Guide to the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program

The Marriott hotel brand was founded in 1927 and has since expanded to become one of the largest hotel chains in the world. You can stay at more than 8,900 Marriott properties in 141 countries and territories globally. Because of the program’s wide reach, your experience with Marriott could include some time at a luxury St. Regis or Ritz-Carlton property or a few simple stays at a Springhill Suites or a Residence Inn.

Marriott also allows frequent hotel guests to earn points for free hotel stays while enjoying elite status benefits through its loyalty program, called Marriott Bonvoy. Here’s everything you need to know about the Marriott Bonvoy program, redeeming Marriott rewards and how to get the most out of your Marriott leisure or business travel.

Marriott Bonvoy rewards program overview

Marriott Bonvoy is the loyalty program for all the available Marriott hotel brands, like Springhill Suites, J.W. Marriott, W Hotels and more. This program is free to join, and becoming a member lets you save on regular hotel rates, earn points for each dollar you spend with Marriott properties and potentially enjoy elite status benefits like room upgrades or free breakfast.

While you’ll get more benefits when you climb the elite status ranks with the Marriott Bonvoy program, you should also know that you’ll get some perks just for joining. For example, all members get complimentary in-room Wi-Fi access, exclusive member rates and mobile check-in services.

How to sign up for Marriott Bonvoy

Joining the Marriott Bonvoy program is free and easy. Simply go to the Marriott Bonvoy website and follow the prompts to join. 

You’ll need to provide basic information like your name, email address, location and password to create your account. At that point, you’ll get a Marriott Bonvoy loyalty number and the option to build out your profile with more personal information.

How to earn Marriott Bonvoy points

There are many ways to earn Marriott Bonvoy points, and not all of them require stays in Marriott hotels. For example, you can also earn points through:

• Spending with a Marriott credit card
• Flying with Marriott airline partners
• Marriott Bonvoy’s Eat Around Town dining program
• Cruise bookings via Cruise with Points
• Car rentals booked through Hertz
• Qualifying Marriott Bonvoy events

While all the additional ways to earn Marriott Bonvoy points can help grow your rewards balance, the best ways to earn Marriott points are through hotel stays and spending on co-branded Marriott credit cards. First, you should know that Marriott Bonvoy members earn a minimum of 10 points per $1 spent at most Marriott Bonvoy properties, and that elite members in the program earn anywhere from 10 percent to 75 percent bonus points.

Marriott Bonvoy credit cards also let users earn points without paying for hotel stays. These points come in the form of welcome bonuses for meeting a minimum spending threshold and points for each dollar in purchases charged to an eligible card.

How to redeem Marriott Bonvoy points

You can use your Marriott Bonvoy points in many ways beyond free hotel nights. For example, you can redeem your points for gift cards, travel (including flights, cruises, car rentals and more) and exclusive Marriott Bonvoy experiences. Alternatively, you can share your points with other Marriott Bonvoy members or donate your points to charity.

Award nights are always the best way to redeem Marriott Bonvoy points, and you can find some great deals despite the program’s use of dynamic pricing for awards. For example, we found rates for stays at the Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba Resort on the Caribbean island of Aruba for 64,000 points per night or the Courtyard Aruba Resort for 46,000 points per night.

If you don’t have enough points for a redemption, Marriott Bonvoy also allows you to pay with a combination of points and cash at eligible properties. However, not all properties will offer this redemption, at least not on all dates.

If there is an option to use cash and points through Marriott Bonvoy, you can find it by clicking on the hotel you want to stay with after a search. For example, we found cash and point redemption options at the Springhill Suites Clearwater Beach for dates in March 2025. Members who want to pay with rewards and cash could redeem 47,000 points per night or 23,500 points with a $125 cash copay.

Marriott Bonvoy also offers a PointSavers redemption that lets members book award nights at discounted rates. However, rates and availability for this program vary, and you’ll typically have to travel on off-peak dates to qualify. 

You can typically find these offers using “flexible dates” when searching for a destination for award stays. This will bring up a chart that shows you the best dates in any month to book a stay with discounted rates.

Here’s an example of a search we did at the Sheraton Indianapolis City Centre Hotel:

How much are Marriott Bonvoy points worth?

According to our valuations, Marriott Bonvoy points are worth approximately 0.7 cents each. This makes them more valuable than points in several other hotel loyalty programs, although some hotel loyalty points are worth a lot more.

That said, some ways to get more value for your rewards include booking off-peak travel dates to get lower rewards rates and taking advantage of Marriott’s “Stay for 5, Pay for 4” promotion. This promotion lets you book five award nights for the price of four, thus getting 20 percent off a five-night award stay.

If you wanted to book the Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba Resort on the Caribbean island of Aruba for 64,000 points per night, you would typically need to redeem 320,000 Marriott Bonvoy points for a five-night stay. However, this promotion require you spend 256,000 points instead.

No matter the redemption you’re after, you should strive to book award nights for the best point value possible. Note that you can figure out the value of points you’re paying for an award night with this simple equation:

So, if you booked a room at the Renaissance Wind Creek Aruba Resort for 64,000 points per night, the cash rate is $597 for our research dates. However, when you add in taxes and fees, the nightly cost comes out to $675.13.

