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American Airlines AAdvantage Credit Cards

What is the best American Airlines AAdvantage Credit Card?

We review credit cards that earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles below. All of these cards earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar spent, enabling you to earn American’s AAdvantage status levels purely by spending on these cards. 

The most popular card for consumers is the Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard which has a waived annual fee the first year.

For small businesses, the CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Mastercard is the best option and includes a bonus offer for 65,000 bonus American Airlines AAdvantage miles when you meet minimum spend requrements and also waives the annual fee the first year.

And the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard, with a $450 annual fee, sounds expensive – but if you would buy American Airlines Admiral’s Club (airport lounge access) anyway, it’s surprisingly cheaper to carry this card, which includes Admiral’s Club access, than to buy it directly from American Airlines!

Why are American Airlines AAdvantage miles so valuable?

Contrary to what you might think, we don’t think advise getting AAdvantage miles to use on American Airlines flight. Indeed, the best uses of American Airlines’s AAdvantage miles are on Oneworld and partner airlines.

What are AAdvantage Loyalty Points?

Loyalty Points are how you earn status with American Airlines and you can earn points from flying as always, but not you can earn tham from select other activities like credit card spend. All cards earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar spent, regardless of bonus multipiers. Bonus points do not award Loyalty Points.

  • AAdvantage Gold® = 30,000 Loyalty Points
  • AAdvantage Platinum® = 75,000 Loyalty Points
  • AAdvantage Platinum Pro® = 125,000 Loyalty Points
  • AAdvantage Executive Platinum® = 200,000 Loyalty Points

Our top 5 ways to use miles earned from AAdvantage credit cards are:

1) The Etihad First Class Apartment: With closing doors in your own personal Suite in the Sky, an onboard chef that customizes your meals for you, an onboard bar, and even a shower to use in-flight, this is our top pick for using AAdvantage miles.

american airlines credit cards Eithad First Class Apartment

2) Japan Airlines (JAL) First Class: Just 80,000 AAdvantage miles each way will get you a First Class ticket from the US to Japan. Enjoy ridiculously expensive champagne and top grade A5 Wagyu steak while sitting in one of the most comfortable seats in the sky.  While a flight from New York to Tokyo is blocked at 14 hours, you’ll wish you had more time!

aa aadvantage credit card JAL First Class[/caption] JAL First Class

3) Qantas First Class: Need to get “Down Under?” There’s no better way that flying Qantas, another American Airlines AAdvantage partner. While availability can be a bit tough to find, it’s quite the score when you do. The seat’s not as opulent as Eithad, but the food and service are fantastic and the seat is incredibly comfy. Again, you’ll wish you had more time in-flight despite a flight time of around 15 hours non-stop from the US.

4) Cathay Pacific First Class: Yet another huge First Class seat which even has a spot for a companion to join you for dinner. Spectacular service and food and don’t miss the Cathay Pacific lounges in Hong Kong if you are connecting or departing. There, you can enjoy your own private suite with shower and loungers while you wait. Of course, you can also eat more amazing food in the lounge.

5) Qatar QSuites: While not quite as spacious as the First Class seats above, Qatar’s QSuites are industry leading Business Class seats, making them less expensive in miles. In fact, you can experience them from the US starting at just 70,000 miles one-way to the Middle East or Indian Subcontinent (like the Maldives, for instance) with a connection in Doha, Qatar.  In fact, just one of the credit card bonuses on this page could get you almost all the miles you need for one of these tickets!

aadvantage credit cards Qatar’s Famous QSuites – Book with AAdvantage Miles

If you want more detail, this MilesTalk article explains 5 reasons we believe American Airlines AAdvantage miles are underrated. All of these AAdvantage credit cards earn miles that you can use on t he flights mentioned above.

While these cards offer nice bonuses and perks like free checked bags, you may also want to consider Credit Cards That Earn Chase Ultimate Rewards PointsCredit Cards That Earn American Express (Amex) Membership Rewards Points, or Credit Cards That Earn Capital One Miles.

Note: You cannot login to your Citi or AAdvantage account here. Please go to Citi.com or AA.com to login.

You can also use the Your Best Credit Cards “rewards optimization calculator” to find the best card for your spend.

Advertiser Disclosure: Your Best Credit Cards has partnered with CardRatings for our coverage of credit card products. Your Best Credit Cards and CardRatings may receive a commission from card issuers. Commissions do not affect or prioritize placement within our results and not all cards displayed earn us a commission. The editorial content on this page is not provided by any of the companies mentioned, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities. Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone.

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4 Cards Available:

Credit card
Estimated Bonus Value :

$1,500

Calculator

dollar Annual Fee: $595

Calculator
Estimated Bonus Value :

$1,500

Offer: For a limited time, earn 100,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $10,000 in purchases within the first three months of opening your account.

This card is no longer available at Your Best Credit Cards. Please see other airline credit cards


Get full Admirals Club Membership for the primary cardholder, plus Admirals Club access for authorized users ($175 for the 1st three authorized users and $175 per authorized user after that)

Get a free checked bag for you and up to 8 companions on the same record, priority boarding, priority check-in, and priority screening (screening where available).

You'll also get access for two guests plus anyone in your family under the age of 18 as long as you have same-day boarding passes for American Airlines or any oneworld® airline.

