Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® Review

Overview

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® is a category rewards card from American Express, running on the Amex network. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® earns up to 3x on dining and travel, so it pays you the most exactly where you already spend. It carries a $650 annual fee, so the real question is whether its rewards, credits, and perks clear that bar for the way you spend. New cardholders can earn 200,000 Marriott Bonvoy Bonus Points after $6,000 in 6 months.

It sits at the premium end of the market, trading a steep annual fee for lounge access, statement credits, and travel protections. That makes the decision less about the rewards rate and more about whether you will use the perks enough to come out ahead.

Our 4.0 out of 5 rating

Each score weighs the rewards rate, value after the annual fee, welcome offer, points flexibility, and perks, with every point valued at a flat 1 cent. This is our editorial assessment to help you compare cards, not a guarantee of approval or of the value you will get.

Rewards: how it earns

Where the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® earns its rewards is its bonus categories: 3x on dining (about $90 a year on the $3,000 a typical household spends there) and 3x on travel (about $54 a year on the $1,800 a typical household spends there). Across a full year of average household spending, the card returns roughly $544 in rewards before any welcome bonus, so the more your spending overlaps those categories, the better it does.

Brand and bonus rates: beyond the everyday categories above, this card also earns:

• 6x Marriott Bonvoy points at Marriott portfolio hotels

Every point and mile above is valued at a flat 1 cent, the same honest standard we use for every card. Run your own spending through the calculator to see what this card would actually return for you.

Pros and cons

The welcome bonus

The current welcome offer is 200,000 Marriott Bonvoy Bonus Points, earned after you spend $6,000 in 6 months. Valued honestly at a flat 1 cent per point, that is worth about $1,500. The spending requirement works out to roughly $1,000 per month, so make sure it fits your normal budget rather than pushing you to overspend. Stacking the welcome offer on top of a typical year of rewards and accounting for the $650 annual fee, the first year is worth roughly $1,394.

Is the annual fee worth it?

To come out ahead on the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® you need to clear its $650 annual fee. On typical spending it earns about $544 a year in rewards, and it carries up to $335 in statement credits. For the right spender it covers the fee, but it is worth running the math on your own categories first.

Benefits and protections

Beyond the rewards, the perks and protections worth knowing about include:

• $300 Marriott Bonvoy statement credit annually (up to $25/month)
• Free Night Award each anniversary (up to 85,000 points)
• Automatic Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite Status
• Priority Pass Select lounge access (10 free visits/yr, then $35/visit)
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit
• No foreign transaction fees
• Trip delay insurance and baggage insurance plan

Statement credits

• $300 Marriott Bonvoy statement credit annually
• Free Night Award each anniversary (up to 85,000 pts)
• Priority Pass Select lounge access (10 free visits/yr, then $35/visit)
• Global Entry or TSA PreCheck fee credit

Who should get it, and who should skip it

It is best for regular guests of this hotel brand who will use the free anniversary night and elite status to more than cover the annual fee.

Skip it if you will not use the lounge access and annual credits, or if you would rather not float a high fee and chase reimbursements every year.

Frequently asked questions