Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Credit Card review: Mid-tier Marriott perks for regular guests

Quick highlights

• Rewards rate: 6X points for eligible purchases at Marriott Bonvoy properties (up to 18.5X points through the Bonvoy loyalty program with Gold Elite status), 4X points on grocery store and dining purchases (up to $15,000 in combined purchases each year, then 2X points) along with 2X points on all other purchases
• Welcome offer: 125,000 points after $4,000 in purchases within the first three months
• Annual fee: $250
• Purchase intro APR: N/A
• Balance transfer intro APR: N/A
• Regular APR: 20.99 percent to 27.99 percent (variable)

Current welcome offer

As a new Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful cardholder, you can earn 125,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in your first three months.

Marriott Bonvoy points range in value based on the stay you book, but our latest valuation estimates they’re worth 0.7 cents on average. This means your welcome offer could weigh in at $875 as one of the larger sign-up bonuses available, especially among co-branded hotel cards. 

The $4,000 spending requirement can be a little steep if you’re an average spender, but it’s reasonable if you have some large pre-planned purchases within your first few months with the card.

Other general-purpose travel cards may offer a better intro bonus value for the same spending requirement if you use certain travel transfer partners. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card offers 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 in the first three months. You’d get a $750 value if you redeem for travel through Chase Ultimate Rewards, but we value Chase Ultimate Rewards points at 2.0 cents apiece through a top transfer partner. Based on this rewards value, the Sapphire Preferred card’s 60,000-point intro sign-up bonus could be worth around $1,200.

Rewards rate

Although Marriott Bonvoy points aren’t the most valuable rewards on the market, the Bountiful card’s high reward rates help make up for this drawback. Co-branded hotel cards typically offer inflated rewards with high rates and low values, but the Bonvoy Bountiful lives up to its name by offering competitive grocery and dining rewards value, Gold Elite status and new Marriott Bonvoy Stay Points.

How you earn

The Bonvoy Bountiful earns 6X points on purchases at Marriott Bonvoy hotels, plus 4X points on the first $15,000 you spend between grocery stores and dining each year. Grocery store and dining purchases will earn 2X points beyond that annual cap — the same rate all other non-Marriott purchases earn.

You probably won’t have to worry about the 4X categories’ yearly limit, in any case, since the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ most recent data found that the average person spends $8,289 on food.

The Bonvoy Bountiful’s 6X points on Marriott purchases may seem like the same rate the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless credit card provides, but your automatic Gold Elite status boosts your Marriott rewards up to 18.5X points. All Bonvoy loyalty program members earn 10X points on Marriott purchases, but Gold Elite status boosts that by 25 percent to an extra 12.5X points. Meanwhile, the Bonvoy Boundless’ automatic Silver Elite status only increases its Marriott purchase rewards rate to 17X points.

You can rack up even more rewards with Marriott Bonvoy Stay Points — a perk exclusive to the new Amex Marriott Bonvoy Bevy and Chase Bonvoy Bountiful cards. Each Marriott stay will earn you 1,000 bonus points, which is worth $7 based on our average value of 0.7 cents per point. You won’t rake in a ton of rewards with this feature, but it could make the Bountiful card a more rewarding option than the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant for low-cost, one-night stays. For example, Marriott hotels’ average daily rate is $203, which would earn almost 4,756 points with the Bonvoy Bountiful card and 4,263 points with the Bonvoy Brilliant.

Your Bonvoy Bountiful can also earn additional rewards if you don’t mind linking your card to select dining, airline and rideshare accounts ahead of time.

• Additional 6X points on dining through Eat Around Town by Marriott Bonvoy
• Additional 6X points on Uber Eats deliveries to your Marriott hotel (additional 2X points on all other Uber Eats orders)
• Additional 3X points on all Uber rides
• Additional 3X points on Emirates Airlines flights through the Your World Rewards program (plus any Emirates Skyward Miles you’d earn)
• Converting United Airlines’ MileagePlus miles to Marriott Bonvoy points at a 1:1 ratio

How to redeem

Redeeming for award nights at Marriott hotels is your primary option, but there are several other travel possibilities at your fingertips, including flights, car rentals, cruises and vacation packages. Your points can also cover on-property purchases you make while staying with Marriott, such as room or hotel upgrades, dining, golf rounds and spa experiences.

However, you may be better off saving your points for award nights if you want maximum value since you’ll receive a complimentary award night when you redeem for five consecutive nights.

