How to earn and use a Marriott Bonvoy 35,000-point certificate

There are multiple Marriott credit cards that stay safely in each of our wallets year after year for a few reasons. Our travel styles and goals are pretty different — Katie is a digital nomad, while Summer usually travels with her family — but we both happily renew our Marriott Bonvoy cards each year because of the value they offer.

One of the primary ways we get value from our Marriott cards is with a free night award certificate each year after renewing the card. Marriott free night awards come in various denominations. But in this story, we'll focus on the 35,000-point certificates — offered by the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card (see rates and fees) and the Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card — and how we use them.

How to earn Marriott 35,000-point certificates

You'll occasionally find Marriott promotions that let you earn 35,000-point certificates. But the most consistent way to earn Marriott free night awards that you can use for one night with a redemption level at or under 35,000 points is Marriott credit cards.

As mentioned above, you can earn a 35,000-point certificate at each account renewal with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card and Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card. Plus, you'll earn another free night award after you spend $60,000 in purchases on your Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex in a calendar year.

For the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless, the free night award will automatically appear in your Marriott Bonvoy account within eight weeks of your account anniversary date. Meanwhile, the anniversary free night award should appear in your account within eight to 12 weeks after your renewal month for the Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex. If you meet the purchase requirement to earn another free night award on your Marriott Bonvoy Business Amex, it should appear in your account eight to 12 weeks after you meet the purchase requirement.

Related: 3 reasons why the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless is worth the $95 annual fee

You'll likely receive an email each time a new 35,000-point certificate is added to your account. But you can also see your free night awards by logging into your Marriott Bonvoy account, clicking on your name in the upper right corner and selecting "Overview." From here, scroll down until you see a "Free night awards" tile under "Earned rewards." Click "View awards" to see your unexpired, unused free nights and their expiration dates.

If you use the Marriott Bonvoy app, you can also see your certificates by logging in, tapping the "Account" link at the bottom right, tapping the "Awards" button and then navigating to the "Free Night Awards" section.

Related: How much value does the Marriott Bonvoy program provide when you book directly?

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How to use a Marriott 35,000-point certificate

To use a Marriott free night certificate worth up to 35,000 points, search for hotels using Marriott Bonvoy points as you normally would. If you're searching for a one-night stay, select a property priced at 35,000 points or less per night. Or, since Marriott now lets you top off these certificates with up to 25,000 points, you could consider properties that cost up to 60,000 points per night — though anything above that threshold is out of reach.

You can use the flexible dates search feature if you have flexible dates but want to use your free night award at a specific property. When you click on the date field from the Marriott homepage, check the box for "My dates are flexible" to see the award prices across various dates.

Once you find a property for 35,000 points or less (or up to 60,000 points if you are willing to add points), choose your desired room type.

At checkout, you will see the option to pay using your Marriott 35,000-point certificate. If you select a property that costs between 36,000 and 60,000 points on the night you book, you can pay using your certificate and pay the difference with points.

You can also use multiple Marriott free night awards — or a mixture of points and Marriott free night awards — to book a stay of more than one night.

However, if the hotel has a resort fee, you must pay it — even if you use a certificate to cover the points portion of your stay. And if you need to cancel a reservation made with a free night award, keep a close eye on your Marriott account to ensure the certificate gets redeposited. If you don't see it in your account after you cancel, call Marriott customer service to have it returned manually.

Related: 5 ways to maximize Marriott Bonvoy award night redemptions

How we've recently used Marriott 35,000-point certificates

While Marriott award prices vary by night, many appealing properties have nights available for 35,000 points or less — and even more for 60,000 points or less. For inspiration, here's a look at how we've recently used Marriott 35,000-point certificates.

Summer recently redeemed 35,000-point certificates for stays at the Moxy Edinburgh Fountainbridge and Residence Inn Edinburgh, needing to top her certificates off by 12,000 and 15,000 points, respectively. Meanwhile, Katie recently redeemed 35,000-point certificates for stays at Four Points by Sheraton Edinburgh, Marriott Mena House Cairo and Moxy Barcelona (with a 2,000-point top off). If she had booked paid rates for these nights, it would have cost $353, $419 and $242, respectively.

Other TPG staffers have also used Marriott 35,000-point certificates for valuable stays within the last year. For example, TPG engineering manager Zoe Jablow topped off a 35,000-point certificate with close to 15,000 points for a one-night stay at The Westin St. Francis San Francisco on Union Square last November. She used a nightly upgrade award to confirm into a one-bedroom suite, which she felt was a good use of both the certificate and the upgrade award.

Meanwhile, TPG director of marketing Caroline English lamented that only one or two Moxy properties were bookable with the certificates on the dates she needed. Hopefully, she'll find more options next time she needs to redeem 35,000-point certificates now that Marriott lets members top these certificates off with up to 25,000 points (up from the previous 15,000-point top-off cap).

Finally, TPG senior editorial director Nick Ewen recently topped off a 35,000-point certificate with 2,000 points for an upcoming night at the Asher Adams, an Autograph Collection property in Salt Lake City. The comparable paid rate for this night was $263, so Nick felt this was a decent use.

Related: 7 of the best hotel credit cards that come with an annual free night

Bottom line

The best way to get solid value from your Marriott 35,000-point certificate is to aim high. Since you can now add up to 25,000 points, you shouldn't use it for stays that cost much less than 35,000 points per night (unless you have no other use for it before the certificate expires). It's better to get the full value (and add some points, if needed) than use it for a hotel at a much lower cost.

If you don't have a card offering you a Marriott 35,000-point certificate each year, now is a good time to add one to your wallet. The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless Credit Card is a good option for consumers, while the Marriott Bonvoy Business American Express Card is ideal for small-business owners.