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Compare the Features and Benefits of Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite MasterCard® and
Hilton Honors American Express Aspire® Card

Detailed Comparison Overview

Key Facts
Annual Fee
Avg. Min. Credit Score
Ongoing APR
Balance transfers fees
Best Multiplier
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
Bonus Offer
Rating
Review
Key features
Unique Card Benefits
Annual Statement Credits
Trip Protections
Extended Warranty
Purchase Protection
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
No Foreign Transaction Fees
Concierge Services
Airport Lounge Access
Priority Boarding
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
Free Checked Bags
Metal Card
Free Annual Hotel Night
Grants Hotel Status
Return Protection
Grants Car Rental Status
Cell Phone Protection
No Fees for Authorized Users
Amex Offers
Annual Fee
$595
Avg. Min. Credit Score
670-850
Ongoing APR
20.24%-29.24% (Variable)
Balance transfers fees
5% of each balance transfer; $5 minimum.
Best Multiplier
4x Airfare

On American Airlines flights booked directly only. Other airfare earns 1X mile per dollar.

1x Everything Else
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
$0.014
Bonus Offer

Earn 70,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $7,000 within the first 3 months of account opening.

Rating
YBCC Card Rate Stars Filled
YBCC Card Rate Stars Empty
(3.73) Our Review

Our ratings are determined by the authors and editors on our team. Each individual card feature is compared against all other cards we offer and the total score is an average of those 4 ratings.

Review

If you and your immediate family members fly American Airlines often, the Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard offers an outstanding slew of perks. As the most premium offering of all of the American Airlines’ AAdvantage credit cards, the most enticing and primary benefit by far is the ability the Admirals Club membership (though you’ll need a same day boarding pass on American or on any of the Oneworld partner airlines). You can bring your immediate family, which counts as your spouse/domestic partner and children under the age of 18 or two guests.

Valued at $500 – $650 per year outright, you can save quite a big chunk of cash by applying for the card instead. What’s more, you can add up to 10 authorized users to the primary card account with fees as follows: $175 total for the first three authorized users and $175 for each additional AU after that. While the card used to give free Authorized Users, that was simply too good to last. It remains a good deal on up to 3 AUs.

Your authorized users, whether you add your trusted friends or family members, will get their own American Airlines Admirals Club® membership. This makes the Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard for larger families with lots of guests to bring along the way.

When you’re flying on American Airlines, you’ll not only get a 25% discount on inflight eligible American Airlines purchases for food and drinks, but you’ll get the VIP treatment at the airport. It starts with priority check-in, where you can bring a first checked bag free, and priority airport screening allows you to skip the line when available. Finally, priority boarding allows you to board with Group 4. Best of all, these three benefits apply to you and up to eight travelers on the same reservation!

people, silhouettes, sunset
Not only does the card help provide an enhanced airport experience, but you get to earn both American Airlines miles and Loyalty Points to help you qualify for AAdvantage® frequent flyer status. You’ll earn 2x redeemable miles on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1x miles on everything else. On top of that, you’ll earn 1x Loyalty Point per $1 spent.

As well, there are now Loyalty Point bonuses:

  • A 10,000 Loyalty Point Bonus after reaching 50,000 Loyalty Points in a status qualification year
  • A 10,000 Loyalty Point Bonus after reaching 90,000 Loyalty Points in a status qualification years

And statement credit:

  • Lyft – Citi/AAdvantage Executive cardmembers can earn a $10 Lyft credit after taking 3 eligible rides in a calendar month and paying with their card.
  • Grubhub – Citi/AAdvantage Executive cardmembers are eligible to receive a statement credit of up to $10 per monthly billing statement (for a total of up to $120 every 12 monthly billing statements) on eligible purchases made at Grubhub.
  • Avis/Budget – Citi/AAdvantage Executive cardmembers are eligible to receive a statement credit up to $120 every calendar year when purchases of up to $120 or more made Avis or budget car rentals or both are charged to their card.

It not only has Global Entry / TSA PreCheck reimbursement every 4 years, but now comes with a suite of Trip Protections:

  • Trip Cancellation & Interruption Protection
  • Trip Delay Protection
  • Lost Baggage Protection
  • Worldwide Car Rental Insurance Coverage

In short, if you want American Airline’s Admiral’s Club access (and don’t need Priority Pass or other lounge access), the Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard is a fantastic pick.

