After Citi's September overhaul and Barclay's November overhaul of their credit card protection benefits, Amex will also have some major changes coming on January 1, 2020.  Here are the breakdowns of the upcoming changes.

• Trip Cancellation & Interruption: added to Platinum Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant.  This covers trips cancelled or interrupted due to weather, terrorism, sudden illness or injury, jury duty, up to $10,000 per trip and $20,000 per year.  In addition to tickets paid entirely with an Amex card, awards tickets and Pay with Points tickets are covered as well.
• Trip Delay: added to Platinum Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, for flight delays more than 6 hours, up to $500 per ticket.  Also added to Gold Card (personal and business), Green Card, and Delta Platinum (personal and business), for flight delays more than 12 hours, up to $300 per ticket.  In addition to tickets paid entirely with an Amex card, awards tickets and Pay with Points tickets are covered as well.
• Travel Accident Insurance: removed from all cards!
• Roadside Assistance: removed from all cards!  For most cards it is not big deal, as the benefit only dispatches a service provider and you still have to pay for the service.  However, certain premium Amex cards such as Platinum Card (personal and business), Gold Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant currently offer Premium Roadside Assistance which covers towing up to 10 miles and other incidentals for free, for up to 4 times per year, and this benefit will be gone as well!  Many cardholders including myself, actually use the Premium Roadside Assistance in lieu of AAA's basic plan, and in 2020 they have to look into alternatives such as Chase Sapphire Reserve (which unfortunately only covers up to $50 per use) or start paying AAA once again.
• Return Protection: removed from all cards except for Platinum Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, Blue Cash Preferred, EveryDay Preferred, and Plum Card (business).
• Extended Warranty: coverage will be reduced from two years of extended warranty down to one year.  Remember Amex actually just increased the coverage from one year to two years back in August 2018, and in 2020 the only card issuer that continue to offer two years of extended warranty is Citi (and only for certain cards).  What is more, this benefit will be removed entirely for EveryDay Card, Blue Card, Blue Cash Card, and Cash Magnet.
• Purchase Protection: coverage will be reduced from 120 days back to 90 days.  The same story here - Amex just increased the coverage from 90 days to 120 days in August 2018.  The coverage usually covers only theft or damage, up to $1,000 per item and $50,000 per year, but Amex will add accidental loss and increase the per item limit to $10,000 for Platinum Card (personal and business), Gold Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant. 

Overall, the changes are mixed - some gain and some loss - but not as bad as Citi's drastic devaluation.  The cards that benefit from the changes are probably limited to those with an annual fee at least $450 - Platinum Card (personal and business), Delta Reserve (personal and business), Hilton Aspire, and Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant; the rest of the cards are generally considered to receive reduced coverage.  We think most cardholders will be unhappy about the changes.  We will update our Protection page once these changes kick in.

There are quite a few updates on the website in the recent weeks, and here is a quick roundup.

• Chase Southwest Performance Business Visa write-up is up - please see the Chase Southwest Visa Cards review for details.  The impressive 80K points signup will get you really close to the 110K-point qualifying threshold to achieve the potentially extremely lucrative Southwest Companion Pass which allows you take a companion for free for a year.
• Amex Blue Business Cash review is up - this card is no the new benchmark for general business spending with a strait 2% cashback on everything up to $50K spent per year and no annual fees.  If you can leverage Membership Rewards' miles transfer feature to achieve a points value higher than 1 cent a piece (1.5 cents in our book), you'd better off with the old "King of Business Cards" Amex Blue Business Plus; however, for most business owners, Blue Business Cash is a much easier option to get $1,000 in rewards per year.
• U.S. Bank Business Cash WEMC review is up.  Its 3.75% & 1.25% cash rewards structure is nothing to write about, but the $500 signup bonus is worth looking into.
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bold Visa review is up.  If you can take advantage of the annual free night capped at 35K redemption level, the $95 Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa is actually a better card to apply and keep.
• Chase United Explorer Business Visa is offering up to 100,000 miles at signup.  Before get too excited, you have to know that this comes with a rather difficult spending requirement of $25K within 6 months of new account opening.  Even with the devaluation of United miles in the coming November, due to the fact that partner redemption will be kept the same, this signup offer (worth $1,250 in our book) still tops our chart of best signup bonuses.
• Chase IHG Premier MasterCard offers the historical high - 125K points & $50 statement credit & 15 extra points for IHG purchase for the first year & 2 extra points for other general spending for the first year.  However, due to the relative low value of IHG points, this signup offer is worth about $460 in our book.
• Amex Hilton Ascend has been rebranded back to Amex Hilton Surpass, and nothing else changed.  It still comes with 130K Hilton points at signup (worth $425 in our book), complimentary Hilton Gold status, and an annual free weekend night after $15K spending.
• Amex Platinum Card offers 75K Membership Rewards at signup now.  It is very decent offer for those who are also interested in the iconic card's Fine Hotels & Resorts program, arguably the best airport lounge program offered by a credit card, Hilton Gold status, Uber & Saks credits, 5x points on airfare, etc.

