A Complete Guide to Marriott Bonvoy: Free Nights, Credit Cards & More

Whether you’re traveling for business or pleasure, Marriott Bonvoy is the go-to hotel rewards program for many. With over 30 brands in Marriott’s portfolio – from luxury St. Regis hotels to roadside Residence Inns, and everything in between – they’ve got a hotel for every type of traveler. And they’ve got more properties than any other hotel chain, period.

That’s the good news. The bad news is that when it comes to redeeming Marriott Bonvoy points, award rates can be quite high at many prized locations … because it’s tied to the cash price. So while you can get outsized value when redeeming points from Hyatt and even Hilton, it’s much harder with Marriott’s points program these days. 

Thankfully, Marriott points are incredibly easy to earn. You can earn multiple big bonus offers on Marriott’s many co-branded credit cards. Plus, you can even transfer points from credit cards like the *amex gold*, *chase sapphire preferred* or the *bilt rewards card* straight to Marriott to book an award night – though in most cases, that won’t be your best way to use those credit card points. 

From booking free nights to earning elite status and more, here’s everything you need to know about Marriott Bonvoy. 

Marriott’s Award Rates

Marriott ditched its award chart – the cheat sheet used to determine how many points you’ll need for a free night – and moved to dynamic award pricing way back in 2022. 

Now, the points you need to book Marriott hotels varies wildly depending on the type of property you’re looking to stay at. Award rates are closely tied to the cash price: The more expensive a nightly stay is, the more points you’ll need to book it … in most cases.

This means getting outsized value is harder to come by when using Bonvoy points. But there are exceptions!

In order to get a sense of what things cost, it’s important to understand the range of hotel brands that fall under Marriott’s massive umbrella.

Take one of the hotel chain’s more affordable brands like Courtyard by Marriott, for example. With over 1,300 locations worldwide, there’s a good chance that wherever you’re traveling, there’s a Courtyard property nearby. This is great because using points to book a stay at many of these properties is often a bargain, like this Courtyard Puebla Las Animas, bookable for as low as 5,000 Marriott points per night.

Just don’t expect such a bargain at the higher-end of Marriott properties – brands like JW Marriott, St. Regis, and Ritz-Carlton locations.

The JW Marriott Masai Mara all-inclusive game lodge in Kenya is about as expensive as Marriott properties get, topping out at a whopping 150,000 points a night! As ridiculous as that rate may seem, it’s actually still a tremendous value for your Marriott points, considering cash rates are often more than $3,500 per night. 

Thankfully, there are some tricks to finding cheaper rates for nights that are bookable with Marriott points. Since Marriott’s reward program uses dynamic pricing, how many points you need to book a property will vary depending on when you’re looking to stay. Fortunately, you can pull up a handy calendar view to see how much a given night will cost.

To pull up the calendar, go to where you input the dates for your intended stay … but instead of entering “Specific Dates,” choose the “Flexible Dates” option. Select how many nights you’d like to stay, too.

Click “Done” and “Continue” next to the property listing.

Here, you you’ll see a full month’s availability and can easily navigate between months to find the lowest possible price. At the time of publication, June of next year looks to be a good month with some of the lowest point prices and relatively good availability. To search other months, just click the month under “Dates” and choose another month, then “Update Search” to continue looking for the cheapest rates, or just click the arrows to navigate away from the current month.

With Marriott’s “Stay 5, Pay for 4” benefit, you can save even more points when booking at least a five-night stay. Other hotel chains like IHG and Hilton offer a similar benefit, but Marriott’s works a bit differently: 

• While Hilton requires members to have status and IHG only offers it to specific cardholders, any and all Marriott Bonvoy members can use the “Stay 5, Pay for 4” benefit.
• Instead of truly making your fifth and final night free, Marriott will simply chop off the cheapest award night from your total. 

Still, this can make for a nice savings on longer stays – especially at pricier properties.

Free Night Awards

Each of the major hotel chains like IHG, Hyatt, and Hilton offer free night certificates that you can earn with the right co-branded credit card. Marriott Bonvoy is no different … and thanks to its relationships with both Chase and American Express, there are a lot of cards to choose from.

