Rakuten and Bilt Rewards: A New Partnership on the Horizon?
Published on October 7, 2025, 9:53 PM
Hold on to your hats, award travelers! It looks like Rakuten, the online shopping portal that gives you cashback or Amex points, might soon let you transfer your earnings to Bilt Rewards too! This is huge news because Bilt is awesome for renters, letting you earn points on rent payments and offering valuable transfer partners like Hyatt and Alaska Airlines, which Amex doesn't have.
While the feature isn't live yet, Rakuten's website hints that Bilt will be *in addition* to Amex, not a replacement. The terms suggest a clunky workaround if you want to switch between Bilt and Amex (going through PayPal or "Big Fat Check" first), but that doesn't seem to work yet. We also don't know the transfer rate, but fingers crossed it'll be a sweet 1:1 ratio, like the Amex option.
Why should you care? Because more options are *always* better! If you're sitting on a Rakuten balance and value Bilt's unique transfer partners or are chasing those sweet Bilt transfer bonuses, this could be a game-changer for maximizing your rewards. Keep an eye out for the official launch!
