All-Nippon Airways (ANA) is one of my favorite ways to redeem points because you can fly business class or fly around the world with up to 7 stopovers for a very reasonable amount of points.
ANA is the main way I use my American Express Membership Rewards, which transfer at a 1 to 1 ratio in about one to three days.
You can also transfer points from Marriott Bonvoy to ANA at a ratio of 3 Marriott Points to 1 ANA mile, which takes up to 7 days to transfer.
With Marriott Bonvoy, you also receive a bonus of 5,000 ANA miles when you transfer in increments of 60,000 Marriott points. For example, 60,000 Marriott points equals 25,000 miles.
If you need to earn a lot of ANA miles, you should strongly consider signing up for one of the cards below.
One welcome offer from a card like The Platinum Card® from American Express could get you a free business-class flight using ANA miles.
1. The Platinum Card® from American Express
The Platinum Card® from American Express is a great premium travel rewards card for travelers who want airport lounge access, including Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs (when flying Delta), Escape Lounges, Priority Pass lounges.
The American Express Platinum has a $695 annual fee, but you receive many annual statement credits when you enroll your card to offset the fee, including:
- $200 Airline Fee Credit (after you select a qualifying airline and incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®)
- $200 Hotel Credit (on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings, which requires a minimum two-night stay)
- $240 Digital Entertainment Credit (up to $20 each month: Audible, Disney+, The Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, Peacock, SiriusXM, and The New York Times)
- $200 Uber Cash Credit ($15 per month with $35 in December when you add your Platinum Card to Uber or UberEats account)
- $155 Walmart+ Credit (covers the cost of a $12.95 monthly membership)
- CLEAR Credit (up to $189 towards an annual Clear membership for expedited airport security)
You also earn 5x Membership Rewards points when booking flights directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 in purchases per calendar year) and 5x Membership Rewards points when booking prepaid hotels with American Express Travel.
On top of that, you automatically earn Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite and Hilton Honors Gold statuses, which offer points bonuses, room upgrades, late check-out, and other premier benefits.
2. American Express® Gold Card
The American Express® Gold Card is one of my favorite cards because it earns:
- 4x Membership Rewards® points at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S.,
- 4x Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1x).
- 3x points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
Plus, card members get nice credits when you enroll your Gold Card to offset the annual fee:
- $120 Uber Cash: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account, and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S.
- $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings and earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations.
3. The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express is an outstanding choice for business owners who want airport lounge access including the American Express Global Lounge Collection, Centurion Lounges, Delta Sky Clubs, Escape Lounges, Priority Pass lounges, and more.
The Business Platinum card also offers several statement credits to offset the $695 annual fee:
- $200 Airline Fee: Annual airline fee credit of up to $200 on charges by the airline you select per calendar year.
- $400 Dell: Annual statement credit on all U.S. Dell purchases, up to $200 semiannually.
- $120 Wireless Phone Services: Annual statement credits for purchases made directly with any U.S. wireless telephone provider, up to $10 per month.
- CLEAR: Up to $189 toward an annual Clear membership for expedited airport security.
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck: Statement credits for Global Entry ($100) or TSA PreCheck ($85) every four years (4.5 years for PreCheck).
You can also earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on amextravel.com, and 1.5x points on purchases of $5,000 or more everywhere else, on up to $2 million of these purchases per calendar year
The American Express Business Platinum comes with automatic Hilton Honors Gold and Marriott Bonvoy Gold so that you can enjoy perks like room upgrades, late check-out, and a points bonus.
Additionally, the points you earn can be transferred to several Amex transfer partners such as Air Canada Aeroplan, Delta SkyMiles, and Marriott Bonvoy. This potentially increases the value of your points depending on how you redeem them.
4. Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
- Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards Points for $3,000 in Eligible Purchases in the First 3 Months
- 2 Points Per Dollar on the First $50,000 in Purchases Each Calendar Year (1x Points thereafter)
- 0.0% Intro APR on purchases for the first 12 months. After that, a variable APR of 17.99% – 25.99%.
- No Annual Fee (Rates and Fees)
The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express is one of my favorite cards because it has no annual fee and earns 2x Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 in purchases every year. After that, you will earn 1 point on all other eligible purchases.
You can transfer Membership Rewards to 18 airlines and three hotel points programs, with several great sweet spots to travel in business class to anywhere in the world.
I put all of my everyday business spending on my Blue Business Plus because it is a quick way to rack up points for my next trip.
5. Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card
- Earn 95,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points After $5,000 in Eligible Purchases in the First 3 Months
- 6X Points at Marriott Hotels & Resorts
- Up to a $300 Statement Credit for Eligible Purchases at Restaurants Worldwide Each Year ($25 Per Month)
- Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite Status
- Free Anniversary Night Award (Up to 85,000 Points)
- Priority Pass Airport Lounge Access
- $650 Annual Fee and No Foreign Transaction Fees (Rates and Fees)
The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card is a premium hotel card that gets you Platinum Elite status, a free annual hotel night up to 85,000 points, 6x points at Marriott Bonvoy hotels, and Priority Pass airport lounge access.
The Bonvoy Brillant comes with several great statement credits to help offset the annual fee, including:
- Up to $300 in statement credits per calendar year (up to $25 per month) for eligible purchases at restaurants worldwide.
- Priority Pass airport lounge access
- Global Entry or TSA PreCheck credit
- Cell phone insurance
- 25 Marriott Elite night credits to help you reach higher status
6. American Express® Business Gold Card
- Earn 70,000 Membership Rewards Points After $10,000 in Eligible Purchases in the First 3 Months
- 4X Points on Purchases in Your Top 2 Business Categories (up to $150,000 in Combined Purchases Per Calendar Year)
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- $295 Annual Fee (Rates and Fees)
The American Express® Business Gold Card is a good fit for business owners who want to earn much-coveted Membership Rewards points from business spending.
For a $295 annual fee, this card earns 4x points on up to $150,000 in combined purchases per year in your top two spending categories, with options including eligible airfare, U.S. advertising, U.S. shipping, U.S. cloud, software, and hardware, U.S. gas, and U.S. dining purchases.
You can also receive 25% points back after you use points for all or part of an eligible flight booked with Amex Travel, up to 250,000 points back per calendar year.
7. Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card
- Earn 100,000 Bonus Points After Spending $3,000 in the First 3 Months.
- 6x Points at Marriott Hotels & Resorts
- 3x Points on Groceries, Gas, and Dining on the First $6,000 in Combined Purchases Each Year
- One Annual Free Night Award (Up to 35,000 Points Every Year After Account Anniversary)
- Automatic Silver Elite Status + 15 Elite Credits
- Trip Delay, Baggage Delay, and Lost Luggage Insurance
- $95 Annual Fee
The Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card is a good option for travelers who want benefits at Marriott for a reasonable annual fee of $95, which is offset by a free night award of up to 35,000 points after each account anniversary.
The Bonvoy Boundless card also offers Bonvoy Silver status, 15 elite night credits, 6x points at Marriott Bonvoy hotels, 3x points at grocery stores, gas stations, and on dining on the first $6,000 in combined purchases each year.
Plus, the card offers benefits such as baggage delay insurance, lost luggage reimbursement, trip delay reimbursement, purchase protection, and no foreign transaction fees.
8. Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card
- Earn 125,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points after $5,000 in Eligible Purchases in the First 3 Months. (Offer Ends 5/3/2023)
- 6X Points at Marriott Hotels & Resorts
- 4X Points at Restaurants Worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, U.S. Phone Service Providers, and on U.S. Shipping Purchases.
- Annual Free Night Award (up to 35,000 Points)
- 15 Elite Night Credits and Gold Elite Status
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- $125 Annual Fee (Rates and Fees)
The Marriott Bonvoy Business® American Express® Card is a nice choice for business owners who want valuable hotel perks, including an annual free night at hotels costing 35,000 points plus 15 elite night credits to achieve higher status faster.
The Marriott Bonvoy Business card earns 6x points at participating hotels and 4x points at restaurants worldwide, at U.S. gas stations, on wireless telephone services purchased directly from U.S. service providers, and on U.S. purchases for shipping.
You also receive automatic Marriott Gold Elite status, which offers a 25% points bonus, welcome amenity, space-available room upgrade, and priority late check-out.
9. Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card
- Earn 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy Points After Spending $2,000 in the First 3 Months
- 3X Points at Marriott and 2X Points on Other Travel Purchases
- Silver Elite Status + 15 Elite Night Credits
- Trip Delay Insurance
- 120-Day Purchase Protection
- No Foreign Transaction Fees
- $0 Annual Fee
The Chase Marriott Bonvoy Bold® Credit Card is a no-annual-fee card that earns 3x points at Marriott properties and gives you Silver elite Bonvoy status.
It also a great way to get travel protections without paying an annual fee. The Bonvoy Bold provides trip delay insurance, baggage delay insurance, and lost luggage reimbursement when you use the card for travel.
For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, please click here.
For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Business™ American Express® Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant® American Express® Card, please click here.
For rates and fees of The Blue Business Plus® Credit Card from American Express, please click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Business Gold Card, please click here.