So go figure there are many different types of free night certificates, too. Free night awards range from certificates that will cover hotel nights that cost 20,000 points on the low end all the way up to 85,000 points per night with Marriott’s top-tier cards. Just how many points your certificate is worth depends on which version of the card you have.

Some of these cards receive a free night award automatically upon renewal, while others are earned by spending a certain amount each year. Again, it all depends on which card you have. 

Crucially, you won’t get a free night award when first opening a card (unless it’s a part of the welcome offer) – but you will in year two and each year thereafter. Once you earn it, you’ll have twelve months to use it before it expires.

You can also select an annual free night award worth up to 40,000 points per night as an annual choice benefit upon reaching Titanium elite status – more on that later. 

And even though each award is limited to a certain number of points per night, you can “top off” a free night award with up to 15,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. So, for example, if you have a free night award for use at Marriott properties that cost up to 85,000 points per night, you could apply up to 15,000 of your own Marriott points to book a property that costs up to 100,000 points. While adding points will no doubt take some of the “free” out of your free night award, it can also unlock nicer properties and lead to even greater value. 

Here’s a look at all the Marriott Bonvoy Cards that include a complimentary or earned free night award. 

American Express Marriott Bonvoy Cards 

• *bonvoy brilliant*: Receive a free night award worth up to 85,000 points per night each year upon renewal. 
• *bonvoy bevy*: Earn a free night award worth up to 50,000 points per night when you spend $15,000 or more in a calendar year. 
• *bonvoy business*: Receive a free night award worth up to 35,000 points per night each year upon renewal.
• Marriott Bonvoy® American Express® Card: Receive a free night award worth up to 35,000 points per night each year upon renewal. While this card is no longer open to new applicants it can still be attained by product changing from either the Bonvoy Brilliant or Bonvoy Bevy. 

Chase Marriott Bonvoy Cards

• The Ritz-Carlton Credit Card: Receive a free night award worth up to 85,000 points per night each year upon renewal. While this card is no longer open to new applicants it can still be attained by product changing from either the Bonvoy Boundless or Bonvoy Bountiful. 
• Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful^™ Credit Card: Earn a free night award worth up to 50,000 points per night when you spend $15,000 or more in a calendar year. 
• Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card: Receive a free night award worth up to 35,000 points per night each year upon renewal.
• Marriott Bonvoy® Premier Plus Business Credit Card (card no longer open to new applicants): Receive a free night award worth up to 35,000 points per night each year upon renewal. Plus, earn a second free night award (up to 35,000 points per night) when you spend $60,000 or more in a calendar year. 
• Marriott Bonvoy® Premier Credit Card (card no longer open to new applicants): Receive a free night award worth up to 25,000 points per night each year upon renewal. 
• Marriott Bonvoy® Credit Card (card no longer open to new applicants): Earn a free night award worth up to 20,000 points per night when you spend $25,000 or more in a calendar year. 

Read more: How to Use a Marriott Free Night Certificate in 2024

Earning & Using Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status

Marriott has five different levels of elite status: Silver, Gold, Platinum, Titanium and top-tier Ambassador. Every Marriott member can work their way up the status ladder by accumulating elite nights at Marriott properties … or by taking a shortcut, like holding the right Bonvoy credit card.

One of the best perks of the Bonvoy Brilliant Card is that it comes with complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status. Unfortunately, other Amex and Chase co-branded Marriott cards only offer complimentary Silver or Gold status.

But even without automatic status, having a Marriott credit card gives you a leg up in another way: You get 15 elite night credits each year for having a personal card (25 with the Bonvoy Brilliant) and 15 for having a business card. This means that you can earn a higher level of elite status without needing to stay quite as many nights in a hotel. 

So what does having status get you? 

At the lower tiers … not much. With Silver, you’ll earn bonus points on paid stays and be prioritized for a late check-out. With Gold status you’ll get the same perks as Silver, plus a welcome gift and a chance at upgrades … but I wouldn’t count on it. No breakfast, annual choice benefits, or lounge access at the lower status tiers. Bummer!

