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BEST CREDIT CARDSBEST CREDIT CARDSSTARWOOD PREFERRED GUEST AMEX REVIEW: FIVE-STAR PERKS … WHEN IT WAS AVAILABLE

Starwood Preferred Guest AmEx Review: Five-Star Perks … When It Was Available

(NO LONGER AVAILABLE) The card was packed with value, including a yearly free night that easily covers the annual fee. The Starwood-Marriott merger gave you a wide selection of hotels.
Claire Tsosie Author Avatar
Apr 18, 2018 11:01 p.m. PDT
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SOME CARD INFO MAY BE OUTDATED
This page includes information about the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card and the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express, currently unavailable on NerdWallet. The information about the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card and the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been provided or reviewed by the card issuer.

The Bottom Line

4.3

NerdWallet rating

The excellent pre-merger Marriott and Starwood credit cards were nearly identical. But this card's waived first-year annual fee gave it an edge.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express Image
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express
Annual Fee
$0 for the first year, then $95
Rewards Rate
2.00%
Points
Intro Offer
75,000
Points
Recommended credit score
Intro APR
N/A
Regular APR
17.99%-26.99% Variable APR
Recommended credit score
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express Image
Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express
Annual Fee
$0 for the first year, then $95
Rewards Rate
2.00%
Points
Intro Offer
75,000
Points
Recommended credit score
Intro APR
N/A
Regular APR
17.99%-26.99% Variable APR
Recommended credit score

  • Annual fee

    $0 for the first year, then $95

  • Rewards rate

    2.00%

  • Bonus offer

    Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Terms Apply.

  • Intro APR

    N/A

  • Ongoing APR

    APR: 17.99%-26.99% Variable APR

    Penalty APR: 29.99%, Variable

    Cash Advance APR: 27.49%, Variable

  • Balance transfer fee

    Either $5 or 3% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.

  • Foreign transaction fee

    0%

  • Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months.
  • Earn 6 points for each dollar of eligible purchases at participating SPG® and Marriott Rewards® hotels and 2 points on all other eligible purchases.
  • No Foreign Transaction Fees on International 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 35,000 points) at a participating hotel. Select hotels have resort fees.
  • Enjoy complimentary, unlimited Boingo Wi-Fi on up to four devices at more than 1,000,000 Boingo hotspots worldwide. Enrollment required.
  • $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $95.
  • Terms Apply.

Pros and Cons

Pros

High rewards rate

Flexible rewards redemption

No foreign transaction fee

Bonus offer for new cardholders

Cons

Has annual fee

Requires good/excellent credit

Detailed Review

» This card is no longer available

Following Marriott's merger with Starwood Hotels & Resorts, the Marriott and Starwood loyalty programs were combined and rechristened as "Marriott Bonvoy." In February 2019, holders of this card were switched over to the Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card. That card, however, did not accept new applications. See your options in Marriott cards here. Below is our review of the card from when it was still on the market.

• • •

The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express is more about function than flash — and for travelers who frequent hotels, that's what makes it well worth its annual fee of $0 for the first year, then $95.

The card comes fully stocked with five-star benefits, including an annual free night award, automatic Silver Elite status and a rich welcome offer. Although those who prefer to redeem points for high-end hotel stays likely won't snag as many good deals as they could have with the previous version of this card, the new perks on the current offer still make it a valuable option.

Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express: Basics

  • Welcome offer: Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Terms Apply.

  • Annual fee: $0 for the first year, then $95.

  • Ongoing rewards:

    • 6 points per dollar spent on eligible purchases at participating Starwood and Marriott hotels.

    • 2 points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.

  • Foreign transaction fees: None.

  • Other benefits:

    • Annual free night award.

    • Automatic Silver Elite status and accelerated path to Gold.

Points on this card are worth 1 cent apiece when redeemed for hotel stays, based on NerdWallet valuations. Now that the Starwood and Marriott loyalty programs have merged, the points on this card are generally less valuable when redeemed for higher-end hotels and more valuable when redeemed for more affordable hotels. Regardless of how you redeem, the free night award on this card still gives it a solid value, and its offerings are in line with other co-branded hotel cards.

Before Starwood Preferred Guest combined with Marriott Rewards on August 18, 2018, NerdWallet valued SPG points at 2.3 cents apiece. The previous version of the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express offered fewer points per dollar across the board and didn't offer a free night award or automatic elite status.

Compare to Other Cards

ANNUAL FEE
$95
INTRO APR
N/A
REGULAR APR
20.74%-27.74% Variable APR
RECOMMENDED CREDIT SCORE
ANNUAL FEE
$0
INTRO APR
N/A
REGULAR APR
20.74%-27.74% Variable APR
RECOMMENDED CREDIT SCORE
ANNUAL FEE
$95
INTRO APR
N/A
REGULAR APR
20.74%-27.74% Variable APR
RECOMMENDED CREDIT SCORE
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Benefits and Perks

The points are versatile

There's no shortage of redemption possibilities when cashing in points earned on the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express.