With this calculation, the per-point value is slightly more than 1 cent per point ($675 ÷ 64,000 points = 0.0105).

Also, note how the value of Marriott Bonvoy points compares to the average value of points from other hotel loyalty programs, all offering their suites of travel credit cards. These values are highlighted below.

Marriott Bonvoy elite status

The Marriott Bonvoy program has six membership levels and five levels of elite status you can pursue, each with an increasing number of perks you can enjoy when you get there. When it comes to hotel stays, basic members earn 10X Marriott Bonvoy points for each dollar they spend. However, elite members earn more bonus points based on the tier of status they have achieved. Generally speaking, you’ll climb the elite status ladder with Marriott Bonvoy the more nights you accrue with the hotel brand.

The following table explains the most important benefits you’ll get with each level of elite status with Marriott, as well as the activity you’ll need to get there:

Top credit cards that earn Marriott Bonvoy points

If you want to earn Marriott Bonvoy points faster or progress toward elite status, Marriott cards are some of the best hotel credit cards to consider. Using one of the top Marriott credit cards can help you earn more points and enjoy travel benefits when you stay with Marriott hotels.

Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card

• Bankrate’s view

  If you want a Marriott Bonvoy credit card with no annual fee, the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card* is your top choice. It has no annual fee and a hefty welcome offer that can boost your pool of Marriott Bonvoy rewards. You also earn 14X total points on paid Marriott hotel stays, 2X points on grocery stores; select food delivery; select streaming; and internet, cable and phone services.

• Pros and cons

  

  Pros

  • You can get a generous welcome offer and earning rates with this card.
  • It offers automatic Silver Elite status, a great perk for a no-annual-fee card.

  

  Cons

  • It has fewer benefits than other Marriott credit cards that charge annual fees.
  • It’s the sole Marriott card offering only 1X points on everyday purchases.

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card

• Bankrate’s view

  With a reasonable $95 annual fee, the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card* offers a massive sign-up bonus and a total of 17X points per dollar on paid Marriott stays. Cardholders also earn 3X points per dollar on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on grocery stores, gas stations and dining and 2X points on other purchases.

• Pros and cons

  

  Pros

  • You can get an annual free night award worth up to 35,000 points.
  • It comes with automatic Silver Elite status to elevate your Marriott stays.

  

  Cons

  • If you don’t travel for a year or more, the $95 annual fee may be hard to justify.
  • This card has a high minimum spending requirement for the welcome offer.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card

• Bankrate’s view

  While the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card requires a $650 annual fee, it’s the most rewarding card among offers. Cardholders get a generous welcome offer and benefits like a $300 dining credit, a free night award worth up to 85,000 points and automatic Platinum Elite status.

• Pros and cons

  

  Pros

  • It offers perks like Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership and statement credits for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck membership.
  • The hefty welcome offer could cover multiple nights at mid-tier Marriott properties.

  

  Cons

  • The high annual fee may be hard to justify for a co-branded hotel card.
  • Its non-Marriott bonus category rates aren’t as rewarding as other travel cards’ rates.

Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ credit card

• Bankrate’s view

  The Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ credit card* comes with a generous welcome offer plus a total of 18.5X points per dollar on Marriott purchases, 4X points on dining and grocery store purchases (on up to $15,000 in combined purchases per year, then 2X points) and 2X points on all other purchases. Cardholders also get a free night award (up to 50,000 points) after spending $15,000 on purchases in a calendar year.

• Pros and cons

  

  Pros

  • The free night award can be worth up to 50,000 points.
  • Like many Marriott cards, it comes with Gold Elite status to boost your progress toward higher tiers.

  

  Cons

  • Its dining and grocery store purchases spending cap could limit your earnings with this card.
  • The annual fee could be difficult to offset if you don’t take advantage of all the perks and benefits.

Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card

• Bankrate’s view

  The Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card allows small-business owners to earn a welcome offer and generous rewards for their paid travel and other regular spending. Members earn a total of 18.5X points per dollar on paid stays with the hotel brand (assuming Gold Elite status and 6X points per dollar earned with the card),  4X points on restaurants worldwide, gas at U.S. gas stations, wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers and on U.S. purchases for shipping and 2X points on other purchases.

• Pros and cons

  

  Pros

  • Cardholders get a free night award (up to 35,000 points) after each cardmember anniversary.
  • Complimentary Gold Elite status rounds out the list of valuable perks and benefits.

  

  Cons

  • The welcome offer doesn’t have the same flexibility as earning a windfall of points to use however you want.
  • The second free night award requires $60,000 in credit card spending in a calendar year

The bottom line

Joining Marriott Bonvoy is a no-brainer since it’s free and immediately comes with some basic benefits. You should also know that earning this program’s points is not difficult. Not only will you earn 10X points spent at Marriott hotels as a basic loyalty program member, but you can earn more bonus points as an elite member or through spending with a Marriott credit card. 

With so many ways to earn Marriott Bonvoy points, you could get a free hotel stay (or vacation) in less time than you think.

The information about the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ credit card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.