AwardWallet receives compensation from advertising partners for links on the blog. Terms Apply to the offers listed on this page. Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits. The opinions expressed here are our own and have not been reviewed, provided, or approved by any bank advertiser. Here's our complete list of Advertisers.
Offers for the Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card, The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card, Marriott Bonvoy® Premier Plus Business Credit Card, Marriott Bonvoy Premier Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card are not available through this site. Some offers may have expired. Please see our card marketplace for available offers
Marriott points are among the most valuable points currencies, offering the flexibility to redeem for hotel stays or transfer to a wide range of airline partners. However, if you’ve accumulated a substantial balance, you might wonder: Do Marriott points expire?
While Marriott's policy is relatively generous among loyalty program expiration policies, you still need to ensure your account remains active to protect your Marriott Bonvoy points. Here's what you need to know about Marriott's expiration policy.
When Do Marriott Points Expire?
Marriott points expire after 24 months of inactivity in your Marriott Bonvoy account. Per the Marriott terms and conditions page (section 1.6.d):
“Members must remain active in the Loyalty Program to retain Points they accumulate. If a Member Account is inactive for twenty-four (24) consecutive months, that Member Account will forfeit all accumulated Points.”
Unfortunately, once your Marriott points expire, they cannot be reinstated. So, it's crucial to maintain qualifying activity to avoid expiration in the first place.
Track your points and miles expiration for 630+ loyalty programs and get email alerts before your miles expire by signing up for a free AwardWallet account.
How to Keep Your Marriott Points from Expiring
The good news? Marriott offers plenty of ways to keep your points active. Here are some qualifying activities:
- Stay at a Marriott Bonvoy property with an eligible rate. See how many points you'll earn on Marriott stays
- Link your Marriott and Uber accounts, and then use Uber or Uber Eats. Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits.
- Dine out with Marriott Eat Around Town
- Redeem Marriott points for a stay
- Transfer your points to any of the Marriott Bonvoy transfer partners
- Rent a car with Hertz and provide your Marriott Bonvoy account number
- Book and take a cruise through Cruise with Points
- Buy Marriott points
- Host a qualifying meeting or event, including earning points through the Rewarding Events program.
As you can see, you can earn Marriott points without staying at a hotel. But one of the simplest ways to keep your account active is by earning Marriott points with a credit card, including:
| Card Name | Welcome Offer | Key Benefits | Annual Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card | Earn 60,000 bonus points + 1 Free Night Award after spending $2,000 on eligible purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. Free Night Award valued up to 50,000 points. Certain hotels have resort fees. | • 3x on Marriott spend • 2x on other travel purchases (from airfare to taxis and trains) • 1x on all other eligible purchases • Silver Elite status • 5 elite night credits per calendar year • No foreign transaction fees | $0 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card | Earn five bonus Free Night Awards after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of Card Membership. Redemption level up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points for each bonus Free Night Award, at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy®. Certain hotels have resort fees. | • 6x on Marriott spend • 3x on gas stations, grocery stores, and dining (up to $6,000 in combined purchases each year) • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 35,000 points • Silver Elite status • Path to Gold Elite status when you spend $35,000 on the card in an account year • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • 1 elite night credit for every $5,000 you spend | $95 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card | Earn up to 135,000 Marriott Bonvoy® bonus points. Earn 85,000 points after you spend $5,000 and an extra 50,000 points after you spend an additional $2,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. | • 6x on Marriott spend • 4x at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets (up to $15,000 in combined purchases per year) • 2x on all other eligible purchases • 1,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points with each qualifying paid stay • Gold Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • Free night award up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in value after making $15,000 in purchases per year | $250 - Rates & Fees |
| Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card | Earn 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after you spend $4,000 in eligible purchases on their Card in the first three months. | • 6x on Marriott spend • 4x on grocery stores and dining (up to $15,000 in combined purchases per year) • 2x on all other eligible purchases • 1,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points with each qualifying paid stay • Gold Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • Free night award up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy points in value after making $15,000 in purchases per year | $250 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card | Earn 3 Free Night Awards after you use your new Card to make $6,000 in eligible purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership. | • 6x on Marriott spend • 4x at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers, and on U.S. purchases for shipping • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 35,000 points • Gold Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year | $125 - Rates & Fees |
| Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card | Earn up to 150,000 Marriott Bonvoy® bonus points. Earn 100,000 points after you spend $6,000 and an extra 50,000 points after you spend an additional $2,000 in purchases on the Card within your first 6 months of Card Membership. | • 6x on Marriott spend • 3x at restaurants worldwide and on flights booked directly with airlines • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 85,000 points • Platinum Elite status • $300 dining credit each calendar year (up to $25 per month) for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide • Priority Pass Select membership • Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit every four years • 25 elite night credits per calendar year • Enrollment is required for select Amex benefits. | $650 - Rates & Fees |
| Marriott Bonvoy® Premier Plus Business Credit Card | No longer accepting applications | • 6x on Marriott spend • 4x at restaurants, gas stations, shipping, internet, cable and phone service purchases • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 35,000 points • Gold Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year | $99 |
| Marriott Bonvoy™ American Express® Card | No longer accepting applications | • 6x on Marriott spend • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 35,000 points • Silver Elite status • Path to Gold Elite status when you spend $35,000 on the card in an account year • 15 elite night credits per calendar year | $95 |
| The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card | No longer accepting applications | • 6x on Marriott spend • 3x at restaurants, rental car agencies, and on flights booked directly with the airline • 2x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 85,000 points • Gold Elite status • Path to Platinum Elite status when you spend $75,000 on the card in an account year • $300 annual travel credit for airline incidental purchases • Priority Pass Select membership • Three annual club level upgrades on paid stays up to seven nights • Global Entry/TSA PreCheck credit every four years • 15 elite night credits per calendar year | $450 |
| Marriott Bonvoy® Premier Credit Card | No longer accepting applications | • 5x on Marriott spend • 2x restaurants, car rental agencies, and airfare purchased directly from the airline • 1x on all other eligible purchases • Anniversary free night award valid at any property up to 25,000 points • Silver Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • 1 elite night credit per $3,000 spent in purchases | $85 |
| Marriott Bonvoy® Credit Card | No longer accepting applications | • 3x on Marriott spend • 1x on all other eligible purchases • Free night award valid at any property up to 20,000 points after you spend $25,000 on purchases each year • Silver Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • 1 elite night credit per $3,000 spent in purchases | $45 |
| Marriott Bonvoy Business® Credit Card | No longer accepting applications | • 3x on Marriott spend • 1x on all other eligible purchases • Silver Elite status • 15 elite night credits per calendar year • 1 elite night credit per $3,000 spent in purchases | $45 |
Related: Best Marriott Points Redemptions for Luxury Stays
Activities That Don't Extend Your Points Validity
Not every activity will keep your points from expiring. According to the Marriott Bonvoy terms and conditions page, here are some (but not all) activities that won't extend the expiration date for your points:
- Gifting or transferring Marriott points to another account
- Receiving points as a gift or a transfer. However, Marriott explicitly states that “converting points to miles or miles to points counts toward maintaining active status.”
- Earning points through social media programs or promotions
- Registering for a Marriott promotion
When it comes to keeping your points active, ensure you choose an activity that qualifies you to avoid any unpleasant surprises.
Related: Marriott Bonvoy Redemptions For The Budget-Savvy Traveler
Use AwardWallet to Track Your Marriott Points Expiration
While 24 months might feel like ample time, it’s easy to lose track. That’s where AwardWallet comes in.
After linking your Marriott Bonvoy account to your AwardWallet account, you’ll receive email reminders before your points expire. This ensures you can take action — whether by earning or redeeming points — before it’s too late.
Related: How to Track Your Rewards Using AwardWallet
Our Take
Marriott Bonvoy points are one of the most flexible points currencies, with a vast range of airline transfer partners and the ability to redeem your points for Marriott stays.
Although Marriott points expire after 24 months of inactivity, there are plenty of ways to keep your account active. With the variety of earning and redeeming opportunities, plus tools like AwardWallet to monitor your account, you have no reason to let your Marriott points expire.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), and Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees)
The comments on this page are not provided, reviewed, or otherwise approved by the bank advertiser. It is not the bank advertiser's responsibility to ensure all posts and/or questions are answered.
I bought 1000 points and my miles are still showing in my Marriott account that they are expiring!! Does this no longer count now either/??
Hi Jeremy, here are the terms:
1.6.d. Points Expiration Policy. Members must remain active in the Loyalty Program to retain Points they accumulate. If a Member Account is inactive for twenty-four (24) consecutive months, that Member Account will forfeit all accumulated Points. Members can remain active in the Loyalty Program and retain accumulated Points by earning Points or Miles, redeeming Points, or purchasing Points (as described in 2.9) in the Loyalty Program at least once every twenty-four (24) months, all subject to the exceptions described below.
