Marriott Rewards is a great travel currency that has gotten even better with the recent integration with SPG Starpoints (Marriott Rewards points convert to SPG Starpoints at a 3:1 ratio).
The Best Card For Earning Marriott Rewards Points Is…(Not What You Think)
There are many cards that can earn, transfer, or convert into Marriott Rewards points. So what is the best choice?
What You Probably Think:
(Courtesy of chase.com)
Methodology:
To analyze this, I setup a hypothetical spending situation of $1,000 dollars. Next, I based the analysis on potential maximum spend – – the most you could earn on the card in the most lucrative category with the notable exception of actual Marriott hotel spending (which could earn an inordinate amount of points and result in a somewhat unreasonable analysis).
The Contenders:
The Results:
(The results)
The Analysis And The Bottom-Line:
In the above analysis, the Chase Freedom and Chase INK Cash cards win handily in racking up Marriott Rewards points on $1,000 spend. The reason for this is that Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be earned at the 5x rate [in certain categories] on these cards, and Chase Ultimate Rewards points convert to Marriott Rewards points at a 1:1 ratio. This clocks in at 5,000 Marriott Rewards points for $1,000 spend. Oh, and did I mention that both of these cards come with a $0 annual fee?
The 2nd Place card was the American Express Everyday Preferred card. Bear with me on this one: This card earns 3x on grocery spend, and can be bonused by 1.5 if you can achieve 30 or more transactions on this card in one monthly billing cycle – – bringing the potential max earn rate to 4.5x. AMEX Membership Rewards points convert to SPG Starpoints at a 3:1 ratio; and these SPG Starpoints can then be converted to Marriott Rewards points at the 1:3 ratio. Got that? The bottom line is that this card can earn you 4,500 Marriott Points on a $1,000 spend.
Perhaps most surprising, is the fact that the AMEX Starwood Preferred Guest card can earn you even more Marriott Rewards points then the Chase Marriott Rewards card — even with the 2x bonus category. This is possible because the 1x earn of the SPG card can be converted to 3x Marriott points, and that is on ALL spend (not just the bonus categories). For this reason, the American Express Starwood Preferred Guest is the best card to earn Marriott Rewards points in all non-bonus spend. The Chase Marriott Rewards card is also probably worth having because of the 1 Free Night Stay at a Category 1-5 hotel every year after your account anniversary even with the $85 annual fee.
Cheers!