This week we have seen some elevated signup bonuses on a few credit cards (our value for the bonus minus first year annual fee is for your reference - your valuation may vary):

• Amex Gold Delta SkyMiles personal card ($95 annual fee, waived for the first year): 60,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs (Medallion Qualifying Mile) - our value $650
• Amex Gold Delta SkyMiles business card ($95 annual fee, waived for the first year): 70,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs - our value $750
• Amex Platinum Delta SkyMiles personal card ($195 annual fee): 75,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs + $100 statement credit - our value $705 (historical high) 
• Amex Platinum Delta SkyMiles business card ($195 annual fee): 80,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs + $100 statement credit - our value $755 (historical high)
• Amex Delta Reserve personal card ($450 annual fee): 75,000 miles + 5,000 MQMs - our value $350 (historical high)
• Chase Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Visa ($95 annual fee): 100,000 points - our value $655 (historical high)
• Chase IHG Rewards Club Premier MasterCard ($89 annual fee): 120,000 points - our value ($390 (historical high) 

With the new name for the world's largest loyalty program unveiled, the Starwood Preferred Guest American Express Luxury Card is finally rebranded as the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant American Express Card.  Everything remains the same but the name - including (1) the $450 annual fee, (2) 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you spend $5,000 within the first 3 months of new account opening, (3) annual $300 credits at any Marriott portfolio hotels worldwide, (4) an annual free night at Marriott portfolio hotels or resorts with a redemption level of 50,000 points or less, (5) annual 15 night credits towards Marriott elite status,  (6) free Marriott Gold status and upgrade to Marriott Platinum status after $75K annual spending, and (7) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited airport lounge access for you plus two guests.

At the same time, the Starwood Preferred Guest Business Card from American Express is rebranded as the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card.  The only thing that changes other than the name is the annual fee - increased from $95 to $125 and NOT waived for the first year any more.  However, if you apply before  3/28/19, you will continue to receive the first annual fee waiver and your annual fee after the first year will be grandfathered in at $95.  You will also receive 100,000 Marriott Bonvoy points after spending $5,000 within the first 3 months.  If you have been thinking about applying for this card, you probably want to do it before March 28.

American Express Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) Luxury Card is finally here, with a 100K signup bonus.  Our review is now alive.  The card is totally worth keeping after the first year thanks to the annual $300 Marriott credits and the free night capped at 50K points level.  For your information, the new Marriott program has 8 redemption categories, and 50K points are required for a Category 6 standard awards night.  We have also updated the High-end Credit Card Comparison, as well as quite a few related reviews.

