Is the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex worth the annual fee?

When a credit card’s annual fee is over $600, many people raise an eyebrow and question whether its benefits make that fee worth paying.

That’s certainly the case with the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card — the most premium card in the Marriott credit card family. This card has a suite of impressive benefits, but also an eye-catching $650 annual fee (see rates and fees).

The truth is, cobranded hotel cards usually aren’t the best for maximizing your spending beyond purchases with a given hotel chain. But when a credit card offers a free night award each year and elite status that can provide suite upgrades and complimentary breakfast, people pay attention.

The Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card proves that it’s possible to get significant value from at least one premium hotel card. Let’s break down whether the same holds true for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant.

The information for the Hilton Aspire Amex 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.

Welcome bonus

Let’s start with the introductory bonus offer to examine whether the card is worth it.

With the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex, for a limited time, you can earn 185,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after spending $6,000 in the first six months of cardmembership. This offer ends on May 14.

TPG’s March 2025 valuations peg Marriott points at 0.7 cents apiece, meaning this bonus is worth $1,295.

Some of the best uses of Marriott Bonvoy points include free nights at properties such as The Ritz-Carlton, Turks & Caicos, The West Hollywood Edition and the London Marriott Hotel Park Lane. Those who enjoy winter sports may love ski-adjacent options at The St. Regis Aspen Resort, The St. Regis Deer Valley or The Ritz-Carlton, Bachelor Gulch.

Remember that American Express has restrictions limiting your ability to collect a new welcome bonus if you’ve had other Marriott products before. Fortunately, a pop-up will tell you if you are not eligible for the bonus when you apply before Amex runs your credit — and our chart can help clarify things as well.

Annual free night award

Each year after your card renewal month, you’ll receive a free night award worth up to 85,000 points (certain hotels have resort fees; additional terms apply).

In case you need some inspiration for what that can get you, this can include the luxurious St. Regis New York and St. Regis Deer Valley in the U.S., The Ritz-Carlton, Turks & Caicos for a Caribbean getaway or The Ritz-Carlton, Kyoto in Japan.

That said, due to Marriott’s dynamic pricing model, you’ll want to do a calendar search for flexible dates to find nights that cost 85,000 points or less.

The annual free night award has significant value, but it’s also worth pointing out that you can only use this award to stay for a single night. This could be challenging if you have plans to stay two nights or longer.

You can also top up these awards with up to 15,000 points from your Bonvoy points balance.

If you maximize this award night and stay at a property costing 85,000 points, you have three less-than-ideal options for subsequent nights:

• Pay 85,000 points per night from your Marriott balance
• Pay the cash fee (which can be quite high)
• Move to a different hotel

For this reason, people have differing opinions on the value of free night awards that are worth a single night at a luxury property.

Related: 8 places to maximize an 85,000-point Marriott award night certificate

Annual dining credits

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex cardmembers receive up to $300 each calendar year in statement credits for dining purchases. This benefit is doled out in up to $25 monthly increments. Enrollment is required; terms apply.

This credit can be slightly complicated to use, as you must remember to use this benefit each month. We recommend setting a reminder on your phone or using a spreadsheet to track your card benefits.

That said, just about everyone spends at least $25 per month at restaurants, so as long as you remember to use the credits each month, this can help to offset nearly half of the card’s $650 annual fee.

Another small bonus? Credits tend to post to your account fairly quickly.

Related: How to use Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant’s $25 monthly dining credit

Elite status and related perks

The card offers automatic Marriott Platinum Elite status, which is one of the best sweet spot hotel elite statuses, and the level where valuable perks start to kick in. Terms apply.

Platinum Elite members are eligible for 4 p.m. late checkout and early check-in, when available, plus room upgrades based on availability at arrival — including eligibility for upgrades to suites. At the Platinum Elite level, you also have access to welcome gifts at check-in and free breakfast at select properties.

Unfortunately, you are not entitled to a Choice Benefit (the most valuable of which are five Suite Night Awards) just by having this card. You can, however, get an Earned Choice Award by spending $60,000 on your card in a calendar year or, alternatively, by reaching 50 elite night credits.

You’ll automatically get 25 credits by having your card, so you must stay just 25 additional nights to qualify for the Choice Benefit. Terms apply.

Note that you can only earn one set of elite night credits from personal Marriott cards, regardless of how many you have. However, this benefit can stack with the 15 elite night credits given to cardmembers of a Marriott business card — like the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (terms apply).

If you have both the Bonvoy Brilliant and the Bonvoy Business cards, you’ll have 40 elite night credits, so you’ll only need to stay 10 qualifying nights to get the Choice benefit.

TPG senior director of content Summer Hull says, “This card is an absolute no-brainer for those who stay at full-service Marriott brands multiple times a year, but not quite enough to naturally earn the Marriott Platinum Elite status that unlocks perks like free breakfast, club access and suite upgrades. I’ve got the card so that I can enjoy hundreds of dollars in annual status perks plus the annual 85,000-point award certificate that saves me hundreds of dollars on a night at higher-end Marriott hotels and resorts.”

If you’re shooting for Titanium Elite status, you’ll need 75 qualifying elite night credits. The 40 elite credits you’d get from holding both the Brilliant and the Business cards will get you over halfway there.

Related: Your complete guide to earning Marriott elite status with credit cards

Other perks

Other built-in perks of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant card include a Priority Pass Select membership, which gives you and two guests unlimited access to more than 1,700 airport lounges worldwide, as well as an application fee credit for Global Entry ($120 every four years for Global Entry; up to $85 every 4½ years for TSA PreCheck). Enrollment is required for select benefits; terms apply.

It is important to note that the Priority Pass membership does not include non-lounge visits to restaurants.

The Priority Pass membership is not a massive value-add if you already receive the benefit through other cards. However, if you already have Global Entry or TSA PreCheck because you received a statement credit for the application fee with another credit card, you can use this credit to cover a friend’s or family member’s application fee.

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex’s earning structure is similar to the other Marriott cards. Cardmembers earn 6 points per dollar on eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy program, 3 points per dollar at restaurants worldwide and on flights booked directly with airlines and 2 points per dollar on other eligible purchases.

Based on TPG’s March 2025 valuations, that’s essentially a 4.2% return on Marriott purchases, 2.1% on flights booked directly with airlines and restaurants worldwide and 0.7% on everyday spending. Those rates aren’t earth-shattering but aren’t bad for a cobranded card.

The Bonvoy Brilliant also comes with up to $100 in property credits when you book the “Luxury Credit Card Rate” for at least two nights at a participating St. Regis or Ritz-Carlton hotel. This credit can be used at the hotel on spa services, dining and non third party hotel recreational activities.

Related: Earn bonus Marriott points on your Uber rides and food delivery orders

Bottom line

While it might not be the best card for everyday spending, there’s plenty of value in the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant if you frequently stay at Marriott properties and place value in the elite perks the card offers. In fact, it may be a no-brainer for the program’s most loyal guests.

Depending on how you value these benefits, you could love the status, up to $300 in dining credits each calendar year and a valuable free night award. Still, you may also think the annual fee is too steep because you don’t see yourself maximizing said benefits.

Be sure to calculate the value you’ll get from the card before deciding whether you should add it to your wallet.

To learn more, read our full review of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant.

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Apply here: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card

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For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Amex, click here.