—
section 29.9 only talks about who is eligible to purchase points, points don’t count toward status, etc. Thus, it has no impact on the previous part, which means points purchases should count. I’d recommend calling Marriott and pointing to section 1.6.d saying that purchasing points is supposed to keep your account active/avoid expiry.
@euromannn
I wonder why Awardwallet shows my Bonvoy points as expiring even though I am Gold through Amex Plat
Do you have any Free Night Awards or upgrade certificates in your account? It’s possible AwardWallet is picking up the expiration of those certificates.
Get AMEX PLAT—makes GOLD status once GOLD no expiration.
I hadn’t used my account before but bought 10,000 points in the last couple of weeks. You are now telling me they expire in a couple of days?? That can’t be right…
It’s possible that you have some certificate or upgrade expiring at 12/31/2022. AwardWallet checks for the first expiration date listed in your Marriott Bonvoy profile.
A points stay is listed in neither category. Does explicitly stating “paid stay” imply a points stay does not keep points from expiring?
That was a big oversight on our end. Redeeming points for a points stay should count. Per the Marriott T&C: “Members can remain active in the Loyalty Program and retain accumulated Points by earning Points or Miles, redeeming Points, or purchasing Points (as described in 2.9) in the Loyalty Program at least once every twenty-four (24) months, subject to the exceptions described below.”
I’ve updated the post to reflect this.
My points are set to expire dec 31. I have booked a Marriot Hotel stay for January 10th…will my points be saved or do I have to actually complete the stay before Dec 31?
Unfortunately that stay won’t save your points. Thankfully you’ve got time and options to save your points. The easiest would be to transfer 3,000 Bonvoy points to 1,000 airline miles in the airline program you like the most. Or you can try to earn points through Uber, Uber Eats, or Marriott’s Eat Around Town (https://awardwallet.com/blog/marriott-eat-around-town-promotion/)
Unfortunately that stay won’t save your points. Thankfully you’ve got time and options to save your points. The easiest would be to transfer 3,000 Bonvoy points to 1,000 airline miles in the airline program you like the most. Or you can try to earn points through Uber, Uber Eats, or Marriott’s Eat Around Town (https://awardwallet.com/blog/marriott-eat-around-town-promotion/)
I think points don´t expire if you have lifetime guest status
Es una lastima que se venzan los puntos. Ultimamente no hemos podido viajar por esta pandemia, y eso deberia tenerse en cuenta ya que supongo que estamos todos los viajeros en las mismas condiciones.
If you have a Lifetime Titanium Elite status, does that not keep your points from expirong?
Uber or Uber Eats will be my choice
Thanks a lot!!!
To get points with Uber, it has to be the more expensive Uber XL, Comfort, SUV, or Black rides, not the regular rides unfortunately.
I miss the Twitter program Marriott used to have pre-Bonvoy, for earning points.
We might get anther expiration extension soon.
The Uber Eats link is the best way to keep the points active.
Does having a Marriott Bonvoy AMEX card keep points from expiring even if there is no activity on the card?
I believe you still need to generate activity with Marriott.
I think points don’t expire if you have Lifetime Elite status.
According to what I read in the T&C, points don’t expire when you hold lifetime elite status. However, they also have language in the contract that seems to say that they have a right to close your account. I’m assuming this would be for running afoul of the rules. Here it is from the Marriott T&C pages:
iii. Lifetime Elite Status only provides a Member with Silver Elite, Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, or Titanium Elite status and protection against the forfeiture of Points even if the Lifetime Elite Member is inactive. It does not prevent the Company from suspending Lifetime Elite Status or cancelling a Member’s Account. Lifetime Elite Members will receive the benefits of Silver Elite, Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, or Titanium Elite Members, which are subject to change from time to time as described in section 4.1.
Award Wallet has been a lifesaver! Before, kept track of everything in a spreadsheet….and that was just the points…but AwardWallet alerts me when points are going to expire!! a great feature.
If I purchase Bonvoy points but have my preference set to miles, am I purchasing miles or points? If they are miles, do they reset the expiry date of my Bonvoy points or do I need to switch my preference back to points for this purchase in order to reset the points expiry date?
Thanks in advance for any insight!