The Facts

• Annual Fee: $450
• Signup Bonus: 100,000 points after spending $5,000 within 3 months of new account opening.  The welcome offer is not available to applicants who have or have had this card.  Effective 8/26/18, welcome offer is not available to applicants who (i) have or have had JP Morgan Ritz-Carlton Rewards Credit Card in the last 30 days, (ii) have acquired Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card, Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card, or Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Business Card in the last 90 days, or (iii) received a welcome or upgrade offer for Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Plus Credit Card, Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Credit Card, or Chase Marriott Rewards Premier Business Card in the last 24 months.  Historical best bonus: 100,000 points since introduced in August 2018.
• Application Landing Page
• Rewards: 6x Marriott portfolio hotels, 3x U.S. restaurants and airfare, and 2x everywhere else.
• Best Use of Marriott points:  (1) You may redeem points for hotel stays or upgrades at over 6,500 Marriott portfolio hotels worldwide, including Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, Luxury Collection, JW Marriott, EDITION, W Hotels, Marriott, Renaissance, Delta, Gaylord, Autograph Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels, Courtyard, AC Hotels, Fairfield, SpringHill Suites, Protea, Moxy, Four Points, element, aloft, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Marriott Executive Apartments, and Marriott Vacation Club.  (2) You may transfer points into airline miles of 30+ frequent flyer programs, mostly at 3:1 ratio.  If you transfer 60,000 points in a bulk you will get 5,000 miles as a bonus (60K points = 25 miles).  Please see our review on Marriott vs. MR vs. UR vs. TY vs. CR for details of the programs that allow frequent flyer miles transfer.  (3) You may also redeem points for Marriott Hotel+Air Travel Packages - you exchange a certain number of Marriott points for a certain number of frequent flyer miles plus a 7-night certificate for a Marriott portfolio hotel at a certain redemption level.  Generally, the new Travel Packages represent devaluation from the old Travel Packages before August 2018 - you save some points when use this option, but in our opinion most of the time the saving is not big enough for the hassle of finding a single hotel to stay seven nights in a row.
• Marriott Benefits: (1) Annual $300 statement credits towards purchases at Marriott portfolio hotels each membership year.  (2) An annual free night at any Marriott portfolio hotels with a redemption level of 50,000 points or less upon each cardmember anniversary after you renew the card (the e-certificate expires 12 months after issuance).  (3) Complimentary Marriott Gold Elite status, the third tier status in the combined Marriott loyalty program effective August 2018.  Normally achieved by staying at least 25 nights per year, Marriott Gold doesn't offer much but at least is better than nothing.  (4) Upgrade to Marriott Platinum Elite status, the second tier status, after you spend at least $75,000 in a calendar year.  Marriott Platinum, normally achieved by staying at least 50 nights per year and offering lounge access/free breakfasts and upgrades to a suite, is the real deal; however, spending $75K is quite a requirement.  (5) Coming 2019, 15 night credits toward elite status each calendar year.  (6) Free premium internet access at Marriott portfolio hotels.
• Other Benefits: (1) Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited access to over 1,000 airport lounges worldwide for you plus two guests. (2) Reimbursement for Global Entry ($100) or TSA PreCheck ($85) application fees every four years.  (3) Waived foreign transaction fees, with an embedded EMV chip.  (4) Amex 24/7 Concierge Service.  (5) Amex Offers - you receive savings in form of statement credit or earn bonus points on select merchants when using your Amex card; you need to manually add an offer to your Amex card to be eligible for savings or bonus, and unlike other savings/bonus programs, you don't need to shop through a certain portal.  (6) ShopRunner membership for free 2-day shipping with select merchants.  (7) Entertainment Access including American Express Presale, American Express Preferred Seating, and Premium Access (dining access).  (8) Unlimited Boingo Wi-Fi plan.  (9) Premium Roadside Assistance - while most credit card's roadside assistance service only dispatches a provider and you have to pay for the actual charge, Amex Hilton Aspire is among the very few cards that cover towing up to 10 miles and other incidental charges, up to 4 times in a calendar year, regardless of how far you are away from home.
• History: with the merger of Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest programs in August 2018, Amex introduced the SPG Luxury Card as the flagship credit card in the combined loyalty program.

The Math

First of all, the effective annual fee of Amex SPG Luxury Card is very reasonable at $150 after considering the easy-to-use $300 annual Marriott credits.  With that, you receive several valuable perks including the 50k-point free night, 15 elite qualifying night credits, and Priority Pass Select membership.

Even though Marriott points are probably our favorite frequent traveler currency (thanks to Marriott's decision of keeping SPG's best feature), the earning rate of 2x points in the general spending category offered by this card (as well as any other Marriott credit cards) is not that impressive, especially compared to the old Amex SPG which technically returned 3x Marriott points for general spending.  Our current valuation of Marriott points is 0.75 cent a piece, which means that this card returns 1.5%, 2.3%, 4.5% travel rewards for the 2x, 3x, and 6x categories, respectively.  For general spending, you might want to consider a 2% cashback card without annual fees (such as Citi Double Cash) or a miles credit card with potential higher return such as Amex EveryDay Preferred (which returns 2.25% travel rewards when you have at least 30 transactions per month) and Chase Freedom Unlimited (which returns 2.25% travel rewards when you pair it with Chase Sapphire Reserve or similar premium UR cards).  The bottom line is that we won't recommend this card for spending, probably except for purchases at Marriott hotels.  In this way, this card is considered a great "drawer card".  How about spending $75K to get the lucrative Marriott Platinum status?  Let's use 2% cashback as the benchmark - your "complimentary" Marriott Platinum essentially costs you $75,000 x (2% -1.5%), i.e., $375 per year.  This may be reasonable for some travelers but probably not for most.