Marriott also provides a few flexible booking options to stretch or shore up your points. “PointSavers” redemption discounts are a handy way of saving your hard-earned rewards if your reservation dates are flexible. You can also cover the difference with cash, but you’ll miss out on the “5th Night Free” offer if you’re staying for five consecutive nights. Friends and family with a Marriott Bonvoy account can share 1,000 to 100,000 points with you per year, and Marriott allows you to buy up to 100,000 points each year, too.

There are a few other non-hotel redemption options, but you may not get as much value from your points.

• Priority Pass Select airport lounge membership
• TSA PreCheck expedited security
• “Marriott Bonvoy Moments” culinary, arts, sports and entertainment experiences
• Gift cards
• Shopping with partner retailers
• Charitable donations

Your points only expire if you haven’t redeemed any in 24 months (or in five years consecutively), so there’s no rush to spend them if you haven’t found the right opportunity yet.

If you fly more frequently than you stay with Marriott, the Bonvoy program’s airline transfer partners may net you the most value from your points. Many of the airlines convert your Bonvoy points at a 3:1 ratio, so be sure to check how much value you’re getting from the transfer partner’s rewards ahead of time. You’ll probably lose rewards value if the partner’s miles aren’t worth at least 2.1 cents per mile/point (based on our Marriott Bonvoy point valuation of 0.7 cents). Based on Bankrate’s reward valuations, your best transfer options are Cathay Pacific, Singapore Airlines, United Airlines and Virgin Atlantic.

Marriott tacks on a few promotions to make some transfer partners a more appealing option. You’ll receive an extra 5,000 miles for every 60,000 points transferred to any partner. United Airlines provides the best deal by transferring at a 1:1 ratio and adding 10 percent more miles to your converted rewards total. These offers could make converting your Bonvoy points to United Airlines’ MileagePlus miles one of the best redemption options.

Marriott’s dynamic award pricing means that your points may be worth more or less based on the tier and popularity of the property you plan to stay at and whether you’re staying during peak or off-peak season. To make booking a bit easier, Bankrate’s most recent valuations estimate Marriott Bonvoy points are worth 0.7 cents on average.

Bonvoy points are some of the more valuable hotel loyalty rewards on the market, ranking slightly above Hilton Honors points but below Wyndham Rewards points in terms of value.

As far as redemption options go, hotel stays and travel through Marriott may be your most consistently valuable redemption options. A handful of transfer partners may provide an equal or greater point value — especially if you fly United Airlines — but you may not get as much value or flexibility through other redemption choices.

The Bonvoy Bountiful card’s perks match its mid-level Marriott card role. Cardholders might be disappointed by the lack of Marriott perks outside Gold Elite status, but frequent Marriott guests can rest easy knowing this Bonvoy Bountiful card’s upgraded Free Night Award alone can recoup its annual fee. However, whether these perks justify a $250 yearly fee compared to general-purpose travel cards’ richer perks depends on your spending habits.

Free Night Award

Annual award nights are a staple co-branded hotel card perk, and the Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful doesn’t break tradition. You can earn a Free Night Award each year by spending $15,000, which can be redeemed for a one-night stay valued anywhere from 7,500 points to 50,000 points.

Using Bankrate’s average Marriott Bonvoy point valuation of  0.7 cents, your annual award night could be worth up to $350 on average and more than offset your annual fee by itself.

The Free Night Award is the Bonvoy Bountiful’s most valuable benefit (outside automatic Gold Elite status’ rewards boost), but it isn’t nearly as accessible as other Marriott cards’ annual award night. Both the Bonvoy Boundless and Brilliant cards offer a Free Night Award, but their award nights are provided automatically after your account anniversary and are not restricted by a spending requirement. Granted, the Boundless card’s Free Night Award is only worth up to 35,000 points, but the Brilliant card’s award is worth 85,000 points.

Based on our average yearly rewards value formula, we estimate the average cardholder spends about $15,900 per year with their card. This means you may need to use the Bonvoy Bountiful as your primary rewards card to earn your award night, which may not be practical if you don’t want most of your rewards chained to Marriott.

Automatic Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status

Holding the Bonvoy Bountiful card automatically grants you Marriott Gold Elite status, which would normally require staying at Marriott 25 nights in a year. Gold Elite status provides:

• 25 percent points bonus on hotel purchases
• Late 2pm checkout privilege
• Complimentary room upgrades (if available) for enhanced room amenities and locations
• Complimentary, enhanced internet access
• A Welcome Gift of 250 points to 500 points per stay, depending on the Marriott property (most brands offer 500 points while lower-cost property brands provide 250 points)

Although Marriott’s loyalty status doesn’t provide many exclusive privileges until Platinum Elite level, automatically receiving 25 percent more points on hotel purchases is a fantastic benefit. It’s important to note that your Gold Elite status rewards boost only applies to the Marriott Bonvoy program’s base 10X points on hotel purchases instead of the full 16X points you’d get with your card, so you’ll end up earning 18.5X points in total (not 20X points).