I transferred 1,000 UR points and I was able to stay active
Does transferring points from Hertz to Marriott extend the life of the Marriott points?
It ‘should’ as you are converting points from a partner to Marriott points, but the language in the T&Cs specifically mentions converting miles to points or points to miles as a way of preventing your miles expiring, not converting points to points. It’s worth noting that transfers can take up to 8 weeks. If you do transfer, please let us know if it resets your expiry and I’ll get the post updated.
I have successfully transferred 600 Hertz points to 1000 Marriott points and the transfer has reset my Marriott points expiry.
Thanks to the Award Wallet blog, I have been able to clear out some old accounts (Hertz, Hyatt, Hilton) with a handful of points and updated the expiry dates of accounts that I want to keep.
Is this still accurate ?
Yes, post is up to date.
I spoke to the manager of our local Hyatt hotel. She says that drinks and food in the bar will earn points irrespective of if you are resident at the hotel. I’m going to Happy Hour in the bar to find out.
Hey, just wondering if this worked? My points expire in March and I don’t have any hotel stays booked.
I purchased 1,000 Marriott Points for $12.50 but it did not extend the expiration. Did they change this? Thanks
Not according to the terms. I would suggest reaching out to Marriott if you’re seeing an inconsistency.
Same thing is happening to me. I’m going to try and reach out to Marriott
Hi dear, can I know did you get your points extended by puchasing points? How do you get your issue resolved?
Mine is expiring in Feb2020?
Award wallet is showing my Marriott points expiring in January. I have both SPG cards. I have not combined my accounts yet. Am I correct, that if I don’t combine the accounts then, these points will expire or spending on my SPG cards enough though accounts not combined?
Pat, please reach out to support directly at https://awardwallet.com/contact with questions about your account. Unfortunately, I can’t see what may/may not be going on in your account. As for combining your accounts, I see no reason to hold off doing that.
Can you confirm that Amex SPG spend will extend my Marriott point expiration? My AwardWallet desktop shows my Marriott points expiring in 9 months even though the balance goes up from Amex spending. I’ve reached out to Marriott a couple times about this, but haven’t heard back.
Yes, this will extend it. Please reach out to support awardwallet.com/contact if you’re seeing a bug with how expiration is being reported.
Hey there! Just to get it correct: If i book a room with my Points…and cancel it a day later – will i get my Points back AND my expiration date reset?
Thanks, is an urgent question, my points are about to expire in 3 days…
As I understand the rules, no. You actually have to complete the stay. I’d buy the points to guarantee extension.
So just to be clear, with the combined program, assuming one has now combined their points, if one had recently, e.g., August 10, received SPG points by a transfer from another SPG member or a transfer from their own Marriott account, that recent activity in SPG, done under the SPG rules for what counts as points activity, becomes your most recent activity for purposes of the combined Marriott program going forward (but of course after this, the Marriott rules apply to the expiration of points). This is important to folks with no qualifying stays. Thanks.
I got to know my earned Marriott points was expired after 10 days since it was expired. I know that I had to remember it and had to use the points in advance. But actually I was naturally expecting Maririott to send notification e-mail(s) earlier than expiry.
Discussing with Marriott, Marriott also explicitly mentioned that “MarriottRewards send notice by e-mail to all members at 90,60 and 30 days prior to the expiration date displayed on member’s account”. But what I had received were just e-mail for booking cancel and some advertisement from SPF without the notification e-mails. How only the expiry related e-mails can be missing selectively?
I asked to provide the 3 e-mails which they had sent to me. But long story short, they are just provides the following description from http://www.marriott.com/rewards/terms/default.mi not showing the proof for the notification e-mails.
>> 5. The company … have the right to change, limit, modify or cancel the Rewards Program Rules, Rewards and level at any time, with or without notice, even though such changes may affect the value of Points or Miles …
As Marriott explicitly mentioned to send the notification e-mails and others using “AND” condition, I think it is Marriott’s duty to send the expiry related e-mails for the expiry to be effected. But Marriott has been repeating that expired points can’t be reinstated with above reason.
I don’t think I’m wrong here but I’d like to hear how other people think of this. personally I see their answer is contradiction and I belive they didn’t send the e-mails.
Thanks for the post. I didn’t know it’s got expiration. I love Marriott because one can get lounge access as a gold member even if I reserve their cheapest room .
Marriott has been an okay program for me. Let’s help there are more improvements with the SPG merger.
Thanks for information. I have Marriott points but never used.
