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Aerial view of the JW Marriott Grande Lakes Resort in Orlando with pools and waterslides in the foreground and the hotel buildings in the background.
You can use points from Marriott credit cards to stay at the family-friendly JW Marriott Grande Lakes in Orlando.
  • Four Marriott credit cards are offering amazing, elevated welcome bonuses, but only until August 9, 2023.
  • You can earn up to 200,000 Marriott points, but to unlock the most points you'll need to stay six nights at Marriott Bonvoy properties.
  • These are good offers if you have paid stays coming up at Marriott hotels anyway.
  • Read Insider's guide to the best hotel credit cards.

If Marriott is your hotel chain of choice, you have a great opportunity to stock up on points for future award stays. Four Marriott credit cards from American Express and Chase are offering up to 200,000 points, and these offers have a unique twist that's extra valuable for folks who have paid Marriott stays coming up. But these offers are ending on August 9, so it's your last chance to apply.

Here's what you can earn:

While we've seen a few higher offers in the past, these come pretty close — but only if you can unlock the full bonus by staying six eligible paid nights at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels by January 31, 2024.

Here's what to know about each card to help you decide if it's worth applying for a new Marriott credit card.

We're focused here on the rewards and perks that come with each card. These cards won't be worth it if you're paying interest or late fees. When using a credit card, it's important to pay your balance in full each month, make payments on time, and only spend what you can afford to pay.

Marriott Credit Card Offers: Earn up to 200,000 Points

Two of these cards (the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Editorial Name Only and Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Editorial Name Only) are from American Express, and two (the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only and Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only) are issued by Chase.

These offers are only available for a limited time, but have slightly different end dates. The American Express Marriott card offers end on August 9, 2023, but on the Chase Marriott cards, the end date is August 10, 2023. Be sure to apply before those dates if you're interested in any of these offers.

There are some rules to keep in mind if you plan to take advantage of the six-night stay requirement to earn the full bonus on any of these cards:

  • The earning period for the six nights is from your card open date until January 31, 2024, and you'll automatically registered in this 50,000-point promotional offer
  • Eligible paid nights include all paid stays, including pre-paid stays and bookings paid with Marriott eGiftCards that are booked using the eligible cardmember's Marriott Bonvoy account
  • Award nights including Cash + Points awards, free night awards, or a points redemption don't qualify, nor do stays booked through third-party online retailers and travel agencies, or stays at Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Executive Apartments, and owner-occupied weeks at Marriott Vacation Club, Marriott Grand Residence Club, Sheraton Vacation Club, Westin Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Club, St. Regis Residence Club, and Luxury Collection Residence Club
  • Only one room at one property per night will count toward the promotional offer
  • The six eligible paid nights don't need to be part of the same stay; they can be achieved over multiple stays
  • You'll receive the 50,000 bonus points in your Marriott Bonvoy account up to 12 weeks after the sixth eligible paid night is completed

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant: Earn up to 200,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Editorial Name Only is the best choice for folks who stay with Marriott a lot — if you're just an occasional traveler, you'll likely do better with other Marriott cards. Because it's a premium credit card, it's got a hefty Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Annual Fee annual fee.

The impressive welcome bonus of Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Intro Bonus is worth around Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Featured Reward Value according to Insider's estimate of Marriott points value. Plus, the card earns Marriott points in some great categories:

  • 6 points per dollar at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels (this is in addition to up to 10x points for being a Marriott Bonvoy member and up to 2.5x points for having Gold elite status from the card)
  • 3x points on dining at US restaurants (including takeout and delivery)
  • 3x points on flights purchased directly from airlines
  • 2 points per dollar on all other eligible purchases

Although the card's annual fee is high, it's quite easy to offset that cost by maximizing the card's vast range of benefits. These include: 

Here's our Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex card review for all the details.

Marriott Bonvoy Bevy: Earn up to 175,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Annual Fee-annual-fee Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Editorial Name Only is one of the newest additions to Marriott's card lineup. It's offering Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Intro Bonus, which is worth around Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Featured Reward Value in stays based on Insider's points and miles valuations.

Most recently, it was offering 85,000 points after meeting minimum spending requirements, so this offer is a definite improvement. That said, the card's Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card - Annual Fee annual fee might be offputting for some, especially considering the card doesn't come with an automatic award night on each anniversary like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card - Editorial Name Only.

