Have you ever wondered what it meant when you saw hotels marketing free nights and reward stays? Perhaps you've already signed up with a hotel rewards program for some free Wi-Fi, but you're not really sure what other things you can do with it. Maybe you're asking yourself, "What does it mean to earn hotel points?"

If any of these questions have been meandering through your mind, now's the time to figure things out. Let's take a look at how hotel points work.

What are hotel points?

Hotels are in the ever-competitive game to buy your business. They accomplish this through many means, including sales, high-quality rooms and offering excellent amenities. Another method? Hotel loyalty programs. These programs provide you with certain benefits for staying with the hotel, including earning hotel points, which act as a type of currency that you can spend within the hotel chain.

How much are hotel points worth?

Like all reward programs, the value of each hotel point depends on the program. The criteria for valuing a hotel point varies, but generally, you'll want to consider:

How easy it is to earn the hotel points.

The simplicity of redeeming those points.

How many points you'll need to redeem for a reward.

The average value you'll get from each point when redeemed.

For example, NerdWallet values World of Hyatt points at 2.3 cents each, making them the most valuable hotel point around. Therefore a good rule of thumb is to always try and redeem your Hyatt points for at least 2.3 cents in value.

How to get hotel points

You can get hotel points in various ways, but the most common strategies are staying at hotels or spending on the right credit cards.

Earn by staying

Generally, you'll earn hotel points based on how much you spend at a hotel. Standard charges that will earn you points include room rates and spending at hotel restaurants and bars.

Earning rates vary across brands and are typically affected by your status level in a hotel rewards program (if any) and the credit cards used in the booking (more on this below).

Earn with co-branded credit cards

You can also earn hotel points by using a co-branded hotel credit card. These cards will earn rewards based on your purchases.

You can get co-branded credit cards and earn hotel points on your spending with popular chains such as Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott, IHG, Wyndham and Choice.