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You can transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to airline miles across 38 frequent flyer programs. The standard rate is 3 points for 1 mile, and Marriott adds a bonus once you move points in blocks of 60,000. That bonus changes the math more than most people expect.
This guide walks through the transfer process step by step, lists every partner with its ratio and bonus, and shows you the break-even number that decides whether the transfer is worth it. For a broader comparison of earning options, see our roundup of the best credit cards in the US.
Marriott Bonvoy converts points to miles at a flat 3:1 rate with almost every partner. Air New Zealand is the only exception, at 200:1. On top of that base rate, Marriott adds bonus miles for every full 60,000 points you move.
Three programs sit outside the bonus: American Airlines AAdvantage, Avianca LifeMiles, and Delta SkyMiles. Those three stay at a flat 3:1. United MileagePlus goes the other direction, with a 10,000-mile bonus per 60,000 points.
A few operating rules apply to every transfer:
The transfer runs entirely through the Marriott website. Log in to your Marriott Bonvoy account first, then open the Transfer Points to Miles page under the redemption menu.
Usually not. The arithmetic is unforgiving, and it works the same way regardless of how you value points.
Because 60,000 points buy 25,000 miles, each mile must be worth 2.4 times what you would otherwise get per Bonvoy point on a hotel night. If a free night gets you 0.7 cents per point, the mile has to clear 1.68 cents. If you regularly hit 0.9 cents on hotel stays, the mile has to clear 2.16 cents.
That threshold shifts by partner. The table below shows the three cases.
Marriott has also raised award pricing on hotel nights, which pushes the value of a Bonvoy point down and makes the transfer look slightly better by comparison. Even so, the base case rarely clears the bar.
Three situations flip the answer. In each one, the ratio stops being the deciding factor.
Some award programs have very few US transfer routes. American Airlines AAdvantage takes points from almost no flexible currency, and Atmos Rewards, the combined Alaska and Hawaiian program, is nearly as narrow.
Marriott Bonvoy reaches both. If an award seat only exists in one of those programs, a poor ratio still beats not booking the seat at all. Compare the transfer against the cash fare, not against a hotel night.
Suppose you hold 56,000 Virgin Atlantic points and the award you want costs 60,000. Those 56,000 points are worth nothing until you close the gap.
Moving 12,000 Bonvoy points fills the hole and unlocks the entire ticket. In that case, the marginal ratio on the topped-off portion barely matters. Confirm award availability first, then transfer the exact amount you need.
United MileagePlus holds a preferred partnership with Marriott. As a result, the bonus doubles to 10,000 miles per 60,000 points, and the effective rate drops to 2 points per mile.
That is the single best conversion rate in the program. United also sits in Star Alliance, so those miles book award seats on Lufthansa, ANA, Air Canada, and the rest of the alliance.
Transfers are one way and cannot be reversed. Each of the errors below is easy to avoid before you click confirm.
Marriott Bonvoy partners with 38 airline loyalty programs. The table lists each one with its transfer ratio and the bonus you earn per 60,000 points moved.
Transferring Marriott Bonvoy points to airline miles is a targeted move, not a default strategy. At an effective 2.4 points per mile, the miles you receive have to work 2.4 times harder than a free hotel night for the trade to pay off.
Three exceptions justify it. United halves the effective rate to 2:1. Programs like AAdvantage and Atmos Rewards have almost no other US on-ramp. And topping off a balance turns dormant miles into a booked ticket. Outside those cases, keep the points for hotel stays and earn your miles elsewhere.
If you want to build a Bonvoy balance in the first place, compare the best Marriott Bonvoy credit cards. And to keep up with transfer bonuses as they appear, subscribe to our newsletter.
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