Maximise your Avios, air miles and hotel points

American Express is cutting the sign-up bonus on the new Marriott Bonvoy Amex credit card

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On Tuesday we covered the unveiling of the Marriott Bonvoy American Express card.

Unfortunately this is not a brand new product.  It is a rebranding of the existing Starwood Preferred Guest American Express card, with a few tweeks.

From 26th February:

The name of the card will be changed to the Marriott Bonvoy American Express card

The earning rate will be slashed by 33%, from 3 Marriott Bonvoy points per £1 to 2 Marriott Bonvoy points per £1

The earning rate at Marriott Bonvoy hotels will remain 6 Marriott Bonvoy points per £1

Instead of giving all cardholders Silver Elite status, you will receive 15 elite night credits per year.  This will trigger Silver Elite status anyway, but also means that you are 15 nights closer to Gold Elite, Platinum Elite or Titanium Elite status.  This is a genuine improvement.

The annual fee remains at £75

Here is the new design:

Marriott Bonvoy American Express card

What we didn’t know is what would happen to the sign-up bonus.  Business Traveller has received a briefing from Marriott on this which, whilst it has not been verified by American Express, we can safely assume is accurate.

This is what happens on 26th February:

The sign-up bonus is cut from 30,000 Marriott Bonvoy points to 20,000 points

The qualifying spend required to hit the bonus increases from £1,000 in 90 days to £3,000 in 90 days

This is rubbish, to put it mildly.  Add in the 33% cut in the earning rate per £1 and the refusal to cut the £75 annual fee and the package does not look good.

There was one other nugget of information in the Business Traveller article:

You will receive your 15 nights elite credit in April 2020, and thereafter in January

How does the Marriott Bonvoy American Express compare?

Whilst weaker than it was, the new card is on a par in some ways with American Express Preferred Rewards Gold when you get beyond the first year:

First year:

Amex Gold – no fee, 10000 Membership Rewards points bonus for spending £3000 in 90 days, points transfer to 15000 Bonvoy points or to many other airline and hotel schemes, two free airport passes

Bonvoy Amex – £75 fee, 20000 Bonvoy points bonus for spending £3000 in 90 days, Silver Elite status in Marriott Bonvoy

Amex Gold is the winner here.

Second and subsequent years:

Amex Gold – £140 fee, 1 Membership Rewards point per £1 spent (worth 1.5 Bonvoy points or transfer to other airline or hotel schemes), double points on airline spend, 10000 bonus points (worth 15,000 Bonvoy points) for spending £15000, two additional airport lounge passes

Bonvoy Amex – £75 fee, 2 Bonvoy points per £1 spent, 6 points per £1 spent at Marriott hotels, Gold Elite status for spending £15000, a free night worth 25,000 Bonvoy points (circa 3-star level) for spending £25000

The Marriott Bonvoy Amex probably edges it here.  In reality, however, you may do better cancelling both cards after the first year and moving onto, say, the American Express Rewards Credit Card (below) which is free for life and earns 1 Membership Rewards point per £1.

American Express Rewards Credit Card

But does it really matter?

In truth, the cut in the sign-up bonus won’t impact many Head for Points readers.

It is VERY tricky to qualify for the bonus.  You need to have had NO personal American Express cards, of any sort (except supplementary cards or Lloyds / MBNA cards) in the past 24 months.  There are not many readers who can manage that.

Oddly enough, I will keep recommending the Bonvoy card to some people.  The best way to maximise your American Express bonuses under the current rules remains:

1st card – SPG Amex / Bonvoy Amex

2nd card – The Platinum Card or British Airways Premium Plus

3rd card – The Platinum Card or British Airways Premium Plus

If you apply in this order you will receive three bonuses if you have had no personal Amex cards in the last two years.  My full article outlining how the sign-up bonus rules now work is here.

Want to earn more points from credit cards? – April 2024 update

If you are looking to apply for a new credit card, here are our top recommendations based on the current sign-up bonuses.

In February 2022, Barclaycard launched two exciting new Barclaycard Avios Mastercard cards with a bonus of up to 25,000 Avios. You can apply here.

You qualify for the bonus on these cards even if you have a British Airways American Express card:

Barclaycard Avios Plus card

Barclaycard Avios Plus Mastercard

Get 25,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £10,000 Read our full review

Barclaycard Avios card

Barclaycard Avios Mastercard

5,000 Avios for signing up and an upgrade voucher at £20,000 Read our full review

You can see our full directory of all UK cards which earn airline or hotel points here. Here are the best of the other deals currently available.

British Airways American Express Premium Plus

25,000 Avios and the famous annual 2-4-1 voucher Read our full review

American Express Preferred Rewards Gold

Your best beginner’s card – 20,000 points, FREE for a year & four airport lounge passes Read our full review

The Platinum Card from American Express

40,000 bonus points and a huge range of valuable benefits – for a fee Read our full review

Virgin Atlantic Reward+ Mastercard

18,000 bonus points and 1.5 points for every £1 you spend Read our full review

Earning miles and points from small business cards

If you are a sole trader or run a small company, you may also want to check out these offers:

SPECIAL OFFER: Until 12th May 2024, the Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa card is offering a bonus of 30,000 points, convertible into 30,000 Avios. You must have a Limited Company to apply. Click here to learn more and click here to apply.

British Airways Accelerating Business American Express

30,000 Avios sign-up bonus – plus annual bonuses of up to 30,000 Avios Read our full review

American Express Business Platinum

40,000 points sign-up bonus and an annual £200 Amex Travel credit Read our full review

American Express Business Gold

20,000 points sign-up bonus and FREE for a year Read our full review

Capital on Tap Business Rewards Visa

Huge 30,000 points bonus until 12th May 2024 Read our full review

For a non-American Express option, we also recommend the Barclaycard Select Cashback card for sole traders and small businesses. It is FREE and you receive 1% cashback on your spending.

