What are Marriott Bonvoy credit cards?
Marriott Bonvoy credit cards are Marriott-branded loyalty rewards cards. They’re offered by two banks, and you can opt for a personal or business credit card depending on your needs.
The points earned by using any of these cards are Marriott Bonvoy points. While you can redeem these points in various ways, you typically get the greatest value by using them to book hotel stays and make related purchases through Marriott’s website.
Ultimately, these cards are best for those who are already members or plan to become members of the Marriott Bonvoy hotel loyalty program and who travel enough to maximize the value of the rewards.
Learn more about each card below and scroll down further to see a breakdown of how you earn points with each option.
Best Marriott Bonvoy credit cards of 2024: Editorial reviews
Best for Marriott Loyalists
In addition to normal rewards points structures, you can earn 155,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you make $5,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. The annual fee is $250, and the variable APR on purchases is 20.99% to 29.99%, depending on your creditworthiness.
You also get plenty of travel and cardholder perks with the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, including options to earn free nights, 2.5x more points on certain purchases with your complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status, and credits toward the next membership status each year.
Best Marriott Card for Elite Status
The welcome bonus with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is 185,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your card to make $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of card membership. The purchase APR range is similar to what’s offered on the Bevy card, but the annual fee on the Brilliant card is $650.
However, perks such as a $300 dining statement credit, up to $100 toward TSA PreCheck or Global Entry fees, complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status, Earned Choice Awards and 25 Elite night credits toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy membership can help make up for that fee if you use this card right and travel frequently.
Best Marriott Card for Businesses
You can earn three free night awards — that’s a value of around 150,000 points — when you spend $6,000 with the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card in the first six months (redemption level of up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points per each free night, at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy®. Certain hotels have resort fees.) The annual fee for this credit card is $125, and you get numerous perks targeted to business travelers. These include room rate discounts, complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status and options for employee cards.
You can also integrate your account with programs such as QuickBooks and access account manager tools to manage business travel expenses. The APR on this card is 20.99% to 29.99% variable for purchases, depending on your credit history and other financial factors.
Marriott Bonvoy Business review
Best Mid-Tier Marriott Card
This Marriott Bonvoy credit card has an annual fee of $95 and an APR of 21.49% to 28.49% variable on purchases and balance transfers, depending on your creditworthiness. For a limited time, you can earn five free nights, up to a value of 250,000 points, when you spend $5,000 in the first three months of card ownership. Additionally, you may be able to stack your Marriott Bonvoy loyalty status with card membership to earn 10x points on select purchases.
This card also offers a variety of travel perks, including options to earn free nights, complimentary Silver Elite status, baggage delay insurance, and trip delay and lost luggage reimbursement.
Best Marriott Card for No Annual Fee
The Marriott Bonvoy Bold card has one of the easiest welcome bonuses to earn on this list. You simply need to spend $1,000 in the first three months to earn 30,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points. The card also doesn’t carry an annual fee, offers enough credits yearly for complimentary Silver elite status, and you can earn more when you combine your Marriott Bonvoy membership with this credit card.
However, the card falls short on a few perks, such as the annual free night award and complimentary premium Wi-Fi access while staying in participating hotels, that some other cards on this list offer.
Best Marriott Card for Earning Points on Everyday Purchases
The Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful card has a welcome bonus of 85,000 points once you spend $4,000 in the first three months. You can also earn 1,000 bonus points for each eligible booking at Marriott hotels, and this card includes many of the travel perks mentioned above, such as an annual free night award, complimentary Marriott Gold Elite status, and travel and purchase coverage.
The annual fee is $250, and the APR is 21.49% to 28.49% variable. Marriott Bonvoy loyalty members can stack rewards benefits to earn as much as 18.5x points on qualifying hotel purchases.
Best for Flexible Luxury Travel Benefits
The Platinum Card® from American Express isn’t specifically a Marriott-branded card, but it offers complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status to cardholders. Additionally, you can access up to $200 yearly in statement credits for Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings (requires a 2-night minimum stay) made with American Express Travel, which includes some of the most luxe Marriott hotels out there. You can also earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on hotels booked through American Express Travel and take advantage of hundreds of dollars of additional statement credits and perks with this card.
It does have a $695 annual fee and the APR is 21.24% to 29.24% variable (on eligible charges through the Pay Over Time feature).
To learn more, check out our complete American Express Platinum card review.
Best for Flexible Point Transfers
The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card isn’t a Marriott Bonvoy branded card. However, Preferred cardholders can enjoy a 1:1 points transfer to numerous loyalty rewards programs, including the Marriott Bonvoy program. So, if you purchase travel through Chase Travel℠, that’s 5x points for each dollar spent. Choose to transfer your points, and it can equate to 5x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar. That’s on top of many other travel benefits, including $200 in potential credits from partners.
