Annual fees, credits and sign-up bonuses change often — confirm the current offer on the issuer's page before you apply.
Marriott Bonvoy is the largest hotel program on earth — roughly 30 brands from budget Fairfield to the St. Regis — and its co-brand cards are split between two banks: Chase issues the mid-tier Bonvoy Boundless®, while American Express issues the premium Bonvoy Bevy™ and Bonvoy Brilliant®. What makes almost all of them worth holding isn't the points — it's the annual free-night award, which frequently returns more than the fee on a single stay.
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Quick answer
- Best for: casual Marriott guests → Boundless (Chase, ~$95; a 35,000-point anniversary night pays the fee, plus Silver and 15 Elite Night Credits); in between → Bevy (Amex, ~$250; a 50,000-point night and Gold status); frequent travelers → Brilliant (Amex, ~$650; instant Platinum, an 85,000-point night and dining credits)
- Annual fee: $0 (Bold) · ~$95 (Boundless) · ~$250 (Bevy) · ~$650 (Brilliant)
- Welcome bonus: offers as of October 2026 — Boundless 3 Free Night Awards (each up to 50,000 points) after $3,000, plus up to $100 in airline credits · Bold 45,000 points after $1,000 · Bevy 85,000 points after $5,000 · Brilliant 100,000 points after $6,000 (the bigger September offers ended 30 September) (verify current offer)
- Key benefit: the annual free-night certificate — these are a free-night play, not a points play
- Earning: 6x at Marriott on every card; points worth ~0.8¢ each at our valuation. Skip them if hotel point value is your priority — the World of Hyatt card earns a far richer currency
Free tool: find the credit card that earns the most for how you spend, and track every statement credit at kritdeals.com/points-path, or in the free KritDeals app for iPhone and Android.
At a glance
| Card | Issuer | Annual fee | Free night (up to) | Auto status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bonvoy Bold | Chase | $0 | — | Silver |
| Bonvoy Boundless | Chase | ~$95 | 35,000 pts | Silver |
| Bonvoy Bevy | Amex | ~$250 | 50,000 pts | Gold |
| Bonvoy Brilliant | Amex | ~$650 | 85,000 pts | Platinum |
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Points earned (currency) | Marriott Bonvoy points |
| Points worth (our valuation) | ~0.8¢ each |
| Key perk/status boost | Annual free night + automatic Silver / Gold / Platinum |
| Card network (issuer) | Chase (Bold, Boundless) · American Express (Bevy, Brilliant) |
(There are also Chase and Amex Bonvoy business cards, ~$125 each, with their own 35,000-point free nights. Fees and thresholds — verify current offer.)
What the points are worth
We value Bonvoy points at 0.8¢ each. That's low per point, but you earn an enormous number of them (a stay can pull 16x+ once you stack the card, base member earning and elite bonuses), so the currency still funds real nights. Two levers push your redemptions above 0.8¢:
- 5th-night-free on award stays: book 4 consecutive nights on points, the 5th is free.
- Standard-room dynamic pricing: aim for properties whose cash rate is high relative to the points price.
CPP formula we use everywhere: (cash − taxes) ÷ points × 100 = ¢ per point.
Worked example — a Category 7 resort listing at $600/night: a 5-night award costs 4 × ~60,000 = 240,000 points thanks to the free 5th night. Those five nights would run $3,000 cash. (3,000 − 0) ÷ 240,000 × 100 = 1.25¢/point — well above baseline, purely because you skipped a night.
You can also feed Bonvoy from your bank points: Amex Membership Rewards and Chase Ultimate Rewards both transfer 1:1 to Marriott (see transfer partners) — handy for topping off an award.
Unlike most co-brand currencies, Bonvoy points do transfer out — to nearly 40 airline programs (typically 3:1, with a 5,000-mile bonus per 60,000 transferred). It's usually a poor deal compared with keeping points in hotels, but the option is there; for every airline partner and ratio, see the complete transfer partners chart. For outsized value — 5th-night-free award stays and aspirational resort redemptions — see St. Regis Maldives for 100,000 Bonvoy points.
Expiry: points don't expire with activity every ~24 months.
Earning rates
| Rate | Category |
|---|---|
| 6x | Marriott stays (all three cards) |
| 4x | Bevy: restaurants worldwide & U.S. supermarkets (up to $15k/yr) |
| 3x | Boundless: first $6k/yr combined groceries, gas & dining |
| 3x | Brilliant: dining worldwide & flights booked direct |
| 2x | Everything else (all three cards) |
Remember the 6x is only the card's slice. A Bonvoy member earns ~10x base from the hotel, and elite status adds a further bonus, so a paid stay on these cards commonly earns 16–17x total.
Benefits & credits
The free-night award — the real reason to hold these. Every one of these cards (Bold excepted) hands you a certificate for one free night each account anniversary, capped at a point value:
- Boundless — up to 35,000 points (many solid Category 4–5 hotels).
- Bevy — up to 50,000 points (some cards require a spend threshold to unlock — verify).
- Brilliant — up to 85,000 points (reaches most Category 6–7 luxury properties).
