Marriott 15 Elite Night Credit Benefit Guide [2021]

One of the benefits that you find on virtually every Marriott credit card is the Marriott 15 elite night credit. But what exactly are these elite night credits and how do they work?

In this article, I’ll break down everything you need to know about the Marriott 15 elite night credits.

What are the Marriott 15 elite night credits?

The Marriott 15 elite night credits are a credit card benefit attached to certain Marriott credit cards that allow you to receive 15 annual nights credited towards elite status.

It is basically a benefit that helps give you a shortcut to higher elite status levels with Marriott.

These benefits typically post within 60 days of credit card approval and for subsequent years, at the beginning of the year in January or February.

Tip: To jumpstart your Marriott elite status consider a card like the Marriott Boundless for Silver Status.

How does the Marriott 15 elite night credit work?

If you have an eligible Marriott credit card, you will receive 15 elite night credits every year that will automatically post to your account.

You can check on the status of your elite night credits by logging into your Marriott account and following these steps:

• Click on your name in the upper right hand corner
• Click on “Activity”
• Click on “Details” under Nights Earned

Once you click on that, you should see a pop-up window breaking down your qualifying nights. Look for the nights next to “Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards.”

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Eligible Marriott credit cards for the 15 elite night credit

You can receive the 15 elite night credit with credit cards such as the:

• Amex Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant
• Amex Marriott Bonvoy (not available to new applicants)
• Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bold
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Business Credit Card (not available to new applicants)
• Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Card (not available to new applicants)
• Chase Ritz-Carlton Credit Card (not available to new applicants)

Interested in the top hotel credit cards? Click here for a full detailed breakdown.

Requirements for Marriott Bonvoy elite status

Here are the normal requirements for Marriott Bonvoy elite status.

• Silver: 10 nights
• Gold: 25 nights 
• Platinum: 50 nights 
• Titanium: 75 nights
• Ambassador: 100 nights +  $20,000 U.S. dollars in qualified annual spend

So if you receive one of these credits, your new requirements will look like this:

• Silver: Automatically achieved
• Gold: 10 nights 
• Platinum: 35 nights 
• Titanium: 60 nights
• Ambassador: 85 nights +  $20,000 U.S. dollars in qualified annual spend

This is a nice way to get a shortcut to a higher elite level status. But note that it is very different from what the World of Hyatt Credit Card offers.

With that card, you can receive credits for your spend that allow you to climb all the way to the highest elite level status.

Multiple Marriott cards and credits

You might be wondering if you can combine elite qualifying nights from other credit cards in order to climb up the elite status levels. Unfortunately, the answer to that question is no because Marriott states:

A maximum of 15 Elite Night credits will be awarded through this benefit per Marriott Bonvoy program member account even if the member has more than one Credit Card linked to their Marriott Bonvoy account. 

There is an exception though.

If you have both a personal and a small business Marriott credit card, you can get a total of 30 credits.

This is made clear by the Amex terms and conditions:

A maximum of 15 Elite Night Credits will be provided per Marriott Bonvoy Member Account, unless you have both a small business Marriott Bonvoy Card account and a consumer Marriott Bonvoy Card account; then, you may receive a combined maximum of 30 Elite Night Credits (15 per Card account).

So if you have both a personal and a small business Marriott credit card, your elite requirements will look like this:

• Silver: Automatically achieved
• Gold: Automatically achieved
• Platinum: 20 nights 
• Titanium: 45 nights
• Ambassador: 70 nights +  $20,000 U.S. dollars in qualified annual spend

All of a sudden, it’s really easy to earn Marriott Platinum status.

• Related reading: What’s The Best Top Hotel Elite Status?

Marriott 15 elite night credit FAQ

Final word

The 15 elite night credit is a great perk to help you obtain elite status quicker. It’s very convenient that you can get a 15 night credit from both a personal and a small business credit card. It allows me to easily obtain Platinum status with only a handful of days and is one of the reasons I’ve kept both personal and business Marriott cards.

Related: The Best All-Inclusive Marriott Properties