Platinum status is where the benefits start to get meaningful. Not only do you get everything offered at the lower status levels, but you also get a welcome gift (includes the choice of free breakfast), an annual choice benefit (room upgrade awards, extra elite nights, and more), a much better chance at upgrades, and lounge access where available. Lots of great perks improving your stay and saving on food and beverage costs while traveling.

The bad news is that if you want the top-tier Titanium and Ambassador tiers of elite status with the hotel program, you’ll have to book a bunch of stays and pay up.

Titanium status is basically a souped-up Platinum status that gives you an even better chance for upgrades, an additional choice benefit (including a free night award), and get’s you 75% more bonus points instead of 50% at Platinum. 

Top-tier Ambassador status is reserved for true road warriors who practically live in Marriott properties. It not only requires staying 100 nights (or more) per year, but also spending at $23,000 per year with Marriott. In exchange, you get dedicated Ambassador concierge service and something Marriott calls the “Your24” benefit. Your24 allows you to choose your check-in and check-out time. For example, you could check in at 9 p.m. and not need to check out until 9 p.m. the following day.

Additionally, if you have Titanium or Ambassador status, you can get status with other travel providers like Hertz and United Airlines. 

With United, you will get automatic Silver status, giving you access to elite perks like free checked baggage, complimentary upgrades, and priority check-in and boarding. As for Hertz, Titanium members get Five Star status, while Ambassador members get top-tier President’s Circle status. 

All told, there are some decent perks at the higher levels of Marriott Bonvoy elite status, but climbing to the top with Marriott means a lot of nights in hotels. 

Read more: How to Get Instant Hotel Status From a Single Credit Card 

How to Create a Marriott Bonvoy Account

While you won’t need to have an existing Marriott Bonvoy account to search for free nights using points, you will need one once it comes time to book. Thankfully, creating an account is a quick and pain-free process. 

You can start by going to Marriott’s website on either a desktop or even on Marriott’s app. On a desktop or a mobile browser, you’ll see the option to “Join” in the top right corner. On your phone, the button to “Join Marriott Bonvoy” appears on the home screen when you open the app.

From here, you’ll be prompted to enter some personal information, including your name, e-mail address, zip code, and a password. Additionally, you can enroll in person at any Marriott hotel or over the phone. 

After completing your registration, you’ll be able to log in to your new Marriott Bonvoy account, where you can find your new member number and additional account information. 

How to Search & Book Award Nights on Marriott’s Website

After creating your Marriott Bonvoy account – or logging in, if you already have one – you can start searching for available hotels at your destination.

You can do this by simply typing the city name in the search box, selecting your check-in and out dates, and number of guests. Make sure to have the “Use Points/Awards” checkbox selected.

Once you’ve filled all that information in, you’ll see the search results. Hotels within your desired city are sorted in list-view including the lowest amount of points required to book each property.

You can then click “View Rates” to proceed with your booking. Here you’ll see what room types are available and can easily toggle between the different cash rates and points price. 

Some hotels even give the option to book with cash and points, which is nice if you’re short on points.

It’s also worth noting that in almost every case, redeeming Marriott points to book a room means you’re getting a refundable rate. Cancellation policies will vary across all properties, so some last-minute award bookings might not be refundable. But it’s a safer bet than using cash: The cheapest cash rates will almost always be nonrefundable. 

As a reminder, Marriott Bonvoy offers its fifth-night-free benefit – or as Marriott calls it, “Stay for 5, Pay for 4” – to anybody with a Marriott Bonvoy account. There is no requirement to hold any level of elite status a certain Marriott credit card to take advantage of this benefit.

So long as you’re logged into your account and searching for stays of five nights or more, you’ll automatically see that discount factored into your total. 

Earning Marriott Points

There are lots of ways to earn the Marriott points needed for a free night. From earning points on paid stays to co-branded credit cards and bank transfer partners, here’s how it’s done. 

Staying With Marriott

Yes, of course, you earn points when you stay with Marriott. Call it the old-fashioned way. 

You’ll earn 10 points for every dollar spent at most full-service Marriott properties. If you’ve got elite status, you can earn up to a 75% bonus on your paid stays, helping rack up the points a bit faster. 

There are some exceptions, though. At some Select and Longer Stays properties, you’ll just 5 points or as few as 2.5 points per dollar.

