Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card Review 2024: Is It Worth It?
Sep 25, 2024The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card is best for frequent travellers who covet free stays and service upgrades at some of the world’s most luxurious hotels.
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card is best for frequent travellers. Cardmembers earn elevated rewards rates on both eligible bookings and everyday purchases, and there are ample opportunities to earn rewards at more than 7,000 participating hotels.
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Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card full review
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card is a rewards credit card that allows cardholders to earn Marriott Bonvoy points on all purchases. Those points can be redeemed for free stays at more than 7,000 participating hotels and used to improve a cardholder’s Marriott Bonvoy status, which can unlock even more benefits.
Benefits of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card
If you carry the Marriott Bonvoy Amex, you:
Receive an Annual Free Night Award each year after your membership anniversary.
Have the ability to convert points to frequent flyer miles with some airlines, including Air Canada’s Aeroplan.
Earn five points per dollar spent on bookings at hotels that participate in the Marriott Bonvoy program. You also earn two points for every dollar spent on all other purchases.
Get several varieties of insurance, including flight delay, travel accident and lost or stolen baggage.
Receive automatic Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status, which offers 10% more points on eligible purchases, priority late checkout and member rates at participating hotels.
Gain access to Amex Experiences™, a collection of special dining, shopping and wellness events, and American Express Front Of The Line, which can help cardholders score presale and reserved tickets for concerts or the next big game.
Drawbacks of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card
Some things to keep in mind about the Marriott Bonvoy American Express are:
Only Marriott Bonvoy members can take advantage of the card’s most valuable benefits.
American Express isn’t always as widely accepted as some other credit cards, so using the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card — and collecting points — might not be possible everywhere you go.
Travel insurance coverage, while generous, isn’t as comprehensive as what some other credit cards offer.
Who should get the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card?
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card will be most beneficial for people who often stay in hotels that participate in the Marriott Bonvoy program, since that spending has the highest earn rate at 5x and points can be redeemed for free nights.
If you don’t often stay in participating hotels, the card may be less valuable for you, but you can still earn 2x the points on most purchases. You can then transfer your points to frequent flyer miles with airlines like United, Air Canada and Cathay Pacific or redeem your points for gift cards to a variety of retailers.
Is the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card worth it?
If you’re a Marriott Bonvoy member who travels frequently, the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card can provide you an opportunity to earn some fairly sweet hotel rewards for a reasonable annual fee of $120.
American Express customer ratings
High in customer satisfaction: American Express ranks second in overall customer satisfaction among 13 credit card issuers, according to J.D. Power’s 2024 Canada Credit Card Satisfaction Study.
Low Trustpilot rating: 1.5 out of a possible 5 stars, based on more than 4,400 reviews, at the time of this writing.
Low Better Business Bureau rating: 1 out of a possible 5 stars, according to only a few customer reviews on the Better Business Bureau website, at the time of this writing.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card eligibility
Who qualifies for the Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card?
To apply for the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card, you must:
Be a Canadian resident and have a Canadian credit file.
Be the age of majority in the province or territory where you live.
Approximate credit score needed for approval
Canadian credit card issuers rarely disclose required credit scores, which makes it hard to know your chances of approval when comparing credit cards. What we do know is that higher scores have better chances of approval — that’s true no matter what type of credit you’re applying for.Want to learn more? Our guide can help you figure out what credit score is typically needed for a credit card.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card rewards
New Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* cardmembers earn 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points after you charge $1,500 in purchases to your card in your first three months of card membership. Subject to change at any time.
How to earn ongoing rewards: Earn 5 points for every $1 spent in eligible card purchases at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy; earn 2 points for every $1 spent in all other card purchases.
If you charge $1,500 in net purchases to your Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card in the first three months of card membership, you’ll earn a welcome bonus of 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. This offer is subject to change at any time.
Based on NerdWallet’s analysis, each Marriott Bonvoy point is worth about 0.8 cents when redeemed for Marriott Bonvoy hotel stays. That means the full 50,000-point welcome offer would be worth approximately $400 using this redemption method. Other redemption methods may result in different point values.
Annual value
The annual, ongoing value of your Marriott Bonvoy American Express card depends on how often you use it and the types of purchases you make.
