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The information for the following product(s) has been collected independently by Business Insider: Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®, Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®, American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®, AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard®, AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®. The details for these products have not been reviewed or provided by the issuer.
American Airlines offers an array of co-branded credit cards ranging from a no-annual-fee option to a $595-per-year premium credit card that includes access to the airline’s Admirals Club lounges. If you fly American Airlines, even occasionally, opening one of the best credit cards for American Airlines could make sense for earning miles toward award flights and enjoying benefits like a free checked bag and the ability to board the plane before most other travelers.
With all those choices, the best airline credit card for your travel style depends on the benefits and perks that are most useful to you. Here’s what to know to help you decide.
Best American Airlines Credit Cards of 2024
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® : Best for earning American Airlines miles
- American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® : Best for budget travelers
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® : Best for lounge access
- AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard® : Best for elite status
- AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® : Best for discounts
- Bilt Mastercard®: Best card with points that transfer to American Airlines
Best American Airlines Credit Cards
Best for earning American Airlines miles
Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
Annual Fee
$99, waived for first 12 months
Regular APR
21.24% – 29.99% variable
Earn 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
- Bonus categories help you earn miles on everyday purchases
- First checked bag free on domestic American Airlines flights
- $125 American Airlines flight discount is nice, but you need to spend $20,000 in a cardmember year to earn it
Best for budget travelers
American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®
Regular APR
21.24% – 29.99% Variable
Earn 15,000 American Airlines miles
Recommended Credit
Excellent
- Earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles with no annual fee
- Rack up double miles at grocery stores in addition to American Airlines purchases
- Modest sign-up bonus is much lower than other American Airlines cards
- No meaningful frequent flyer benefits
- You’ll pay foreign transaction fees on purchases made abroad
AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard®
Recommended Credit
Excellent
- Generous benefits include inflight Wi-Fi statement credits, food and beverage credits, and a Global Entry/TSA PreCheck application fee credit
- Free checked bag and preferred boarding for the cardholder and up to eight companions on the same reservation
- Ability to earn Elite Qualifying Miles and Elite Qualifying Dollars for meeting spending thresholds
- Not available to new applicants — only available as an upgrade
- High annual fee
- The information related to the AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard® has been collected by Business Insider and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
- Earn 3X AAdvantage® miles for every one dollar spent on eligible American Airlines purchases
- Earn 2X AAdvantage® miles for every one dollar spent on hotels and car rentals
- Earn 1X AAdvantage® miles for every one dollar spent on all other purchases
- Unlimited earning on miles
- Earn up to 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs) on your spend between January 1, 2021 and February 28, 2022. Earn 5,000 EQMs if you spend $20,000 on purchases and another 5,000 EQMs if you spend an additional $20,000 on purchases
AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®
Annual Fee
$0 intro for the first year, then $99
Intro APR
0% intro APR for 15 months on balance transfers made within 45 days of account opening
Regular APR
20.24%, 24.24% or 29.24% variable
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
- You’ll earn the welcome bonus after making your first purchase and paying the annual fee
- Free checked bag and preferred boarding on American Airlines
- Inflight Wi-Fi statement credits
- To earn a companion certificate you have to spend $20,000 or more in a year
- Annual fee isn’t waived the first year
- No bonus categories outside of American Airlines purchases
- The information related to the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® has been collected by Business Insider and has not been reviewed by the issuer.
- Earn 50,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles after making your first purchase within the first 90 days
- Earn 2X miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases
- Earn 1X miles for every $1 spent on all other purchases
- Get up to $25 back as statement credits on inflight Wi-Fi purchases each year on American Airlines operated flights
- Earn a Companion Certificate good for 1 guest at $99 (plus taxes and fees) if you spend $20,000 on purchases and your account remains open for 45 days after your anniversary date
- Receive 25% inflight savings as statement credits on food and beverages when you use your card on American Airlines operated flights
Best card with points that transfer to American Airlines
Bilt Mastercard®
Recommended Credit
Good to Excellent
- Only credit card to offer rent payments to any landlord
- Excellent range of airline and hotel transfer partners through the Bilt App
- World Elite Mastercard benefits and no annual fee
- If you’re not a renter, other cards offer better welcome bonuses and rewards
- Must make 5 transactions per statement period to earn points
- $0 Annual Fee.