What’s even worse than the minuscule point earning at these properties is that some of them don’t even award full elite night credits for your stay. This means that if you’re staying at a Protea Hotels property in South Africa or a City Express in Mexico, you’ll need to stay twice as many nights to earn elite status – and it’s even worse for Marriott Executive Apartments. Thankfully, most travelers won’t run across these properties all that often.  

Swiping a Co-Branded Credit Card

You can also earn Marriott points by swiping a co-branded credit card for your hotel stays and your day-to-day spending. There are several versions to choose from, each with its own unique set of benefits for every kind of traveler.

With valuable perks like Marriott elite status and an annual free night award upon card renewal, there’s a lot for Bonvoy aficionados to like about these cards.

Read on for everything you need to know about Amex and Chase’s Marriott credit cards.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express Card

• Welcome Offer: *bonvoy brilliant bonus* 
• Free Night Certificate: Get a free night certificate each year on your cardmember anniversary, eligible at properties that cost up to 85,000 points. This benefit starts in your second year of card membership.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status.
• Get up to $300 in annual credits to use at restaurants worldwide. These will be available in up to $25 monthly increments and you will lose any amount not used each month.
• 25 elite night credits towards Bonvoy elite status each year you hold the card.
• Priority Pass Lounge Access: Enjoy unlimited airport lounge visits when you enroll in a Priority Pass Select membership. This comes complimentary with the card, and enrollment is required.
• Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 3x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at restaurants worldwide and on flights booked directly with airlines.
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• $650 Annual Fee.

Learn more about the *bonvoy brilliant*

Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express Card

• Welcome Offer: *bonvoy bevy bonus* 
• Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 4x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent on up to $15,000 spent in a calendar year on combined purchases at worldwide restaurants and at U.S. supermarkets.
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy Points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• Get 1,000 Marriott Bonvoy Bonus Points with each qualifying stay.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status.
• Earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year toward Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• Earn a free night award certificate for properties that cost up to 50,000 points per night after spending $15,000 in eligible purchases each calendar year.
• $250 Annual Fee (see rates & fees).

Learn more about the *bonvoy bevy*

Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card

• Welcome Offer: *bonvoy business bonus*
• Free Night Certificate: Get a free night certificate each year on your cardmember anniversary, eligible at properties that cost up to 35,000 points. This benefit starts in your second year of card membership.
• Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 4x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on U.S. wireless telephone services, and on U.S. purchases for shipping.
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy Points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status.
• Earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year toward Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• Get a 7% discount on standard room rates at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• $125 Annual Fee (see rates & fees).

Learn more about the *bonvoy business*.

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Card from Chase

• Welcome Offer: Earn three free night awards (up to 50,000 points each) after making $3,000 in purchases during the first three months of opening the card.
• Free Night Certificate: Receive a free night certificate each year on your cardmember anniversary for properties that cost up to 35,000 points. This benefit starts in your second year of card membership.
• Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 3X Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year at grocery stores, gas stations, and dining.
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy Points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status.
• Earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year toward Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• $95 Annual Fee.

Learn more about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card (for full disclosure: this is not an affiliate link).

Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card from Chase

• Welcome Offer: Earn 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after making $4,000 in purchases in the first three months of opening the card.
• Earn 6x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 4x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent on up to $15,000 in combined dining and grocery purchases per calendar year.
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy Points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• Get 1,000 Marriott Bonvoy Bonus Points with each qualifying stay.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status.
• Earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year toward Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• Earn a free night award certificate for properties that cost up to 50,000 points per night after spending $15,000 in eligible purchases each calendar year.
• $250 Annual Fee.

Learn more about the Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful^™ Credit Card (for full disclosure: this is not an affiliate link).

Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Card from Chase

• Welcome Offer: Earn 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points and one free night award (up to 50,000 points) after spending $2,000 within the first three months of opening the card.
• Earn 3x Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program.
• Earn 2X Marriott Bonvoy points per dollar spent on travel (from airfare to taxis and trains).
• Earn 2x Marriott Bonvoy Points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status.
• Earn 15 elite night credits each calendar year toward Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• No Annual Fee.

Learn more about the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card (for full disclosure: this is not an affiliate link).

