Marriott Raised the FNC Top-Up Limit: Here's What It Actually Means

March 18, 2026 | By the Gondola Team | Based on our full analysis of 9,270 Marriott properties

What Changed

On March 12, Marriott raised the points top-up limit on free night certificates from 15,000 to 25,000. Every cert tier shifts by 10,000 points:

We ran the numbers across 9,270 Marriott Bonvoy properties to find out what 10,000 extra points actually gets you. The Points Guy covered our data, and the full analysis is on our blog. Here's the short version.

The 35k Cert: 471 New Properties

The Bonvoy Boundless cert now reaches 92.3% of the entire Marriott portfolio. The 471 newly accessible properties include nine Ritz-Carltons, 19 JW Marriotts, and strong coverage across California (46 properties), Florida (38), and New York (31).

The availability numbers are what stand out. At the old 50k cap, these properties were bookable a median of 39% of nights. At the new 60k cap, that jumps to 73%. You're not just getting more names on a list. You're getting properties you can actually book most of the year.

Standouts: Ritz-Carlton Budapest, JW Marriott Istanbul Bosphorus, Cadillac Hotel Miami Beach, W Philadelphia, Moxy NYC Times Square.

The 50k Cert: Hawaii and the Ritz

The Brilliant annual cert now covers 96.2% of the portfolio. The 206 new properties include 15 Ritz-Carltons, 18 JW Marriotts, and 14 W Hotels. Bookable nights at these properties nearly double under the new cap.

This is the tier where the change feels most personal. The Moana Surfrider in Waikiki goes from 49% of nights bookable to 74%. Sheraton Kauai Coconut Beach jumps from 24% to 92%. Fiji Marriott Resort Momi Bay goes from 29% to 100%. If you've been sitting on a 50k cert because the math didn't work for Hawaii or the Caribbean, it works now.

Standouts: Moana Surfrider Waikiki, Sheraton Maui, Ritz-Carlton Chicago, W San Francisco, JW Marriott Clearwater Beach, Walt Disney World Swan Reserve.

The 85k Cert: The Properties That Were Out of Reach

The 85k cert already covered 97.4% of the portfolio, so the 56 new properties are a smaller group. But they're the ones that felt permanently out of range: Ritz-Carlton Maui (avg 107k/night), London EDITION (102k), JW Marriott Maldives (109k), W South Beach (104k), Paris Marriott Champs-Elysees (108k).

At 99% portfolio coverage, the only properties still out of reach are a handful averaging over 110,000 points per night.

Standouts: Ritz-Carlton Maui, London EDITION, St. Regis Bali, JW Marriott Essex House New York, Riviera Maya EDITION, W Aspen.

The Bottom Line

The top-up increase matters most at the 35k tier in volume and at the 85k tier in quality. The 50k tier is somewhere in between, with the biggest practical impact for travelers planning resort and beach trips.

If you have a free night cert and have been holding off because the top-up math didn't feel worth it, it's worth running the numbers again.

For the full property-by-property breakdown, including availability data and geographic analysis, read our complete analysis.