Marriott Bonvoy: How to calculate and earn more Marriott Bonvoy points
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Understanding the program and knowing how to earn Marriott Bonvoy points during your stays can lead to free nights, status room upgrades, and many other benefits like free breakfasts.
In this guide, we detail how to calculate and earn Marriott Bonvoy points whether you’re a frequent traveller, a world adventurer, or simply someone who enjoys a comfortable hotel stay.
How can I become a Marriott Bonvoy member and obtain a loyalty card?
The Marriott Bonvoy Rewards Program offers its members the opportunity to earn points by staying at participating hotels in the Marriott international network. These points can be exchanged for free nights, exclusive experiences and other rewards.
To earn Marriott Bonvoy points, you must be a member of the loyalty program. Simply visit the Marriott website to register.
How do I earn Marriott Bonvoy points?
Every time you stay at a Marriott hotel, you earn points based on different criteria:
- Room rate: Generally, you earn a certain number of points for every dollar spent on the cost of the night, regardless of the hotel category. Be sure to book directly with Marriott to earn points.
- Eligible expenses: In addition to the room rate, expenses such as meals and drinks in hotel restaurants can also earn you points: if you dine in the hotel restaurant, be sure to charge the expense to your room! Do the same if you have extras to pay for, such as excursions when staying at resorts in the Maldives.
- Elite status: Members with elite status receive bonus points. The higher your level, the more bonus points you earn for each stay.
How can I earn Marriott Bonvoy points without staying at a hotel?
You don’t need to plan a hotel stay to see your Marriott Bonvoy points balance increase. There are many clever ways to earn these valuable points during your daily activities, including taking advantage of the dining options and other services offered by Marriott hotels.
Dining in a Marriott
Did you know that a meal or simply a coffee in one of the restaurants located in Marriott establishments can earn you points? For every dollar you spend at participating Marriott hotel restaurants and bars, even if you’re not staying there, you can earn points. Just be sure to present your membership number when paying the bill.
Use Marriott hotel services
In addition to food and beverage, other services offered by Marriott hotels can contribute to your points pool. These services can include spa, golf, and other leisure activities available at the facilities. Again, don’t forget to provide your membership number when using these services.
Buy and transfer to Marriott Bonvoy points
There are recurring promotions on buying Marriott Bonvoy points. Would you rather have American Express Membership Rewards points? You can convert them to Marriott Bonvoy points and take advantage of this transfer promotion that comes back every year.
This can be worthwhile in certain situations where you’re short a few points for a stay, or when you redeem your points at a higher value than what you paid to earn them.
American Express co-branded credit card
You can earn between 2X and 5X Marriott Bonvoy points on your Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* and Marriott Bonvoy® Corporate American Express®* Card purchases, plus start your points adventure with great welcome bonuses!
| Credit card | Annual fee | Welcome offer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| $120 | |||
| $150 |
How do you calculate your points for a hotel stay?
To calculate the points you’ll earn on a stay, take into account your room rate per night, eligible expenses, and any bonus points you’ve earned through Elite status. Multiply your total spend by the number of points you earn per dollar (this may vary depending on your loyalty level and the hotel you choose).
To give you a precise idea of how many points you can earn during your stay, it’s important to understand the specificities of each establishment and your status. Here are two detailed tables to help you calculate your Marriott Bonvoy points.
Basic Marriott Bonvoy points depending on hotel
All Marriott hotel categories earn Marriott Bonvoy points (base) per U.S. dollar spent. However, the number of points accumulated differs from establishment to establishment, but the majority of hotel categories still give 10 points per dollar, regardless of your status.
A dollar spent refers both to the cost of the night and to eligible purchases such as expenses that can be charged to the room, like a restaurant or excursion bill.
