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Hotel credit cards don't get much more feature-packed than the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card. Marriott's most luxurious card offers $300 in Marriott Bonvoy credits per year, an annual free night, a year of complimentary gold status, and much more (terms apply). However, this card also comes with a hefty annual fee (See rates and fees). Our Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card review will help you decide if it's worth the cost.
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Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card
Apply Now
On American Express' Secure Website.
Great for: Marriot Bonvoy benefits
Rating image, 4.00 out of 5 stars.
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor.
Bottom Line
This card has a hefty annual fee, but taking advantage of the big bonus and litany of perks it offers can easily make it worth it for the right type of cardholder. Terms apply.
Rewards
6x points at participating Marriott Bonvoy Hotels, 3x points at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines, 2x points on all other eligible purchases
Annual Fee
$450
Foreign Transaction Fee
None
Intro APR
Purchases: N/A
Balance Transfers: N/A
Ongoing APR
15.74%-24.74% Variable
Welcome Bonus
Earn 75,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Plus, earn up to $200 in Statement Credits for eligible purchases at U.S. Restaurants within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
Highlights
- Earn 75,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Plus, earn up to $200 in Statement Credits for eligible purchases at U.S. Restaurants within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
- Enjoy up to $300 in statement credits each year of Card Membership for eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy™ program.
- Earn 6 Marriott Bonvoy points for each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy™ program. 3 points at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines. 2 points on all other eligible purchases.
- Receive 1 free Night Award every year after your Card account anniversary. Award can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points) at a participating hotel. Certain hotels have resort fees.
- Enjoy unlimited airport lounge visits when you enroll in Priority Pass™ Select membership.
- No Foreign Transaction Fees.
- $450 Annual Fee.
- Terms Apply.
Full Amex Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant review
This credit card is a good fit for: frequent guests of Marriott hotels who want a luxury card with perks to cover both hotel stays and air travel.
Pros
- Big Marriott Bonvoy bonuses
- Travel credits
- Free night award
- Automatic Gold Elite status
- Airport lounge access
Cons
- Annual fee
Top perks
Welcome offer
Earn 75,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points after you use your card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first three months as a cardholder. Cardholders can also earn a $200 statement credit at eligible U.S. restaurants in the first six months of membership. Terms apply.
Marriott Bonvoy points are worth about $0.005 to $0.01 each depending on where you redeem them. That's in line with many of the bigger welcome bonuses.
Rewards
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card earns 6 points per $1 at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels, 3 points per $1 at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked directly with airlines, and 2 points per $1 on all other purchases.
It's also worth noting you'll get these points in addition to the points you already earn as a member of the Marriott Bonvoy program. You'll also get a 25% boost on those points due to Gold Elite status, which is complimentary for one year with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card. Terms apply.
$300 annual Marriott Bonvoy credit
Each cardmember year, your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card will cover $300 in eligible card purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels. You'll receive this as a statement credit. This covers a range of purchases, including room charges as well as on-property restaurant or spa purchases charged to your room. Your first credit is available at account opening, and subsequent credits refresh on your cardholder anniversary. Assuming you use the credit every year, it effectively brings this card's annual fee down to $150. Terms apply.
$100 property credit
When you use your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card to book and pay for a stay of two nights or longer at The Ritz-Carlton® or St. Regis® using the "$100 Property Credit, Luxury Credit Card" rate, you'll receive a credit of up to $100 to redeem towards qualifying purchases at the property. The property credit will appear as a credit on your bill at checkout, not as a statement credit on your credit card. Terms apply.
Annual free night award
After your card account anniversary each year, you'll receive one free night award. You can redeem this for one night at a participating Marriott Bonvoy hotel with a redemption level at or under 50,000 points.
This can be an extremely valuable benefit, especially if you often book stays at Marriott's higher-end properties. There are many properties you can book with your free night award that cost over $500 per night. Some cost over $600 or even over $700. Terms apply.
Complimentary Gold Elite status
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card offers complimentary Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy. Gold Elite status unlocks perks like enhanced room upgrades (when available), late checkout, and extra Marriott Bonvoy points on each stay. You'll also receive 15 Elite Night Credits each year good towards the next level of status. Want to hit the next elite status tier without the stays? Earn Platinum Elite status when you spend at least $75,000 on the card each calendar year. Terms apply.
Airport lounge access
This Marriott credit card includes a complimentary Priority Pass Select membership with enrollment, which gets you access to the over 1,200 airport lounges in that program across 130 countries. This can easily save you up to $50 each time you use an airport lounge, which can add up quickly for frequent flyers. Most premium travel credit cards offer airport lounge access, but this is still a useful feature that can improve your travel experience. Terms apply.
Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card covers your membership fee for the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck program. You can get either a $100 statement credit for Global Entry every four years or an $85 statement credit for TSA PreCheck every 4.5 years. In addition to the larger credit amount, Global Entry also offers the superior choice, because the Global Entry program works at non-U.S. airports. It also automatically enrolls you in the TSA PreCheck program. Terms apply.
