---
title: "What is Free night certificate? | Benefit Systems"
description: "A free night certificate is a voucher for one hotel night up to a fixed points ceiling, usually granted once a year as a credit card benefit."
source: "aus dem gebauten HTML abgeleitet"
---
# What is Free night certificate?

A free night certificate is a voucher for one hotel night up to a fixed points ceiling, usually granted once a year as a credit card benefit.

Also called: Free night award.

## How it works #

A certificate is worth whatever hotel can be found below its ceiling, and that ceiling typically rises more slowly than hotel award prices do. Certificates expire on a fixed date and are rarely extended. They therefore need planning early rather than saving up, and their value is measured against the room that can realistically be booked, not against a peak-season rate.

## Not to be confused with #

A free night certificate is not the same as a points redemption: the certificate is capped and dated, whereas points can be spent freely for as long as the balance lasts.

## In German #

The German term is Freinacht-Gutschein. [German version of this term](/de/glossar/freinacht-gutschein)

## Related terms #

- [Hotel award category](/en/glossary/hotel-award-category): A hotel award category is the price tier a loyalty programme assigns to a property, from which the points price per night follows.
- [Peak and off-peak award pricing](/en/glossary/peak-off-peak-pricing): Peak and off-peak award pricing is an award chart with several price levels depending on travel dates, typically high, low and shoulder season.
- [Fifth night free](/en/glossary/fifth-night-free): Fifth night free is an elite benefit under which an award stay of five or more consecutive nights is charged for four nights of points.

## Articles that use this term #

- [When is a free night certificate worth using?](/en/knowledge/free-night-certificates)
- [How do hotel award categories work?](/en/knowledge/hotel-award-categories)
- [Why your hotel bill is higher than the rate you booked](/en/knowledge/resort-fees)
- [How does fifth night free work?](/en/knowledge/fifth-night-free)