That's thanks in part to Marriott International's acquisition of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide in 2016, which gave members of both loyalty programs access to a gargantuan portfolio of properties, starting for at as little as 6,000 points a night. And if nothing in that collection strikes your fancy, you can always transfer your points to one of several airline partners at a 3:1 ratio (3 points for 1 airline mile) or take advantage of other redemption options.

The card comes with rich rewards

The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express comes with a welcome bonus that dazzles: Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Terms Apply. That’s worth $750 when redeemed for hotel stays, based on NerdWallet valuations — enough to squeeze several nights out of the hotel network's most affordable rooms.

The ongoing rewards are also quite generous, particularly for spending on eligible purchases at participating Marriott and Starwood hotels. You'll get points:

  • From the card: 6 points per dollar spent on these qualifying purchases.

  • From the loyalty program: 5 to 10 points per dollar spent at eligible properties, as well as a 10% bonus from your Silver Elite status (which comes with the card).

All told, that could add up to a gobsmacking effective rewards rate of 17% back on eligible hotel purchases.

Free night benefit is incredibly valuable

This card’s free night benefit, which is good for eligible stays that would otherwise cost up to 35,000 points, can handily make up for its annual fee of $0 for the first year, then $95.

Suppose you were to redeem that benefit for a room that would have otherwise cost you $200. By doing that alone, you’d already come out ahead of the annual fee in rewards by $105 after the first year — even before spending a penny on the card. This perk is awarded every year after your card account anniversary.

Silver Elite status is a nice plus

This card comes with automatic Silver Elite status, which unlocks some useful benefits. Among them:

  • Priority late checkout.

  • 10% bonus on Marriott Rewards points.

  • Free Wi-Fi.

  • Compensation for a hotel stay if Marriott can’t honor your reservation.

  • Dedicated phone lines for reservations.

Big spenders can also qualify for Gold Elite status, which gets you even more perks, by spending over $30,000 in qualifying purchases in a calendar year. (On Jan. 1, 2019, that spending threshold will increase to $35,000.)

Drawbacks and Considerations

More limited acceptance overseas

Thanks to the combination of the SPG and Marriott programs, the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express and the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card are somewhat similar cards. But a few major factors set them apart:

  • Annual fee. The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express has an annual fee of $0 for the first year, then $95, while the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card has an annual fee of $95 (not waived the first year).

  • Welcome offers: The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express has the following welcome offer: Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in purchases within the first 3 months. Terms Apply. The Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card has a different offer: Earn 75,000 Bonus Points after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.

  • Acceptance. The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express is an AmEx card, while the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card is a Visa.

For many, that first point — the waived annual fee — is what makes the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express a more attractive choice. But because Visa is more broadly accepted than American Express, especially overseas, the Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Credit Card might be more appealing for some.

Relative inflexibility

You’d be hard-pressed to find a co-branded hotel credit card that offers more redemption options than the ones in the Marriott and SPG portfolios. But if you’re looking for another level of flexibility, consider a general travel credit card, like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

The Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card offers 2 miles per dollar spent on purchases, which can be redeemed for a wide array of travel purchases, such as hotels and Airbnbs, for example. The annual fee is $95, and it comes with a nice sign-up bonus: Enjoy a one-time bonus of 75,000 miles once you spend $4,000 on purchases within 3 months from account opening, equal to $750 in travel. The primary downside: This card doesn’t come with perks typical on a co-branded hotel card, such as a free night benefit or automatic elite status.

Check out our roundup of best credit card deals to further explore your card possibilities.

How To Decide If It's Right For You

If there’s no doubt in your mind that you could put to work the rewards and benefits on the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express — especially the free night benefit — this card could be the right addition to your wallet. For Marriott loyalists, the card is an even sweeter deal.

To view rates and fees of the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express, please visit this page.

Alternate Pick: Maximum flexibility
Redeem rewards for any travel expense

Unlike cards that lock you into a particular airline or hotel brand, this popular card lets you redeem your rewards for any travel expense. You get 2 miles per dollar on purchases, and miles are worth 1 cent. The sign-up bonus is great, too. Annual fee: $95.


Methodology

NerdWallet reviews credit cards with an eye toward both the quantitative and qualitative features of a card. Quantitative features are those that boil down to dollars and cents, such as fees, interest rates, rewards (including earning rates and redemption values) and the cash value of benefits and perks. Qualitative factors are those that affect how easy or difficult it is for a typical cardholder to get good value from the card. They include such things as the ease of application, simplicity of the rewards structure, the likelihood of using certain features, and whether a card is well-suited to everyday use or is best reserved for specific purchases. Our star ratings serve as a general gauge of how each card compares with others in its class, but star ratings are intended to be just one consideration when a consumer is choosing a credit card. Learn how NerdWallet rates credit cards.

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