Amex Bonvoy Brilliant Downgrade/Upgrade Strategies
The Amex Bonvoy Brilliant has a unique value proposition where they’ll differ based on the type of traveler. An infrequent traveler or a traveler who don’t stay enough organic nights for Platinum Elite status at Marriott hotels will get much more value from this card compared to a Marriott Bonvoy loyalist who stays more than 50 nights a year, who can only get outsized value from the 85K Free Night Certificate.
With that said, both types of travelers can implement downgrade and upgrade strategies that make the Bonvoy Brilliant worth signing up for.
First Year Value of Bonvoy Brilliant
The first year value of the Bonvoy Brilliant mainly comes from the signup bonus since the card will not give the 85K Free Night Certificate during the first year.
The default signup bonus is 95,000 Marriott Bonvoy points, which for a $650 annual fee card, just isn’t very attractive. But, it usually comes with elevated offers ranging from 150K-200K points a couple times a year, and I recommend signing up for this card whenever those offers come.
The other values come from the instant Platinum Elite status and 25 elite nights towards status.
The instant Platinum status can be very beneficial to those who never got to reach Platinum since it’s the sweet spot status for the Marriott Bonvoy program where you start getting free breakfast at most hotels, guaranteed 4pm late checkout, and be eligible for suite upgrades.
But, instant Platinum means nothing for those who can already reach them through organic stays. Though, the extra elite nights can possibly help with reaching towards Titanium Elite and help with lifetime status goals.
Lastly, the monthly dining credit is very straightforward and easy to use that I can’t imagine anyone with this card would have trouble using them on dining out monthly unless they forget to use them. When it comes down to Amex coupons, this is the easiest one to consistently use.
I think it’s fair to value the dining credit at its full $25 monthly volume which cuts down the effective annual fee for this card down from $650 to $350 if the dining credits are utilized fully each month.
Downgrading Bonvoy Brilliant
After the first year of card membership, downgrading the Bonvoy Brilliant can be a great move for those who don’t value the instant Platinum Elite status. The downgrade option that makes sense is the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Card with its $95 annual fee.
The main draw for downgrading the Brilliant is you’ll be able to get the 85K Free Night Certificate for $95 for that year, which is even less than what you’d effectively get with Chase’s Ritz-Carlton Card!
Not only that, you’d still keep the 25 elite nights earned from the Brilliant even after downgrading it. The Bonvoy Brilliant is the card that gives you the most elite nights compared to every other Marriott Bonvoy credit cards.
Downgrading the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant can lose you Platinum Elite status if you did not reach it organically, but you still keep the 25 elite nights for the remainder of the calendar year.
Thus, you’d need 25 nights until the end of the calendar year to renew your Platinum status. Or even better, if you also have the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Business, you can stack elite nights up to the total of 40 nights. You’d only just require 10 elite nights!
As far as I’m concerned, elite nights from credit cards don’t get clawed back even after you close a Marriott card that earns them. This is true for both Amex and Chase Marriott cards. You won’t get them on the next calendar however.
The $95 annual fee Marriott Bonvoy Card isn’t shabby at all. We haven’t seen an annual fee increase for this card for quite a while now, and it’s not hard to get value of more than $95 with the 35K FNC and 15 elite nights it typically go with.
Upgrading Back to Bonvoy Brilliant
Should you decide to upgrade back to the Bonvoy Brilliant, you’d be charged the prorated annual fee after the anniversary of the Amex Marriott Bonvoy Card has been charged.
Effective immediately after upgrading, you’ll get Platinum status back and extra 10 elite nights if you did not re-qualify organically the past year. This makes it really handy because you could wait to upgrade back to the Brilliant just some time before a major trip so you’d pay less annual fee!
The drawback is that you need to wait one more anniversary until you can get the 85K FNC again. Still, the value of instant Platinum plus 35K FNC plus monthly dining credit makes it not so bad only if you don’t requalify for Platinum organically.
The extra 10 elite nights after upgrading could be useful for soon-to-be Titanium Elite to meet the 75-night requirement. From there, they’d get an extra Choice Benefit, one with the 40K FNC as the “most valuable” option there is. Plus, United Silver status became more useful now as United recently reserve United saver award spaces to United elite members, including Silver, and United credit card holders.
Conclusion
Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant can be a highly adaptable card that you can play around depending on the amount of your Marriott stays of the year. By default, you’d get a high-value 85K Free Night Certificate, instant Platinum status, and $25 monthly dining credit for $650 annual fee which isn’t too difficult to get full value out of.
But, the no clawback of elite nights from downgrading or closing a Marriott credit card for the remaining calendar year can make for interesting plays around Marriott status that can help those who can’t meet Platinum Elite organically, or those who are just 10 nights or less short of Titanium Elite.