American Express Marriott Bonvoy Bevy
American Express · American Express · $250 annual fee · earns Marriott Bonvoy, valued at 0.73¢ a point.
Rates checked against the issuer 2026-10. Foreign transaction fee: none.
The short version
- Best at: nothing in particular — no category puts it in the top three of the catalogue.
- A year's rewards: about $526, or $276 after the fee.
Is the annual fee worth it?
It earns about $526 a year on the illustrative household's spending, which is $276 once the fee is paid. The best card with no fee, American Express Blue Business Plus, nets $1,058 on the same spending — so this card is $782 a year behind. On earning alone it does not catch up at any level of spending this looks at — its credits and perks have to make up the difference, or the fee is not paying for itself.
Priced on an illustrative household spending $2,205 a month on a card — the assumption, in full. Credits and perks are not priced: they are worth their face value only if you would have spent that money anyway.
What it earns, category by category
| Earns on | Rate | ConditionsWhat the issuer attaches to this rate: a spending cap, a category you have to switch on, or a booking you have to make through its travel portal. |
|---|---|---|
| Hotels | 6x | Marriott only · Hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy |
| Restaurants & Bars, Food Delivery, Groceries | 4x | Up to $15,000 per year, then the base rate · Restaurants worldwide (takeout and delivery in the US) and US supermarkets, first $15,000 combined each calendar year |
| Everything else | 2x |
Where a year's rewards come from
| Spending on | Earns a yearWhat this card earns on each kind of spending over a year, for the illustrative household on the method page. Before the annual fee. |
|---|---|
| Groceries | $175 |
| Restaurants & Bars | $105 |
| Everything Else | $88 |
| Gas Stations | $26 |
| Online Shopping | $26 |
| Utilities | $26 |
Priced on an illustrative household spending $2,205 a month on a card — the assumption, in full. Credits and perks are not priced: they are worth their face value only if you would have spent that money anyway.
Protections and travel benefits
From the issuer's own benefit summary as of 2026-10. These are read from summaries rather than the full guide to benefits, which has the exclusions — check it before relying on one.
- Rental car — secondary cover
- Purchase protection — up to $10,000 per claim · 90 days
- Extended warranty
- Trip delay — up to $300 per claim
- Baggage — up to $1,250 per claim
- Free night award
- Hotel elite status
What the issuer lists besides rewards
- Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status
- 15 Elite Night Credits each calendar year
- A free night award, up to 50,000 points, after $15,000 of purchases in a calendar year
- No foreign transaction fees
- Trip delay insurance up to $300 per trip when a round trip is delayed more than 12 hours
- Baggage insurance up to $1,250 for carry-on and $500 for checked bags
- Secondary car rental loss and damage coverage
- Purchase protection up to $10,000 per purchase for 90 days after you buy
- Extended warranty adds up to a year to manufacturer warranties of five years or less
Similar cards
- Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful — annual fee $250 a year
- American Express Hilton Honors Surpass — annual fee $150 a year
- Chase IHG One Rewards Premier — annual fee $99 a year
- Chase Bonvoy Boundless — annual fee $95 a year
- Every hotel card, ranked
- When an annual fee pays for itself
- The best two- and three-card combinations
Point values: published industry valuations, read 2026-09. How every number here is worked out.