Rapid Travel Chai

Disclaimer: I will not receive any referral credit for clicking or using the below cards offer links. These are the best available offers of which I am aware.

Marriott has two personal credit cards, a regular and a ‘Premier.’ Until recently they were only offering a regular business card with no corresponding premier business card. Now the Marriott Rewards^® Premier Business Credit Card has launched and it is quite similar to the personal Premier card.

Highlights:

Marriott Rewards^® Premier Business Credit Card:

• 50,000 point sign-up bonus with $1,000 spend
• Category 1-4 cert with account opening, valid for 6 months
• Anniversary category 1-5 cert, valid for 6 months
• $99 annual fee waived first year
• 5/2/1 points per dollar on Marriott/”airline tickets purchased directly with the airline, and at car rental agencies, restaurants, office supply stores, and for Internet, cable and phone services purchases”/everything else
• 15 elite credits per year, good for Silver status, BUT, from the terms, “Only one Marriott Rewards Credit Card account per Rewards member (Rewards member must be the primary cardmember on that account) is eligible for the 15 Nights Elite credit award.”
• 1 elite credit per $3,000 spend, no limit
• No foreign transaction fees

The old business card has the same language excluding multiple 15 elite credits per year. I was hoping the new card would allow a double-dip. Too bad.

The old card has a slightly different sign-up bonus with less points but an extra cert, so for those focusing on the sign-up bonus exclusively, that card may be more attractive.

Marriott Rewards^® Premier Business Credit Card:

• 30,000 point sign-up bonus with $1,000 spend
• 2 category 1-4 certs with account opening, valid for 6 months
• No anniversary cert
• $49 annual fee waived first year
• 3/1 points per dollar on Marriott/everything else
• 10 elite credits per year
• 1 elite credit per $3,000 spend, no limit
• 3% foreign transaction fee

If you want just one Marriott credit card: the personal Premier is probably the better option. There are sign-up offers for 70,000 points plus cert, the annual fee is $85 versus $99 and all you give up is the category bonuses for “restaurants, office supply stores, and for Internet, cable and phone services purchases” for which you probably have a more lucrative card anyway.

If you want two Marriott credit cards: you will get both bonuses and annual certs, just not annual 15 elite credits x 2. Since all the certs are only valid for 6 months, it can make sense to coordinate both cards to have the certs in sync. My wife and I both have the personal cards and our anniversary is almost exactly 6 months apart which makes the certs useless for combined weekend stays.