AAdvantage®

What is the AAdvantage® Program?

AAdvantage® is the loyalty program of American Airlines – one of the world’s largest airlines. The AAdvantage® program was first launched in 1981, making it the second program of its kind, and it remains the most extensive frequent flyer program on the planet, with roughly 70 million members.

American is a founding member of the Oneworld alliance, comprising 15 global carriers that include British Airways, Aer Lingus, Iberia, LATAM, among many other leading airlines across the world.

Earning AAdvantage® Miles

Earning Miles with Flights

The easiest way to earn AAdvantage® miles is by booking flights with American Airlines. The number of miles a member earns when flying with American depends on their current AAdvantage® membership tier.

Earning Based on AAdvantage® Status Tier

The following tiers earn the following miles for their fares:

Earning with Oneworld Partners

AAdvantage® members can also earn miles when they spend money with American Airlines partners, including Oneworld partner airlines. Other Oneworld airlines include:

AAdvantage® miles earned with Oneworld airlines are generally earned through miles traveled, rather than a miles per dollar rate, although additional miles are earned based on the class of travel (economy, business, first, etc.), as well as AAdvantage® membership tier.

Earning with Other American Airlines Partners

Credit Cards

As AAdvantage® is the world’s largest frequent flyer program, there are plenty of great credit cards co-branded with the program and American Airlines available.

They are issued through several card providers, including Barclays, Citi, and more. These cards offer some impressive initial bonus offers and earn additional miles per dollar spent on top of the AAdvantage® earning outlined in this guide.

The AAdvantage®  Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®, for example, offers an impressive 60,000 bonus AAdvantage®  miles for making an initial purchase with the card, plus an additional 2 miles for every dollar spent with American Airlines and an additional mile per dollar spent with any other purchase.

For those looking for a more premium experience, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite™ Mastercard® a similarly impressive intro offer, with the added bonus of complimentary Admirals Club membership, as well as priority check in and boarding.

For a complete selection of American Airlines co-branded credit cards, please check out our United States Carriers page.

AAdvantage® Miles Expiration

American Airlines AAdvantage® Miles expire after 18 months of inactivity on the AAdvantage®  account, meaning it is essential that members keep their accounts active, so they don’t lose their hard-earned miles.

Redeeming AAdvantage®  

There are several redemption options for AAdvantage® miles:

Flights with American Airlines

The easiest way to use miles is through flight bookings with American Airlines. To use miles for flights, members need to book their flight at AA.com. Bookings with American also have the bonus of featuring no blackout dates, meaning you don’t need to worry when you can book your reward travel.

AAdvantage® miles can be used for two different types of reward fares: MileSAAver awards and AAnytime awards.

MileSAAver: MileSAAver awards are the best value for award flights but are only available on certain routes. Additionally, these awards are much fewer in number, so those looking to redeem their miles for a MileSAAver flight need to be quick on their feet to ensure they don’t miss out.

AAnytime: AAnytime offer a much smoother redemption process, as they are available on pretty much every flight. AAnytime miles, however, are much more expensive than MileSAAver awards, meaning they don’t offer the best value for money.

Flights with Oneworld Partners

One of the great perks of the AAdvantage® program is its close association with the Oneworld alliance. Through the Oneworld, AAdvantage® provides access to over 1,000 global destinations.

Admirals Club Access

American AAdvantage® miles are redeemable for access of membership renewal for American Airlines’ Admirals Club lounges. The Admirals Club offers impressive amenities and comforts for travelers, including shower suites, complimentary drinks, and snacks, dedicated business centers, and personal travel assistance.

Other Ways to Redeem Miles

AAdvantage® miles are also redeemable for gift cards or purchases made through the American Airlines shopping portal.

AAdvantage® Status Levels

American’s AAdvantage® program has several tiers, all of which offer unique benefits and perks.

AAdvantage®  membership tiers are determined based on the following qualifications:

To reach different levels of AAdvantage® status, members must earn either a combination of EQMs and EQDs or EQSs and EQDs.

Gold

Achieving Gold Status

To reach Gold status, an AAdvantage®  member earns a combination of the following: 30 EQSs, 25,000 EQMs, and 3,000 EQDs.

Gold Perks

Platinum

Platinum is the next level of status in the AAdvantage® program.

Achieving Platinum Status

To reach Platinum status, an AAdvantage® member must earn at least 50,000 EQMs, 60 EQSs, and 6,000 EQDs.

Platinum Medallion Perks

Platinum Pro

Platinum Pro is the second-highest tier of membership in the AAdvantage® program, offering impressive perks for members.

Achieving Platinum Pro Status

To reach Platinum Pro status, an AAdvantage® member must have earned at least 75,000 EQMs, 90 EQSs, and 9,000 EQDs.

Platinum Pro Perks

Executive Platinum

Executive Platinum is the highest tier in the AAdvantage® program, offering the pinnacle of perks and rewards for members.

Achieving Executive Platinum Status

To reach Executive Platinum status, an AAdvantage® member must have earned at least 15,000 EQDs, 100,000 EQMs, and 120 EQSs.

Executive Platinum Perks

Oneworld Frequent Flyer Status

As noted previously, different levels of AAdvantage® membership also entail membership in the Oneworld frequent flyer program.

Oneworld Ruby Status

Oneworld Ruby status is the lowest tier of membership in the Oneworld alliance. Ruby status is available to AAdvantage® Gold tier members.

Oneworld Ruby Perks

Oneworld Ruby status offers some perks not available to regular Oneworld passengers. These benefits include:

Oneworld Sapphire

Sapphire status is the middle tier of membership in the Oneworld rewards program and is available AAdvantage® Platinum and Platinum Pro tiered members.

Oneworld Sapphire Perks

Sapphire status offers some impressive perks not available to Ruby status members. These benefits include:

Oneworld Emerald Status

Emerald status is the highest tier in the Oneworld membership program and is available to AAdvantage® Executive Platinum members.

Oneworld Emerald Perks

Emerald status offers the most perks, including some perks not available to Oneworld Sapphire status members. These benefits include:

Concierge Key Status

The highest tier in the AAdvantage® is Concierge Key. Wait, what? Yes, we did just say that Executive Platinum was the highest tier of membership, but Concierge Key is one step higher. That’s because Concierge Key isn’t really part of the AAdvantage® program. Instead, Concierge Key is an invite-only tier for the ultra-high spenders.

While there is no set rule on how much you need to spend to reach Concierge Key status, you’ll certainly need to spend far in excess of what is required to reach Executive Platinum tier – the highest open tier in the AAdvantage® program. To reach Executive Platinum, a traveler would likely have to spend roughly $15,000 per year on flights – no mean feat. To receive an invite to the secretive status, therefore, you would likely have to spend in excess of $50,000 a year on flights with American Airlines – making this tier only open to the top 1% of business and personal travelers.

Concierge Key Perks

The benefits of Concierge Key status aren’t explicitly posted, instead being subject to reports by those who have reached the elusive status. Fortunately, those who have achieved Concierge Key status have been much more forthcoming with information than American Airlines, so here’s what you can expect from the invitation-only tier, should you be invited: