Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card Review

Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card Review

Pros Explained

• Outstanding rewards on Marriott stays: While the number of points per dollar spent with the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express is comparable to those of many other hotel cards, the overall value of each point is higher than for many chains. We value Marriott points at an average of 1.05 cents apiece, which is more than twice our valuation for points from Hilton, for example. That value makes the six points you earn on every dollar spent at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program worth 6.3 cents, and the four points you receive for every dollar spent on dining, gas, cellphone service, and shipping worth 4.2 cents. Those are fairly generous returns for a hotel rewards card.
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status: As a card member, you automatically enjoy Gold Elite status in the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program, which normally requires a minimum of 25 qualifying nights a year to earn. This feature allows you to immediately begin enjoying such benefits as members' room rates, 25% more points on stays, and late checkout.
• Bonus night on card anniversary: The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express provides one free night award every year after your card renewal month. Plus, earn an additional free night award after you spend $60,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year. Awards can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy points) at one of over 7,000 participating hotels, though certain hotels have resort fees.

Cons Explained

• Dismal rates on non-Marriott redemptions: As with most hotel cards, you'll get the most value when using your points for hotel stays. The reduced value of other options is especially pronounced with the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card. For example, a $100 Amazon gift card requires redeeming 30,000 points to redeem, making each point worth about 0.3 cents each—about a quarter of its potential value when used for Marriott stays. 

Who This Card Is Best For

The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card is good for business travelers who are Marriott hotel fans and do a decent amount of spending each year. For example, booking 12 stays per year at a participating hotel for $1,000 each (at six points per dollar) would net 72,000 Marriott Bonvoy points. Investopedia values Marriott points at an average value of 1.05 cents each when redeemed for Marriott stays. That makes those points earned worth approximately $756 in terms of award night value. If you're also using the card to pay for everyday business purchases, you could easily accumulate significant Bonvoy points each year. 

Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card Offer

Earn 75,000 bonus Marriott Bonvoy points after you use your new Card to make $3,000 in eligible purchases within the first 3 months of Card Membership.

Rewards Earning Details

The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card features a tiered rewards program. That means some purchases earn more points than others. 

Here's how the rewards program stacks up:

• Earn six points per dollar at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program.
• Earn four points per dollar at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on U.S. shipping, and on wireless telephone services purchased directly from the provider.
• Earn two points per dollar on all other purchases. 

Points are unlimited, with no spending caps to worry about. In terms of the number of points you can earn with this card, it's similar to what you'll find with other hotel credit cards. But if you like Marriott better than other hotel brands, then getting six points per dollar on bookings makes this card a rewarding choice. In addition, being able to earn four points per dollar on select business purchases gives this card added value. 

Rewards Redemption Details

Points earned with the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card can be redeemed through the Marriott Bonvoy program after additional enrollment. Your options for redemption include:

• Award nights at participating Marriott hotels and resorts
• Flights and car rentals from travel partners
• Cruises and travel packages
• Unique experiences
• Priority Pass
• TSA PreCheck
• Gift cards
• Charitable donations
• Gifts to other Marriott Bonvoy members

Generally, you're going to get the most value when using your points for Marriott hotel stays. For example, it takes 30,000 points to redeem for a $100 Amazon gift card. That makes each point worth about 0.33 cents each.  

Being able to redeem points for Priority Pass is a nice perk if you'd like to escape to the airport lounge on business trips. And redeeming for TSA PreCheck fees means you can get through the airport faster. If you don't have any travel plans in the near future and you're considering gift cards for redemption, make sure to first do the math on how much points are worth. 

Transferring Points

This card offers some flexibility in how you use points since you can transfer them to Marriott Bonvoy travel partners. There are more than 40 airline frequent flyer programs to choose from, including:

• Aeromexico ClubPremier
• Air Canada Aeroplan
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan
• American Airlines AAdvantage
• British Airways Executive Club
• Delta SkyMiles
• FRONTIER Miles
• Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles
• Korean Air SKYPASS
• Qantas Frequent Flyer
• Southwest Rapid Rewards
• United MileagePlus
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

You can get a 10% mileage bonus when you transfer points to another partner airline through the RewardsPlus program. For every 60,000 points you transfer, you'll get 5,000 bonus miles. The minimum to transfer is 3,000 points per day and the maximum is 240,000 points per day. 

