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Several Marriott cards offer the perk of receiving an anniversary Free Night Award each year. This benefit alone can often justify keeping your card year after year, as it takes very little work to redeem the free night certificate for more value than the card's annual fee.
While anniversary free night certificates are a staple among Marriott credit card benefits, the redemption process can be confusing if you don't know what to expect. To make it easier, we're covering everything you need to know about free night certificates from your Marriott credit cards — and some ways to unlock top value.
Page Contents
- How To Earn a Marriott Free Night Award via Credit Cards
- Marriott Free Night Limitations
- How Long Are Marriott Credit Card Free Nights Valid For?
- How To Redeem Marriott Credit Card Free Night Certificates
- How To Redeem Marriott Boundless Free Night Certificates in the Marriott Bonvoy App
- How To Top Off a Marriott Free Night Award With Extra Points
- Best Hotels for Marriott Credit Card Free Nights
- Final Thoughts
How To Earn a Marriott Free Night Award via Credit Cards
Marriott cardholders generally have two ways of earning Free Night Awards. The first is simply by holding a card that offers one automatically and paying the card's annual fee. The other requires spending on your Marriott card.
Which Marriott cards offer a free night just for having the card?
Marriott free nights are an annual benefit received when you renew your account each year. Here are the Marriott Bonvoy® cards available to new applicants that offer a complimentary free night certificate each year on your account anniversary:
- Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card: Free Night Award worth up to 35,000 points
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card: Free Night Award worth up to 85,000 points
- Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card: Free Night Award worth up to 35,000 points
- 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
(Terms Apply)
- 6X points on purchases at Marriott Properties
- 3X points at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery
- 3X points on flights booked directly with airlines
- 2X points on all other eligible purchases
(Terms apply)
- 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® points per dollar on all other eligible purchases
To earn your free night certificate, you must hold onto your card past the first anniversary and pay the annual fee. After the first year, you receive a free night certificate every year thereafter that you renew your card.
Related: Hotel Credit Cards That Provide Free Annual Night Certificates
Which Marriott cards offer a free night after you meet spending thresholds?
Four Marriott credit cards currently offer a Free Night Award after meeting an annual spending threshold:
- Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card: Earn another Free Night Award worth up to 35,000 points when you reach $60,000 in total eligible purchases on your card within a calendar year.
- Marriott Bonvoy Bountiful™ Card: Earn a Free Night Award worth up to 50,000 points when you reach $15,000 in total eligible purchases on your card within a calendar year.
- Marriott Bonvoy Bevy® American Express® Card: Earn a Free Night Award worth up to 50,000 points when you reach $15,000 in total eligible purchases on your card within a calendar year.
- Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card: Reach $60,000 in total eligible purchases on your card within a calendar year, and choose one of several “Choice Awards” — one of which is an additional Free Night Award worth up to 85,000 points.
Marriott Free Night Limitations
The principal limiting factor of Marriott Free Night Awards is tied to their stated value. But this isn't as hard of a cap as it used to be.
Until a couple of years ago, a cardholder could only use a 35,000-point certificate at a property charging 35,000 Bonvoy points (or less) for the night. Fortunately, Marriott now lets members “top off” Free Night Awards with up to 15,000 Bonvoy points.
That means you can spend up to 15,000 Marriott points from your account to redeem your certificate for a property with a higher price. This puts hotels charging up to 50,000 points per night within reach of the 35,000-point Free Night Award with a top-off of points and hotels charging 65,000 points within reach of the 50,000-point Free Night Award.
Marriott uses dynamic pricing, which means the cost in points for a hotel night will vary depending on demand. However, it's possible to receive hundreds of dollars in value from Marriott Free Nights Award certificates — especially since you can “top off” your certificate with up to 15,000 extra points.
How Long Are Marriott Credit Card Free Nights Valid For?
Once Marriott issues the free night certificate, you get twelve months to use it. However, unlike IHG free night certificates, you need to complete the free night stay within those twelve months — not just make the booking.
Some members have reported limited success in requesting a one-year extension of the validity of an unextended Free Night Award. Marriott requires that you call in the same calendar month that the Free Night Award expires. Then, an agent may be able to process an extension. Just note that this extension isn't guaranteed, so we don't recommend counting on it.
Track your Marriott Free Night Awards with AwardWallet
The only downside of earning Marriott free night certificates is having to keep track of them. Nobody should have to go through the pain of realizing you accidentally let one expire. Thankfully, AwardWallet makes it easy to keep tabs on all of your Free Night Awards.
If you add your Marriott account to AwardWallet, you'll receive reminder emails whenever your certificates get close to expiring. This makes using them (and not losing them) a lot easier.
Related: How To Use AwardWallet to Track Free Night Awards, Room Upgrades, and Other Perks
How To Redeem Marriott Credit Card Free Night Certificates
When you're ready to redeem your free night certificate, start by going to Marriott's homepage. Once there, the process largely mirrors that of making a points booking. Type your desired location and dates, and check the box for “Use Points / Awards”:
You'll see all the properties that fit your search listed with their respective award rate. As long as the rate is at or below the value of your certificate plus 15,000 points, you should be able to book a free night.
