All information about the Marriott Bonvoy, Bevy, Brilliant, and Business American Express cards has been collected independently by Miles to Memories.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express
So much is going on in our points and travel hobby, and I’d have it no other way. I prefer to be overwhelmed with all the stuff than be bored. But along with that, I can easily overlook or forget certain aspects. One such item is the $95 annual fee Marriott Bonvoy American Express card. Sometimes called the legacy SPG card, it’s still hanging around in Amex’s portfolio. The big catch is that it’s not available via new application. Rather, existing Marriott Bonvoy Bevy and Brilliant Amex cardholders are eligible to product change to it. So why should anyone consider downgrading to the Marriott Bonvoy American Express?
A Lower Annual Fee and Simplicity
At $95, the Bonvoy card is the cheapest Marriott product in Amex’s portfolio. The Business card comes in at $125 each year, the Bevy is $250 annually, and the Brilliant skyrocketed to $650 starting in fall 2022. While the Bevy and Brilliant come with perks which somewhat mitigate part of those annual fees, those benefits make the cards higher maintenance to maximize. Bonvoy loyalists who don’t want all that fuss can just opt for the $95 card while continuing to earn the currency. Let’s talk about that next.
Earning
Interestingly, travelers who enjoy earning Bonvoy points on paid stays can do similarly with the Bonvoy card as the higher-priced ones. Unlike Hilton’s cards, earning doesn’t increase as the Bonvoy Amex cards get more expensive. Oddly, all Bonvoy Amex cards, regardless of annual fee, earn 6x points on paid stays within Marriott’s portfolio. The $95 Bonvoy and $650 Brilliant are equal in that regard.
The Bonvoy card comes with Silver status (10% extra points from base earning on paid stays), but the other cards deliver higher there, and with elevated status comes a bit higher earning. The Business and Bevy provide automatic Gold status (25% more points), while Brilliant offers Platinum (50% more). Perhaps some travelers should incorporate this earning difference into the equation, as well. But many travelers meet those elite levels on stays (e.g. without needing the automatic status from credit cards), so it shouldn’t necessarily be considered.
The Bonvoy card earns 2x on all other spend, while the other ones offer bonus categories sometimes superior to that 2x. But depending on one’s card portfolio and overall goals, an individual may be better off putting that spend on non-Bonvoy cards, anyway.
Free Night Award
Each card anniversary, the Marriott Bonvoy American Express card offers a free night award at the 35k-point level. For individuals who like a “set and forget” strategy for a Marriott FNA at this threshold, the Bonvoy card is $30 cheaper than the Business version. And with Marriott’s feature allowing members to top off with up to 15k more points per night, these 35k certs are a bit more traveler-friendly.
Flexibility
While many stay loyal to Marriott year over year, their travel behaviors can naturally change over time. For a year light on travel, individuals can opt for the Bonvoy card. In others a bit busier, they can easily upgrade to the Bevy or Brilliant to leverage more benefits. This can all be done via product change and doesn’t require a new application. And such moves are fairly simple via Amex chat. Even better, cardholders are eligible for prorated annual fees based on the cards they change from and to.
Marriott Bonvoy American Express – Conclusion
Of course, Chase offers a few cobranded Marriott cards also, including the no annual fee Bold. And there’s still the Ritz-Carlton card angle with Chase, as well. Travelers should assess if they’d be better off going that direction. But given all of the complex bonus eligibility requirements across both banks, many opt to focus on just Amex or Chase for their Marriott card(s). For those who lean more Amex, at minimum, the Marriott Bonvoy card may be worth a rental between the other ones.
Have you held the Marriott Bonvoy American Express card? What made it worth your while?
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I still have mine and have been going back and forth on whether I want to spring for the Brilliant. But it looks like our travels will be cooling off in the near future, plus we usually are more free agents when it comes to hotels. I’m thinking of just staying with this card and enjoying the 35K free night and lower annual fee.
There’s no problem with that, Kenny! Thanks for reading.
Thanks for this post. I previously had the SPG card but I didn’t know it stayed around. I like paying $95 for annual free night but I have too many Chase cards. I’m glad this card is still around for the downgrade since Bevy doesn’t come with a free night with renewal and Brilliant is kind of extreme for regular people who stays less than 10 nights a year.
I appreciate you reading, Tony C!