How to Maximize Your Rewards

Getting the most bang for your buck with this card all comes down to how you spend. Here are two examples of how you can maximize rewards with the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express card.

Average Case

Assume that you book one business trip monthly and always stay at Marriott hotels. On top of that, you regularly charge all other business purchases to the card. Here's how many points you might earn based on annual spending:

• $12,000 in Marriott purchases = 72,000 points
• $24,000 in gas, restaurant, shipping, and wireless telephone purchases = 96,000 points
• $10,000 in other business purchases = 20,000 points

Altogether, you'd earn 188,000 points. In terms of what that's worth when booking award nights, the minimum to redeem for a Category 1 hotel is 5,000 points. At the other end of the scale, the maximum for a Category 8 property is 100,000 points. So depending on where you want to book and whether you're booking an off-peak, standard, or peak rate, you could have anywhere from roughly 2 to 37 award nights. 

Aspirational Case

Now, let's assume your business spends more heavily and you have three employees, all of whom have employee cards. Your yearly spending would look more like this:

• $24,000 in Marriott purchases = 144,000 points
• $36,000 in gas, restaurant, shipping, and wireless telephone purchases = 144,000 points
• $20,000 in other business purchases = 40,000 points

In that case, you'd have 328,000 points to work with, which substantially increases the number of award nights you could book. And remember, if you redeem four nights consecutively in a booking you get a complimentary fifth night. 

Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card’s Outstanding Benefits

In addition to complimentary Gold Elite status and award nights, this card also comes with these premium benefits:

• Increased point transfer rate: For most partners, points transfer at a 3-1 ratio. United MileagePlus offers a 3-1.1 ratio, while points transfer to Air New Zealand Airpoints at a 200-1 ratio. 
• 7% room rate discount: Receive a 7% discount off standard rates for reservations of standard hotel rooms. 
• Elite night credit: Each calendar year, you can receive 15 nights toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy Elite status.
• Premium internet access: Enjoy complimentary in-room access to premium internet service at participating Marriott hotels.

Standard Benefits

• No foreign transaction fees
• Global Assist hotline
• Expense and account management tools
• Extended warranty
• Purchase protection
• Dispute resolution
• Amex Offers

Cardholder Experience

J.D. Power is a market intelligence firm that conducts yearly customer satisfaction surveys. American Express has consistently ranked first in J.D. Power's Credit Card Satisfaction Study. In 2021, it received a rating of 838 based on a 1,000-point scale. In 2022, that rating increased to 848.

Customer service is available via live chat or by phone. You can call 1-800-528-2122 at any point if you need help or have questions about your account. 

Security Features

This card comes with the security features you'd expect to protect and manage your account. That includes chip technology, as well as secure online and mobile account access. 

Fees to Watch Out For

There's no real fee to watch out for, other than the annual $125 fee. The annual fee is a little higher than what you might pay for something like the Hilton Honors American Express Business card, which charges $95. But otherwise, this card is light on fees if you avoid cash advances and pay on time to avoid late fees. 

In addition, American Express will not charge any foreign transaction fees on the purchases you make outside of the U.S. However, there may be circumstances where ATMs or merchants charge a fee on foreign transactions.

Final Verdict

The Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express could be a good choice if you prefer Marriott hotels and you book stays frequently enough to enjoy the card's full range of benefits. You don't necessarily need to be a huge spender to glean value from this card, but the more you spend, the more rewarding it ends up being.

The strong points value and generous bonus points earning structure for Marriott purchases as well as those at worldwide restaurants and U.S. gas stations mean business owners can leverage business travel and commuting spending along with dining purchases to quickly earn award nights at Marriott-branded properties. This makes the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express our top pick for business hotel cards.

To see the rates and fees for Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card, please see the following link: rates and fees.