Originally Posted by TMM1982

I think $300 is a bit much. Let's be more conservative and say $250.



IHG points are worth 0.7 cents so the value here is $168. With the free night, total value is $418. Subtract the annual fee of $49 and you're at about $370.



The value of an SPG point is 2.4 cents. The 1:25 to 1 airline transfer ratio is already baked into the value of the points.

So 24,000 points is worth $576. Subtract the $95 annual fee and you're at about $480.

So Starwood wins this battle. That being said, most people aren't putting 24k spend on a card. They are putting less than 10k. So for most people, it is likely that the IHG is a much better value b/c of the annual free night award.

If you're a big spender, the value of the SPG points will trump almost all points on the market.