for your route or hotel. Bank your Bilt points and wait for transfer bonuses that align with your actual travel plans.
Want the card? Apply for the Bilt Mastercard here to start earning points on rent and everyday purchases.
Common Rent Day Promotions
While Bilt varies Rent Day offerings monthly, certain promotion types recur regularly. Understanding the patterns helps you predict and plan for high-value months.
Dining and Fitness Bonuses
Bilt's most frequent bonus categories are dining (including bars and cafes) and fitness (gyms, studios, sports activities). These typically boost earning from the standard 3x to 5x points, occasionally reaching 7x during special promotions.
The math is compelling: If you spend $400 monthly on dining, shifting this spending to Rent Day during a 5x promotion earns 2,000 points instead of the usual 1,200—an extra 800 points for simply timing your purchases differently. Over 12 months, that's 9,600 extra points from one category alone.
Looking for more ways to maximize dining rewards? Check out our best credit cards for dining to see how Bilt compares to category-specific cards.
Tactical approaches:
- Buy restaurant gift cards on Rent Day to use throughout the month
- Schedule group dinners for the 1st when you're covering the check
- Prepay gym memberships or class packages on Rent Day
- Use dining bonuses for grocery stores that code as restaurants
Travel Category Multipliers
Several times yearly, Bilt offers elevated earning on travel purchases—typically boosting from 2x to 5x or higher on flights, hotels, rental cars, and other travel expenses. These promotions are particularly valuable for upcoming trips.
The timing challenge is that many people book travel well in advance. But if you have travel booked for late January and Rent Day in January offers a travel multiplier, consider rebooking (if cancellation policies allow) to capture the bonus points. With 5x earning, a $600 flight yields 3,000 points instead of 1,200—an extra 1,800 points worth $27-36 in travel value.
Some sophisticated players deliberately book refundable rates for major travel expenses, then rebook on Rent Day if travel bonuses appear. This only makes sense for large purchases where bonus points exceed any fare differences, but it's a legitimate optimization strategy.
For more travel booking strategies, see our guide to booking flights with points and miles.
Transfer Partner Bonuses
Transfer bonuses are Rent Day's most valuable promotion type when aligned with your travel goals. These bonuses range from 25% (fairly common) to 100% (rare but powerful).
Historical bonus patterns:
- American Airlines: 50% bonuses appear 2-3 times yearly, usually in slower travel months
- Hyatt: 30-50% bonuses occur 1-2 times yearly, often around major hotel booking seasons
- United: 25% bonuses are most common, appearing quarterly
- Virgin Atlantic: 100% bonuses have occurred but are extremely rare
- IHG: Regular bonuses (30-50%) due to lower baseline value
The strategic move is tracking these patterns and timing major transfers accordingly. If you're planning to book a Hyatt redemption and have 40,000 Bilt points banked, waiting for a 50% transfer bonus gives you 60,000 Hyatt points instead—potentially upgrading your hotel category or adding extra nights.
Don't transfer speculatively. Only move points when you have a specific use planned within the next 3-6 months. Loyalty program devaluations can erode value, and you lose Bilt's transfer flexibility once points move to partners.
Not sure which transfer partner to use? Our Bilt transfer partner guide walks through the best redemption options for each airline and hotel program.
Real-World Value Calculations
Understanding theoretical maximums is useful, but real-world examples show how Rent Day actually impacts your travel budget.
Standard Month Example
Scenario: $2,000 monthly rent, $400 dining, $200 other spending
Regular earning:
- Rent: 2,000 points (1x)
- Dining: 1,200 points (3x)
- Other: 200 points (1x)
- Monthly total: 3,400 points
Rent Day earning (2x rent, 5x dining):
- Rent: 4,000 points (2x)
- Dining: 2,000 points (5x)
- Other: 200 points (1x)
- Rent Day total: 6,200 points
Annual impact: 2,800 extra points × 12 months = 33,600 points
That's enough for two Category 4 Hyatt nights (30,000 points) worth $500+ in hotel value, earned simply by timing your regular spending strategically.
Learn more about maximizing World of Hyatt points for premium hotel stays.
High-Value Month Example
Scenario: Same spending, but Rent Day offers 50% American Airlines transfer bonus
Monthly earning: 6,200 points (as above)
Strategic transfer:
- Transfer 72,000 annual points to American Airlines
- With 50% bonus: receive 108,000 AAdvantage miles
- Redeem for business class to Europe: 115,000 miles (you're 7,000 miles short)
- Use 5,000 more Bilt points (transferred during another bonus month)
- Total cost: 77,000 Bilt points for a ticket worth $4,000+
Value per point: ~5.2 cents when optimized for premium cabin awards
This isn't typical value—most redemptions average 1.5-2.0 cents per point—but it illustrates how strategic Rent Day usage and transfer timing can generate outsized returns.
Want to learn more about booking business class awards? Check our guide to using miles for business class flights.
Advanced Rent Day Tactics
Once you've mastered basic Rent Day optimization, several advanced strategies can push your earning even higher.
The Gift Card Strategy
Many retailers and restaurants sell gift cards that code as their native category. Buying a $500 restaurant gift card on Rent Day during a 5x dining promotion earns 2,500 points instead of 1,500—an extra 1,000 points you can use gradually throughout the month.
This works particularly well for:
- Grocery stores with restaurant gift card racks (if your card codes as dining)
- Amazon gift cards during any elevated online shopping bonuses
- Airline gift cards during travel category promotions
- Gas station gift cards during travel bonuses
The catch: You're prepaying for future spending, which ties up cash flow. Only prepay amounts you'll definitely use within 3-6 months, and verify the merchant codes correctly for the bonus category before buying large amounts.