| Hotel | Points per US dollar spent |
|---|---|
| Marriott Hotels & Resorts | 10 |
| JW Marriott | 10 |
| Renaissance Hotels | 10 |
| Sheraton | 10 |
| Delta Hotels by Marriott | 10 |
| Le Méridien | 10 |
| Westin | 10 |
| Autograph Collection Hotels | 10 |
| Design Hotels | 10 |
| Gaylord Hotels | 10 |
| Courtyard | 10 |
| Four Points | 10 |
| SpringHill Suites | 10 |
| Fairfield by Marriott | 10 |
| AC Hotels | 10 |
| Aloft | 10 |
| Moxy Hotels | 10 |
| Residence Inn | 5 |
| Protea Hotels | 5 |
| City Express | 5 |
| Homes & Villas | 5 |
| TownePlace Suites | 5 |
| Element | 5 |
| Marriott Executive Apartments | 2.5 |
| ExecuStay | 2.5 |
Marriott Bonvoy points bonuses according to Elite status
| Elite status | Bonus points |
|---|---|
| Member | None |
| Silver Elite | 10% |
| Gold Elite | 25% |
| Platinum Elite | 50 % |
| Titanium Elite | 75 % |
| Ambassador Elite | 75 % |
These bonuses apply to the number of base points earned for each dollar spent (as shown in the first table), not to additional fees or taxes. For example, if you’re a Platinum Elite member and spend US$100 at a Marriott hotel with a 10X multiplier, you’ll earn 1,000 base points, plus a 500-point bonus, for a total of 1,500 points.
By understanding these details, you can efficiently calculate your potential points and plan your stays accordingly to maximize your Marriott Bonvoy rewards. Be sure to take this information into account when booking your next trips.
Example of how to calculate Marriott Bonvoy points
When I went to Miami, I stayed at the Courtyard Miami Airport for one night and earned 1,639 Marriott Bonvoy points for my stay.
- 1,490 basis points (the cost of the night was US$149; taxes and fees do not count as eligible purchases)
- 149 bonus points thanks to my Silver Elite status
You can find this information in the “Activity” tab of your Marriott Bonvoy account.
You can then calculate the number of points earned with an American Express credit card co-branded by Marriott Bonvoy. The Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card and the Marriott Bonvoy® Corporate American Express®* Card award 5X Marriott points per Canadian dollar spent at Marriott establishments.
So for this stay totaling US$168.37 with taxes and fees, I earned about 1,150 additional Marriott Bonvoy points by paying with my co-branded American Express credit card. In fact, the US$168.37 was equivalent to approximately CAD$230 at the time of the trip. Please note, however, that the Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card and Marriott Bonvoy® Corporate American Express®* Card charge a conversion fee.
The question “How do I choose the best credit card to pay for my trip?” often comes up in our Facebook community. In fact, it’s great to be able to see how many points you’ve accumulated after your stay and after you’ve paid. However, is it worth paying a conversion fee to earn Marriott Bonvoy points with our co-branded American Express credit card?
The answer to this question will depend on the individual since the valuation of points can differ from one person to another.
If I had used the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite +* Card to pay for my room and avoid the conversion fee, the total price I would have paid would have been around $225 CAD and I would have accumulated 225 Scene+ points on my purchase.
| Marriott Bonvoy credit card | Scotia Passport credit card | |
|---|---|---|
| Accumulation of base points | 1,490 Marriott Bonvoy points | 1,490 points Marriott Bonvoy |
| Accumulation of points linked to status | 149 points Marriott Bonvoy | 149 points Marriott Bonvoy |
| Accumulation of credit card points | 1,150 Marriott Bonvoy points | 225 Scene+ points |
| Strategy return value | 2,789 Marriott Bonvoy points + CAD 230 room rate | 1,639 Marriott Bonvoy points + 225 Scene+ points + CAD 225 for room rate |
According to Milesopedia’s estimate, the value of a Marriott Bonvoy point is 0.9¢ and a Scene+ point is 1¢.
So, here’s a calculation of the value you get in return according to each payment option:
- Pay with a Marriott Bonvoy credit card: $25 return (in Marriott Bonvoy points)
- Pay with a no-conversion-fee credit card like the Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite +* Card: $22 back ($14.75 in Marriott Bonvoy points + $2.25 in Scene+ points + $5 in conversion fee savings)
You can clearly see that the value of the return is greater when you choose to pay for your stay with the Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card or the Marriott Bonvoy® Corporate American Express®* Card. Then, if you use your Marriott Bonvoy points at a higher value, such as at luxury establishments, your return will be even greater by paying your bill with your co-branded American Express credit card.
However, if you intend touse Scene+ points to obtain a statement credit on your hotel expense and thus lighten your travel budget, you’ll need to choose your Scotiabank Passport™ Visa Infinite +* Card instead to redeem points from this rewards program. That’s why we need to ask ourselves a lot of questions to determine what best applies to our situation, and our personal valuation of points and not just base our calculations on the “value” of the return on the purchase.
Maximize your Marriott Bonvoy points with these tips
Book directly
By booking directly or through our affiliate link with Marriott Bonvoy, you can earn the maximum possible points for your stay: purchases made through the booking portal of third-party sites do not earn points, elite nights or status benefits. In the event that you find a really cheaper room on a third-party site, you can request a Best Rate Guarantee with Marriott if the same room is available with them.
