Marriott Boosts Bonuses on Brilliant and Bevy Cards

The $250-annual-fee Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card’s latest welcome offer is sure to excite Bonvoy enthusiasts with a big jump in value for the same spending requirement.

Here’s how the two offers compare:

• New offer: Earn 125,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

• Previous offer: Earn 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

• Ongoing rewards: The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card will continue to offer its ongoing rewards rate of 6 points per dollar spent on participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels; 4 points per dollar spent at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets (up to $15,000 in combined purchases per year); and 2 points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. Terms apply.

The latest offer on the $650-annual-fee Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card offers the potential for significantly more value with the same spending requirement. But since the offer comes in the form of free night certificates rather than points, you’ll sacrifice flexibility when you redeem.

Here’s what’s changing and what’s staying the same:

• New offer: Earn two 85K Free Night Awards after you spend $6,000 in purchases on the Card in your first 6 months. Each award can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points) at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy. Card Members could enjoy a value of up to $1,200 when redeeming each reward. Certain hotels have resort fees. Offer ends 11/1/2023. Terms Apply.

• Previous offer: Earn 95,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.

• Ongoing rewards: The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Cardwill continue to offer its ongoing rewards rate of 6 points per dollar spent at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels; 3 points per dollar spent at U.S. restaurants; 3 points per dollar spent on flights booked directly with airlines; and 2 points per dollar spent on all other eligible purchases. Terms apply.

Although they’re not the best offerings, the latest welcome offers on AmEx’s Marriott Bonvoy cards are quite a boost in value. For the Bevy card, you’ll earn nearly 50% more points than the previous offer. And if you’re able to use the free night certificates for full value for the Brilliant card, the new offer represents a 78% boost.

But while the latest Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card offer carries significantly higher value, it comes with far less flexibility. The two Free Night Awards are worth up to 85,000 points per night, but they expire one year from when they’re issued.

Plus, it may be difficult to redeem them for full value. If you redeem the 85,000-point certificate at a hotel that’s charging 60,000 points for the night you want to stay, you won’t get the difference back in points. On the other hand, an 85,000-point certificate may not cover a luxury St. Regis or Ritz Carlton hotel stay, which could cost 100,00 points or more per night. (Marriott does allow you to apply certificates toward a higher-priced room and cover the difference with up to 15,000 points.)

Marriott Bonvoy points can be redeemed at more than 8,600 hotels worldwide. Bonvoy points can also be transferred to certain airline partners, or redeemed for car rentals, gift cards, and other options. The value of points may vary depending on how you redeem them.

When comparing these new welcome offers, there are a few more factors about the two cards worth keeping in mind, most notably the difference in annual fees. The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card, which comes with complimentary Gold status, carries an annual fee of $250. Notably, it does not come with an automatic free annual stay. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card comes with automatic Platinum status and a higher (though less flexible) welcome offer. But with an annual fee of $650, those extra perks come at a steep cost.

Here’s a breakdown of how the two cards compare: