They appear to be identical, with Chase being Marriott and AMEX being SPG, I'm surprised they even have an SPG card? Is one better than the other?
Will the SPG AMEX eventually go away?

Also, how good are Chase's additional benefits? Has anyone ever actually used them with success. On paper they look great, but that can be deceiving.
Baggage Delay Insurance
Lost Luggage Reimbursement
Trip Delay Reimbursement

I purchase everything with my cashback card. However, if those benefits are actually good, then it might be worth purchasing airline tickets with the Chase card for these insurances. That said, buying with my 2.5% cashback would give me more rewards. So seeing that Chase & AMEX are nearly identical, I�m leaning towards SPG/AMEX because they at least waive the first years fee.

Also, do you get the free night certificate immediately after paying the annual fee, or do you have to wait one full year before getting it?

Thanks!

After doing a lot of research basically there is no difference. I just signed up for the SPG AMEX yesterday, the only reason is because the first year annual fee is waived, where as the Marriott Chase is not. Since you don�t get the free night until the 2nd year then I might as well skip paying the fee. My big question is what are they going to do come January when they�re one name, just have 2 identical cards?

As far as which one to keep. It sounds like it is purely personal preference. Do you like Visa or AMEX better? That can even mean you like AMEX�s website layout and all over Chase�s. Or you like the Chase/Visa benefits more than what AMEX offers. Also, another approach is to keep both. You will still get a free night certificate for each of them. So now you will have 2 certificates per year, just keep your least favorite in a sock drawer.

I�ve done a lot of research, this is what I�ve been able to pull together. I�m not an expert though.