​Amex SPG Luxury vs. Amex SPG: the effective annual fee on the SPG Luxury Card is only $55 more than the lower-tier SPG Card.  With that, you get a 50K-point free night instead of a 35K-point free night, Marriott Gold for free instead of spending $35K, the potential Marriott Platinum after $75K spending, as well as Priority Pass Select membership, Premium Roadside Assistance, etc.  It is almost a no-brainer to pick the more expensive card as long as you stay at least a few nights at Marriott portfolio hotels.

Amex SPG Luxury vs. Amex Hilton Aspire: As the flagship credit card in each of their program, each card carries a $450 annual fee and offers complimentary Priority Pass Select membership with unlimited access for you plus two.  How do they compete with each other?  Let's first compare the annual statement credits - SPG Luxury offers $300 for any Marriott portfolio hotel purchases, while Hilton Aspire offers $250 for airline incidentals plus $250 for Hilton portfolio resorts; obviously, SPG's credits are easier to use, but Hilton's total credits are $200 more - considering both the absolute value and how easy to use, we call it a draw.  Secondly, let's look at the annual free nights - Hilton Aspire wins this one as the annual free weekend night can be redeemed at any Hilton portfolio hotels, while SPG Luxury's free night is capped at 50K-point properties (a top-tier hotel requires 70K-100K).  Thirdly, Hilton Aspire's complimentary Diamond status again blows SPG Luxury's complimentary Gold status out of water.  Marriott Platinum status will be a good match of Hilton Diamond status, but it does require a whooping $75K annual spending on the card.  Lastly, while we don't recommend either card for general spending, charging the hotel purchases to either card does make sense and the value actually compares well - Hilton Aspire's 14x points (5.6% cash equivalent return in our book) vs. SPG Luxury 6x points (4.5% in our book and offering more flexibility due to the valuable airline miles transfer).  In general, Amex Hilton Aspire packs more value in our opinion, but which to pick actually heavily depends on which frequent guest program you are more loyal to.

To see how Amex SPG Luxury Card competes with other cards with similar annual fees, please check out our featured review Comparing High-end Cards covering Amex Platinum Card, Amex Delta Reserve, Amex Hilton Aspire, Amex SPG Luxury, Chase Sapphire Reserve, Chase United MP Club, Citi Prestige, Citi AA Executive, U.S. Bank Altitude Reserve, CNB Crystal, and MasterCard Black Card.

The Conclusion
Amex SPG Luxury, with the annual $300 Marriott credits and the anniversary free night, is such a great card to keep without ever spending a dime on, even for travelers that only stay at Marriott portfolio hotels just a few times a year.  For travelers that frequent Marriott, this card's 6x points on Marriott purchases, 15 elite qualifying night credits, and the potential Marriott Platinum after $75K spending, are all worth looking into.  It is currently rated as one of Best Credit Cards for Perks.

With the final integration of Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) programs, we have updated our Featured Review: Marriott Rewards vs. Membership Rewards (MR) vs. Ultimate Rewards (UR) vs. ThankYou (TY) vs. Club Rewards (CR).

In this review we will compare five most popular and versatile rewards programs in the market.  They are similar in that their points can be transferred into miles/points of a number of frequent traveler programs (airlines/hotels).

Marriott Rewards
Marriott Rewards is the frequent guest program of Marriott International whose hotel portfolio includes Ritz-Carlton, St. Regis, Luxury Collection, JW Marriott, EDITION, W Hotels, Marriott, Renaissance, Delta, Gaylord, Autograph Collection, Sheraton, Westin, Le Meridien, Tribute Portfolio, Design Hotels, Courtyard, AC Hotels, Fairfield, SpringHill Suites, Protea, Moxy, Four Points, element, aloft, Residence Inn, TownePlace Suites, Marriott Executive Apartments, and Marriott Vacation Club.  Marriott points can be valuable when redeemed for hotel stays in Marriott portfolio hotels.  Here we don't want to go into details of hotel redemption, please visit marriott.com for more information.

Marriott points can be extremely valuable when transferred into miles of 40+ frequent flyer programs, mostly at 3:1 ratio.  This ratio may seem low compared to other programs, but you have to understand this essentially represents the same value as the old Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) points which transfer to airline miles at 1:1 and to Marriott points at 1:3 before the final integration of Marriott Rewards and SPG programs.  In fact, with the merger, the number of airline partners actually further increased from 34 to 44.  As Marriott points are generally obtained more easily than the points in the other programs in this review, they do continue to represent great value.