Transfer from Amex Membership Rewards

Beyond Marriott’s bevy (pardon the pun) of co-branded credit cards, a handful of transferrable credit card points partner with Marriott. And that includes Amex Membership Rewards.

That means you can transfer points from cards like *amex platinum* or the *amex gold*. But unless you time it right with a transfer bonus, your Amex points transfer to Marriott on a 1:1 basis.

And that’s part of the problem. There are tons of great Amex transfer partners where your points will go much, much further. Heck, even Hilton is a stronger option since Amex points transfer on a 1:2 basis to Hilton Honors, meaning 10,000 Amex points will net you 20,000 Hilton Honors. 

That’s why we’d typically steer clear of transferring points to Marriott. Unless you’re in a pinch and need a few thousand points to pull off an award booking, you’re better off saving your Amex points for another purpose. 

Read up on all the ins and outs of transferring Amex points!

Transfer from Chase Ultimate Rewards

With several great Chase Ultimate Rewards-earning credit cards on the market, like *chase sapphire preferred*, *chase sapphire reserve* or even the *chase ink preferred*,  you may very well have a way to get a bunch of Marriott points and not even realize it. 

Marriott is a Chase transfer partner and points transfer at a 1:1 ratio to the hotel. Just be warned: Transferring to Marriott is rarely the best use of your Chase points, as you can often get far greater value transferring them to airlines to book flights or even to stay at World of Hyatt properties. Shop around and compare the cash value between properties before you transfer any points to Marriott. 

To move your Chase points to Marriott, you’ll need to log in to your Chase account and click on “Rewards” to navigate to the Ultimate Rewards homepage. Once you’ve done that, click “Travel” and choose the option to “Transfer points to partners.”

From here, you can select Marriott from the list of eligible partners. If this is your first time transferring Chase points to Marriott, you’ll need to enter your Marriott member number to link your accounts.

Next, you’ll need to enter how many points you’d like to transfer over, and finally, you’ll review the transfer details before hitting “Submit.” 

Chase points generally transfer instantly to Marriott. In some cases, there can be delays … especially if you’re setting up a new account or it’s your first transfer. In most cases, logging out and back into your Marriott account should solve the problem and show the points reflected in your balance. 

Read next: Points Stuck in Limbo? Here’s Why (& What You Can Do About It)

Transfer from Bilt Rewards

While initially targeted toward renters, the *bilt rewards card* is an extremely well-rounded travel rewards credit card that can also help you earn Marriott points. And if you’ve got a stash of points from any of Bilt’s Rent Day promotions, Lyft rides, or Neighborhood Dining program, you can also transfer them to Marriott – even if you don’t have a Bilt Mastercard. 

Unlike most transferable points programs, you won’t be able to move Bilt points to a partner on your desktop. With Bilt, you’ll need to have the mobile app to get it done – not shocking from a company whose customer base skews younger.

After logging into the Bilt app, you’ll need to ensure that the partner you’re planning to move points to is linked to your Bilt account. If you haven’t already done so, you’ll need to link your Marriott account to Bilt Rewards – and as an added bonus, you’ll even get an extra 100 Bilt points for doing so.

If you skipped step one and don’t yet have a Marriott account, you can even create one right from the Bilt app, and it will automatically be linked. 

After you find Marriott in the travel tab you’ll be asked how many points you want to transfer. Everyday Blue members have to transfer at least 2,000 points – only those who have earned Silver status or higher can move 1,000 points at a time over to Marriott or another Bilt transfer partner. The last step in the process is to simply review and confirm the accuracy of your point transfer request. If everything looks as it should, you’ll need to agree to the terms and conditions and hit “confirm transfer.”

Just beware: Once your transfer goes through, you can’t pull those points back into your Bilt account. That makes it critical to complete the steps above and confirm award availability first. 

Once you hit confirm transfer, points will usually be available in your Marriott account within seconds. Just like transferring Chase points, if you don’t see them show up right away, try logging out and back in. 

Bottom Line

Whether you’ve already got a stash of Marriott points (or free night certificates) from nights on the road or you’re sitting on a pile of transferable credit card points, using the Marriott Bonvoy program to book a free night can be a great way to save big on your next trip.

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