Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express

The Amex SPG foreign transaction fee is $0. The SPG Credit Card (None 1st yr, $95 after annual fee), SPG Luxury Credit Card ($450 annual fee) and SPG Business Credit Card ($95 annual fee) all have $0 foreign transaction fees. That did not change after Marriott rebranded all the SPG credit cards. Since there’s no Amex SPG foreign transaction fee, the points you earn on international purchases will not be negated by extra expenses. However, you may be charged a fee when you use an Amex SPG card at an ATM outside of the U.S.

Not having a foreign fee to worry about is good news for cardholders who travel, but only for those who have one of these credit cards already. All the SPG credit cards are closed to new applications as of February 2019. If you got an SPG card before the cutoff date, you get to keep your card for now. But eventually Marriott will send you a corresponding version from the Marriott Bonvoy credit card lineup. Amex SPG is now the Marriott Bonvoy Amex Card; the SPG Luxury Credit Card is now the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant Credit Card; and the SPG Business Credit Card is now the Marriott Bonvoy Business Credit Card.

Several American Express credit cards other than the three SPG credit cards also charge $0 foreign transaction fees. And American Express cards that do have foreign transaction fees charge up to 2.7%. But it’s worth pointing out that American Express cards are not as widely accepted internationally as Mastercard and Visa cards. Even Discover cards have an edge abroad.

The SPG credit card bonus for signing up is 75,000 points bonus points for purchases of at least $3,000 during the first 3 months.

The Starwood Preferred Guest Credit Card from American Express is no longer available, though. Two years after Marriott International bought Starwood, the two companies merged their rewards programs.

Now it's called the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card. It has a signup bonus of 3 Free Nights for purchases of at least $3,000 in the first 3 months.

Besides this generous initial bonus it also offers:

• 6 points per $1 for purchases made through Marriott
• 2 points per $1 for all other purchases
• 15 Elite Night Credits yearly

Keep in mind, though, that in order to qualify for this initial bonus, you cannot own another Marriott Bonvoy credit card, or have received a bonus for one in the past 24 months.

To redeem your SPG credit card free night, log into your account at americanexpress.com . Then, on the account activity page you should see an area with “Rewards Certificates.” This should list any outstanding certificates you have.
Please note that the certificate can be redeemed for a single night at any hotel that retails for up to 35,000 points.

The Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express used any of the three major credit card bureaus (Experian, Equifax, TransUnion) for approval, but it is no longer available to new applicants. As for reporting, American Express reports credit activity to all three major bureaus.

Marriott acquired Starwood and the merger closed in 2016. The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant™ American Express® Card is a great alternative to the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express as it offers attractive rewards tied to Marriott properties. When applying for the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, a hard inquiry on your credit report from any of the three major credit bureaus may be pulled.

Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant offers an initial bonus of 75,000 points for spending $3,000 in the first 3 months and up to $200 in statement credits for purchases at U.S. restaurants in the first 6 months. But keep in mind that applicants who have or had the Starwood Preferred Guest® Credit Card from American Express are not eligible for this offer. Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant still has attractive ongoing spending rewards though: 6 points per $1 spent at participating Marriott Bonvoy Hotels, 3 points per $1 at U.S. restaurants and on flights booked with airlines, and 2 points per $1 on all other purchases.

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant does charge a hefty $450 annual fee, though. So if you don’t think you’ll spend enough to offset its fee, check out some of the best Marriott credit cards and pick one according to your needs. The Marriott Bonvoy Bold™ Credit Card, for instance, features a $0 annual fee. Much like Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant, the Marriott Bonvoy Bold card may also gather information from any of the major credit bureaus when determining your eligibility. And it too, reports credit activity to all three major bureaus. If need be, make sure you unfreeze your credit reports before applying.