Let's assume you have a 35K certificate from the Marriott Boundless, and you want to book The W Chicago — Lakeshore. Once you select “View Rates,” you'll see a screen displaying all your booking options — including rates for point bookings, cash bookings, or a combination of both. Select the points rate.
Thanks to Marriott's dynamic pricing, this hotel costs 35,000 points on the night we've chosen to redeem — or $125 + 17,500 points as a cash & points redemption. As you continue the booking process, Marriott will note that “You have 1 Free Night Award” on the final booking page (or the number you have available, if different).
This is where you can choose to either use points to complete the booking or redeem your award certificate. If you decide to redeem your certificate, it'll disappear from your Bonvoy account when the booking is confirmed. In this case, a 35K certificate saves you about $311 compared to booking the same room at the member flexible rate.
How To Redeem Marriott Boundless Free Night Certificates in the Marriott Bonvoy App
Some people may find mobile apps to be more convenient and user-friendly than desktop computers, especially for tasks that can be accomplished easily on a smaller screen. To book a Marriott reservation through the mobile app, follow these steps:
- Download the Marriott app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store on your mobile device.
- Open the app and log into your Marriott Bonvoy account. If you don't have an account, you can create one by following the prompts.
- Once you are logged in, tap on the “Book” tab at the bottom of the screen.
- Enter your destination and travel dates, and then tap “Find Hotels” to view available hotels. Ensure you toggle the “Use Points / Awards” button.
- Select the hotel you want to book, and then tap on the “Select Room” button to view available rooms.
- Choose the room type you want, and then tap on the “Select” button on the Redemption option to proceed to the Review Reservation screen.
- On the Review Reservation screen, you'll click on “Redeem Free Night +” to apply the award to your reservation.
After confirming payment information, tap “Book Now” to confirm your reservation. You should receive a confirmation email with your reservation details.
How To Top Off a Marriott Free Night Award With Extra Points
As noted above, you can now expand the value of a Free Night Award with up to 15,000 additional Bonvoy points from your account. This feature applies to Standard Room Types and PointSaver redemptions only. Unfortunately, you cannot book upgrades or suites by adding points to a Marriott Free Night Award.
Fortunately, the booking process couldn't be easier. Here is a property that costs 47K per night — 15,000 points more than the value of my 35K certificate from the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card:
After selecting this hotel and choosing a room type, I am automatically presented with the option to top off my Free Night Award with an additional 12,000 points from my account.
Best Hotels for Marriott Credit Card Free Nights
If you're looking for inspiration, check out our article covering the best Marriott properties for redeeming Free Night Awards. Meanwhile, here are a few of our favorite aspirational properties at which to redeem Marriott Free Night Awards to get you started.
Palacio del Inka, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Cusco
This beautiful hotel, situated near the Temple of the Sun in the heart of Cusco, Peru, is housed in a 500-year-old mansion. The hotel is rich with both Incan and Spanish colonial history and architecture. With luxurious rooms, an indoor pool and spa, and excellent service, you can't go wrong with a stay at the Palacio del Inka.
It can be booked starting at 40,000 points per night. That means a free night can be booked with a 35K certificate plus up to a 15K Bonvoy point top-off — on many nights. Rooms at Palacio del Inka typically cost about $350 per night, so this is a solid redemption.
The W Miami
Situated in the Brickell area of Miami, the W Miami has a great location and killer views. This chic hotel has an epic pool on the 15th floor that overlooks the bay and the city. Although it is not on the beach, the location has easy access to downtown attractions such as the Perez Art Museum, restaurants, and shopping.
Even a 35,000-point free night certificate can secure a night if you top off with additional Bonvoy points, as there's availability for under 50,000 points:
Cash rates often exceed $400 per night, meaning you're getting incredible value using your Marriott Free Night Award here, too.
The Ritz Carlton Dove Mountain
The Ritz Carlton Dove Mountain in Arizona is a desert oasis nestled in the Sonoran Desert with breathtaking views and abundant natural beauty. The resort has three pools, including an adults-only serenity pool and a family pool with a water slide. This is a great spot for families, with tons of activities to keep the little ones busy. But it's also a perfect adult getaway with lots of quiet spaces and spa amenities.
Although these rooms can go for over $1,000 per night, you can sometimes snag rooms here for under 50K, making them bookable at times with a 35K certificate and points to top it off. Check out the calendar for October 2025, where rooms can be booked as low as 44,000 points.
Final Thoughts
We love hotel credit cards that offer free night awards. In almost every case, the free night easily justifies the card's annual fee — even before factoring in other benefits.
No card exemplifies this better than the Marriott Boundless Card. The 35K-point anniversary Free Night Award justifies the card's $95 annual fee because it's quite simple to redeem your certificate for a value exceeding the annual fee.
Don't get caught up thinking you have to use your certificates at the highest category hotel possible. While we've used comparable cash values as the value metric above, there are other ways to calculate their worth. For example, I often use my certificates for last-minute overnight stays in airport hotels. It's simple and convenient, saving me from paying cash when I don't want to. Plus, waiting for the perfect moment to redeem a certificate is a recipe for it to expire unused when plans change.
- 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
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees), and Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card (Rates & Fees)
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