Start here: Marriott Bonvoy — join, earn, use points and status

Step 1: What Marriott Bonvoy is and who it suits

You will learn: what Marriott Bonvoy is, who is allowed to hold an Account, and which travellers the rules are built around.

Marriott Bonvoy is the loyalty program of Marriott International, Inc. [1] Membership is free and available to individuals who are at least 18 years of age or have reached the age of majority in their jurisdiction of residence, who otherwise possess the legal authority to agree to the Program Rules, and who reside in a jurisdiction that legally permits participation [1]. Unless otherwise stated or granted permission by the Company, corporations, groups, associations and other entities cannot enrol as Members [1].

The programme includes base tier membership, Elite Status (Silver Elite, Gold Elite, Platinum Elite, Titanium Elite and Ambassador Elite) and Lifetime Elite Status [1]. A Member may earn Points or any currency used by an airline's frequent flyer program — miles, kilometers, points and so on, together called Miles — on their Account [1].

Under the rules, accrual is limited to individual travel, and the room must be paid for individually by the Member or direct billed to the company that arranged payment for the Member's stay where that stay is not associated with a convention or group meeting [1]. Only nights on a Qualifying Stay personally stayed by and individually billed to a Member at Participating Properties are credited toward Elite Status achievement and renewal [1]. The programme therefore suits individuals who personally stay at Participating Properties and whose room is paid by them or direct billed as described above.

Go deeper: Marriott Bonvoy hotel brands, Hilton Honors vs Marriott Bonvoy, Start here: hotel points.

Step 2: How to join

You will learn: how to open one Account, what it costs, and how to get a recent stay credited afterwards.

An eligible individual enrols by fully and accurately completing an application through a valid enrollment channel, and becomes a Member once an Account is opened in their name and a Membership Number is assigned [1]. There is no fee or cost to enroll [1]. You can join on the official Marriott Bonvoy enrollment page [1].

Accounts are individual and may not be shared, jointly held, sold, bartered or transferred except as expressly permitted in the rules, and if more than one Account is assigned to or used by the same individual, the Company may combine, merge, suspend or cancel the duplicate Accounts [1].

A new Member may request credit for eligible activity completed during the 30 days before enrolment if the request is made within one year, through Member Support and with a copy of the paid receipt for the stay; additional documentation may be necessary [1].

Go deeper: Marriott Bonvoy points sharing, Start here: hotel points.

Step 3: How earning works

You will learn: what a qualifying paid stay earns, which rooms and brands are covered, and how to keep one currency per stay.

A Member earns 10 base Points for each U.S. dollar, or the currency equivalent, incurred and paid by the Member on Qualifying Charges [1]. The rate is five base Points per U.S. dollar at Apartments by Marriott Bonvoy, City Express, Element, Four Points Flex, Homes & Villas by Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott Executive Apartments, Protea Hotels, Residence Inn and TownePlace Suites, and four base Points per U.S. dollar at StudioRes [1]. At Marriott Executive Apartments, Members do not earn Points on Qualifying Charges, only on Qualifying Rates [1].

Qualifying Charges are earned when the Member provides their Membership Number at the time of reservation or at check-in, stays in one of the reserved guest rooms as a registered guest, and pays for the charges [1]. Charges on up to two additional guest rooms with the same check-in and check-out dates are included [1]. Only one currency may be earned: Points or Miles, not both for the same stay; a Member may switch before a given stay by updating the Account or contacting Member Support, the new currency begins with the next stay, and previous earnings are not converted [1].

No other person may earn Points, Miles or Elite Night Credit on a Member's charges and nights, and for a room shared by two Members the credit is awarded to only one of them [1]. Contract rooms, rooms reserved by corporations on an ongoing basis, and master-billed rooms are not eligible to earn [1]. Unless the rules or applicable Supplemental Terms state otherwise, missing-credit requests must be received within one year of the applicable activity [1].

Go deeper: Marriott Bonvoy hotel brands, Buying Marriott Bonvoy points, Marriott Bonvoy points sharing.

Step 4: How to use points

You will learn: what points can be redeemed for, how award stays are booked, and how conversion to airline Miles works.

A Member may redeem full or partial Points or Free Night Awards for products including stays in guest rooms at Participating Properties, Moments experiences, flights, and other services and merchandise [1]. Points and Award Redemptions may not be exchanged or redeemed for cash, prizes or credit [1], and Points posted as the result of a transfer or earned from the use of credit cards may not be redeemable for certain Award Redemptions [1].