What constitute a qualifying activity?
Please read the post. 😉
Good to know. We just got the Chase Marriott Rewards card- so, we’re getting in the game with these points! I really appreciated the comments too. Thanks to all who posted.
I assume buying a coffee at one of their shops and adding your Marriott number would qualify even if you’re not staying with them? I know it works for Hyatt, but not sure if Marriott lets you do this. If so, it’s probably yet another way of keeping points alive.
No, not currently. SPG does, but as of now Marriott does not.
Don’t forget Gold status on United will give you Gold Marriott status (executive lounge access)
Seems like if you keep using the SPG Amex for example, they don’t expire because every month you earn them.
Thank you for the reminder. It’s always nice to be reminded when things expire! Sometimes my mind is not always registering all the different dates and to do items I have. I love that Marriott has so many ways to be able to extend the life of my points. Plus, 24 mons?! That’s sweet! So many companies have 12mons or 18 mons. Wish they all wouldn’t have an expiration, but well I understand why.
Have a question though…do a lot of people have credit cards for their different awards programs? I would have a horribly full wallet if I did that.
I would think yes — the key though isn’t earning points/miles in programs directly, but rather to give you flexibility by earning points that allow you to transfer to multiple different programs: Chase Ultimate Rewards, Amex Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Points and SPG Points are the best ones out there.
Thanks for the reminder that gifting points doesn’t count.
Marriott run regular FB & twitter point promos so I use this route to extend the life of the balance.
Honestly 24 months is a gift for expiration. Most program points expire in 12-24 months.
Twitter and Instagram as well!
That’s a great way to do it. I also opt for airline miles. I don’t stay in hotels much so would take a long time to accumulate points for a stay.
Can I have both the regular Marriott card AND the business card at the same time? I have had the non-business one for years not but I’m thinking of applying for the business one as well for the 80K bonus and to keep personal and business travel separate.
Thanks!
C
Absolutely. Yes you can have both.
Thanks for this – a good reminder! Just to be clear, transferring SPG to Marriott does not count as activity for these purposes?
Based on what has been seen, transferring from SPG seems to be a qualifying activity with SPG — e.g. showing activity which is what is required to keep an SPG account active, however it does not extend the life of a Marriott account. I think this may purely be a tech glitch/limitation as the intent is clearly not to do this.
Big fan of Marriott points. Especially because they could be transferred to SPG now so its really valuable. I actually just burned my entire Marriott balance on an 8 day trip to Europe.
I have elected to have the Marriott Rewards credit card to keep my points active and to receive a free night once a year.
Transfer from SPG was marked as a qualifying activity for me. And some of the #MRPoints activity too.
Luckily, some of the twitter promos qualify for activity.
Looks like I need to be following them on twitter
I’ve used the point purchase before to keep these active. For 12.50 for 1k points, its an easy and cheap way to do it.
What about the transfer of points from SPG?
If I’m not wrong this doesn’t delay the expiration but in the other way it does.
Can you confirm?
Correct. It appears to be a “bug” for our benefit. Where SPG activity is generated but it doesn’t count with Marriott for expiration extension.
So we can just transfer back and forth to keep points alive? since they don’t lose any value when transferring.
A transfer from SPG to Marriott appears to extend the life of SPG. However, Marriott to SPG doesn’t appear to extend the life of Marriott.
Expiry of Marriott points is not affected by transfers to/from SPG. It is not a qualifying activity. Several people have briefly lost their points when doing transfers from SPG into an inactive account.
Howie, do you know the required minimum marriott rewards before they will transfer to aadvantage points?
10,000 Marriott Rewards to 2,000 AAdvantage Miles (http://www.marriott.com/rewards/usepoints/morerew.mi)
What happens if I cancel a reservation I made using points, and the expiry date of my account is somewhere in between the reservation date and the cancellation date?
Does it result in expiry of points?
I don’t think this is a possible scenario as points expire 24 months after no activity, redemption is considered an activity, and you cannot make reservations with Marriott more than a year in advance.
I really appreciate your listing of the ways to keep points alive.
Made a purchase through Marriott’s shopping portal just the other day to keep my points alive!
Thanks, I didn’t know that Marriott have a shopping portal I must check it out.
I don’t stay that often in Marriott and have had points expire, but luckily only a couple of thousand. When I do stay in Marriott now I usually select airline miles instead as I’m more likely to use them and they have a longer expiry date.