Purchase protection
American Express cards tend to have top-notch protections, and this one is no exception. It includes return protection and purchase protection. Plus there's extended warranty coverage on eligible purchases that you pay for with your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card. These benefits can not only provide peace of mind when making large purchases, but offer significant savings because you can skip the pricey in-store protection plans offered by many retailers without losing out on coverage. Terms apply.
Travel protection
Another area where this Marriott card does well is travel protections. It offers secondary car rental loss and damage insurance; a baggage insurance plan that covers lost, stolen, or damaged baggage; trip cancellation and interruption insurance; and trip delay insurance. Travel protection coverage typically extends to all common carriers, including airlines, hotels, ships, and buses. Once again, you must pay with your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card for these protections to apply. Terms apply.
No foreign transaction fees
Like just about all the best travel credit cards, this card doesn't charge you anything extra for international transactions in a foreign currency. This can easily save you 2% to 3% on every transaction in non-U.S. dollars versus cards that charge foreign transaction fees. While you're most likely to encounter this issue while traveling abroad, some online transactions you make can also be charged in a foreign currency, so you can take advantage of this benefit even when not traveling. (See rates and fees.)
What could be improved
High annual fee
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card certainly doesn't come cheap at $450 per year. However, that annual fee can be justified if you visit Marriott properties often. (See rates and fees.)
Remember that the $300 Marriott Bonvoy credit will bring this card's true annual cost down to a more reasonable $150. There's also the annual free night credit, which can be worth well over $500, Gold Elite status, airport lounge access, and many other perks. Assuming you take advantage of its benefits, this card's value will more than make up for its annual fee.
Find the best credit card for your needs
Compare credit card rewards, fees, APRs, and more using our side-by-side comparison tool.
Suggested credit score
To apply for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, we recommend a FICO® Score of 670 or higher. It generally takes a good or excellent credit score to get approved for this card. As with any credit card application, your credit score isn't the only factor that matters, as American Express will review your entire credit history as well as your income when evaluating your application. You can get approved with a lower score or denied with a higher one.
Alternatives to consider
- If you want a less expensive Marriott Bonvoy card: The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card is a fantastic alternative. It has a lower annual fee, but it still packs in a rich rewards program. It also includes an annual free night award at properties with redemption values of up to 35,000 points.
- If you want a more flexible luxury travel card: The Chase Sapphire Reserve® has a high annual fee, but it earns points you can either use to book travel at $0.015 per point through Chase Ultimate Rewards or transfer to several airlines and hotels, with Marriott being one of them. It also boasts a $300 annual travel credit.
As of Jul. 20, 2021
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| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless™ Credit Card | Chase Sapphire Reserve® |
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Rating image, 4.00 out of 5 stars.
4.00 stars
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. |
Rating image, 4.50 out of 5 stars.
4.50 stars
We want your money to work harder for you. Which is why our ratings are biased toward offers that deliver versatility while cutting out-of-pocket costs.Our ratings are based on a 5 star scale. 5 stars equals Best. 4 stars equals Excellent. 3 stars equals Good. 2 stars equals Fair. 1 star equals Poor. |
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Apply Now
On Chase's Secure Website. |
Apply Now
On Chase's Secure Website. |
| Read Full Review | Read Full Review |
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Credit Rating Requirement: |
Credit Rating Requirement: |
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Welcome Bonus: Earn 3 free nights after spending $3,000 on purchases in your first three months. Also earn 10x points on up to $2,500 in gas, restaurants, and grocery purchases in the first six months. |
Welcome Bonus: 60,000 points after spending $4,000 within 3 months |
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Rewards Program: Earn up to 17x points at participating Marriot Bonvoy™ hotels, 2x points on all other purchases |
Rewards Program: 3X points on travel immediately after earning your $300 travel credit. 3X points on dining at restaurants & 1 point on all other purchases. |
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Intro APR: Purchases: N/A Balance Transfers: N/A |
Intro APR: Purchases: N/A Balance Transfers: N/A |
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Regular APR: 15.99% - 22.99% Variable |
Regular APR: 16.99%-23.99% Variable |
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Annual Fee: $95 |
Annual Fee: $550 |
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Highlights:
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Highlights:
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Apply Now
On Chase's Secure Website. |
Apply Now
On Chase's Secure Website. |
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This card is right for you if:
You book stays at Marriott properties several times per year and want the card that will get you the most benefits there.
If you visit Marriott often, you're just about guaranteed to get your money's worth from the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card. It offers a spectacular list of features, rivaled only by the best credit cards. Not only will you save a substantial amount of money on your Marriott stays, but the complimentary perks will also result in a better hotel experience.
Apply Now
On American Express' Secure Website.
About the Author
Lyle Daly is a personal finance writer who specializes in credit cards, travel rewards programs, and banking. He writes for The Ascent and The Motley Fool, and his work has appeared in USA Today and Yahoo! Finance. He was born in California but currently lives as a digital nomad with a home base in Colombia.
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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers. The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team. The Motley Fool has a Disclosure Policy. The Author and/or The Motley Fool may have an interest in companies mentioned.
For rates and fees for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card, click here.
For rates and fees for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card from American Express, click here
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