- Earn up to 1x points on rent payments without the transaction fee, up to 100,000 points each calendar year.
- 2x points on travel.
- 3x points on dining.
- 1x points on other purchases.
- Earn points when you make 5 transactions that post each statement period.
- When renting at a Bilt Alliance property, you can choose to have your rent payments automatically reported by Bilt to the three major credit bureaus each month; Experianâ„¢, TransUnionâ„¢, and Equifaxâ„¢.
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American Airline Card Reviews
Having an American Airlines credit card is even more useful now that the AAdvantage program awards elite status based on Loyalty Points. For every dollar you spend on a co-branded AA card, you’ll earn 1 Loyalty Point toward elite status (in addition to redeemable miles).
Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®
If your primary goal is to rack up American AAdvantage miles quickly on everyday purchases, the earning rates on the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® are hard to beat. That’s because it accrues 2x miles not only on eligible American Airlines purchases but also at restaurants and gas stations, two major expense categories for a lot of consumers.
Aside from that, cardholders get a free checked bag on domestic AA itineraries for themselves and up to four companions, preferred boarding, and 25% back on inflight food and beverage. Those who spend $20,000 or more on purchases in a calendar year and renew the card can earn a $125 flight discount certificate.
The card’s annual fee is $99, waived for first 12 months, and it’s currently offering a welcome bonus of 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $2,500 in purchases within the first three months of account opening. The welcome bonus is sometimes lower, so this is a great time to apply for this card.
Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Card Review
American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®
Want to earn miles on everyday purchases without the burden of a high annual fee? American Airlines introduced its no-annual-fee American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® a couple of years ago to target less-frequent flyers on a budget.
The card earns a respectable 2x miles on both eligible American Airlines purchases and at grocery stores, and 1x on everything else. Its only day-of-travel benefit is 25% back as a statement credit on inflight food and beverage, so don’t expect free checked bags or priority boarding.
The American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® is currently offering 15,000 American Airlines miles after spending $500 in purchases in the first three months of account opening.
Citi American Airlines AAdvantage MileUp Card Review
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
If you’re a frequent American flyer and value access to the airline’s Admirals Club airport lounges, then the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® is the right card for you. It does have a $595 annual fee, but that is still hundreds of dollars cheaper than Admirals Club membership costs if you buy it outright.
Unlike other airlines’ club cards, which merely offer lounge access, Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® cardholders enjoy full Admirals Club membership privileges including entry to some partner lounges. Cardholders can also bring immediate family or up to two guests with same-day boarding passes on American or partner airlines. Not only that, but you can also add up to 10 authorized users at no cost, each of whom can also access Admirals Clubs with up to two guests.
Cardholders are eligible for up to a $100 statement credit to cover the Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee once every five years. They also get free checked bags for themselves and up to eight companions on American Airlines domestic itineraries, are entitled to priority boarding, and get 25% back on inflight food and beverage purchases. This card doesn’t charge foreign transaction fees.
The Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® is currently offering a welcome bonus of 70,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after making $7,000 in purchases within the first three months of account opening.
Citi AAdvantage Executive Card Review
AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard®
The AAdvantage® Aviator® Silver Mastercard® is not open to new applicants, but you can upgrade to it if you have the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®. The reason this card wins in this category is that it allows you to earn Loyalty Points toward American Airlines AAdvantage status.