Let’s say you typically spend $5,000 at Marriott Bonvoy properties and charge another $20,000 to your Marriott Bonvoy Amex every year. Your hotel purchases would result in 25,000 points and your other purchases would earn you 40,000 points. That’s 65,000 points in a year, which would be worth about $520, if redeemed for Marriott Bonvoy hotel stays.
But you also receive a free night each year worth up to 35,000 points. That stay would be worth approximately $280 using our valuation.
Add those values together, subtract the card’s annual fee of $120, and the total value for this particular — and purely hypothetical — year would be $680. That’s not bad, but it will require a bit of spending on your part.
Points value breakdown
NerdWallet searched more than 60 data points analyzing the cost of Marriott Bonvoy hotel stays in 2022. Based on our analysis, the average value of 1 Marriott Bonvoy point is worth 0.82 cents.
More specifically, you can expect to get around:
0.72 cents in value per Marriott Bonvoy point when booking stays 15 days in advance
0.932 cents in value per Marriott Bonvoy point when booking stays 4 months in advance
However, the value of Marriott Bonvoy points increases significantly when transferred to partners. For example, you can expect a value around:
1.86 cents per point when you transfer to American Express (5 American Express Membership Rewards points = 6 Marriott Bonvoy points), and
3.78 cents per point when you transfer to Aeroplan (3 Marriott Bonvoy points = 1 Aeroplan points)
Because of the value that comes from these transfer options, we give Marriott Bonvoy points an adjusted weighted average value of 1.82 cents per point.
How to apply for the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card
You can complete the application for the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card from the American Express website:
Select the Apply Now button from the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card page.
Review the card’s terms and conditions and select Agree and Begin to continue.
Enter your personal details, including your full name, date of birth, phone number, email address and residential address.
Input your financial information, including your annual personal income, household income and employment details.
Choose a four-digit PIN.
Review the information you’ve supplied and submit your application.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card vs American Express Cobalt Card
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Card detailsReasons you might want a different card
The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card offers solid earn rates on eligible hotel bookings and everyday purchases, but it won’t be a fit if:
You don’t want to be a Marriott Bonvoy member.
You don’t travel often enough to make use of the hotel benefits.
You don’t use your credit card often enough to generate a significant number of points.
If you’re looking for a wider range of rewards that apply to flights or airport experiences, you may want to consider some of Canada’s best travel credit cards. And if you’re not interested in becoming a Marriott Bonvoy member or you don’t often stay at participating hotels, there are plenty of other credit card reward programs worth investigating.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card facts
Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card | |
|---|---|
Card type | |
Interest rates | |
Regular/purchase APR | 21.99%. |
Cash advance APR | 21.99%. |
Penalty APR | 25.99% if you miss two separate payments in any 12 month period; 28.99% if you miss three or more separate payments in any 12 month period. |
Fees | |
Annual fee | $120. |
Balance transfer | Up to 3% of the amount of each balance transfer. |
Cash advance | $2.75 per transaction. Also, a 21.99% interest rate is charged on cash advances. |
Foreign transaction | 2.5% of the transaction amount. |
Reward earn rates | |
Signup bonus or welcome offer | New Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Cardmembers earn 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points after you charge $1,500 in purchases to your Card in your first three months of Cardmembership. Subject to change at any time. |
Rewards and benefits | Points can be redeemed for free stays at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels, merchandise and other experiences. They can also be transferred to other loyalty programs, including Aeroplan. |
Other perks |
|
Insurance coverage | |
Extended warranty | Up to one additional year. |
Purchase protection | 90 days. |
Travel accident | Up to $500,000. |
Travel medical | None. |
Flight delay | Up to $500 for necessary accommodations, restaurant expenses and sundries. |
Baggage delay | Up to $500 for essential clothing and sundry items. |
Lost or stolen baggage | Up to $500 of coverage per trip for all insured persons. |
Hotel burglary | Up to $500 of coverage for personal items (excluding cash). |
Rental car theft/damage | For up to 48 days. |
Methodology
BACK TO TOPNerdWallet Canada rates credit cards according to overall consumer value and their suitability for specific kinds of consumers. Factors in our evaluation methodology include annual and other fees, rewards rates, the earning structure (for example, flat-rate rewards versus bonus categories), redemption options, bonus offers for new cardholders, introductory and ongoing APRs, and other noteworthy features such as airline or hotel perks or the ability to transfer points.
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Shannon Terrell
Shannon Terrell