{
 "source": "The Sales Traveler — the Index Desk",
 "license": "Free to use with attribution to The Sales Traveler. See https://thesalestraveler.com/press/",
 "dataUrl": "https://thesalestraveler.com/data/status-yield-index.json",
 "slug": "status-yield-index",
 "name": "The Status Yield Index",
 "url": "https://thesalestraveler.com/status-yield-index/",
 "entityNoun": "Program",
 "measures": "published commitments",
 "period": "2026-07",
 "methodology": "Road warriors don't collect points; they collect certainty. We scored 9 major programs on 15 published commitments — guarantees with teeth, upgrade instruments in writing, charts you can plan against. Top score: 80 (World of Hyatt). ‘Subject to availability’ scores what it deserves.",
 "scale": {
  "rawMax": 15,
  "displayMax": 100,
  "formula": "round(raw / rawMax * displayMax)"
 },
 "categories": [
  {
   "id": "G",
   "label": "Guarantees",
   "checks": [
    "Published late-checkout guarantee",
    "Room-availability guarantee for elites",
    "Breakfast/F&B benefit guaranteed at top tier"
   ],
   "max": 3
  },
  {
   "id": "U",
   "label": "Upgrades",
   "checks": [
    "Confirmed suite-upgrade instruments published",
    "Upgrade priority in writing",
    "Lounge access guaranteed at a stated tier"
   ],
   "max": 3
  },
  {
   "id": "V",
   "label": "Value clarity",
   "checks": [
    "Award chart published",
    "Points-expiration terms clear",
    "Fifth-night-free or published redemption discount"
   ],
   "max": 3
  },
  {
   "id": "E",
   "label": "Earning & status",
   "checks": [
    "Promotions calendar published",
    "Status-match policy published",
    "Milestone rewards published"
   ],
   "max": 3
  },
  {
   "id": "P",
   "label": "Protection",
   "checks": [
    "Status pause/protection policy published",
    "Free points pooling/transfer",
    "Cash compensation for guarantee failures published"
   ],
   "max": 3
  }
 ],
 "entities": [
  {
   "rank": 1,
   "name": "World of Hyatt",
   "category": {
    "G": 3,
    "U": 3,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 2
   },
   "score": 80,
   "note": "The smallest footprint, the strongest paper: published 4pm guarantee, confirmed suite upgrades, and the last real award chart among the majors.",
   "subtitle": "Hyatt",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 2,
   "name": "Marriott Bonvoy",
   "category": {
    "G": 2,
    "U": 3,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 2
   },
   "score": 73,
   "note": "Guarantees with published cash compensation — the rarest commitment in loyalty — offset by dynamic pricing that killed the chart.",
   "subtitle": "Marriott",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 3,
   "name": "Hilton Honors",
   "category": {
    "G": 1,
    "U": 2,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 1
   },
   "score": 53,
   "note": "Free pooling and milestone rewards are genuinely published; late checkout and suites remain ‘subject to availability’ — the tell.",
   "subtitle": "Hilton",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 4,
   "name": "Wyndham Rewards",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 1,
    "V": 3,
    "E": 3,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 47,
   "note": "The 15,000-point flat chart and a published status-match policy: mid-market transparency the luxury programs abandoned.",
   "subtitle": "Wyndham",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 5,
   "name": "Best Western Rewards",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 1,
    "V": 3,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 40,
   "note": "Points never expire and status match is published — honest economy loyalty with no elite guarantees to its name.",
   "subtitle": "BWH",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 6,
   "name": "Choice Privileges",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 1,
    "V": 3,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 40,
   "note": "Published point bands and match policy; the elite tier promises perks, never guarantees.",
   "subtitle": "Choice",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 7,
   "name": "IHG One Rewards",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 2,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 40,
   "note": "Milestone-earned confirmable suites are real published value; the program guarantees nothing about the stay itself.",
   "subtitle": "IHG",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 8,
   "name": "Accor ALL",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 1,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 2,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 33,
   "note": "Fixed-value points are transparent by design; elite benefits stay regional and unguaranteed in writing.",
   "subtitle": "Accor",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  },
  {
   "rank": 9,
   "name": "Sonesta Travel Pass",
   "category": {
    "G": 0,
    "U": 1,
    "V": 2,
    "E": 1,
    "P": 0
   },
   "score": 27,
   "note": "A young program with a published chart and little else committed — room to write promises no one else will.",
   "subtitle": "Sonesta",
   "ruledBy": "Editor-in-Chief, The Sales Traveler",
   "ruledOn": "2026-07-22"
  }
 ],
 "terms": {
  "usageInfo": "https://thesalestraveler.com/press/",
  "attributionRequired": true,
  "attributionText": "The Sales Traveler — the Index Desk",
  "freeWithAttribution": [
   "findings, single statistics and score references",
   "quoting up to three rows of a table in coverage",
   "embedding charts and share cards from index pages",
   "fetching every dataset in /data/"
  ],
  "requiresSyndicationLicense": [
   "republishing a full table"
  ],
  "contact": "rachel@thesalestraveler.com",
  "governance": "https://thesalestraveler.com/governance/"
 }
}