The annual fee for the card is $95, and the APR is 21.49% to 28.49% variable depending on your credit. To learn more, check out our complete Chase Sapphire Preferred Card review.
Marriott Bonvoy credit card benefits
The exact benefits you get vary with each card.
Some common perks you can expect with at least some of the cards on this list are summarized below.
Always read through card offers carefully so you know what benefits you have as a cardholder.
Marriott Bonvoy points
Perhaps the biggest benefit of any Marriott card on this list is associated with the rewards — as long as you can maximize points and redeem them for travel or other value.
Earn Marriott Bonvoy points
Marriott points accrue differently for each card type. The list below breaks down how you can earn rewards with each Marriott card.
Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card
- 6x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 4x points on restaurant purchases anywhere in the world (and delivery or takeout charges in the U.S.)
- 4x points on supermarket purchases in the U.S.
- 2x points on other purchases
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
- 6x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 3x points on restaurant purchases anywhere in the world
- 3x points on flights when you book and pay directly with the airline
- 2x points on other purchases
Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
- 6x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 4x points on restaurant purchases anywhere in the world
- 4x points on U.S. purchases at gas stations or with U.S. telephone or shipping service providers
- 2x points on other purchases
Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card from Chase
- 6x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 3x points on grocery store, dining and gas station purchases (up to the first $6,000 combined in spending each year)
- 2x points on other purchases
Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card from Chase
- 3x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 2x points on other qualifying travel purchases
- 1x points on other purchases
Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Credit Card from Chase
- 6x points on hotel purchases with participating Marriott brands
- 4x points on dining and grocery store purchases (up to the first $15,000 in combined spending annually)
- 2x points on other purchases
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- 5x points on travel purchased through Chase Travel
- 3x points on dining, including delivery and takeout charges
- 3x points on grocery purchases, not including purchases at wholesale clubs, Walmart or Target
- 3x points on certain streaming service purchases
- 1x points on other purchases
As a Marriott Bonvoy loyalty member, you can increase how many points you earn with the Marriott-branded cards when you make purchases with participating hotels. First, as a Marriott Bonvoy member, you automatically earn 10x points on those purchases. Then, you earn 10% to 75% more points depending on your Elite status.
For example, a Gold Elite member earns 25% more. So, if you have a Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card that earns 6x points, you could earn 10x additional points for being a Marriott Bonvoy member and 2.5x points for having Gold Elite status. That’s 18.5x points for every dollar you spend at participating hotels.
Redeem Marriott Bonvoy points
To get the most value out of Marriott Bonvoy points, redeem them for travel. You can use points to enjoy free nights with participating hotels or reduce the cost of a stay or destination getaway. You can also use points earned with these travel cards to cover extras such as upgrades, dining, drinks and experiences with these hotels or transfer them to car rental and airline partners to help cover the costs of those expenses.
Another option is to convert points to pay for gift cards or merchandise, and points can be used for admission to select Marriott Bonvoy Moments. These experiences include parties, classes and events.
Transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to airlines
Frequent flyers who enjoy benefits from miles loyalty programs can transfer their Marriott Bonvoy points. In most cases, points transfer to miles at a rate of 3 to 1, which means you get 1 mile for every 3 points you transfer. The Marriott Bonvoy program adds an extra 5,000 miles for every 60,000 points transferred, though. You can transfer a total of 3,000 to 240,000 points per day.
How much are Marriott Bonvoy points worth?
The exact value of your Marriott Bonvoy points depends on how and when you redeem them. On average, they’re worth between half a cent and almost a cent per point, though you might find redemption deals that make them worth more or less.
So, if you have 100,000 points, you can expect to get between around $500 and $900 in value, with the highest value coming when you redeem for travel with participating hotels.
How to choose the best Marriott credit card
It’s important to consider your spending and travel habits, as well as your budget and rewards preferences, when choosing which Marriott card is the best credit card for you.
Frequent travelers might get the most from the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, for example, but those who won’t max out rewards to make up for large annual fees may want to consider other options.
If you like the idea of Marriott Bonvoy rewards points but want to use other hotel loyalty programs too, the Chase Sapphire Preferred card may provide more flexibility.
How do you apply for a Marriott Bonvoy credit card?
You can apply online for any of these cards with your full name, contact information and Social Security or Tax ID number.
You may need to provide some basic information about your personal and/or business income. You generally need a good or excellent credit score to be approved for the cards on this list. Once you’re approved, your card should arrive within two weeks.
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