I haven't traveled for a while so I've lost my status. With the recent Marriott changes I can't say I'm familiar with the current programs.

I'd like to know from the people who stay at both Marriott and Hilton both, which status I should pursue first. Obviously, there is a lot of people here who probably wont consider Hilton on this forum, I'm really hoping to connect with people who stay at both.

I'll be staying about 20 nights between now and end of year, so not a great deal but enough to go from no status to something.

Thanks in advance

You're right about Hilton. I quit Hilton after being a HH Diamond for many years.

The main question for you is longer term, what do you want from a frequent hotel guest program? Then assess the different programs to decide which makes more sense.

I look for benefits with elite status and award redemption. HH Gold status is where benefits start. New Marriott program real benefits start at Plat level (current Gold level). HH award redemption is poor with dynamic pricing, so it's hard to gain good value for points. Marriott is better in this aspect. Marriott also has more aspirational properties for award redemption with addition of SPG.

I would go for Marriott over Hilton.

Pros for HH: you can be credit-card-Diamond out of the box. If you play promos right, you can earn an insane amount of points-per-dollar on spend (I'm typically in the 50-60 range). Stronger in the mid-range and lower end hotels if you need those. (e.g., Hampton > Fairfield, HGI > CY, etc.)

Cons for HH: Everybody's Diamond, so don't expect suites. The program devalues often, so it's not a place to hoard. Right now I assume 0.6-0.7 cpp but know we could be headed to a nearly-fixed 0.5 within a year or two. Weaker at the top end. A few gems, but nothing like SPG/Marriott combined. A *lot* of mediocrity at the standard business hotel level. (I put Marriott/Westin/LM/Ren all > a mainline Hilton or Doubletree.)

Pros for MR: the program is just changing now, so if you are okay with what you see, it'll probably be stable for a few years. Marriott and Starwood both operated relatively stable programs for many years. If you can reach Plat Premier, you may benefit from some decent on-property treatment at heritage Starwood brands. I'm just hoping that some of their on-property culture is retained. Otherwise, it's similar to HH Diamond...but there isn't an out-of-the-box credit card path to Plat Premier. Lots of aspirational properties at the high end, although they'll cost you a lot of points.

Cons for MR: heritage Marriott brands have little/no upgrade culture. Can be weak in the midrange/lower-end, although as those brands are getting makeovers things are improving. (SHS, for example.) The Travel Packages are mostly dead in the new world. They exist, but the mileage-component is no longer a big value lever over the hotel component, so you might as well just redeem 5-night stays. The credit card free nights are limited to mid-categories, whereas Hilton's are close to unlimited.

Starting anew, I might get the HH credit card (they'll kind of pay you to carry it)...but prioritize Marriott stays if I felt like I could at least be a 50-nighter per year.

X-posted here:
Hilton or Marriott first

It really depends on what your criteria are. I just qualified for LTPP with Marriott, but I will probably shift a lot of my stays to Hilton. For me, this is mainly because my budget has me staying in hotels at the level of Courtyard/Springhill Suites/Fairfield Inn most of the time, and I like the Hilton Garden Inn a lot better than Courtyard. There is always both a fridge and microwave in a Hilton Garden Inn, and the restaurant is a whole lot better than the Courtyard Bistro. HGI is a newer brand, so often the HGI is a newer hotel than the Courtyards are.

The whole 'everybody is a diamond' thing is a huge exaggeration, and it makes me chuckle each time I read it. The extremes that people like me go to on FlyerTalk is not what the vast majority of travelers choose to do. Most people will not spend $450 on an annual fee or tens of thousands of dollars on a credit card just to get frequent traveler status. This year's diamond 'match' was more like a challenge, but the person had to have status in a competitor's program first. The majority of people staying in Hiltons probably have no status at all.

Finally, I typically make most of my hotel choices based on traffic patterns where I am staying. I have been traveling on business for over 20 years now, and I've already done the touristy things in most of the areas I go to. So now my priority is not getting stuck in traffic and having to deal with road rage from other drivers when I travel.

So I recommend deciding what your biggest priorities are when you travel, and picking accordingly. Happy travels!