• Aegean Airlines Miles+Bonus (3:1)
• Aeroflot Bonus (3:1)
• Aeromexico Club Premier (3:1)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (3:1)
• Air China Phoenix Miles (3:1)
• Air New Zealand Airpoints (200:1)
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (3:1)
• Alitalia MilleMiglia (3:1)
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club (3:1)
• American Airlines AAdvantage (3:1)
• Asiana Airlines Asiana Club (3:1)
• Avianca LifeMiles (3:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (3:1) 
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (3:1)
• China Eastern Airlines Eastern Miles (3:1)
• China Southern Airlines Skypearl Club (3:1) 
• Copa Airlines ConnectMiles (3:1)                                                                                             
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (3:1)
• Emirates Skywards (3:1)
• Etihad Guest (3:1)      
• Frontier Airlines EarlyReturns (3:1)                                                                            
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (3:1)     
• Hainan Airlines (3:1)                                                            
• Hawaiian Airlines (3:1)
• Iberia Plus (3:1)
• Japan Airlines Mileage Bank (3:1)
• Jet Airways JetPrivilege (3:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (6:1)
• Korean Air SkyPass (3:1)
• LATAM Airlines LATAM Pass (3:1)
• Miles and More (3:1)
• Multiplus (3:1)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (3:1)
• Qatar Airways (3:1)
• Saudi Arabian Airlines Alfursan (3:1)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (3:1)
• South African Airways Voyager (3:1)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (3:1)
• TAP Air Portugal TAP Victoria (3:1)
• Thai Airways International Royal Orchid Plus (3:1)
• Turkish Airlines Miles&Smiles (3:1)
• United Airlines MileagePlus (3:1.1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (3:1)
• Virgin Australia Velocity (3:1)

Most importantly, if you transfer 60,000 points you receive a bonus of 15,000 points, i.e., 60K Marriott points = 25K miles, or 2.4 Marriott points = 1 mile of most partners.  You can transfer your Marriott points to a household member's Marriott account but there is paperwork you will have to do and sign.  However, you can only transfer your Marriott points to a frequent flyer account under your name.

In addition, you might redeem Marriott points for the Travel Packages (Hotel + Air Packages): your points will be converted to a certain number of frequent flyer miles plus a seven-night hotel certificate at a certain redemption level.  Marriott revamped the Hotel + Air charts in August 2018, with major devaluation.  The new travel packages do not represent good value compared to the simple miles transfer without the hotel certificate; for example, you might redeem 330K Marriott points for 100K miles plus a 7-night certificate at Category 1-4 hotels - you essentially only save 60K points for the hassle of finding a single hotel to stay for 7 consecutive nights.
                                                                                                                                                                     
Membership Rewards (MR) from American Express
On the earning side, you earn one extra point for each dollar spent on travel booked through MR (American Express Travel); however, Amex charges a booking fee on airfare or air-hotel packages ($6.99 per domestic ticket; $10.99 per international ticket) so most likely it is not a good deal.  Effective May 2015, Amex waives the booking fee for Platinum and Centurion cardmembers.  Amex used to have a shopping portal that allowed you to earn up to 10X bonus points; however, it was closed in 2013.

On the redemption side, MR points can be redeemed for merchandise, gift cards, travel (Pay with Points), and so on, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, some cards are eligible for a transfer feature that allows points to be transferred to over 20 frequent traveler programs.  Let's look at these two groups:

• Not eligible to transfer points: Blue ($0), Blue Business ($0), Zync ($25); however, if you have another card that has the transfer feature, all your MR points will be pooled together and all of them will be eligible to transfer points.
• Eligible to transfer points: EveryDay ($0), Blue Business Plus ($0), EveryDay Preferred ($95), Membership Rewards Business Card ($75), Green ($95), Business Green Rewards ($95), Gold ($125), Ameriprise co-branded Gold ($125), Premier Rewards Gold($175), Business Gold Rewards ($175), Mercedes-Benz Credit Card ($95), Platinum ($550), Business Platinum ($450), Mercedes-Benz co-branded Platinum, Ameriprise co-branded Platinum, Morgan Stanley co-branded Platinum, Goldman Sachs co-branded Platinum, Centurion ($2,500).

