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Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card Review 2025: Is It Worth It?

Sep 10, 2025
The Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card rewards frequent travellers with free nights, elite perks, and upgrades at Marriott’s global hotels for a $120 annual fee.
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Written by Georgia Rose
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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.

Annual fee$120
Interest rates21.99% / 21.99%
APPLY NOW
on American Express' website

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.

The Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card is best suited for:

  • Frequent Marriott guests: Cardholders who regularly stay at Marriott Bonvoy hotels will get the most value, thanks to the 5 points per $1 earn rate on Marriott purchases and the ability to redeem points for free nights.

  • Travellers who want flexibility: Even if you don’t often stay at Marriott properties, you’ll still earn 2 points per $1 on everyday purchases. Points can be transferred to airline partners like Air Canada Aeroplan, United Airlines, or Cathay Pacific, or redeemed for gift cards at popular retailers.

If you carry the Marriott Bonvoy Amex, you:

  • Annual free night award: Receive one Free Night Award every year after your membership anniversary (redeemable for stays up to 35,000 points).

  • Point transfers: Convert Marriott Bonvoy points to frequent flyer miles with several airlines, including Air Canada Aeroplan.

  • Earning rates: Earn 5 points per $1 spent at Marriott Bonvoy hotels and 2 points per $1 on all other purchases.

  • Travel insurance coverage: Includes flight delay, travel accident, and lost or stolen baggage insurance.

  • Elite Status:

    • Silver Elite Status automatically, with 10% more points on eligible stays, priority late checkout, and member rates.

    • Gold Elite Status upgrade after $30,000 in annual card spend, or by combining 10 paid nights in a year with the 15 Elite Night Credits from the card.

  • Amex lifestyle perks: Access Amex Experiences™ (special dining, shopping, and entertainment events) and American Express Front Of The Line presales and reserved tickets for concerts, in-demand events, and more.

Is the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card worth it?

If you’re a Marriott Bonvoy member who travels frequently, this card can be well worth the $120 annual fee. Between the Annual Free Night Award, elite status perks, and the 5x points earn rate at Marriott properties, you can easily unlock more value than the fee costs. Even occasional Marriott guests may come out ahead, since the Free Night Award alone can offset the fee.

However, if you rarely stay at Marriott hotels or prefer a card with broader acceptance and richer everyday rewards, you may find better value with a general travel rewards card.

American Express customer ratings

  • High in customer satisfaction: American Express ranks first in overall customer satisfaction among 14 credit card issuers, according to J.D. Power’s 2025 Canada Credit Card Satisfaction Study

  • Low Trustpilot rating: 1.4 out of a possible 5 stars, based on more than 4,800 reviews, at the time of this writing.

  • Low Better Business Bureau rating: 1.1 out of a possible 5 stars, according to more than 550 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.

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 up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points after charging $1,500 in purchases to the Card in the first three months of Cardmembership.

Marriott Bonvoy points value breakdown

NerdWallet searched more than 50 data points analyzing the cost of Marriott Bonvoy hotel stays in 2024. Based on our analysis, the average value of 1 Marriott Bonvoy point is worth 0.76 cents.

More specifically, you can expect to get around:

  • 0.69 cents in value per Marriott Bonvoy point when booking stays 15 days in advance.

  • 0.80 cents in value per Marriott Bonvoy point when booking stays 60 days in advance.

  • 0.91 cents in value per Marriott Bonvoy point when booking stays four months in advance.

However, the value of Marriott Bonvoy points increases significantly when transferred to partners. For example, you can expect a value around:

  • 2.4 cents per point when you transfer to American Express (5 American Express Membership Rewards points = 6 Marriott Bonvoy points).

  • 0.53 cents per point when you transfer to Aeroplan (3 Marriott Bonvoy points = 1 Aeroplan point).

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.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card vs American Express Cobalt Card

Annual fee$120
Interest rates
21.99% / 21.99%
Intro offer
50,000 Points
Recommended credit score560-900
APPLY NOW
on American Express' website

Annual fee
$155.88
Interest rates
21.99% / 21.99%
Intro offer
Up to 15,000 Points
Recommended credit score660-724
APPLY NOW
on American Express' website

Reasons you might want a different card

The Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card offers solid earn rates on hotel stays and everyday purchases, but it may not be the right fit if:

  • You’re not a Marriott Bonvoy member and don’t plan to join.

  • You don’t travel often enough to take advantage of hotel perks like the Free Night Award or elite status.

  • You rarely use a credit card, making it difficult to accumulate meaningful rewards.

If you’d prefer rewards that apply more broadly — such as for flights, airport perks, or general travel spending — one of Canada’s best travel credit cards might be a better fit. And if hotel loyalty isn’t important to you, plenty of non-hotel rewards programs can offer stronger everyday value.

Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card facts

Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card

Card type

Rewards credit card.

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; 29.99% if you miss three or more separate payments in any 12 month period.

Fees

Annual fee

$120.

Funds advance

$0 each.

Foreign transaction

2.5% of the transaction amount.

Reward earn rates

Signup bonus or welcome offer

50,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points.

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

  • One free stay every year after the first: Enjoy an Annual Free Night Award after your card anniversary each year.

  • Earn points twice: Earn 5 points for every dollar spent at participating Marriott Bonvoy properties, as well as the points you already earn as a Marriott Bonvoy member.

  • Complimentary Silver Elite Status with Marriott Bonvoy: Enjoy service upgrades, earn more points and get one step closer to Gold Elite Status.

  • Complimentary Elite Night Credits: Receive 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year to use towards attaining the next level of Elite status.

  • Transfer and earn: Receive 15,000 bonus points from Marriott Bonvoy when you transfer 60,000 points to a frequent flyer program.

  • Amex Perks: Access special Amex Experiences™ events and Front Of The Line perks — exclusive ticketing presales for concerts, shows, restaurants and special events — plus Priority Line and Priority Bar access at select venues.

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 (combined with baggage delay) for necessary accommodations, restaurant expenses and sundries.

Baggage delay

Up to $500 (combined with flight delay) 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

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NerdWallet Canada selects the best credit cards based on overall consumer value as well as their suitability for specific kinds of consumers. Factors in our evaluation methodology include each card’s earning rates, rewards structure (such as flat-rate or bonus categories), annual fee, redemption options, promotional APR period for purchases, bonus offers for new cardholders, and noteworthy features such as insurance, loyalty bonuses or the ability to choose one’s own rewards categories.