Editors Note: Some of the products mentioned below have been discontinued or updated. You can see a list of current offers by visiting our credit cards page. 

As the Marriott and Starwood merger continues to move forward, more has become known about what the new program is going to look like. Part of that is the new credit cards that are going to be issued by both Chase and American Express.

New Marriott credit cards will be issued by both Chase and American Express

In this article, we’ll take a look at each of these cards. Some of the new cards are available already, so let’s take a look at those first!

Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card

The Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card is the refreshed version of the Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card. The sign-up bonus for this card is a respectable 100,000 Marriott points after spending $5,000 within the first three months.

Additionally, you’ll get the following benefits:

  • Annual free night award after card renewal (up to 35,000 points)
  • Silver elite status
  • Gold status after spending $35,000 (starting in 2019)
  • 15 elite night credits (starting in 2019)
  • Complimentary in-room premium wifi (starting in August 2018)
  • 6X points per dollar spent on Marriott and SPG purchases
  • 2X points per dollar spent on all other purchases
  • $95 annual fee

Overall, the Marriott Premier Plus card is a slight upgrade from the Marriott Premier card, but also comes with a slightly higher annual fee. The Marriott Premier card capped the free night at Category 5—equivalent to 25,000 points per night—and only offered 5X points per dollar spent on Marriott and SPG purchases and 1X point per dollar spent on all other purchases. It also only has an $85 annual fee.

Those who have the Marriott Rewards Premier Card have the option to keep their card with the old benefits or upgrade their card to the Marriott Rewards Premier Plus. Chase has offered upgrade bonuses from 10,000 to 50,000 Marriott points, but this upgrade bonus is instead of the 100,000-point sign-up bonus. My upgrade offer was 20,000 bonus points and I elected not to take it for the time being.

Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express and Starwood Preferred Guest Business Credit Card from American Express

For now, these two cards are sticking around, but there are a few changes being made to them. Here’s what the new benefits look like:

  • Annual free night award after card renewal (up to 35,000 points)
  • Silver elite status
  • Gold status after spending $30,000 in 2018, $35,000 beginning in 2019
  • 15 elite night credits (beginning in 2019)
  • 6X points per dollar spent at participating Marriott hotels
  • 4X points per dollar spent on purchases at U.S. restaurants, U.S. gas stations, on wireless phone services from U.S. providers, and U.S. shipping purchases. (business card only)
  • 2X points per dollar spent on all other purchases
  • $95 annual fee

While the business card has more bonus categories, this came at a cost. The Sheraton Club Lounge access that was previously offered with this card is being eliminated.

The new SPG cards will not have Sheraton Club Lounge access

The new spending categories will go into effect in August 2018.

Overall, the biggest change to this card is the decrease in earning for non-bonused spend. The current card earns 1X SPG Starpoint per dollar spent. At the current transfer ratio, 1 SPG point is worth 3 Marriott points. Since the updated spending category only earns 2X Marriott points per dollar spent, this is a 33% decrease in points earning and will turn this card from one of the best everyday spend cards to something less than that.

Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Credit Card

The new Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Credit Card won’t be available until August, but here’s what we know about it so far.

  • $300 in statement credits for purchases at participating Marriott properties each cardmember year
  • $100 Global Entry (or $85 TSA PreCheck fee credit)
  • Priority Pass Select Membership (including two guests)
  • Annual free night award after card renewal (up to 50,000 points)
  • Gold elite status
  • Platinum status after spending $75,000 in a calendar year
  • Boingo Wi-Fi access
  • 15 elite night credits (beginning in 2019)
  • 6X points per dollar at participating Marriott hotels
  • 3X points per dollar at restaurants and flights booked directly with the airline
  • 2X points per dollar spent on all other purchases
  • $450 annual fee

While the 3X earning at restaurants and with airlines is equivalent to the 1X the current SPG cards earn on everyday purchases, the 2X on non-bonus category spend is again a 33% decrease in earning power—and for a much higher annual fee. Granted, it does also come with other valuable benefits that the current (non-luxury) SPG cards don’t have.

The new SPG luxury credit card will earn 3x at restaurants

Bottom Line

As we expected, the Marriott and SPG merger has caused some credit card changes. Unsurprisingly, there are some negative changes to the SPG credit cards such as their earning potential and the loss of Sheraton lounge access with the business card.

We’ll see some new credit cards hitting the market (or have already!) which means new sign-up bonuses. For now, this is what we know about the future Marriott and SPG cards from Chase and American Express.