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Picture yourself having lifetime elite status. Who doesn't like the sound of that? You no longer need to re-qualify every year, yet you continue to enjoy your benefits stay after stay. Marriott is one of many hotel loyalty programs that reward frequent stayers with lifetime status after years of loyalty. In this guide, we'll walk through Marriott's lifetime elite status requirements, perks, and how to track your progress.
Perhaps the most important point is that you shouldn't assume that Marriott lifetime elite status is out of reach. Even by simply carrying a Marriott or American Express credit card, you can rack up nights toward lifetime Bonvoy status. We'll show you below how you can make reasonable progress toward it, even if you only occasionally stay at Marriott hotels.
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How To Earn Marriott Lifetime Elite Status
Currently, Marriott Bonvoy offers three tiers of lifetime elite status. The qualification requirements are as follows:
- Lifetime Silver Elite: 250 cumulative qualifying nights + 5 years as Silver Elite or higher
- Lifetime Gold Elite: 400 cumulative qualifying nights + 7 years as Gold Elite or higher
- Lifetime Platinum Elite: 600 qualifying nights + 10 years as Platinum Elite or higher
Can you earn Lifetime Titanium Elite status?
Marriott previously offered a fourth tier of lifetime elite status: Lifetime Titanium Elite. When the Starwood Preferred Guest and Marriott Rewards programs merged, this status tier was awarded to members who achieved 750 lifetime nights and 10 years of Platinum status across both programs.
Given the value of Marriott Titanium Elite — including getting United elite status — some members went out of their way to achieve it before the merger.
Members can no longer earn Lifetime Titanium Elite status. And travelers have never been able to earn Lifetime Ambassador status.
Not to worry, Marriott Platinum Elite is arguably the sweet spot in the Marriott Bonvoy elite status program and offers plenty of benefits. Plus, earning this lifetime status is easier than you might think since Marriott credit card elite nights count toward lifetime status — in addition to elite nights earned through qualifying stays.
Related: The Complete Guide To Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status
How To Check Your Progress Toward Marriott Lifetime Elite Status
The best way to check your Marriott lifetime elite status is through the Marriott Bonvoy app. While you can check online at marriott.com, I find the app is simply easier. It's as simple as three steps:
- Open the Marriott Bonvoy app
- Click “Account” at the bottom right
- Then click “View Progress” next to “Lifetime Status“
Doing so will pull up your total nights stayed and your progress toward your next Marriott lifetime status tier.
If you scroll down to the bottom, you'll see numbers for how many years you've held each status level. This can help you in determining how quickly you can earn the next level.
Checking your Marriott lifetime elite status progress on Marriott's website
Using Marriott's website takes a few more steps — especially now that Marriott eliminated the way many travelers were used to finding this information. Here's the current step-by-step process:
- Log into your Marriott Bonvoy account.
- Click where it says “Hello [Name]” at the top right corner.
- On the details panel, click “Overview” to go to your account.
- On the account page, you'll see an elite status widget with your nights so far this year.
- Click on “Nights This Year” link under the number of nights to show details for the current year, previous year, and lifetime elite status.
Clicking this link will open an overlay with the details of your Marriott Elite Night Credit earnings so far this year, with a drop-down box that lets you see your prior year's earnings. Plus, you'll see how many more nights you need to retain your current elite status and what's needed to achieve the next tier of status. On the bottom right side, you'll see your Marriott lifetime status and statistics.
Easiest Way To Earn Toward Marriott Lifetime Elite Status
I mentioned before that elite night credits from Marriott co-branded credit cards count toward the lifetime total. This is great if you want to plod toward earning lifetime status. You can earn up to 40 elite night credits each year by holding two Marriott credit cards (one personal and one business).
This is one reason I keep a couple of Marriott cards open, even though I don't stay with Marriott very often. Specifically, I have the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card.
The two annual free nights (one from each card) are worth more than their respective annual fees since they can be redeemed for up to 35,000 points each. Plus, I receive 30 elite night credits from these cards — immediately qualifying me for Marriott Gold each year and leaving me just 20 nights away from Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status.
