Who should (and shouldn’t) get the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy Amex card?
There are several Marriott credit cards — in fact, this hotel chain features more cards to choose from than competitors like Hilton, Hyatt or IHG. With so many options, understanding your choices and making a decision can be difficult.
Additionally, Marriott Bonvoy has credit cards available from two different issuers — Chase and American Express — each with its own credit card application rules and restrictions. Plus, there are so many rules surrounding Marriott credit cards that we needed an entire chart to help explain bonus eligibility on these cards.
The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express® Card is one of the newer credit cards from the hotel chain. It offers perks like complimentary mid-tier status with Marriott Bonvoy and a moderate earning structure but also lacks some features we’ve come to expect from hotel credit cards.
Here’s what you should know if you’re debating whether or not to get the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card.
Overview of the American Express Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card
The Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card is a mid-tier credit card in the Marriott Bonvoy credit card portfolio. Annual fees on Marriott’s credit cards range from $0 to $650, and the Bevy card sits in the middle, with an annual fee of $250 (see rates and fees).
Here are the most important things to know about the Bonvoy Bevy card. Terms apply to benefits.
- The welcome offer is worth $723. New cardmembers can earn 85,000 bonus points after spending $5,000 in purchases within the first six months of cardmembership. TPG’s January 2025 valuations place Marriott points at 0.85 cents apiece, making this bonus worth $723.
- You’ll get complimentary Gold Elite status. Cardmembers receive complimentary Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy each year, with perks like room upgrades (but not to suites), late checkout and bonus points on stays. We value Gold status highly if you stay enough to make use of these benefits. If you’re looking to earn higher levels of status, you’ll receive 15 elite night credits in your Bonvoy account each year to help you on your way.
- You get 1,000 bonus points on each paid stay. Cardmembers who stay at a Marriott Bonvoy hotel or resort and pay cash will receive 1,000 bonus points for each stay (though points redemptions and using free night awards won’t qualify for the bonus points).
- There’s no complimentary free night award. Many hotel credit cards come with a free night award, which is deposited into your account on your cardmember anniversary each year. You’d receive this free night award whether you spent $1 or $1 million on your card in the previous 12 months. However, the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy doesn’t offer this free night award unless you spend $15,000 or more on eligible purchases during a calendar year. This free night award, if earned, is worth up to 50,000 points. Certain hotels have resort fees.
- Vacations and goods purchased with your card are protected. Cardmembers can enjoy numerous travel and shopping protections when using their Bevy card to pay for a trip or a new smartphone. If you run into problems, these protections can provide assistance and peace of mind.
Who should get the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card?
You may want the Bevy card and could benefit from having it in your wallet for multiple reasons. Consider the following:
You don’t have any Marriott cards and want to diversify your points
The most obvious reason to get the Bonvoy Bevy card would be diversification. Even if you have a lot of hotel points with a different hotel brand, you may find yourself in a location where your best hotel option is a Marriott Bonvoy property.
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Diversifying your hotel points before upcoming trips is a smart move, and having points (plus elite status) with Marriott can be advantageous to ensure your ability to redeem points for hotel nights wherever you’re going.
You’re eligible for a bonus on a Marriott credit card
Determining your eligibility for the welcome offer on the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card can be a bit difficult since you’ll be subject to American Express restrictions as well as Marriott Bonvoy restrictions. Check your eligibility before applying for a Marriott Bonvoy credit card.
If you do meet the restrictions and are eligible for the 85,000-point welcome bonus with the Bonvoy Bevy, it can be worth $723, according to TPG’s January 2025 valuations.
Related: Are you eligible for a new Marriott Bonvoy card? This chart tells you yes or no.
You’re able to get maximum value from your Marriott Bonvoy points
Those who know how to extract maximum value from Marriott points may not be fazed by the $250 annual fee on the Bonvoy Bevy card. While TPG’s valuations peg Marriott Bonvoy points at 0.85 cents apiece, it’s not difficult to get more value than that.
Some of the ability to receive outsize redemption value has gone down with Marriott Bonvoy’s shift to dynamic pricing, but you can still redeem your points for incredible value.
That’s true not just at fancy resorts like The St. Regis Bora Bora or The Ritz-Carlton, Turks & Caicos but also at properties in the U.S. — whether you’re visiting Walt Disney World or visiting relatives during holidays when cash prices are high.
