The news: Wyndham launched the Wyndham Rewards Earner Premier Card, marking its entrance into the premium card market, per a press release. The annual fee is $395.

The card, issued by Barclays, comes with a welcome offer of 90,000 points for $6,000 worth of spending in the first 120 days, plus 30,000 points for spending $750 at Wyndham properties in the first 180 days.

Top rewards categories include 8x points for Hotel by Wyndham bookings, 4x points on grocery, dining, and eligible travel purchases, and 1x points for all other purchases, excluding Vacation Club payments.

How we got here: Wyndham has been revamping its co-brand credit card portfolio. It launched its first co-branded debit card this March with Sunrise Bank and Galileo on Mastercard’s network and plans to overhaul its Wyndham Business, Earner Plus and Earner cards later this year, per its press release.

Why this matters: Airline and hotel co-branded cards net more spend than other types of co-branded cards—$1,550 per month compared with $1,181 for retail co-brand cardholders, per a PYMNTS Intelligence and Elan Credit Card survey. 

This gives Barclays a needed win after American Airlines, Lufthansa, and Choice Hotels all dropped the issuer—and it failed to clinch a takeover of the Apple Card portfolio from Goldman Sachs.

Wyndham’s upmarket push also signals the K-shaped economy at work. Wyndham operates a number of budget-tier hotels and motels, making it more likely than brands like Hyatt or Marriott to feel the squeeze as lower-income consumers pull back on spending. Pushing premium cards could help rebrand Wyndham as a more luxury provider or highlight its upscale offerings while also competing on value.

Implications for travel co-brands: Travelers are facing rising airfare prices and other economic pressures but still want to travel.

Co-brands have to deliver value beyond just travel to compete in this category now. General-purpose premium cards now also offer rich rewards across multiple categories and with more choice across travel and hotel providers. Injecting multipliers or cash back for essential categories can help co-brands retain users as competition in the premium space heats up.

Go deeper: Check out our Hotel and Co-Brand Credit Card Trends 2026 for deeper insights on co-brand strategy.