MR points can be transferred into miles or points of the following programs:

    Airline Partners

• AeroMexico Club Premier (1:1)
• Air Canada Aeroplan (1:1)
• Alitalia MilleMiglia (1:1)
• All Nippon Airways (ANA) Mileage Club (1:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1)
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (1:1)
• EL AL Israel Airlines Matmid Club (50:1)
• Emirates Skywards (1:1)
• Etihad Guest (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Hawaiian Airlines (1:1)
• Iberia Plus (14:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (1.25:1)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

    Hotel Partners

• Choice Privileges (1:1)
• Hilton HHonors (1:2)
• Marriott Rewards (1:1)

Compared to airline miles transfer, hotel points transfer does not represent  good value.  Even though MR does not have the built-in 25% transfer bonus like Marriott, Amex runs limited-time transfer promotions on certain partners several times a year, so the value of MR points can be higher.  Another huge advantage of MR over Marriott is that the transfer to most partners is instantaneous rather than days or weeks.  This can be very useful when you find a particular award ticket available and want to grab it immediately before it is taken.  The downside of MR is that Amex charges 0.06 cent per point up to $99 for transfer to domestic airlines.  For example, if you transfer 100K points to 100K Delta miles, you will be charged $60 for the transaction.  You can not transfer your MR points to someone else's MR account.  However, you can transfer your MR points to your authorized user's frequent traveler accounts.

Three Ways of Using MR points for Airfare: In addition to the aforementioned two options to redeem MR points for airfare - Pay with Points (fixed value, 1 cent per point) and the transfer feature, Amex also offers certificates for economy tickets for the following airlines: Cathay Pacific, Swiss, Qantas, and South African Airways.  Note that they (except Swiss) are not transfer partners: you can't transfer MR points to their miles but you rather use a bulk of points in exchange for certificates that can be used for economy tickets (or companion tickets).  The use of certificates is not subject to capacity control and you can actually earn miles on them.  There is no certificates for business or first class tickets.

For example, using the certificate a round-trip economy ticket on Swiss from SFO/LAX to Europe costs 65K points no matter how much the revenue ticket actually costs.  If you use Pay with Points feature and the revenue ticket costs $1,000, you will need 100K points.  For comparison, if you want to use Swiss' own frequent flyer program - Miles and More, which by the way is a transfer partner of Marriott, it will cost 50K miles plus fuel surcharge (which can be as high as, say $400) and is subject to capacity control.

Ultimate Rewards (UR) from Chase
Chase  Ultimate Rewards (UR) is a knock-off of Amex Membership Rewards.  On the earning side, you earn one extra point for one dollar spent on airfare booked through UR, but unlike Amex, Chase does not charge a booking fee.  You also earn up to 10x points when shopping through UR.  

The regular UR program allows redemption for merchandise, gift cards, cash, and travel, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, premium UR cards including Sapphire Preferred ($95), Sapphire Reserve ($450), JPM Reserve ($450), and Ink Preferred ($95), have two premium redemption features: one is 25% bonus to travel redemption via UR (1 point = 1.25 cent); the other is to transfer points into miles/points of frequent traveler programs.  Just like MR, transfer from UR to miles/points is instantaneous.  Also like MR, if you have a regular UR card such as Freedom and another premium UR card such as Sapphire Preferred, you can pool all UR points together and enjoy the premium features.  You can transfer your UR points to the UR account or a frequent traveler account belonging to one household member.  Points transfer to third parties is prohibited.  Currently, UR has the following partners:

    Airline Partners

• Aer Lingus AerClub (1:1)
• British Airways Executive Club (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Iberia Plus (1:1)
• Korean Air SkyPass(1:1) - partnership ending 8/26/18
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (1:1)
• United Airlines MileagePlus (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

    Hotel Partners

• IHG Rewards Club (1:1)
• Marriott Rewards (1:1)
• World of Hyatt (1:1)

ThankYou (TY) from Citi
For several years, Citi's ThankYou Rewards (TY) had been lagging behind with only one transfer partner Hilton HHonors (this relationship ended in December 2017), and we were excited to see that Citi finally introduced several airline partners in July 2014.  Currently there is no points earning for shopping with Citi.

The regular TY program allows redemption for merchandise, gift cards, statement credit, and travel, at up to 1 cent per point.  However, premium TY cards including Citi ThankYou Premier ($95), Citi Prestige ($450), and Citi Chairman, have a transfer feature similar to Marriott, MR, and UR, that allows ThankYou points to be transferred to frequent traveler programs.  If you have a regular TY cards such as ThankYou Preferred, you may pool all your points together and the points earned through the regular TY cards become eligible for transfer.  You may share your TY points with someone else; however, the shared points will expire in 90 days.  You can only transfer your TY points to a frequent traveler account under your name.  TY partners include the following:

