Frequent Miler

There really isn’t a card that supplements Platinum benefits. As you probably know, you will get elite nights annually for holding a Marriott credit card, but those will only matter for you if you are after the 50-night choice benefit or you intend to go after Titanium (which doesn’t offer enough benefit over the Lifetime Platinum to be worth it IMO.In terms of the best card “to get free nights”, the best answer to that is whichever is offering the best welcome bonus at the time you’re applying. All of the ~$100 annual fee Marriott cards come with an automatic annual 35K free night certificate. The Brilliant card ($650 AF) comes with an annual 85K free night certificate and $25 per month ($300 per year) in dining credits — that may or may not be worth it to you. The $250 cards require spend to receive their free night certificates (which are valid for a night up to 50K).

A perennial “favorite” card among Marriott enthusiasts is the Chase Ritz card because it costs $450 per year and comes with up to $300 in airline incidental reimbursements + an annual free night certificate for a night up to 85K points. However, you can’t apply for that card new, you would first need to get one of the Chase Marriott consumer cards and wait a year after you open it and then you should be able to upgrade to the Ritz card.

Note that it doesn’t make sense to put ongoing spend on Marriott credit cards because the return on spend is weak — most of them offer 2 points per dollar spent on unbonused spend. Our Reasonable Redemption Value for Marriott points is only 0.7c per point, so that’s like a return of 1.4%, which isn’t a good deal. Even if you think you’ll redeem Marriott points for better value, consider that Marriott often sells points for around 0.9c per point. You could get a 2% cash back card and for every $1 you spend, you’d get 2 cents that could buy you 2 Marriott points and you’d still have 0.2c left over. That might not sound like much, but it adds up over time (and if you have access to options that earn 2.625% back or 3% back, the math on earning Marriott points through spend on Marriott cards gets worse). Welcome bonuses are really the best option for earning Marriott points.Speaking of Marriott card welcome bonuses, the rules as to whether you’re eligible for each of the cards can be complicated. See these posts for more info:

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https://frequentmiler.com/marriott-bonvoy-complete-guide/#Credit_Card_Eligibility
https://frequentmiler.com/marriott-card-eligible/

(Since I always use team input for responses to podcast-related questions, my responses may be delayed. Thanks for your patience!)