Earning elite status in World of Hyatt is an achievement that can lead to everything from free breakfast and bonus points to late checkouts and free room upgrades. World of Hyatt status can be earned in several ways — one of which is staying a minimum number of nights with World of Hyatt properties, or getting a head start on stays through a credit card perk.

These stays, known as “qualifying nights,” can help you climb the status ladder.

Here’s what you need to know about qualifying night credits and earning elite status with World of Hyatt.

An overview of World of Hyatt qualifying night credits

Qualifying night credits help you to achieve World of Hyatt elite status. The program has three different elite tiers: Discoverist, Explorist and Globalist. Qualifying night credits are one of three ways to earn World of Hyatt status. The other two methods are:

Earning the necessary base points to satisfy level requirements.

Signing up for the World of Hyatt Credit Card or World of Hyatt Business Credit Card — each of which comes with low-level Discoverist status automatically. This helps accelerate your earnings toward the next tier, and the cards can also earn qualifying night credits.

The more nights you stay and the more money you spend (to accrue base points), the higher the elite status you can earn. This means that one night for an entry-level member — who earns 5 points per eligible dollar spent on things like room rate and food charges — paying $100 in eligible spend for a stay would earn one qualifying night credit and 500 World of Hyatt points.

Stays paid for with points or cash earn qualifying night credits.

How many qualifying night credits do I need for status?

To achieve elite status, World of Hyatt members must stay a certain number of nights per year (from Jan. 1 to Dec. 31) at Hyatt family properties.

Discoverist: 10 nights per year.

Explorist: 30 nights per year.

Globalist: 60 nights per year.

If you travel frequently, you are more likely to earn top status, which means more access to sweeter perks. For example, Globalist members — World of Hyatt’s top status tier — get goodies like club level access or complimentary breakfast, potential room upgrades and Guest of Honor benefits.

Bonus points are another great benefit. Discoverist members earn a 10% bonus, while Explorist members earn a 20% bonus. Globalist members earn the most with a 30% bonus.

World of Hyatt has a tier known as Lifetime Globalist, but you can only earn it after accruing 1,000,000 base points over your life.

How to earn Hyatt qualifying night credits

Each night paid with either cash or points earns one qualifying night credit. That means if you have a nice stash of points (perhaps that you transferred from Chase Ultimate Rewards®), you won’t even need to pay cash for hotel stays and can still earn elite status. Plus, there are other ways to earn qualifying night credits.

Carry a World of Hyatt co-branded credit card

Qualifying night credits are one of the benefits of being approved for World of Hyatt’s two co-branded credit cards.

World of Hyatt Credit Card: Earn 30,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening. Plus, up to 30,000 More Bonus Points by earning 2 Bonus Points total per $1 spent in the first 6 months from account opening on purchases that normally earn 1 Bonus Point, on up to $15,000 spent.

World of Hyatt Business Credit Card: 60,000 Bonus Points after you spend $5,000 on purchases in your first 3 months from account opening.

Each of these Hyatt credit cards comes with the opportunity to earn tier-qualifying nights.

World of Hyatt Credit Card

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The $95 annual fee on the World of Hyatt Credit Card brings with it 5 automatic, no-strings-attached qualifying night credits toward status each calendar year.

You can also earn an additional 2 qualifying night credits for every $5,000 in eligible spend each year with the World of Hyatt Credit Card. After your cardmember anniversary, you will receive a Hyatt credit card free night certificate for a Category 1-4 property, too.

If you spend more than $15,000 on the card within a calendar year, you earn a second free night certificate.

World of Hyatt Business Credit Card

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With World of Hyatt Business Credit Card, you earn 5 tier-qualifying nights for every $10,000 in eligible spend each calendar year.

This means you could earn elite status without ever setting foot into a hotel. Once you earn status, you’ll want to enjoy using those points to benefit from the elite status.

The card carries an annual fee of $199.

Fly American and earn elite status

World of Hyatt and American AAdvantage have a unique partnership that awards reciprocal points-earning opportunities to each other’s elite status members. This includes earning one AAdvantage mile for every eligible dollar spent with World of Hyatt and vice versa. Status is another perk for top-tier American fliers.

For example, American ConciergeKey members earn automatic Globalist status, which takes away the need to earn qualifying nights at all with World of Hyatt. Other AAdvantage elite members are eligible for elite status offers with World of Hyatt (mid-level Explorist members are also eligible for AAdvantage status offers).

Plan group functions or events

World of Hyatt members who plan events, corporate meetings, wedding functions or even family reunions can earn one point for every qualifying dollar spent (up to $50,000). They can also earn elite status for holding a certain number of qualifying meetings (classified as bookings of at least 10 paid guest rooms for the same night, the rental of a meeting room or purchasing catering from the hotel’s banqueting department).

Hold three qualifying meetings and you will earn low-level Discoverist status. Ten meetings lead to mid-level Explorist status while 20 meetings would earn top-tier Globalist.

What are milestone awards?

After reaching certain qualifying night milestones, World of Hyatt members are awarded with bonus perks. These can include things like two club lounge access rewards after earning 20 nights (helpful for those who don’t get automatic club lounge access through Globalist status) and a free Category 1-7 hotel award night after reaching 60 nights.

These incentives are unlike others in that they are not attached to specific cards or spend, but are rather a carrot along the way. Milestone awards are rewarding for people that log a lot of qualifying nights through hotel stays, meetings or credit cards.

If you want to get Hyatt credit card night credits

Qualifying nights get you closer to elite status with World of Hyatt, which comes with numerous benefits. Even better, the night credits earned through the World of Hyatt Credit Card and World of Hyatt Business Credit Card count as qualifying nights, which expedites your path to elite status without even staying in a hotel.

If you have the right Hyatt credit cards and know how to earn tier-qualifying nights, you could be on your way to status with Hyatt in no time.