【September 16, 2026 update】 The programme changes previewed last December continue (blog post 🔗). From September 30:

  • Points Sharing launches: members can transfer points directly to other Choice Privileges members

  • Booking a Reward Night for someone else goes away: because of Points Sharing, the old option to book an award stay for family will be removed. Share the points instead, and let them book themselves

The hotel group

Choice Hotels International is a U.S. hotel company founded in 1939 and based in Maryland. As of 16 September 2026 it has more than 7,400 hotels in 45-plus countries and territories. Choice owns the Radisson brands in the Americas; outside the Americas, Radisson Hotel Group is a separate company, so the brands and loyalty benefits on each side should not be mixed.

Choice Hotels is a relatively affordable chain, and worth considering on the road. The value points are below.

Brands

Choice’s original brands include:

  • Upscale: Ascend Hotel Collection, Cambria Hotels
  • Midscale: Comfort, Clarion Pointe, Clarion Hotels, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn
  • Extended stay: Everhome Suites, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, WoodSpring Suites
  • Economy: Econo Lodge, Rodeway Inn

⚠️ Complimentary breakfast is not a system-wide Choice elite benefit. Comfort properties often include breakfast, but brand, country, and hotel policies differ; use the breakfast / rate notes on the hotel page when you book.

Americas Radisson brands that can participate in Choice Privileges include Radisson, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Radisson Collection, Radisson Individuals, Park Plaza, Park Inn by Radisson, and Country Inn & Suites by Radisson. Radisson hotels outside the Americas generally do not.

Elite status

From 2026, Choice Privileges is a free global hotel programme. Above the base Member level sit Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and the new Titanium elite tiers. Benefits still centre on bonus points and practical stay perks; aside from conditional breakfast at selected upscale Radisson brands, there is no system-wide elite breakfast for two.

Tiers

Tier How to qualify (each calendar year) Bonus points
Member Join —
Gold 5 qualifying nights, or 10,000 EQC 10%
Platinum 15 qualifying nights, or 30,000 EQC 25%
Diamond 35 qualifying nights, or 70,000 EQC 50%
Titanium 55 qualifying nights, or 110,000 EQC 50%

EQC (Elite Qualifying Credits) come from base points on qualifying stays plus spend earn on the U.S. Choice Privileges Mastercard. Qualifying hotel spend earns 10 EQC per $1. Welcome, anniversary, and promo bonuses on the cobrand card generally do not count as EQC. Current benefits include an elite welcome amenity, priority parking when available, early check-in / late checkout, elite customer service, and a Penn Play status match. Room upgrades are limited to participating Cambria, Ascend, and selected Americas Radisson brands, and they are not guaranteed. Diamond and Titanium get breakfast for the member and one registered guest at participating restaurants at selected upscale Radisson brands. Titanium also gets one 50% off award-night voucher a year at designated hotels, for up to 7 nights in a single stay.

⚠️ The old Your Extras programme was replaced by Milestone Rewards from 1 January 2026. Milestone rewards are issued in stages (for example bonus points or a gift card); eligibility and options follow whatever the account actually shows. After the 2nd and 3rd separate qualifying stays in the same calendar year, every member gets 1,000 Return and Earn bonus points; that bonus does not receive an elite multiplier.

Status match

A) Standard match

The site has a full status-match page: official details

You need your name, Choice member number, and a screenshot or statement showing valid elite status in another hotel programme. U.S. and Canadian members use Status_Match@choicehotels.com. Members in Europe, the Caribbean / Latin America / Mexico, and Australia / New Zealand must use the matching mailbox on the official page.

⚠️ A standard match tops out at Platinum, and each member can match only once in a lifetime. Matches granted in January–June usually run through year-end; matches in July–December usually run through the following year-end. The old Cambria Diamond Elite Status Jump page no longer describes that offer, so do not treat it as a live upgrade path.

The points programme

Choice’s frequent-stay programme is Choice Privileges (plural). It is free for eligible residents in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mexico, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Asia-Pacific. The core value is still earning on qualifying stays and redeeming for award nights at Choice, Radisson Americas, and partner hotels.

Gold, Platinum, Diamond, and Titanium members’ points do not expire while they hold elite status. Non-elite members lose points after 18 consecutive calendar months with no qualifying account activity. Qualifying stays, redemptions, purchases, earn on the U.S. cobrand card, or earn/redeem with designated partners all reset the clock. Signing up for a promo or gifting points out does not count as activity (receiving gifted points does).

