Points of View: Which credit card should you use for Marriott stays?

If you have an upcoming stay at a Marriott hotel or a resort that participates in the Marriott Bonvoy program, what's the best credit card to use for this stay? Should you use a Marriott cobranded credit card, or is another credit card the best for your stay?

Here's a look at some popular credit cards you might use to pay for your next stay at a Marriott hotel and what these cards can offer you in terms of return on spending and perks during your stay.

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Comparing credit cards for a Marriott hotel stay

Aside from using a Marriott cobranded credit card, you might also consider using a good travel rewards card that earns transferable points. Let's look at some common options and what you could get when using these cards.

* Bonus value is an estimated value calculated by TPG and not the card issuer.

The information for the Amex Green 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.

Which card should you use?

There are two separate parts of this conversation: the benefits you enjoy during your stay and the points you earn on the card when paying for your stay.

For the first part, it's relatively simple. Your elite status perks will apply regardless of whether you use a specific card for your stay. As an example, you don't actually need to pay with the Bonvoy Brilliant card in order to enjoy your Gold Elite status benefits during your next Marriott stay.

(The one exception is booking a paid Marriott stay using the Sapphire Reserve through the Chase travel portal. This will generally count as a third-party booking, so while you'll earn 10 Ultimate Rewards points per dollar spent on the purchase, you'll likely forgo any perks of Marriott elite status.)

When it comes to earning points from spending money at Marriott Bonvoy properties, using your Marriott cobranded credit card may not be your best bet. That's because some cards that earn transferable points can provide a better rate of return on spending for your hotel stays. Additionally, you'll be able to use these points for more than just upcoming hotel stays.

When earning points with American Express Membership Rewards or Chase Ultimate Rewards, you could transfer these to Marriott Bonvoy if you want to use them for a hotel redemption, but you also have the ability to redeem these points in other ways, such as for flights or cruises. If you pay with a Marriott cobranded card, you will earn Marriott Bonvoy points, which have fewer redemption options.

The one caveat to this is if you're working on spending your way toward higher levels of Marriott Bonvoy status. While you could earn Platinum Elite status by spending $75,000 in a year on your Bonvoy Brilliant card, you could likely achieve Platinum Elite status without spending so much money on a hotel credit card. It's likely cheaper to achieve Marriott Bonvoy status by staying at inexpensive properties and by holding both a personal and a small-business Marriott credit card.

Bottom line

Which credit card you should use for an upcoming trip might not have the answer you expected at the start. Often, using a credit card with the name of the hotel or airline on it isn't your best card for that purchase. That's because you may be able to earn more valuable (or a greater number of) rewards using a different card.

Luckily, paying with a credit card not attached to the Marriott Bonvoy program doesn't mean you'll sacrifice your Marriott elite status benefits. Because of that, you should pay with whichever card in your wallet will earn the most valuable rewards.

Editor’s note: “Points of View” is a new series evaluating decisions on which credit card to use. If you’re facing a dilemma about which card is best for an upcoming payment, email us at tips@thepointsguy.com.

Also in this series:

• Points of View: Can I cash out my points, and is it worth it?
• Points of View: Should my partner get their own card or be added as an authorized user?
• Points of View: Which card should I use for flights in case things go wrong?
• Points of View: Does paying the taxes and fees on award flights trigger trip protections?

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