Read more
Unique Card Benefits
yes
Annual Statement Credits
yes
Trip Protections
yes
Extended Warranty
yes
Purchase Protection
yes
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
yes
No Foreign Transaction Fees
yes
Concierge Services
yes
Airport Lounge Access
yes
Priority Boarding
yes
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
yes
Free Checked Bags
yes
Metal Card
yes
Free Annual Hotel Night
no
Grants Hotel Status
no
Return Protection
no
Grants Car Rental Status
no
Cell Phone Protection
no
No Fees for Authorized Users
no
Amex Offers
no
Annual Fee
$550 (Rates and fees)
Avg. Min. Credit Score
Good-Excellent
Ongoing APR
-
Balance transfers fees
-
Best Multiplier
14x Hotels

At Hilton portfolio properties when you book direct with Hilton or the hotel. Otherwise, earn 3X points

7x Airfare
7x Car Rentals
7x Dining Out / Food Delivery

U.S. dining, including takeout and delivery

3x All Other Eligible Purchases
Avg. Point Value
(Learn More)
$0.006
Bonus Offer
Earn 150,000 Bonus Points after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first six months of Card Membership (Terms apply).
Rating
YBCC Card Rate Stars Filled
YBCC Card Rate Stars Empty
(4.38) Our Review

Our ratings are determined by the authors and editors on our team. Each individual card feature is compared against all other cards we offer and the total score is an average of those 4 ratings.

Review

I’ve long said at MilesTalk that I think the Hilton Aspire is the best hotel credit card on the market.

Setting aside the welcome bonus, here are your yearly benefits:

Hilton Resort Credits – $400: If you stay at Hilton resorts twice annually (although it must be one time January to June and one time July to December, this is as good as cash.

Airline credits – $200 ($50 per calendar quarter): Easy to use if you fly once per quarter

Hilton Honors Diamond status – $950: This could technically be worth a couple thousand if you stay frequently at Hilton properties (and a certain site I won’t name would say it’s worth over $3,000), but that would also likely mean you don’t need this card to earn it, since you’d earn it from nights stayed.

Even if you only stay 10 nights a year, the free breakfast or daily food credits and lounge access for two would be conservatively worth ~$70 a day. Room upgrades are never guaranteed, but they are frequent in my experience. Let’s call those ~$25 a stay even though that’s very light as a value given that some upgrades are likely to be suites.  If you stay 10 nights a year, Diamond status is worth $950 using the calculations above.

Annual Free Night Certificates $500: Valid any night of the week and good at any Hilton properties in the Hilton portfolio. with no points limit. It’s not going to be hard to pick and choose where to use that for maximum value and at any Conrad or Waldorf-Astoria at a busy time, $500 is easy. I recently redeemed my own for the Waldorf Astoria Pedregal in Cabo for a $1,500 night room!

I won’t value the potential free second or third weekend night since those do require $30,000 and $60,000 in spend.

I also won’t value the $189 CLEAR+ credit as that is available on so many other Amex cards.

Total Tangible Benefits from your $550 in annual spend? $2,050

I mean, that is NUTS. And I hope you can tell that if anything I tried to assign lower values to perks than they are probably worth! If anything, I undervalued them. The only thing is that you obviously need to stay at Hilton hotels or resorts a handful of times a year to enjoy the benefits. And really, if you don’t, then you likely don’t need a Hilton credit card.

Rates and Fees for the Hilton Honors Aspire® Credit Card

All information about the Hilton Honors Aspire® Credit Card has been collected independently by Your Best Credit Cards.

Read more
Unique Card Benefits
yes
Annual Statement Credits
yes
Trip Protections
yes
Extended Warranty
yes
Purchase Protection
yes
Secondary Car Rental CDW Waiver
yes
No Foreign Transaction Fees
yes
Concierge Services
yes
Airport Lounge Access
no
Priority Boarding
no
Global Entry / TSA PreCheck Reimbursement
no
Free Checked Bags
no
Metal Card
no
Free Annual Hotel Night
yes
Grants Hotel Status
yes
Return Protection
yes
Grants Car Rental Status
yes
Cell Phone Protection
yes
No Fees for Authorized Users
yes
Amex Offers
yes

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