How the AwardEscape Score works
Every stay gets one of four ratings from its value per point: the cash price divided by the points price. Exceptional starts at 1.50¢ a point, Great at 1.00¢, Fair at 0.70¢, and below that we say pay cash. A hotel’s own price history can lift a rating one step.
Method last reviewed on Oct 27, 2026.
Want the short version? How AwardEscape works explains it in four steps, and the cash or points calculator applies it to any stay.
How is value per point worked out?
We take the cash price of the same room for the same dates, with taxes and fees, and divide it by the points it costs. A $1,500 stay for 100,000 points is 1.50¢ a point.
For five-night award stays, the points price already reflects the free fifth night, so the value is for the stay you’d actually book.
What do the four ratings mean?
| Rating | Value per point | What we say |
|---|---|---|
| Exceptional | 1.50¢ or more | An exceptional use of points. |
| Great | 1.00¢ or more | A strong use of points. |
| Fair | 0.70¢ or more | Reasonable, but not remarkable. |
| Pay cash | Under 0.70¢ | Save your points. |
How does a hotel's price history change a rating?
Once we have 8 or more award checks for a hotel, we compare each stay with that hotel’s own history. A stay moves up one rating when both are true:
- Its nightly points price is at or below the 10th percentile of the prices we’ve seen there.
- It costs at least 20% fewer points than the hotel’s usual price.
A stay is never lifted from Pay cash and never above Exceptional.
What do the history notes on a hotel page mean?
- “Usually” is the hotel’s median points price for a stay of the same length.
- “Fewer points than usual” appears only when the gap is 10% or more.
- We call the cash price unusually high from the 85th percentile of the hotel’s cash prices, which makes points the better choice.
- We call award availability rare when we found award rooms on fewer than 50% of our checks.
Where does the data come from?
From our own checks of each hotel’s award and cash prices over time, stored with the time of each check. Pages say when a price was last checked, and never present stored prices as live availability.
The prices on the site today are a labeled preview for illustration while real price checks are set up.
Marriott program rules we quote, such as the fifth night free or how points expire, come from Marriott’s own pages and show the date we checked them.
When does a page appear in search?
Only when it has enough data to be useful. A hotel page needs 3 recent checks, and a destination needs 3 hotels and 10 recent checks. Pages below that stay open to visitors but out of search until they qualify.
Does money ever change a rating?
No. Some links may earn us a commission, but a rating comes only from the numbers above, and we tell you to pay cash whenever the points aren’t worth it. Read how we make money.
Questions
- What is a good value for Marriott points by AwardEscape's ratings?
- 1.00¢ a point or more is Great, and 1.50¢ or more is Exceptional. Below 0.70¢ we say pay cash.
- Why does AwardEscape sometimes say to pay cash?
- Because the points would stand in for too little of the cash price. Saving them for a better stay is worth more than spending them on a poor one.
- How often are ratings updated?
- Whenever prices are refreshed. A rating always reflects the latest prices we hold and the hotel's history up to then.
- Can I check a stay myself?
- Yes. The cash or points calculator rates any stay from its cash price and points price, using the same thresholds.
Sources: Marriott Bonvoy terms. Program rules change, so confirm with Marriott before you rely on one. AwardEscape is independent of Marriott.