Related: The award travelers guide to Marriott Bonvoy
You want elite status with Marriott
The main selling point of the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card may be that it offers mid-tier status without any spending requirements.
Cardmembers get complimentary Gold Elite status with Marriott Bonvoy each year. Perks include upgrades to preferred rooms (but not suites), late checkout, early check-in and bonus points on each stay. These perks can prove valuable since they enhance your stay and help you quickly rack up points.
Normally, earning Gold Elite status requires one of a few things. You could spend toward this status on other credit cards or spend more nights at Marriott Bonvoy hotels and resorts (though you start with 15-25 elite night credits as a perk with numerous Marriott credit cards).
Receiving status automatically without any effort can be a more enjoyable path for those who can use the benefits but won’t necessarily qualify for Gold status in another way.
Related: Is the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy worth the annual fee?
Who shouldn’t get the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card?
However, not everything is rosy when looking at the Bevy card. Consider the following reasons why this card might not deserve to be in your wallet:
You want a free night award without a spending requirement to earn it
Unfortunately, the Bonvoy Bevy card requires spending $15,000 or more on purchases in a calendar year to earn a free night award worth up to 50,000 points. Since many hotel credit cards with lower annual fees automatically offer a free night certificate, the Bevy’s spending requirement is a real drawback.
In contrast, several of Marriott’s credit cards offer a free night award each year on your account anniversary. Cardmembers get a free night worth up to 35,000 points on the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card, and a free night awards worth up to 85,000 points on the Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card and the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card.
The information for the Ritz-Carlton Card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
Related: 7 of the best hotel credit cards that come with an annual free night
You want to spend your way toward higher status levels
Gold Elite status isn’t bad, but it’s not great. The real perks with Marriott Bonvoy kick in when you reach Platinum Elite status. This is the tier where you can unlock suite upgrades, welcome gifts on each stay and free breakfast at many hotels.
While other credit cards like the World of Hyatt Credit Card and the Marriot Bonvoy Boundless card offer paths toward elite status through credit card spending — either earning the status simply from spending or accelerating your path through spending — there’s no amount of money you could spend on your Bevy card that would propel you to Platinum Elite status with Marriott.
To reach higher status, you’ll need to spend nights at Marriott Bonvoy properties. For many people, this may defeat the purpose of having a hotel credit card.
Related: The complete guide to earning Marriott elite status with credit cards
You’re eligible for a business credit card
The Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex offers complimentary Gold Elite status and a free night award on your account anniversary each year (terms apply) with an annual fee of just $125 (see rates and fees). That’s half of what the Bonvoy Bevy card charges each year.
But wait, there’s more.
You can stack the 15 elite night credits offered by the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business card with the elite night credits offered by a card like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless, which has a $95 annual fee.
By having both of these cards, you’d start each year with automatic Gold Elite status, 30 elite night credits (putting you just 20 nights shy of Platinum status) and also have two free night awards worth up to 35,000 points each. You’d pay $215 in annual fees to have these two cards — still less than what the Bevy card offers for the same status, fewer elite night credits and no free night awards.
Related: Here’s why you need both a personal and business Marriott Bonvoy credit card
You won’t get much value from Gold Elite status
The main selling point of the Bevy card is that it offers complimentary Gold Elite status each year. If you aren’t staying at Marriott hotels frequently enough to earn this status without the Bevy, you may not stay frequently enough to get a lot of value from your automatic Gold Elite status.
Before you decide to pay this card’s $250 annual fee, you’ll want to calculate just how much value you’ll get from this main perk.
Related: The 29 best Marriott hotels in the world
Bottom line
A lot goes into choosing your next credit card or finding the best credit card for you. You need to find a card that aligns with your travel goals and spending habits, and the card should provide real value to you rather than have perks you’re only using because they’re there and would otherwise not utilize.
Not everyone is the same. For some people, the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card could be a great addition to their wallets; for others, it’s not worth getting. After reading through the considerations for who should and shouldn’t get the Bonvoy Bevy card, you can decide whether it works for you.
To learn more, check out our full review of the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy.
Apply here: Marriott Bonvoy Bevy American Express Card
For rates and fees of the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business card, click here.