Earning points

1 Stays

On a qualifying stay at a participating hotel, you earn 10 base points per full $1 of room rate (excluding taxes and incidentals), plus 10% / 25% / 50% for elite. At participating upscale Radisson brands in the Americas, some qualifying dining can earn too. WoodSpring Suites does not currently participate in Choice Privileges. OTA bookings, award stays, and some discounted / group / employee rates are not qualifying.

2 Cobrand cards

➡️ Canada has no Choice cobrand card. Canadian members should not treat U.S.-only perks such as EQC from the U.S. card or Points Plus Cash as available to them.

➡️ The United States has Choice Privileges Mastercard products. Besides hotel and everyday earn, qualifying card spend can count toward EQC and Milestone Qualifying Credits from 2026. Card names, annual fees, welcome offers, and earn rates change often; use the current issuer / Choice page.

3 Point transfers

➡️ Canada has no relevant transferable points (further reading: Canadian credit-card points to airline miles and hotel points)

➡️ United States (further reading: U.S. credit-card points to airline miles and hotel points)

Program Transfer Ratio
Amex Membership Rewards 1:1
Citi ThankYou Points 1:1.05 or 1:1.5, depending on the card
Capital One Miles 1:1
Wells Fargo Rewards 1:2

Those are the published U.S. transfer relationships; transfers are usually irreversible. Common Canadian bank currencies currently have no official Choice transfer partner. Radisson Rewards Americas has been folded into Choice, so the old Radisson:Choice 2:1 swap is no longer a live option.

4 Other

You can buy at the current posted price. The usual calendar-year cap is 180,000 points (promotions can differ). Points typically post within 24 hours, purchases are non-refundable, and the price moves, so this article no longer quotes a fixed cost. When you buy or gift into someone else’s account, that receiving account is also usually capped at 180,000 purchased / gifted points a year.

Avis / Budget bonuses depend on region, rental length, and booking window. The U.S. page currently shows up to 35% off plus 3,000 points on rentals of 4 consecutive days or more; the Canadian page can show a different bonus. Open the terms before you book.

Earn 5 points per $1 spent on the price of your qualifying cruise, or redeem points for cruise credits on sailings offered by Choice Privileges® Cruises.

  • Choice Privileges Eat & Earn ended on 31 December 2025 and is no longer an earn path.

  • Golf, surveys, referral sign-ups, and similar earn channels that used to appear are not on the current official partners page as standing offers. If they show up again in the account or promo pages, use that period’s terms.

Using points

1 Choice award stays

Award nights use dynamic pricing. There is no longer a guarantee such as “8,000 points in this city.” Official wording: a few hotels / dates start at 6,000 points; most start at 8,000. Points required can move with season and date. RewardSaver is still the tool that drops some award rooms to a 6,000-point floor, with the same rules as a regular award night. Do not treat old screenshots or historical award charts as a quote; search real dates on Choice.com.

Award nights can be booked about 50 weeks out. Participating hotels do not use traditional blackout dates, but inventory, room type, and points required all follow the search results. Some hotels also let you redeem for a higher room type / view / more space; that is not a network-wide benefit.

Choice search is not always the easiest way to find a hotel. Confirm the name in Google Maps first, then search Choice by name and dates.

Points Plus Cash: this is not a traditional “points + cash rate” hybrid. You use at least 6,000 points a night, pay cash to buy the remaining points for that award room on the spot, and redeem immediately. It is limited to U.S. members and online / app bookings; it only works on Choice hotels whose award price is at least 8,000 points, and the cash portion is priced off the top-up points shown at the time. That award stay does not earn points or miles, but it does count as elite nights. You can buy at most 250,000 points this way per calendar year. If you cancel inside the window, the 6,000 points return and the cash for purchased points is refunded to the original payment method. Preferred Hotels & Resorts does not support Points Plus Cash.

2 Radisson Americas brands

Radisson Rewards Americas has finished integrating. You can now earn and redeem through Choice at participating Americas Radisson, Radisson Blu, Radisson RED, Radisson Collection, Radisson Individuals, Park Plaza, Park Inn, and Country Inn & Suites. Radisson Hotel Group outside the Americas is a separate company; do not assume you can earn or redeem Choice points there. The old 2:1 point transfer and transitional Gold status are over.

