You can now link your Marriott and SPG accounts as well as match status and transfer points between programs.
Here are the major sticking points:
- You can now link your Marriott, SPG, and Ritz-Carlton accounts online.
- You can now transfer points between Marriott/Ritz-Carlton and SPG at a 3 to 1 ratio.
- You will get a status match between programs (Silver-Silver, Gold-Gold, etc)
Link: Link your accounts here
This means you’ll get reciprocal elite status between Marriott and Starwood and a major kicker is that the transfer ratio from SPG to Marriott is 3 to 1!
There was chatter regarding this on a Chinese forum and Reddit yesterday so I decided to keep a close eye on things to see if anything developed. Now it looks like everything went live on Marriott’s website!
Overall this is a huge development in the Marriott and SPG merger and shows that things are moving along nicely.
Link Your Accounts
You can now link your Marriott and Starwood accounts online here.
If you have accounts across all three programs—Marriott, Ritz-Carlton, and Starwood—you’ll be able to link them all online.
Match Status
You can also now get a status match between programs.
So, if you are Gold with Marriott you will get Gold status with SPG, vice versa.
This is a great enhancement for anyone who has upper elite status with either of the programs. Now you’ll be able to enjoy similar benefits across all brands during your stays.
Transfer Points
Marriott and Starwood members can also now transfer points between programs at a 3 to 1 ratio!
This is massive and what I consider a very fair transfer ratio. Considering Marriott points have a value of around 0.8 cents a piece and SPG points at around 2.2 the transfer ratio seems very spot on.
The transfer ratio is also roughly in line with the ratio between the welcome bonuses on the SPG Amex (2 free nights worth 32,000 points) and the Marriott Rewards (80,000 points) credit cards.
The Bottom Line
Marriott and SPG members can now link their accounts online, transfer points at a 3 to 1 ratio, plus get a status match between programs.
Overall this will come as great news from anyone sitting on a large balance of Marriott or SPG points and ultimately make them more valuable and useful.