• Avianca LifeMiles (1:1)
• Cathay Pacific Asia Miles (1:1)
• EVA Air Infinity MileageLands (1:1)
• Etihad Guest (1:1)
• Flying Blue by Air France and KLM (1:1)
• Garuda Indonesia Frequent Flyer (1:1)
• JetBlue TrueBlue (1.25:1)
• Jet Airways JetPrivilege (1:1)
• Malaysia Airlines Enrich (1:1)
• Qantas Frequent Flyer (1:1)
• Qatar Airways Privilege Club (1:1)
• Sears Shop Your Way (1:12)
• Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer (1:1)
• Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus (1:1) 
• Turkish Airlines Miles & Smiles (1:1)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1:1)

Club Rewards (CR) from Diners Club
Club Rewards from Diners Club has always had the transfer feature that allows points to be transferred to miles/points.  Club Rewards points earned from Diners Club cards such as Diners Club Premier ($95) and Diners Club Elite ($300), both of which hasn't been accepting new applications since late 2014, can be redeemed for merchandise, gift cards, cash, travel, etc., at up to 1 cent per point.  In addition, CR points can be transferred to the following frequent traveler accounts, mostly at 1:1:
​
​    Airline Partners

• Air Canada Aeroplan (1000:1000)
• Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan (1075:1000)
• British Airways Executive Club (1000:1000)
• Delta Air Lines SkyMiles (1075:1000)
• El Al Airlines Matmid Club(1000:20)
• EVA Airways Infinity MileageLands (1000:1000)
• Hawaiian Airlines (1075:1000)
• Icelandair Saga Club (1000:1000)
• SAS EuroBonus (1000:1000)
• South African Airways Voyager (1000:1000)
• Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards (1613:1200)
• Thai Airways Royal Orchid Plus (1000:1000)
• Virgin Atlantic Flying Club (1000:1000)

​    Hotel Partners

• Best Western Rewards (1250:3300)
• Choice Privileges (1250:2400)
• Hilton HHonors (1250:2000)
• Hyatt Gold Passport (1250:750)
• IHG Rewards Club (1250:1500)
• Marriott Rewards (1250:1500)

For the master comparison chart, please see the updated review.

We have been continuing to make updates throughout the site.  Here are some highlights.

• Chase has brought to us the best signup bonus on its Marriott Visa personal card.  You will receive 107,500 Marriott Rewards points after you spend $5,000 and add an authorized user within 3 months of  new account opening.  As the Marriott Rewards and Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG) programs are on the way to integrate and allow points transfer between linked accounts at a ratio of 3:1, our valuation of Marriott Rewards points is now 0.75 cent per point, exactly a third of that of SPG points.  The $85 annual fee is not waived, so this signup bonus is worth ~$720 in our book.  107,500 Marriott points can be transferred to 35,833 SPG points, and this offer is similar in value to Amex SPG which offers 35,000 SPG points with an annual fee waiver.
• Amex has upped signup bonus of its Amex Hilton Surpass (annual fee $75) and regular Amex Hilton (no annual fee): Surpass offers 100K points upon signup plus a free weekend night at select Hilton Worldwide hotels after you pay the second annual fee; the regular Hilton Amex offers 80K points on signup.  As our valuation of Hilton points is 0.4 cent per point, the signup bonus is worth $325 for Surpass and $320 for regular Hilton Amex, respectively.  For the second year after paying the $75 annual fee, Surpass also gives a free night, which can invaluable.  Both signup offers are the best in history.

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Amex SPG (Starwood Preferred Guest), the No.3 Best Credit Card by Dr. Credit Card, has come back to give the 35K offer once again.  This is the best signup bonus on this card in terms of total points; however, the spending requirement is a little higher than the similar offer that came out about a year ago.  If you open both personal and business SPG Card, you will receive a total of 70,000 points.  Keep in mind that you can only get the signup bonus when you have never received bonus on the specific card before.  For example, if you received bonus on the personal SPG Card before you are not eligible for the 35K on the personal card, but if you never received bonus on the business card then you are still eligible for the 35K on the business card.

With the merger between Marriott and Starwood, you can now link your SPG account to your Marriott / Ritz-Carlton Rewards account and transfer SPG points to Marriott / Ritz-Carlton Rewards points at a ratio of 1:3.  Thus the signup bonus of 35,000 SPG points equals to 105,000 Marriott points.  If you open both personal and business cards, you can transfer 70,000 SPG points to 210,000 Marriott points.  As we expect at some point, Amex SPG Card will be gone, it is your best chance of getting a boatload of SPG/Marriott points if you have never had SPG Card before. 

Personal Amex SPG Landing Page: you will receive 25,000 points after spending $3,000 within 3 months of new account opening, and another 10,000 points after spending an additional $2,000 within 6 months, thus a total of 35,000 points with $5,000 spent.