Barclaycard Select Cashback Business Credit Card

1% cashback uncapped* on all your business spending (T&C apply) Read our full review

Category

American Express Gold card, American Express Membership Rewards, American Express Platinum card, Amex Rewards Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Bonvoy American Express

Comments (104)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • SultanOfCroydon says:
    17 Jan17 January 05:41

    The free night incentive is incredibly miserable in comparison to what Creation offers with the IHG Rewards card. I’d rather put £25000 through the ARCC and pay for a hotel stay with cash. The cheapest guest room for tonight at the MOXY London Excel is only £70 afterall…

    • Andrew says:
      17 Jan17 January 09:24

      It’s still a Creation Card though. I simply wouldn’t touch one.

      Besides, and this is the big one, if I had an IHG Card – I wouldn’t have used it for any of my IHG bookings last year. Perhaps by sheer luck, every single personal IHG booking I made last year coincided with fundreturn offers from LBG and First Direct.

      I’d take a £25 recredit over a 500 IHG points any day.

      • Rooster says:
        17 Jan17 January 10:05

        If you know what your doing then IHG is a great card, its no good if you don’t spend much money on the card though

      • guesswho2000 says:
        17 Jan17 January 13:49

        I think everyone would take £25 over 500 IHG points, which are worth around £2.50!

  • Jonathan says:
    17 Jan17 January 05:44

    Do you think the MR conversion rate to Marriot is going to drop next?

    • Rob says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:42

      No. It is not overwhelming as it is – the Radisson rate is better.

      • Rooster says:
        17 Jan17 January 10:06

        Raddison redemption rates seems out of whack though when I’ve checked anyway it would have cost a fortune in MR points converted

        • Rob says:
          17 Jan17 January 10:45

          No – 70k for a 5-star = 23k MR points converted. An 80k Hilton 5-star needs 40k MR. A 60k (and that is being generous) Bonvoy 5-star needs 40k MR.

  • Bentoni says:
    17 Jan17 January 06:16

    Applied the SPG card on Sunday and the card arrived today. Still the old design, and no mention of the upcoming change in February.

    • Bentoni says:
      17 Jan17 January 06:51

      Just phoned Amex, I was told the card members who applied from November 2019 to the end of Feb this year are excluded from this migration phase.

      Maybe @Rob can verify this?

      • C Meyer says:
        17 Jan17 January 07:02

        What do you mean by these members being “excluded from the migration phase”? I have also just applied and been approved for the SPG Amex hoping that I will get my 15 nights credited in April. Is that in doubt?

        • Alex W says:
          17 Jan17 January 07:31

          Unless amex has told you otherwise the T&C’s will be as per the T&C’s when you applied for the card.

          • Lady London says:
            17 Jan17 January 10:13

            ….and unless they have not only told you / revised the terms and conditions, but also communicated this with enough notice. A 60 day notice requirement would be typical before such changes could take effect.

        • Bentoni says:
          17 Jan17 January 07:37

          That is what I have been told this morning. So assuming they are migrating customers in batches?

          I mean .. feel free to phone them, since it was a comment made by one customer service rep.

    • TGLoyalty says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:32

      The new design isn’t launched until Feb so makes sense you received the old card.

      If you haven’t had the letter keep expecting 3/£1 I wouldn’t take the CS word for anything though. Your letter might just be delayed and they only have to get it to you by 26th Jan.

      • David says:
        17 Jan17 January 08:45

        My expectation would be this was a reference to not changing the T&C on new people until various notice periods have expired.

        • TGLoyalty says:
          17 Jan17 January 08:51

          The notice period is 1 month which is why I said they have until 26th to get you a letter.

          I’m not aware of there being any minimum period your current T&C’s should apply for.

  • Fraser says:
    17 Jan17 January 07:00

    I wonder if the 15 nights elite credit counts towards a Platinum status match challenge. Too much to hope for?

  • Anup says:
    17 Jan17 January 07:09

    O/T: Amex Gold Corporate card – do you have to apply for Lounge Club passes every year or are they automatically added? Also, do they expire every year?

    • Rob says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:36

      Automatically added, automatically expire.

    • SteveD says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:42

      My understanding is that you don’t actually receive any ‘passes’, it’s just that the first 2 times you use a lounge in a year, Amex picks up the bill.

      Your entitlement to the 2 free passes rolls over automatically each year.

  • Freddy says:
    17 Jan17 January 07:51

    Has anyone received the 50% bonus for transferring from amex MR to Marriott bonvoy. Just double checked and I did it on the 8th Nov but have only received the base points

    • Andy says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:00

      No I’m in the same boat. I contacted Amex on the 2nd Jan (8 weeks after the transfer) and they said they’d raise it and it would be resolved in 7 working days.
      Contacted them again yesterday and said it he points would be in my account “soon.”.
      Although I have seen elsewhere people say it’s 8 weeks from the end of the promo rather than when you did the transfer.

    • Harry T says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:12

      Haven’t received them yet. I assume it’s similar to the Hilton bonus transfer where the bonus points were given eight weeks after the promotion ended.

    • TGLoyalty says:
      17 Jan17 January 08:34

      The T&C’s said 8 weeks after the Promo ended not after you transferred. Expected first week of March.

  • N says:
    17 Jan17 January 07:56

    Poor poor poor

  • Mark says:
    17 Jan17 January 07:57

    Is the card metal? It looks it?

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