Use your Marriott credit card
With a co-branded American Express credit card, you can earn points on all your purchases, and even benefit from automatic Elite status: in addition to their big welcome bonuses, the Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card and Marriott Bonvoy® Business American Express®* Card offer you 15 elite nights per year, which translates into automatic Silver Elite status for as long as you hold one of these cards.
As a couple or with friends, you can transfer up to 100,000 points per year to book together. It’s great for matching family welcome bonuses!
Take advantage of promotions
Keep an eye out for special promotions offered by Marriott that allow you to earn extra points. Indeed, Marriott Bonvoy is used to running promotions such as doubling elite nights for cash-paid stays or offering bonus points after a certain number of stays. These offers may or may not be targeted. For example, I was once able to collect three free night certificates following two stays (a stay could be as little as one night) only. You can stay on top of these promotions with our free weekly newsletter.
How do Marriott Bonvoy points work and how can I redeem them?
Once you’ve accumulated enough points, you can redeem them for free nights, travel experiences, and more on the Marriott Bonvoy booking portal. To maximize the use of your hard-earned points, you can use a tool like Awayz to help you find the cheapest rates and decide on the most optimal way to pay for your stay (by comparing the rate in points or the price in cash).
In fact, with the Marriott Bonvoy program, the fifth night is free when you use points to pay! This means a 20% discount on your hotel stay!
Awayz doesn’t take points accumulation into account to guide your choice, but with this guide, you have all the tools to make your own calculations based on the price of your stay.
For more information on the Marriott Bonvoy program such as using the annual one-night free certificate, transferring points between members, transferring Membership Rewards points, etc., you can consult our Ultimate Guide or the many tutorials on the Milesopedia website :
- The Ultimate Guide to Marriott Bonvoy
- Stay 5 nights for the price of 4 using Marriott Bonvoy points
- How do I book free nights with Marriott Bonvoy points?
- How to claim a missing holiday
- Best rate guarantee and how to use it to save money
- How Can I Modify a Marriott Bonvoy Award Reservation?
- How do I transfer points to another account?
- How do I use the Marriott Bonvoy free night certificate?
- How to save by paying cash at Marriott Bonvoy hotels: special rates and other tips
- How to use the Cash + Points function
Bottom Line
Earning Marriott Bonvoy points is a great way to make your travels even more rewarding. By staying at participating hotels and maximizing the way you earn points, you can enjoy exclusive benefits that enhance your adventures.
Start by signing up for the Marriott Bonvoy® American Express®* Card and/or the Marriott Bonvoy® Corporate American Express®* Card today to make every stay an opportunity to get closer to your next trip with rewards programs! These cards come with generous welcome bonuses. What could be better than up to 25 free nights to get off to a great start with our rewards programs?
- Annual fee
- $120
- Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$600Total$600Plus $100 of bonus paid after the first year, not counted in this total.Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
- $600
- Welcome offerAfter $3,000 in 3 months
- Up to 70,000 points
Apply Now
on American Express's website
Apply with confidenceCheck whether your application will be approved before you submit it, with no impact on your credit score*When you apply for a personal American Express Credit Card, we will tell you whether you are eligible without affecting your credit score. So you can apply with confidence.*Instant decisions are only available for consumer Card applications (also called “personal Cards”).
- Annual fee
- $150
- Our valuationMilesopedia first-year estimate First-year valueWelcome bonus$700Total$700Plus $100 of bonus paid after the first year, not counted in this total.Rewards on your spending are not included. The calculator that adds them from your own profile is on the card's page.
- $700
- Welcome offerAfter $5,000 in 3 months
- Up to 80,000 points
Apply Now
on American Express's website
Apply with confidenceCheck whether your application will be approved before you submit it, with no impact on your credit score*When you apply for a personal American Express Credit Card, we will tell you whether you are eligible without affecting your credit score. So you can apply with confidence.*Instant decisions are only available for consumer Card applications (also called “personal Cards”).
Go further with Marriott Bonvoy
To maximize your stays and points earning, check our complete Marriott Bonvoy program guide and our best Marriott Bonvoy credit cards ranking. For personal use, see the Marriott Bonvoy American Express Card. For business expenses, the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card earns points on every business purchase. And if a points purchase promotion is running, take advantage via our Marriott Bonvoy points purchase guide.