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[2019.5 Update] You must register for this offer by May 31 — this is the final chance. As expected, AMEX has released the enrollment link for this bonus-points promotion. You can earn an extra 25,000 points for every $25k in spending, up to 4 times total. In other words, after spending $100,000 total, you can earn 100,000 bonus points. Spending must be completed by December 31, 2019. Personally, I think this promo is just okay: this card normally earns 2x points on everyday spending, and now it becomes 3x. If you value Marriott points at 0.8c/p, that works out to about a 2.4% return.

[Discontinued] This card was officially discontinued on February 13, 2019, changing from SPG to Marriott Bonvoy. All benefits remained unchanged, and service continued to be provided by AMEX. This once-legendary SPG card gradually lost its shine after SPG was acquired by Marriott and eventually disappeared, which is quite unfortunate. If you are interested in a mid-tier Marriott co-branded card, see:

AMEX Starwood Preferred Guest Co-Branded Hotel Credit Card

Application Link: None

Key Features

  • Welcome Bonus: 75,000 Marriott points (after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months)
  • Earning Rates: 6x at SPG/Marriott/Ritz-Carlton hotels, 2x on other purchases
  • Using the Points: Can be redeemed for stays at SPG/Marriott/Ritz-Carlton properties, or transferred to airline miles at up to a 3:1.25 ratio
  • No foreign transaction fee
  • $95 annual fee, waived the first year

Highlights

  • Strong welcome bonus with solid value: 75,000 Marriott points can be converted into 30,000 AA miles or BA miles for award flights: see this article for details; 25,000 SPG points can cover 12 nights at SPG cat1 hotels, up to 8 nights at cat2 hotels, or up to 3 nights at cat3 hotels
  • Annual free night certificate: Starting in the second year, after paying the annual fee you will receive one Free Night. It can be used at any Marriott, SPG, or Ritz-Carlton hotel costing 35,000 points or less per night (subject to standard award availability)
  • Hotel elite status: Cardholders receive Marriott Silver status automatically. You also get 15 Elite Night Credit each year, which helps if you are aiming for Marriott Gold or Platinum status.
  • Free premium in-hotel internet: SPG’s free standard wifi could become painfully slow during peak hours. With this card, you can enjoy the fastest internet tier. This benefit used to be available only to SPG Gold or Platinum members; otherwise it seemed to cost about $20 per day.
  • Free Boingo public Wi-Fi access: Can be used on up to 4 devices, with access to 1 million hotspots worldwide. For details, see the Boingo website. To search hotspot locations, see: https://wifi.boingo.com/. Existing SPG cardholders can register here: https://amex.boingo.com/
  • No foreign transaction fee: AMEX credit cards also do not force DCC on international transactions, so paying in the local currency or in USD gives the same conversion rate. You don’t need to worry about poor exchange rates like with Visa when settling in local currency. No more worrying about booking hotels outside the U.S.

AMEX Card Benefits

  • AMEX Offer: Amazon spend 20 get 20 back, Walmart 15-5, pay your phone bill 75-10. Generous AMEX often sends cardholders great offers that let you earn cash back while spending. See also: Recent Best AMEX Offers, Past Best AMEX Offers Summary, AMEX Offer Guide
  • Small Business Day: AMEX credit cards can participate every year. Small Business Day promotions offer extra rewards at designated merchants. See: Small Business Day Promotion Review
  • Generous credit limits: AMEX is very generous with customers and often gives much higher credit limits than other banks.
  • 3x credit limit increase: Starting on day 61 of card membership, you may be able to request a credit limit increase to as much as 3 times your original limit through the official website.
  • Free ShopRunner membership: Enjoy free 2-day shipping at many online stores. For details, see the official link
  • Extended warranty: Items purchased in full with an AMEX card get an additional 1 year added to the manufacturer’s warranty
  • Free credit report info: Cardholders can check their EX credit score for free. See: Comparison of Free Credit Scores

Drawbacks

  • The points cannot be redeemed for cash at a 1:1 rate (though who would waste high-value SPG points by cashing them out 1:1?)
  • Other than spending at SPG hotels, there are no bonus categories. It is hard to earn lots of points through everyday spending.

Points Program Overview

  • Point value: Average value is 0.8 c/p, 100 Marriott points = $0.80 (Point value and analysis)
  • Hotel redemptions: Marriott points can be redeemed for stays at Marriott hotels, Ritz-Carlton, and hotels that were previously part of SPG. Marriott now uses dynamic pricing, so the number of points required depends on the room rate. You can also redeem using cash+points. All-points bookings qualify for a stay 5, pay for 4 offer.
  • Point transfers: Marriott points can be transferred to the following airline miles at a 3:1 ratio, with an additional 10% bonus when transferring to UA. In addition, every 60,000 points transferred earns an extra 5,000-mile bonus, which means a maximum transfer ratio of 3:1.25 for miles (eligible miles only). Air Canada Aeroplan (AC) miles (domestic U.S. flights, one-way economy tickets between the U.S. and China, emergency flights, and infant tickets on two-cabin itineraries); Alaska Airlines (AS) miles (domestic U.S. flights, U.S.-China flights, U.S.-China two-cabin itineraries, free one-way Stop Over); ANA miles (U.S.-China flights, round-trip economy for just 60,000, business class for 95,000); AA miles (U.S.-China CX and JL two-cabin itineraries, no fuel surcharges); BA miles (domestic U.S. flights and short nonstop flights between China and Japan, very low change/cancellation fees, emergency tickets); Delta miles (domestic U.S. flights, U.S.-China flights, can be redeemed at 1 c/p); UA miles (U.S.-China economy, domestic U.S.)
  • Point characteristics: Points can be transferred between different accounts, with an annual limit of 100,000 points. When booking rooms, you can combine your family members' points with no limit. Points expire after 24 months with no activity.
  • My quick take: Marriott inherited SPG's extremely strong flexibility and can be transferred to many very useful airline miles, with pretty good transfer ratios as well. Point value for hotel redemptions is not as high as Hyatt points, but it is still decent. The ability to pool points for the whole family is also a big plus.
  • Detailed analysis: Marriott points guide

Application

  • Approval difficulty: Moderate. You may be able to get approved with more than 6 months of credit history. I was approved when I had 1 year of credit history, and the initial credit limit was 4500.
  • Application status: Official application status check link
  • Things to know: Before applying, read “AMEX Bank Characteristics.” This card can be applied for without an SSN. If your application is denied or goes pending, consider calling for reconsideration. Since this is a co-branded SPG hotel credit card, if you already have an SPG number you can enter it during the application (otherwise one will be assigned automatically).

Application Link

None