That said, if you want to earn Marriott points quickly from your everyday spending, this card is a solid option. Cardholders earn 6x points on hotel purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy locations, 4x at restaurants globally and at U.S. supermarkets on the first $15,000 in combined purchases per year (then 2x), and 2 points per dollar on everything else.

You'll also get substantial benefits from this card, including:

  • Automatic Marriott Bonvoy Gold elite status
  • 1,000 points per eligible stay
  • 15 elite night credits each calendar year
  • Free night award at hotels that cost up to 50,000 points after spending $15,000 in a calendar year
  • Secondary car rental insurance
  • Baggage insurance plan
  • Trip delay insurance
  • Purchase protection
  • Extended warranty
  • Global Assist Hotline
  • No foreign transaction fees

Read our Marriott Bonvoy Bevy credit card review to learn more.

Marriott Bonvoy Boundless: Earn up to 125,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only is Marriott's mid-tier card, with a Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Annual Fee annual fee. The offer to earn Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Intro Bonus is good (worth around Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Featured Reward Value in stays). But past offers to earn three or even five free night awards (worth up to 50,000 points each) after meeting minimum spending requirements were potentially more valuable.

This is the overall best Marriott card for most travelers. Cardholders receive a valuable array of benefits, the most notable of which is a free night certificate worth up to 35,000 points each card anniversary. That perk alone is more than enough to justify paying the annual fee.

It also comes with impressive travel and shopping perks, including:

  • 15 elite night credits each calendar year
  • One elite night credit for every $5,000 spent on the card
  • Automatic Marriott Bonvoy Silver elite status
  • Car rental insurance (secondary in the US, primary car rental insurance otherwise)
  • Lost luggage reimbursement
  • Trip delay insurance
  • Baggage delay insurance
  • Purchase protection
  • Extended warranty
  • Travel and emergency assistance services
  • Visa Signature concierge
  • Complimentary one-year DoorDash DashPass membership (activate by December 31, 2024)
  • $10 per month in Gopuff credits through December 31, 2023
  • No foreign transaction fees

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only is also a good pick if you want to earn Marriott points on your everyday spending, because it earns 6x bonus points on eligible purchases at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels (on top of what you'd normally earn from your stay), 3x points at grocery stores, gas stations, and on dining (on up to $6,000 in combined purchases per year), and 2x points on all other eligible purchases.

Here's our Marriott Bonvoy Boundless credit card review for a deeper dive into the card's benefits.

Marriott Bonvoy Bold: Earn up to 100,000 points

The Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only charges a Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Annual Fee annual fee, so as you might expect, it comes with fewer benefits than other Marriott cards. Right now it's offering Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Intro Bonus. That's worth about Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Featured Reward Value in stays according to our valuations.

Most casual travelers will do better opening the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only, but if you don't care about extra frills (or are totally opposed to paying an annual fee), the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card - Editorial Name Only isn't bad for a no-annual-fee travel credit card.

Normally, the card offers 30,000 points after meeting minimum spending requirements, so this new bonus is more than double the usual offer if you can meet the six-night stay requirement. You won't get a free anniversary night or as many travel perks, and the card only earns 3x points at participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels (on top of what you'd already earn from a stay), 2x points on other eligible travel purchases, and 1 point per dollar on all other eligible purchases.

As for benefits, cardholders receive a handful of travel protections and other perks, including:

  • 15 elite night credits each calendar year (enough for Silver elite status)
  • Lost luggage reimbursement
  • Baggage delay reimbursement
  • Trip delay reimbursement
  • Purchase protection
  • Visa Signature concierge
  • Complimentary one-year DoorDash DashPass membership (activate by December 31, 2024)
  • $10 per month in Gopuff credits through December 31, 2023
  • No foreign transaction fees

You can find out if this card is right for you in our Marriott Bonvoy Bold credit card review.

Alternatives to Marriott credit cards

If you're interested in earning Marriott points but don't want to commit to a Marriott credit card, you have other options. Cards that earn transferable Chase Ultimate Rewards® points, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, Chase Sapphire Reserve®, or Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card are a good choice if you want flexibility. Marriott is a Chase transfer partner, and moving points from these cards is easy. Just keep in mind that other Chase partners, like United Airlines or Hyatt, will typically get you more value from your points.

Marriott is also an American Express Membership Rewards points transfer partner, so you can transfer points from cards like the American Express® Gold Card - Product Name Only and The Platinum Card® from American Express - Product Name Only at a 1:1 ratio.

For a closer look at making the most of your rewards, read our guide to earning and redeeming Marriott points.

Read the original article on Business Insider