And, your Admiral's Club membership additionally grants you the same access when flying oneworld airlines as follows:

  • Domestic and international Admirals Club locations
  • All Alaska Airlines Lounges (when departing or arriving on flights marketed and operated by American or Alaska Airlines)
  • All Qantas Clubs (when departing or arriving on same-day flights operated by Qantas, or operated by American out of Auckland, New Zealand or Sydney, Australia)
  • Select partner lounges operated by third parties (on same-day flights operated by American)

Note that your authorized users get entry only at AA Admiral's Club lounges, but do get guest privileges for immediate family (spouse, domestic partner and/or children under 18) or up to 2 guests. Guests must be accompanied by the eligible authorized user and present boarding pass for same-day travel on American or a partner airline.

The Authorized User must present their credit card and be traveling on any departing or arriving flight that is marketed or operated by American, marketed and operated by any oneworld® airline.

Faster earn on miles

  • Ear 4X AAdvantage Miles® on eligible American Airlines purchases. After spending $150,000 in purchases in a calendar year, cardmembers can earn even more with a total of 5X AAdvantage Miles® on eligible American Airlines purchases for the remainder of the calendar year
  • 10X AAdvantage Miles® on eligible car rentals booked through aa.com/cars and eligible hotels booked through aa.com/hotels
  • And a continued 1X AAdvantage Miles® on all other eligible purchases

Loyalty Point Bonuses to make reaching AAdvantage® status easier

  • 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 year

Opportunities to Earn Credits

  • Up to $120 back on eligible Avis or Budget car rentals every calendar year
  • Up to $120 back on eligible GrubHub purchases (up to $10 statement credit each monthly billing statement)
  • Up to $120 in Lyft credits ($10 Lyft credit each month after taking 3 eligible rides)

Travel Insurance

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

Additional Benefits

  • Admirals Club access for Primary and Authorized users with their immediate family or up to 2 guests
  • Up to $100 credit on a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® application fee (now every four years)
  • First checked bag free for the primary cardmember and up to eight companions on the same reservation on American Airlines domestic flights
  • 25% savings on eligible American Airlines in-flight food and beverage purchases when you use your card
  • Enhanced Airport Experience offering priority boarding, priority check-in and priority screening on American Airlines flights for the primary cardmember and up to eight companions on the same reservation
  • A dedicated concierge
  • And Mastercard Priceless Experiences at Priceless.com/aa.

NOTE: In calculating your potential rewards for this card, we are assuming that all spend entered as "Airline" is on American Airlines. If some of your airline spend is on other airlines, that spend will earn 1x rather than 4x miles and reduce your expected rewards. The 10x on hotels and car rentals is only applicable when booked via aa.com

Offer: For a limited time, earn 100,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $10,000 in purchases within the first three months of opening your account.
Credit card

CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard®

dollar Annual Fee: $0 Introductory Annual Fee for the first year, then $99

Estimated Bonus Value :

$975

Calculator

dollar Annual Fee: $99

Calculator
Estimated Bonus Value :

$975

Offer: 65,000 bonus AAdvantage® miles after spending $4,000 in your first 4 months

This card is no longer available at Your Best Credit Cards. Please see other airline credit cards


Review: Get a free checked bag and preferred boarding on American Airlines. The free checked bag is valid for for you and up to 4 travel companions. Earn a $99 companion certificate for domestic main cabin travel.

Earn AAdvantage miles at the rate of 2x for American Airlines, telecommunications merchants, cable and satellite providers, car rental merchants, and gas stations, plus 1x for everything else.

Earn 1 Loyalty Point for every 1 eligible AAdvantage(R) mile earned from purchases

NOTE: Our estimated rewards values assume all of your airline spend is with AA for the purposes of valuing your rewards for this card. If you spend across multiple airlines, your rewards will be lower as this card earns 2x on AA purchases only.

Offer: 65,000 bonus AAdvantage® miles after spending $4,000 in your first 4 months
Credit card

Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite MasterCard

dollar Annual Fee: $0 Introductory Annual Fee for the first year, then $99

Estimated Bonus Value :

$750

Calculator

dollar Annual Fee: $99

Calculator
Estimated Bonus Value :

$750

Offer: Earn 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.

This card is no longer available at Your Best Credit Cards. Please see other airline credit cards


Review: Get a free checked bag and preferred boarding on American Airlines.

Earn 2x AAdvantage miles at gas stations and restaurants, as well as on American Airlines. Also, earn a $100 flight discount after spending $20,000 and renewing your card.

Earn 1 Loyalty Point for every 1 eligible AAdvantage(R) mile earned from purchases

NOTE: In calculating your potential rewards for this card, we are assuming that all spend entered as "Airline" is on American Airlines. If some of your airline spend is on other airlines, that spend will earn 1x rather than 2x miles and reduce your expected rewards.

Offer: Earn 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.
Credit card
Estimated Bonus Value :

$150

Calculator

dollar Annual Fee: $0

Calculator
Estimated Bonus Value :

$150

Offer: Earn 10,000 miles and a $50 statement credit when you spend $500 in your first 3 months.

This card is no longer available at Your Best Credit Cards. Please see other airline credit cards


This no-fee card earns 2X AAdvantage miles at grocery stores, as well as 2X AAdvantage® miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases.

Earn 1 Loyalty Point for every 1 eligible AAdvantage(R) mile earned from purchases.

NOTE: In calculating your potential rewards for this card, we are assuming that all spend entered as "Airline" is on American Airlines. If some of your airline spend is on other airlines, that spend will earn 1x rather than 2x miles and reduce your expected rewards.

Offer: Earn 10,000 miles and a $50 statement credit when you spend $500 in your first 3 months.

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