Business Amex SPG Landing Page: You will receive 25,000 points after spending $5,000 within 3 months of new account opening, and another 10,000 points after spending an additional $3,000 within 6 months, thus a total of 35,000 points with $8,000 spent.

There have been quite some updates throughout the site and these are the highlights for the past week.

• Chase United MP Explorer is offering a public 55K miles bonus, without an annual fee waiver.  For quite some time, the same offer is targeted to many United MP members, and of course the public offer is always better.  Note that the business version still offers a 50K mile bonus with the first year annual fee waiver.
• We noticed the landing page for JPM Ritz-Carlton Visa's three Tier 1-4 free night offer was dead and re-directed to the new (and reduced) offer of two free nights.  The old application link was kept alive for a few days before pulled.  However, there is a landing page for three free nights that indicates an expiration date of November 30, 2016.  You may try it at your discretion, with the worst scenario being you just receive two free nights instead of three.  Note that Ritz-Carlton Visa is currently exempt from the infamous Chase 5/24 rule which disqualifies you from getting a new Chase card if you have opened five or more credit card accounts in the previous 24 months.  As long as you did not receive a signup bonus on the Ritz-Carlton Card within 24 months, you are eligible for the new signup bonus.  Keep in mind that you can't redeem the free Tier 1-4 certificates at 13 top-tier (Tier 5) properties including The Ritz-Carlton in New York Central Park, Bachelor Gulch, Naples, Miami South Beach, Miami Bal Harbour, Miami Key Biscayne, Grand Cayman, St. Thomas, Tokyo, Kyoto, Hong Kong, Shanghai Pudong, and Dubai.  However, there are still some amazing properties that are Tier 1-4, such as the ones in Half Moon Bay (rates from $599 per night), San Fransisco (from $399), Laguna Niguel (from $479), Los Angeles (from $409), Washington DC (from $329), Georgetown Washington DC (from $409), Boston (from $345), Dallas (from $399), Charlotte (from $399), Reynolds Lake Oconee (from $309), Maui Kapalua (from $399), Cancun (from $299), Aruba (from $299), Hotel de la Paix in Geneva (from $475), Vienna (from $360), Herzliya (from $395), and Macau (from $460)
• We discovered the website for Visa Infinite Hotels that is available to any U.S. issued Visa Infinite card.  Visit VisaInfiniteHotels.com to book a hotel - you have to type in your Visa Infinite card number before start searching for hotels.  Visa Infinite Hotel Collection covers a subset (~200) of Visa Signature hotels (900+ luxury hotels and resorts worldwide) but offers an extra perk such as a $75 dining credit or $100 spa/hotel/rate credit per stay, in addition to Visa Signature Hotel Collection's 7 perks (guaranteed lowest rates, daily complimentary breakfasts for two, room upgrades upon availability, late checkout upon availability, $25 food and beverage credit per stay, free room wi-fi, and VIP amenities).  Currently, the only three U.S. issued Visa Infinite cards - CNB Crystal, Chase Sapphire Reserve / JPM Reserve, and JPM Ritz-Carlton Card - participate in both programs.

We have been continuing to make updates throughout the site.  Here are some highlights:

• BofA MERRILL+ Visa Signature has an incredible 50,000 points offer.  Please see our review for details.  There are reports indicating that you don't need a Merrill Lynch relation to apply and get approved, and a relationship with Bank of America may or may not be required.  50K points are worth $500-$1,000 and we think it should be reasonably easy to redeem them for $800 in airfare.  Even though this card is worth keeping after the first year as there is no annual fee, we won't recommend it for general spending.
• We also reviewed the super-exclusive BofA Merrill Lynch Octave Amex, which carries an annual fee of $950 and is by-invitation-only exclusively for Merrill's richest clients who maintains at least 10 million dollars in asset with them.  The most interesting feature of the card is the up to 5% travel rewards for general spending (4% is reasonably achievable).
• Chase Marriott Visa has a new offer: two free nights at Category 1-5 hotels & $200 statement credit after spending $3,000 within 3 months of new account opening, an additional 7,5000 points after you add the first authorized user and make the first purchase within the same 3 months, and waived first year annual fee ($85).  The old offer of up to 87,500 points is still available.  Please see our review for details.  As for which offer is better, it depends on your value for Marriott points and free nights.  In our book, the new offers is worth $445 and the old offer is $440 - about the same.
• Please always check our Promotion page for the current credit card signup offers which are ranked by our value.