- WELCOME OFFER: 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. Each Free Night Award has a redemption level up to 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points, for a total potential value of up to 150,000 points, at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy®. Certain hotels have resort fees. Terms apply.
- Receive a 7% discount on eligible bookings as a benefit of being both a Marriott Bonvoy® member & a Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card Member when you book directly with Marriott through an eligible channel for a participating property under the Amex Business Card Rate.
- 6x Marriott Bonvoy points on each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program.
- 4x points for purchases made 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 points on all other eligible purchases.
- Receive 1 Free Night Award every year after your Card renewal month. Plus, earn an additional Free Night Award after you spend $60K in purchases on your Card in a calendar year. Award can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 35,000 Marriott Bonvoy® points) at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy®. Certain hotels have resort fees.
- Enjoy Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite Status with your Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card.
- Terms apply.
- Rates & Fees
- 6x Marriott Bonvoy points on each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in the Marriott Bonvoy® program.
- 4x Marriott Bonvoy points on each dollar of eligible purchases made 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 Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card points per dollar on all other eligible purchases
- Earn 6X Bonvoy points per $1 spent participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels, 3X points per $1 on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on grocery stores, gas stations, and dining, and 2X points per $1 on all other purchases
- Earn 3 Marriott Bonvoy® points for every $1 on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on gas stations, grocery stores, and dining
- Earn 2X Bonvoy points for every $1 spent on all other purchases
Thanks to the Marriott credit cards, I've now qualified for Lifetime Gold Elite. This isn't worth much since I already have Gold every year thanks to my Marriott credit cards. But within a few years, I will have enough elite nights to reach lifetime Platinum Elite.
Related: Last-Minute Strategies to Reach Marriott Bonvoy Elite Status
It's also worth mentioning that you can earn automatic Platinum Elite status plus 25 elite night credits through the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card. Holding this card and Marriott Bonvoy Business Card will give you 40 elite night credits each year and a year of Platinum Elite status toward Marriott lifetime status.
Benefits of Bonvoy Lifetime Status
The benefits of Marriott lifetime elite status are the same as what is published for each elite tier — with a couple of caveats. Here are the primary Marriott elite status benefits for Silver, Gold, and Platinum:
- Silver Elite: 10% bonus points on stays, priority late checkout, reservation guarantee
- Gold Elite: 25% bonus points on stays, welcome gift (points), room upgrades (excluding suites) + Silver benefits
- Platinum Elite: 50% bonus points on stays, room upgrades (including suites), welcome gift (some brands include breakfast), lounge access (at hotels with lounges), 4:00 pm guaranteed late checkout + Gold benefits
The main missing benefit is for Lifetime Platinum Elite members. Upon earning 50 Elite Night Credits, you receive an Annual Choice Benefit in addition to qualifying for Platinum Elite status. However, lifetime Platinum Elite members don't receive this benefit — unless they earn 50 Elite Night Credits for the year.
Marriott lifetime Platinum Elite gift
Although Lifetime Platinum Elite members don't receive an annual Choice Benefit, Marriott does reward them with a one-time lifetime elite gift to recognize the loyalty milestone. The gift? Luggage tags.
Lifetime Platinum and Lifetime Titanium members also can access their Lifetime Journey. In short, this is where they can review the lifetime statistics for their Marriott Bonvoy accounts and across the accounts of all lifetime elite members.
Final Thoughts
Think of Marriott lifetime elite status as a long-term goal. Even for the road warrior, you need 10 years of Marriott Platinum Elite status to attain lifetime status at this tier. Plus, if you're only hitting 50 nights per year, you still won't have enough qualifying nights. The requirements are cumulative, though, so you'd only need a few more years to hit the finish line.
Given the way the Marriott lifetime elite status requirements are structured, I don't recommend going out of your way to earn it. However, Marriott Lifetime Platinum is an eventual goal of mine. The annual 30 elite nights provided by holding two Marriott credit cards will slowly get me there. Of course, this is assuming the requirements don't change. The cards offer enough ongoing value to keep year after year. Plus, I find myself staying with Marriott a handful of times per year. Sometimes much more.
If you want to learn more about Marriott Bonvoy, check out our full guide: Everything About the Marriott Bonvoy Rewards Program.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees)
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