AMEX Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant: 150,000-Point Welcome Offer

The biggest selling point of this card is that it gives you Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status just for holding it, with benefits like free breakfast for two, lounge access, and room upgrades. On top of that, the card comes with up to $300 in annual dining credits plus an 85,000-point free night award each year, which largely offsets the $650 annual fee, so it can be worth keeping long term.

• Marriott Brilliant 150,000-point application link

This offer is extremely good, so I added it to our ranking.

• Best US Credit Card Welcome Offers (Personal Cards) [Updated Monthly]

AMEX Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Credit Card

Highlights

• Strong welcome offer with solid practical value: 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points can be transferred to about 40,000 AA miles or BA miles for award flights: see this article for details. For hotel stays, the points can be used across hotels in three hotel group tiers, from luxury to more practical properties, so you have a very wide range of redemption options.
• $300 dining credit, $25 per month: Since 2022/9/22, this benefit has been structured as a $25 monthly dining credit, valid at restaurants worldwide. If you already spend on dining every month, this credit is pretty easy to use.
• Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status just for holding the card: Marriott Platinum status is quite valuable. At some hotels, you may get upgraded all the way to a suite, plus free breakfast and lounge access.
• 25 Elite Night Credits every year: These help with earning status. The 25 nights can stack with elite nights from a business card, but likely cannot stack with another personal card.
• $100 Ritz-Carlton / St. Regis property credit: You need to book an eligible rate with the $100 label on the official website and stay at least two nights. This benefit is somewhat similar to FHR.
• 85,000-point free night award every year: Starting in the second year, after you pay the annual fee, you get one free night award worth up to 85,000 points each year. That is generally enough for stays at Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis properties. It may be less compelling in China, but can be very useful at city-center hotels in the US and Europe.
• Spend $60,000 and choose 1 of 3 benefits: After spending $60,000 in a calendar year, you can choose one of the following: 5 suite upgrade awards, a $750 mattress discount, or an 85,000-point free night award. I think the obvious choice is the 85,000-point free night award. Details
• No foreign transaction fee: AMEX cards also do not force DCC on foreign transactions, meaning the conversion is the same whether you settle in local currency or USD. You do not have to worry about poor exchange rates like you sometimes see when settling in local currency with Visa. That makes booking hotels outside the US much less of a hassle.
• Priority Pass Select membership: Cardholders can access participating Priority Pass airport lounges for free. Coverage is broad across airports, and in China you can use most Air China lounges.
• High-spend bonus: After annual spending reaches $60,000, cardholders also have an additional 50,000-point option. Here are the latest available choices:
  • 5 Nightly Upgrade Awards (formerly called Suite Night Awards™)
  • 1 Free Night Award, usable for a room costing up to 85,000 points
  • 【New】50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points
  • $1,000 off a mattress purchase from any Marriott Bonvoy retail brand

AMEX Card Benefits

• AMEX Offers: Amazon spend 20, get 20 back; Walmart 15-5; phone bill 75-10. Generous AMEX frequently sends cardholders excellent offers that let you earn cash back while spending. See also: Best Recent AMEX Offers, Past Great AMEX Offers, AMEX Offers Explained
• Small Business Day: AMEX credit cards can participate every year in Small Business Day promotions, which offer extra rewards at participating merchants. See: Small Business Day Promotion Overview
• Generous credit limits: AMEX is very generous with customers and often gives much higher credit limits than other banks.
• 3x credit line increase: Starting on day 61 of card membership, you can request a credit line increase through the official website up to 3x your original limit.
• Free ShopRunner membership: This gives you free 2-day shipping at many online stores. See details here: official link
• Extended warranty: Items purchased in full with an AMEX card get an extra year added to the manufacturer warranty automatically.
• Free credit report: Cardholders can view their EX credit score for free. See: Comparison of Free Credit Scores

Cons

• The points cannot be redeemed directly for cash, and the annual fee is a bit high.

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

My Take:

After the 2022.9.22 refresh, this card clearly became a premium card. The two most important benefits are probably Platinum Elite status and the 85,000-point free night award. If you enjoy upscale travel experiences, these perks can definitely be worth it. You also get a $100 property credit at Ritz-Carlton and St. Regis. That said, if you only want to keep the card for the annual free night award, the value proposition is a bit weaker. And the dining credit is kind of annoying too: $25 per month, again and again.

Marriott also has co-branded credit cards with both AMEX and Chase, so you can read the article below to choose the one that fits you best.

• How Should You Choose Among the 8 Marriott Co-Branded Credit Cards?

Application:

This is a Marriott co-branded credit card. If you already have a Marriott account, you can enter it during the application process; if not, one will be assigned automatically. Still, I recommend registering for a Marriott account first.

In the following situations, you will not be eligible for the welcome offer, so pay special attention:

• If within the past 30 days you currently have or previously had the Chase Ritz-Carlton credit card, Chase Marriott Bountiful, Marriott Boundless, Marriott Bold, or another Chase Marriott co-branded credit card
• If within the past 90 days you received Chase Marriott Bountiful, Marriott Boundless, or Marriott Bold
• If within the past 24 months you received a welcome bonus or upgrade bonus on the Chase Marriott Bountiful, Marriott Boundless, or Marriott Bold

Other application notes:

• AMEX official application status check link
• For the same AMEX credit card, the public welcome bonus is generally available only once (once-per-lifetime restriction)
• You can call the reconsideration line (800-528-4800, 877-399-3083, 866-314-0237) to speed up credit card approval or request a review of a denied application.
• AMEX limits you to 4 credit cards and 10 charge cards total.
• You can apply for a total of two AMEX credit cards every 90 days, excluding charge cards.
• After you submit your application, a pop-up may appear telling you that you are not eligible for the welcome bonus. In that case, it is usually best not to continue with the application (detailed analysis)
• More about applying for AMEX credit cards

Application Link