This is a step above the Bonvoy Boundless card’s automatic Silver Elite status and a rung below the Bonvoy Brilliant card’s automatic Platinum Elite status. However, Marriott’s Gold Elite status is much harder to attain than the rival Hilton Honors program tier and provides fewer privileges for the investment.

The Bonvoy Bountiful ultimately isn’t a great card for earning hotel elite status. In fact, The Platinum Card® from American Express provides both Gold Elite status and Hilton Honors Gold Status. The Bountiful card gives you 15 Elite Night Credits each year to help make up for it though. It normally takes staying 40 nights with Marriott each year to earn Platinum Elite status, but your annual Elite Night credits lower the bar to 25 nights.

Chase benefits and travel protections

As a Chase credit card, the Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful carries solid travel protections, a year of complimentary DoorDash DashPass (must activate by Dec. 31, 2024) and Chase-exclusive features such as My Chase Loan, My Chase Plan and Chase Experiences.

In fact, the only differences between the Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful and Marriott Bonvoy Bevy cards are the features you’ll receive through either Chase or American Express as the issuer. While both still offer similar issuer features — Amex’s Pay It Plan It alternate installment payment plans are comparable to My Chase Plan and My Chase Loan — Chase generally offers better travel protections.

You’ll receive purchase protection, trip delay reimbursement, baggage delay insurance and lost luggage reimbursement with the Bonvoy Bountiful. Its Visa Concierge access can help you coordinate your travel, and its baggage delay insurance provides an extra layer of coverage over the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card’s baggage insurance, which only reimburses you for damaged or lost luggage.

The Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful serves a premium rewards card sweet spot: a mid-tier rewards experience for Marriott loyalists who want a step up from the $95-annual-fee premium card but can’t justify an elite-level rewards card’s $500+ annual fee. The Bountiful card’s $250 annual fee is one of the card’s sticking points, but frequent Marriott guests should be able to offset the cost through perks and the Free Night Award, especially if it’s at a higher-end Marriott.

The annual fee may be harder to justify if you don’t think you’ll meet the minimum spend needed to access the Free Night Award. In that case, you’ll have to recoup the annual fee through rewards spending alone. It would take spending $1,931 on Marriott purchases each year to make up for the annual fee without the Free Night Award. You could easily spend this amount on a single 10-day vacation (at $203 per night). However, if you booked individual one-night stays, your bonus Stay Points would speed up the process a little and let you offset the annual fee after about eight average one-night stays.

Occasional travelers relying on the Bountiful card’s 4X-point categories will likely have a harder time recouping the annual fee since it would take spending $8,929 per year ($744 per month) on dining and groceries, which is more than what the average person spends according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Aside from the annual fee, the Bonvoy Bountiful’s rates and fees are typical. Purchases abroad won’t charge a foreign transaction fee, which is handy if you stay at Marriott resorts and other international properties. The 20.99 percent to 27.99 percent variable APR hovers around the current average credit card interest rate as well.

The Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful fills a specific niche in not just the hotel card market but in Marriott’s credit card portfolio as well. Its specialized features and Free Night Award spending requirement make it best for regular Marriott guests who may want to use it as their primary rewards card but don’t travel enough to justify the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant’s high cost.

On the other hand, the Bountiful card’s slim perk roster may push many cardholders toward the lower-cost Marriott Bonvoy Boundless or a non-branded travel card in order to get more bang for their buck.

Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful vs. Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card’s $650 annual fee may be intimidating, but it comes with significant value. The 21X points on Marriott purchases (courtesy of its automatic Platinum Elite status), annual credits and stronger perks may make the Bonvoy Brilliant more worthwhile for the annual fee compared to the Bonvoy Bountiful.

For starters, the Brilliant card bestows its Free Award Night automatically after your account anniversary, with no spending requirement. It’s also worth much more: up to 85,000 points. Based on our 0.7 cents Bonvoy point valuation, this Free Night Award is worth $595 on average, which offsets most of the Brilliant card’s annual fee. You’ll then be able to rake in even more value with the elite Marriott card’s other perks, which include up to $300 in annual Brilliant Dining Credit and the option of another Free Night Award through its Earned Choice Award perk (after a $60,0000 annual spending requirement).