Award stays are subject to availability of the chosen room type at the time of reservation and must be booked through Marriott Channels [1]. The required Points are deducted and the award attached to the reservation automatically at booking, provided the Member has sufficient Points for the entire stay and/or sufficient Free Night Awards; if the Member does not, the reservation may be cancelled or changed to the best paid rate available [1]. A Gifted Award Redemption Stay is an Award Redemption Stay issued to another person where the Member will not be staying; it can only be booked through Member Support, all Award Redemption Stay types are eligible except Free Night Awards, a Member may book a maximum of five Gifted Award Redemption Stays per calendar year, and neither the Member nor the recipient earns Points, Miles, Elite Night Credit, Qualifying Nights or Qualifying Stays, while the recipient receives no Elite benefits associated with their own Account or the Member's Account [1].

Converting Points to airline Miles requires membership of both the Loyalty Program and the airline's programme, and for most airline partners the Points must be transferred to that Member's partner account held in the same name, so both names must match [1]. In most cases Miles post within one week, and once Miles are ordered, changes, reissuance and re-credit of Points are not allowed [1]. How to use points is set out on the official site [1].

Members must have Qualifying Activity at least once every 24 months to retain accumulated Points, Awards and other benefits; earning or redeeming Points or Miles, purchasing Points, completing a Qualifying Stay and converting with designated partners count, while gifting, transferring or receiving Points from another Member does not [1]. If an Account has no Qualifying Activity for 24 consecutive months, all accumulated Points, Awards and other benefits are forfeited and cannot be reinstated [1]. Members can also transfer Points to another Member's Account, subject to annual limits and account-standing conditions [1].

Go deeper: Booking Marriott Bonvoy award stays, Marriott Bonvoy cash plus points, Marriott Bonvoy airline transfer partners, Hotel award stay taxes and resort fees.

Step 5: How status works

You will learn: how Elite Night Credits turn into Elite Status, what counts toward the tiers, and how Lifetime Elite Status works.

Elite Status is achieved or renewed by earning Elite Night Credits between 1 January and 31 December of a given year: Silver Elite at 10 to 24 Qualifying Nights, Gold Elite at 25 to 49, Platinum Elite at 50 to 74, Titanium Elite at 75 and higher, and Ambassador Elite at 100 or more Qualifying Nights together with at least $23,000 US Dollars in Annual Qualifying Spend [1]. Co-brand credit card spend, on-property charges earned without a stay and Marriott Gift Card purchases do not count toward Annual Qualifying Spend [1].

Only nights on a Qualifying Stay personally stayed by and individually billed to the Member are credited [1]. At City Express, Four Points Flex and Protea Hotels, half of one Elite Night Credit is awarded for each Qualifying Night stayed, and at StudioRes no Elite Night Credit is awarded [1]. Award Redemption Stays count toward Elite Night Credit, except at StudioRes [1].

Lifetime Elite Status is earned through 250 Qualifying Nights plus 5 years as Silver Elite or higher for Lifetime Silver Elite, 400 Qualifying Nights plus 7 years as Gold Elite or higher for Lifetime Gold Elite, and 600 Qualifying Nights plus 10 years as Platinum Elite or higher for Lifetime Platinum Elite [1]. Lifetime Elite Status provides protection against the forfeiture of Points even if the Lifetime Elite Member is inactive [1]. On the benefit side, any Member who books a stay at a Participating Property through a Marriott Channel receives complimentary standard in-room internet access, limited to one guest room per Member per stay, provided the Member stays in the guest room and pays for the charges (meeting rooms are excluded), and Gold Elite Members and above receive complimentary enhanced in-room internet access where available regardless of booking method [1].

Go deeper: Marriott Bonvoy Elite status, Marriott Bonvoy Lifetime Elite status, Marriott Bonvoy status match, status progress tracker.

Step 6: Your first concrete action

You will learn: the small set of things to do today so that the next stay is credited correctly.

1. Join free through the official Marriott Bonvoy enrollment page and note the Membership Number assigned to your Account [1].
2. Give that Membership Number when you reserve or at check-in for your next stay, stay in one of the reserved rooms as a registered guest, and pay the charges yourself [1].
3. If you stayed at a Participating Property in the 30 days before enrolling, request the credit through Member Support with a copy of the paid receipt within one year of the stay [1].
4. Decide before the stay whether the Account earns Points or Miles, because only one currency can be earned per stay and earlier earnings are not converted [1].
5. Note two rules: the Account needs Qualifying Activity at least once every 24 months [1], and before converting Points to airline Miles the two account names must match for most airline partners [1]. The earning side is summarised on the official How to Earn Points page [1].

Once the Account is open, read the award booking or the status guide next, depending on which of the two you expect to use first.

Next: Booking Marriott Bonvoy award stays, Marriott Bonvoy Elite status, First hotel award stay step by step.