You may top up a certificate with up to 25,000 of your own points to reach a pricier night — Marriott raised the cap from 15,000 effective March 12, 2026, putting roughly 733 more properties within a certificate's reach (an 85,000-point Brilliant cert can now cover a 110,000-point night). The math is simple: if a Boundless anniversary night lands at a hotel pricing $250/night, that single free night has already more than covered the $95 fee — before you've earned a point.
Card by card:
- Bonvoy Boundless (Chase, ~$95) — the everyday workhorse. 6x at Marriott, automatic Silver elite, 15 Elite Night Credits each year (a running head start toward Gold/Platinum), and the 35,000-point free night. This is the default "keeper" Bonvoy card for most people.
- Bonvoy Bevy (Amex, ~$250) — a step up in earning and a 50,000-point free night, automatic Gold status, and 15 Elite Night Credits. Best for someone who spends more at restaurants and supermarkets and wants a bigger annual cert without jumping to the premium fee.
- Bonvoy Brilliant (Amex, ~$650) — the flagship. Automatic Platinum Elite (suite upgrades, lounge access, late checkout when available), an 85,000-point free night, up to $300/year in dining credits ($25/month — verify current amount), a Priority Pass membership, a $100 property credit on 2-night+ stays at Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis, and a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit. Between the free night and dining credits, heavy Marriott loyalists can extract more than the fee — but only if you actually use the monthly credits.
Elite status, the fast way:
| Card | Instant status | Elite Night Credits/yr |
|---|---|---|
| Boundless | Silver | 15 |
| Bevy | Gold | 15 |
| Brilliant | Platinum | 25 |
Those Elite Night Credits stack — hold Boundless and a Bonvoy business card and you're starting each year 30+ nights toward the next tier. Platinum (from Brilliant, or ~50 nights) is where the perks get real: suite upgrades, free breakfast or lounge access, and 4 p.m. late checkout.
Best uses
- Aspirational resort, milked with the 5th-night-free. Category 8 property at $700/night, 100,000 points/night. A 5-night stay = 4 × 100,000 = 400,000 points for what would be $3,500 in rooms. (3,500 − 0) ÷ 400,000 × 100 = 0.875¢ — roughly baseline, but you've turned a $3,500 bill into points you earned mostly for free.
- The free night as pure fee offset. Brilliant's 85,000-point cert used at a St. Regis pricing $650/night: the certificate covers a night that would cost real money, so it alone claws back most of the $650 fee. Stack the dining credit and the card can run net-positive.
- Top-up trick. Your Boundless cert caps at 35,000, but the hotel prices at 42,000. Add 7,000 of your own points and you've stretched a "Category 4" certificate onto a nicer night. With the 25,000-point top-off cap, that same cert can reach as far as a 60,000-point night.
Who should get it
Casual Marriott guest: Boundless — the 35,000-point night pays the fee, Silver + 15 nights build status.
Frequent traveler who wants status without chasing nights: Brilliant — instant Platinum, an 85,000-point night, and credits that offset a chunk of the fee.
In between: Bevy — a bigger cert and Gold status at a middle fee.
Fee-averse: Bold ($0) keeps you in the program and earning, but skips the free night that makes the others worth it.
Good alternative: World of Hyatt card — earns a far richer hotel currency if point value is your priority
Good alternative: Hilton Honors Amex cards — for sheer earn-rate volume
Fine print worth knowing
- Dual-issuer rules: because Chase and Amex share the program, eligibility for a new Bonvoy card and its welcome bonus depends on which Bonvoy cards you already hold or have held. Check the current rules for both issuers before applying — one can block the other.
- Chase 5/24: the Boundless is a Chase card, so it's subject to Chase's 5/24 approval rule (5+ new cards in 24 months = likely denial).
- Amex "once per lifetime" welcome-bonus language applies to the Bevy and Brilliant — a bonus you've had before won't repeat.
- Free nights expire ~12 months after issue and are date/availability-restricted; don't sit on them.
- Points don't expire with activity every ~24 months.
Bottom line
Marriott's cards are a free-night play, not a points play. Pick the tier whose annual certificate and status match how you travel, use it every year, and the fee mostly pays for itself. If hotel point value is your priority, the World of Hyatt card earns a far richer currency; for sheer earn-rate volume, compare the Hilton Honors Amex cards.
Note: Sign-up bonuses and benefits change. Always confirm current terms on the issuer's site before applying.
FAQ
Which Marriott card is best? It depends on how you travel: Boundless for the casual guest, Bevy for a bigger certificate and Gold status at a middle fee, and Brilliant for instant Platinum and an 85,000-point night. The $0 Bold skips the free night that makes the others worth it.
Can I top up a free-night certificate? Yes, with up to 25,000 of your own points — Marriott raised the cap from 15,000 effective March 12, 2026. An 85,000-point Brilliant cert can now cover a 110,000-point night.
How does the 5th night free work? Book 4 consecutive nights on points and the 5th is free — the main lever that pushes Bonvoy redemptions above our 0.8¢ baseline.
Can I hold both Chase and Amex Bonvoy cards? Yes, but eligibility for a new Bonvoy card and its welcome bonus depends on which Bonvoy cards you already hold or have held — check both issuers' rules first, since one can block the other.
Do free-night certificates expire? Yes, about 12 months after issue, and they're date- and availability-restricted — don't sit on them.