Category Optimization Through Merchant Coding
Not all merchants code to their obvious category. Some grocery stores code as restaurants. Some subscription services code as travel. Some online purchases code as dining.
The Bilt app shows how recent transactions coded, but you can also test small purchases to determine coding before Rent Day. If you discover a merchant that codes advantageously, you can strategically shift that spending to Rent Day during relevant bonuses.
Example: Some meal kit services code as restaurants (3x base earning). During a 5x dining Rent Day, a $200 meal kit order earns 1,000 points instead of 200—an 800-point difference for grocery spending you'd make anyway.
For more category optimization strategies, see our guide to credit card merchant category codes.
The Transfer Calendar
Advanced Bilt users maintain a transfer calendar tracking historical transfer bonus patterns. While Bilt doesn't publish future bonuses in advance, patterns emerge over time.
Based on 2024 data:
- American Airlines bonuses typically appear in January, May, and September
- Hyatt bonuses often coincide with peak booking seasons (March, October)
- United bonuses are most common in shoulder travel seasons
- Virgin Atlantic bonuses are unpredictable but highest value when offered
By tracking these patterns, you can anticipate likely bonus months and time your points accumulation accordingly. If you know you'll need American miles for a November trip and historical data suggests a September bonus, you might deliberately save rent payment timing or delay transfers to capitalize on the likely promotion.
When Rent Day Doesn't Make Sense
Rent Day isn't always optimal, and recognizing when to skip or modify your strategy saves time and maximizes overall value.
Skip Rent Day when:
- You've hit the annual rent cap: Bilt limits rent earning to 100,000 points yearly (approximately $8,333 in monthly rent paid). Once you hit this cap around mid-September with $2,500+ monthly rent, the 2x Rent Day bonus doesn't apply to rent payments anymore. Continue using Rent Day for category bonuses but don't stress about rent payment timing.
- Opportunity cost exceeds bonus value: If paying rent on the 1st triggers a late fee worth more than your bonus points, pay earlier. A $50 late fee costs more than 2,000-3,000 bonus points are worth.
- Cash flow constraints: Bilt requires minimum transaction activity for points to remain valid (5 transactions per statement period). If timing multiple purchases on the 1st strains your budget or prevents you from making your minimum transaction count, spreading spending naturally is smarter.
- Better card options exist: During months with weak Rent Day promotions, other cards might offer superior earning. If Rent Day only offers 2x rent (your default elsewhere) and no compelling category bonuses, using a 5% cash back card for that month's dining might deliver more value. Compare options in our best rewards credit cards guide.
Ready to start earning on rent? Apply for the Bilt Mastercard and get your first Rent Day bonuses next month.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to register for Rent Day promotions?
No, Rent Day bonuses automatically apply to all eligible Bilt Mastercard holders. You don't need to activate anything or register in advance. Just make qualifying purchases on the 1st and bonuses apply automatically.
What if my rent is due before the 1st?
You can still pay rent on the 1st to capture Rent Day bonuses, but communicate with your landlord about timing. Most accept payments through the first several days of the month without penalty. If your landlord is strict about the 1st as a due date and Bilt's processing timeline doesn't work, focus on maximizing category bonuses during Rent Day instead.
Can I combine multiple Rent Day bonuses?
Yes, you can stack bonus categories in a single Rent Day. If dining earns 5x and fitness earns 4x, you can earn both bonuses by making purchases in each category on the 1st. However, a single transaction only earns under one category—your restaurant charge earns the dining bonus, not both dining and fitness.
How do I know what each month's Rent Day bonuses are?
Bilt announces the next month's Rent Day promotions roughly 7-10 days before the 1st through their mobile app and email newsletters. You can also check their website or social media channels for announcements. Setting up notifications in the Bilt app ensures you never miss promotion details.
What happens if my transaction posts on the 2nd instead of the 1st?
You won't receive Rent Day bonuses for transactions that post after midnight ET on the 2nd. To avoid this, make purchases early on the 1st and verify that merchants process transactions same-day. For critical purchases where you want to guarantee Rent Day bonuses, call the merchant to confirm their posting schedule.
Can I transfer points to partners without a Rent Day bonus?
Absolutely. You can transfer Bilt points to any of their eight partners anytime, not just on Rent Day. Rent Day transfer bonuses are additional incentives but don't restrict when you can make transfers. However, you should generally wait for transfer bonuses when possible since they significantly increase your points value.
Does Bilt offer Rent Day for non-cardholders?
No, Rent Day promotions are exclusive to Bilt Mastercard holders. Bilt Rewards members who only use the program for rent payments without the credit card don't receive Rent Day bonuses. The card is required to access all promotional benefits.
Conclusion
Bilt Rent Day transforms your largest monthly expense from a necessary cost into a travel rewards opportunity. By strategically timing your rent payments, stacking category bonuses, and capitalizing on transfer promotions, you can easily generate an extra 30,000-50,000 points annually—enough for multiple domestic flights or several premium hotel nights.
The strategy is straightforward: schedule rent for the 1st, shift flexible spending to match bonus categories, and transfer points during partner bonuses when you have specific redemptions planned. The cardholders who extract maximum value are simply those who plan their monthly spending calendar around these 12 annual opportunities.
Start with the basics—paying rent on Rent Day—then layer in category bonus optimization as you become comfortable with the system. Track your results monthly to see how strategic timing impacts your points balance, and adjust your approach based on which promotions deliver the most value for your spending patterns.
Ready to start earning points on rent? Apply for the Bilt Mastercard here and begin maximizing your Rent Day bonuses.
For more points and miles strategies, explore our guides on transferable points currencies, best travel credit cards for 2025, and how to book award flights.
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