There is a brand-new way to earn valuable, flexible points! Rakuten and Bilt have partnered, and you can now cash out your Rakuten cash to Bilt, turning that cash back into flexible points that can be used with some really great hotel and airline partners.

Here’s everything you need to know about these two programs and how to get your accounts set up and linked.

 ➡️ Check out my recommended travel rewards cards

What Are Bilt and Rakuten

Bilt Rewards started as a program that allowed renters to use the Bilt credit card to pay rent and earn points in the process. It has now expanded to include restaurants and other local store partners, the ability to use any credit card, and, excitingly, will include mortgages in 2026. Bilt also recently announced that it will launch three new credit cards in 2026, adding a low-tier, mid-tier, and premium card to the market. Bilt is now very similar to the other four major banks’ award programs.

Rakuten is a shopping portal that lets you earn cash back on your regular purchases. You start your shopping in the Rakuten portal, choose the store you want to shop at, then click through to that store’s website and shop as you normally would. You will earn a percentage of the pre-tax total of your purchase back as Rakuten cash.

What Does This Partnership Mean

Previously, you could cash out your Rakuten cash as a check, to PayPal, or to American Express Membership Rewards. Now, Bilt has been added to that list. Even though it was possible to earn Amex points, which are also flexible points, this new Bilt partnership is exciting because of the hotel and airline partners.

Two in particular are exciting. First, Hyatt, because we are always trying to earn more Hyatt points! Chase has recently cracked down on card rules, making it harder to continue to earn points that can be transferred to Hyatt. Thankfully, we have this new option to help boost our points stash!

Second, Atmos Rewards, the new combined award program for Hawaiian Airlines and Alaska Airlines. Atmos points are valuable, and many great award flights can be found. Unfortunately, it is not a transfer partner for any other major banks, so it’s great that there’s a new way to earn points!

Bilt Transfer Partners

The way it works is that you will do your online shopping through Rakuten to earn Rakuten cash. Then, you will set up your Rakuten cash to be redeemed as Bilt points. Lastly, you can transfer your Bilt points to any of their hotel or airline programs to book award trips!

Here are all of Bilt’s transfer partners:

Airlines:

• Atmos Rewards (Alaska Airlines + Hawaiian Airlines)
• Avianca Lifemiles
• United MileagePlus®
• Air France/KLM Flying Blue®
• Virgin Red®
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club
• Emirates Skywards®
• British Airways Executive Club
• Cathay Pacific
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles
• Aer Lingus AerClub
• Iberia Plus
• Air Canada Aeroplan®
• TAP Miles&Go
• Southwest Airlines
• Japan Airlines
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club Avios
• Etihad Airways

Hotels:

• Hilton Honors
• Marriott Bonvoy™
• World of Hyatt®
• IHG® One Rewards
• Accor Live Limitless (3:2 ratio)

Related: How to book vacations for $11.20 per person with Southwest and Hyatt

How to Set Up and Link Accounts

Now that I’ve explained why you need to know about this, let me show you how to get it all linked up!

First, if you haven’t already, you need to set up a Rakuten account. My link has an elevated sign-up bonus for new customers to get $50 back when you spend $50, so make sure to use that! It’s an easy 5,000 Bilt points.

Next, you need to sign up for a Bilt account. You do not need the Bilt credit card to have a free Bilt loyalty account. Make sure you use the same email for both Rakuten and Bilt; if you don’t, it will cause problems linking them!

Look for this button on your main Bilt page, either in the Bilt app or on the website. It makes it sound like you’re creating a new Rakuten account, but as long as you use the same email for both programs, it’ll link your current account.

Click through the prompts to link accounts, and you should see this! You will also receive a confirmation email.

If you go to your Rakuten account, then go to settings, you should be able to see that you’re getting paid in Bilt points.

 ➡️ Check out my recommended travel rewards cards

Wrapping Up

It’s pretty simple to get all of this set up, and it’s a super easy way to earn extra points on the shopping you’re already doing! Pro tip: install the Rakuten extension for your computer browser and your phone so you never forget to start your shopping in the Rakuten portal.

When you add these points to the points earned through the best travel cards, you can really boost your stash quickly, making it even easier to take more trips!