As readers have no doubt noticed by now, I sure do enjoy talking about Marriott credit cards on here. Although, I don’t often stay in noteworthy Marriott hotels when travelling, I’m actually only one night away from hitting Marriott Titanium status this year. As such, I think it’s time for me to finally finish off reviewing all the different Marriott credit cards. The last card to cover is the American Express Marriott Bonvoy card. This card, like The Ritz-Carlton Card, cannot be applied for directly. It can only be obtained by product changing (downgrading) from the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card. The Amex Marriott card is virtually identical to Chase’s Boundless card (as it existed in pre-2022) and has a $95 annual fee.
I provide the information here just to give readers a vague idea if the rewards offered by the card might make sense for them to consider the card. All information should be confirmed with the card company before applying.
Welcome offer
The Amex Marriott Card has no welcome offer since it can’t be applied for directly.
Earnings
The Bonvoy card has a two-tiered earning structure (like the Boundless used to have) and earns Marriott Bonvoy award points. Marriott Bonvoy points are worth around 0.8 ¢/point on average, but Marriott has recently transitioned to dynamic pricing, so this redemption rate average may decrease in the medium term. The card earns 6 points/$ on Marriott hotel stays (4.8%) as well as 2 points/$ (1.6%) on everything else. Most notably, it lacks the 3 points/$ category that was added at the beginning of this year to the Boundless card. These earning rates are lackluster for a card with a $95 annual fee, with the only noteworthy category being for Marriott hotel stays. Marriott points can also be transferred to >40 airline partners, which is quite impressive. The points transfer, in most cases, at a rate of 3 Marriott points to 1 airline mile. Marriott also gives a 5 000-mile bonus if 60 000 Marriott points are transferred (for a rate of 2.4:1), which can make sense in certain scenarios. The potential flexibility of Marriott points is one of the reasons I actively collect Marriott Points. Ironically, with Marriott having recently removed their award chart and switching to dynamic pricing, transferring points to miles may become a more attractive option in some scenarios.
Benefits
The main reason for product changing this card from the Bonvoy Brilliant is to keep your account open but to avoid paying such a high fee. Since this card gets a Free Night Award (which is worth 35 000 points), as long as you keep using that certificate every year, this card is cost neutral.
Like all Marriott credit cards, the card provides 15 elite night credits, which count towards earning both yearly and lifetime status. Holding the Bonvoy Card guarantees you Marriott Silver status, which doesn’t have a lot of benefits, but that’s to be expected with entry-level status. With Silver status, you’d actually earn a total of 17 points/$ on the Marriott room rate between the card and the Silver status bonus.
Examples of using the card
Spend per month
These examples exclude using the free night award.
| Example A | Example B | Example C | Example D | |||||
| Groceries (2x) | $300 | 600 | $200 | 400 | $600 | 1 200 | $400 | 800 |
| Gas (2x) | $0 | 0 | $100 | 200 | $200 | 400 | $100 | 200 |
| Airfare (2x) | $700 | 1 400 | $200 | 400 | $0 | 0 | $400 | 800 |
| Hotels (6x) | $1 000 | 6 000 | $200 | 1 200 | $0 | 0 | $300 | 1 800 |
| Gen Travel (2x) | $400 | 800 | $0 | 0 | $300 | 600 | $100 | 200 |
| Dining (2x) | $600 | 1 200 | $300 | 600 | $300 | 600 | $0 | 0 |
| General (2x) | $1 000 | 2 000 | $500 | 1 000 | $500 | 1 000 | $400 | 800 |
| Total | $4 000 | 12 000 | $1 500 | 3 800 | $1 900 | 3 800 | $1 700 | 4 600 |
| Average points/$ | 3 | 2.53 | 2 | 2.71 |
The only bonus category on this card is at Marriott hotels, so the range of points earned each month is directly determined by your monthly spend at Marriott hotels. However, 2x points (1.6%) on general spending without a foreign transaction fee isn’t the worst return. It’s largely comparable to cards like the Amex Gold and Chase Sapphire Preferred, which earn 1x point (1.5%) on general spending.
The average points earning range is broad: 2 – 3 points/$, which is worth 1.6 – 2.4 ¢/$, given the average valuation of 0.8 ¢/point for Marriott Bonvoy points. However, the range is simply the result of how much you expect to spend at Marriott properties every month. It’s hard to get excited about these point earnings really.
Specific examples
| Card | World Traveller ($750) (% return) | Marriott Hotel night ($230/night) | Points values (WT/Hotel) |
| No rewards card | 2 728 (4.9%) | 2 000 MP (7.3%) | $37.10 / $16.00 |
| General 1% cashback card | 2 728 + $7.50 (5.9%) | 2 000 MP + $2.30 (8.3%) | $44.60 / $18.30 |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred | 2 728 Avios + 1 500 UR (7.9%) | 2 000 MP + 460 UR (9.3%) | $59.60 / $22.90 |
| Bonvoy Boundless Card | 2 728 Avios + 1 500 MP (6.5%) | 3 220 MP (11.2%) | $49.10 / $25.76 |
| Amex Marriott card | 2 728 Avios + 1 500 MP (6.1%) | 3 220 MP (11.2%) | $49.10 / $25.76 |
These examples include the fact that the Bonvoy Amex Card gives free Marriott Silver Status, like the other <$100 annual fee Marriott cards.
Is this credit card right for you?
This card is best for people that value the Marriott perks and are willing to prepay for a free hotel night. The card isn’t the most exciting card, but it’s a good card to change to from the Brilliant to keep the free night award. If you don’t stay at Marriott hotels, it’s unlikely you will get substantial value out of the card’s (short) benefit list.
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