When it comes to earning rewards, the Bountiful card’s up to 18.5X points on Marriott purchases (via its automatic Gold Elite status) isn’t far off from the Bonvoy Brilliant card’s total Marriott rewards rate. The Bonvoy Bountiful card’s 4X points on groceries and dining may actually be more valuable for less frequent travelers than the Bonvoy Brilliant card’s 3X points on restaurants and flights booked directly with airlines.

If you’re not sold on investing such a significant sum into a brand-specific rewards card, The Platinum Card from American Express is a better use of your $695 annual fee. On top of earning versatile Membership Rewards points toward a wider range of travel options, the Amex Platinum card can offer over $2,000 in annual benefits. It automatically unlocks Marriott Gold Elite status like the Bountiful card, plus complimentary Hilton Honors Gold Status. What’s more, Marriott is an American Express transfer partner if you’re ever short a few Marriott Bonvoy points.

Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful vs. Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card

The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless card is a much more cost-effective option if you’re not sure you’ll stay with Marriott often enough to offset the Bountiful card’s $250 annual fee. You’ll get fewer perks with the Boundless card — mainly automatic Silver Elite status for up to 17X points on Marriott purchases, 15 Elite Night Credits per year and a Free Night Award. On the bright side, you’ll also be able to earn an extra Elite Night Credit toward a higher status for every $5,000 you spend. The Boundless card’s up to 35,000-point Free Night Award is also a little less valuable than the Bountiful card’s, but it’s automatically awarded after your account anniversary each year with no spending requirement.

Considering the Bonvoy Boundless card’s much lower $95 annual fee, these benefits may be competitive enough to swing your decision. On the other hand, a general-purpose travel card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred could be worthwhile for its flexible rewards and deeper perk list. For example, while it also carries a $95 annual fee, the Sapphire Preferred card’s benefits include high-caliber travel protections, a 25 percent point value boost when rewards are redeemed for Chase Ultimate Rewards travel and enough annual bonus points and credits to recoup the card’s annual fee without relying on your rewards.

Best cards to pair with this card

Since the Marriott Bonvoy rewards program doesn’t offer any particular advantage from pairing it with a Chase Ultimate Rewards card, you don’t need to stay within Chase’s card portfolio when picking a partner card. Co-branded hotel cards also may not be the best primary rewards card since their perks and rewards scope are often limited to your hotel brand. Instead, finding a card that rewards your biggest expenses other than Marriott stays, groceries and dining might get you the most bang for your buck.

If you’re considering the Bonvoy Bountiful over the Bonvoy Bevy because you prefer Chase credit cards, the Chase Sapphire Preferred can handsomely reward all your other travel, select streaming services plus dining and online grocery purchases (outside Walmart, Target and wholesale clubs) if you aren’t leaning on your 4X Bountiful card categories. Although Chase Ultimate Rewards points are some of the most valuable and flexible rewards on the market, Marriott is a Chase transfer partner so you can conveniently shift your points to your Bonvoy account if you feel a need to do so.

If you’re looking for a simpler card to cover all your other purchases, a flat-rate rewards card like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card can streamline your rewards experience and give you more flexibility if your rewards need to cover airlines or accommodations outside Marriott and its partners. The Hotels.com® Rewards Visa® Credit Card* is also another versatile option if you want to earn hotel rewards on all your spending toward a range of other properties — including small-scale stays like bed and breakfasts.

The Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful is a brand-specific hotel rewards card with specialized perks and a hefty annual fee, so this card is only worth it for regular Marriott guests who can’t justify the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card’s price tag. The Bountiful card’s 1,000 bonus points on each stay may also make it more rewarding than the Brilliant card if you often book average-to-low-cost rooms for one night during your travels.

However, the only features that offer enough value to make up for the Bountiful card’s $250 annual fee are its Gold Elite status-boosted points on Marriott purchases and Free Night Award. That means the right cardholder should be able to spend at least $15,000 in purchases every year. If you’re an average spender, though, the Bonvoy Bountiful may only be worth it if you use it as your primary credit card and don’t mind your rewards being tied to Marriott. Ultimately, its narrow perk pool and inflated rewards mean that a premium, general-purpose travel card (or two) is probably a more valuable investment.

*The information about the Hotels.com Rewards Visa Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card has been collected independently by Bankrate.com. The card details have not been reviewed or approved by the card issuer.