3 Independent Preferred Hotels & Resorts

Blog write-up of Preferred Hotels & Resorts

You can redeem Choice Privileges points online at participating hotels; Choice currently says 300+. Points required are dynamic and can move with season and hotel. Do not use the old 25,000–55,000 range as a reference.

Redemption page: official site

⚠️ Preferred award nights can only be booked through that dedicated link. You cannot change dates; cancel and rebook. Taxes are included in the points price, but resort fees, service charges, incidentals, dining, and deposits stay on the guest, and the stay does not earn Choice points. The option is available to members worldwide, but participating hotels and points required follow the live results after you sign in.

4 Casino hotels in the United States

Official page

U.S. casino partner hotels

Choice currently says the PENN Entertainment partnership covers 20+ casino hotels. The list and eligibility change. The older list below is only a historical hotel-code reference; confirm on the official partners page before you book.

5 Transfer to other programmes

(Choice Privilege points to other programs)

You can move Choice points into participating airline miles or other rewards through Rewards Exchange. Partners, ratios, and minimums can change. Official rules only guarantee that, unless otherwise stated, each transfer is at least 5,000 Choice points, and you can transfer out at most 1,000,000 points per calendar year. Old tables listing Alaska, United, Aeroplan, BA, and similar names and ratios should not be treated as current promises. Check inside the portal after you sign in.

6 Other redemptions

  • Gift cards (official page)

  • Donations (official page)

  • Auctions / Choice Privileges Experiences, partner stays, and cruise credits (the catalogue changes)

  • U.S. / Canada pages also list Bluegreen Vacations, Westgate Resorts, and similar partner stays. Whether you can earn, redeem, and how many points it takes all follow each partner page and live search. Do not mix those rules with standalone Preferred Hotels & Resorts awards.

Redemption highlights

1 Vancouver

Vancouver’s Ascend Hotel Collection is still worth comparing cash versus points on specific dates. Do not assume a fixed point price or guaranteed inventory. Blog post

2 Tokyo

Tokyo Comfort hotels and similar properties used to show low-point awards for a long stretch; those screenshots are why this section exists. Pricing is now dynamic, so it is no longer fair to say “everything is 8,000 points.” If a real search still shows 6,000 / 8,000 points, judge it against the cash rate, whether breakfast is included, and the cancellation policy.

3 Nordic hotels

Award prices and available room types in the Nordics are dynamic too. Same-points upgrades or breakfast included on some hotels / dates can be a strong result, but it is not a programme guarantee. Compare night by night.

4 Other cities

The screenshots below are historical page captures. They only show how search used to look; they are not current point quotes.

Best Rate Guarantee

Official details

Still useful. If you book on the official site and then find a cheaper third-party rate:

  • U.S. and Canadian residents: they will match the rate, and after the stay you also get a $50 Reward Card (USD or CAD)
  • Everyone else: the first night is free

Other notes

  • There is no regular free-night certificate. Titanium does get one Titanium Travel Award a year: 50% off award nights at designated hotels, one room, up to 7 consecutive nights.

  • There is no lifetime elite status. Under current rules, points do not expire while you hold elite; next year’s status still has to be re-earned under that year’s rules.

Other updates

【September 16, 2026 update】 Choice’s new Rewards Experience took effect on 1 January 2026: Titanium was added, status can be earned with EQC, Your Extras became Milestone Rewards, and Return and Earn gives 1,000 points after the 2nd and 3rd qualifying stays. Award pricing is still dynamic: RewardSaver floors at 6,000 points, most hotels start at 8,000, and you can book about 50 weeks out. Official copy still describes Points Sharing as rolling out in stages during 2026; do not treat it as a live feature until it actually appears in the account.

Japan low-point awards are still worth watching, but “all of Japan at 8,000 points,” a fixed buy-points cost, and the screenshots below are historical only. They are no longer a redemption recommendation.

  • Tokyo
  • Osaka
  • Sapporo

【Note】 2024–2025 material on Japan, awards from 6,000 points, and the 50-week booking window is kept as a change log. Current prices, hotel participation, award room types, and promotions all have to come from a signed-in search on Choice.com.

Further reading