You can earn 5,000 bonus Loyalty Points if you spend $20,000 on purchases, another 5,000 bonus Loyalty Points if you spend $40,000 on purchases, and another 5,000 bonus Loyalty Points if you spend $50,000 or more on purchases in an elite status qualification period. If you need a boost to reach the next level of elite status, those extra Loyalty Points might be just what you need.Â
This card’s other value-packed perks include up to a $100 credit to cover the application fee for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck once every five years, up to $25 back per day on inflight food and beverage purchases, and up to $50 refunded for Wi-Fi purchases on American flights each year.
Cardholders also enjoy preferred boarding, free checked bags on domestic American Airlines itineraries for the cardholder and up to eight companions on the same reservation, and two $99 (plus taxes) companion certificates after spending $20,000 in purchases each account year that they can redeem toward round-trip domestic economy itineraries.
The card earns 3x miles on American Airlines purchases, 2x miles on hotels and car rentals, and 1x on everything else. Its annual fee is $199.
AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®
While the Aviator Silver offers more significant onboard discounts, you might still want to consider the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® instead for a few reasons. First and foremost, it’s open to new applicants and currently has a welcome bonus offer of 50,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles after making your first purchase within the first 90 days.
In addition to offering 25% savings on inflight food and beverage purchases, it will also reimburse you up to $25 each year for inflight Wi-Fi. However, since it’s also a World Elite Mastercard, you can take advantage of perks recently added to that program including a $5 Lyft credit after taking three or more rides each month, cell phone protection (with a $50 deductible per claim) against loss or damage on up to $800, and more.
The card waives foreign transaction fees and earns 2x miles on American Airlines purchases and 1x on everything else. Day-of-travel benefits include preferred boarding and a free checked bag for the cardholder and up to four companions on the same domestic American Airlines reservation. If you spend more than $20,000 on purchases per account year, you will also receive a $99 (plus taxes) companion certificate good for a round-trip domestic economy ticket.
AAdvantage Aviator Red Card Review
Bilt Mastercard®
The Bilt Rewards program flies a bit under the radar, but it’s gaining traction due to its broad range of transfer partners, including American Airlines. In fact, this is the only flexible points program that partners with American, making the Bilt Mastercard® even more valuable.
The Bilt Mastercard®’s unique feature is the ability to pay rent to any landlord and earn points, with no added fees — making it the best Wells Fargo credit card for renters. Cardholders earn 1 point per dollar on up to $100,000 per year in rent payments, 2x points on travel, 3x points on dining, and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. Plus, Bilt Rewards members can now earn up to 8x points on dining with the new Bilt Dining program. However, you must make a minimum of five transactions per statement period to earn points.
In addition, on the first day of every month, Bilt Mastercard® cardholders can earn double points on non-rent payments (up to a maximum of 10,000 bonus points) with Bilt’s Rent Day promotion. The card also offers great benefits and other redemption options, including using Bilt points through the Bilt Travel portal at 1.25 cents each, and there’s no annual fee.
American Airlines Credit Card Frequently Asked QuestionsÂ
All of the co-branded American Airlines cards mentioned above typically approve those with at least a good credit score, based on Personal Finance Insider’s assumptions. Some, like the premium Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®, usually look for an excellent credit score — that is, anything above an 800 FICO score.
An American Airlines credit card is worth it, particularly one that offers money-saving benefits like a free checked bag and preferred boarding, if you fly the airline — even a couple of times a year. The perks you receive can more than offset the annual fee on these cards, and you’ll earn miles you can redeem for free flights on American and its partners.
American Airlines credit cards are even more compelling if you’re working toward earning AAdvantage elite status. Because status is now awarded based on earning Loyalty Points, using an American Airlines card for everyday spending can give you the boost you need to achieve the next status tier.
All co-branded American Airlines credit cards earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar you spend, regardless of category — so spending more in bonus categories isn’t going to make a difference in that regard.
For instance, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® earns 2x miles per dollar spent on American Airlines purchases and at gas stations and restaurants, but you’ll only earn 1 Loyalty Point for every dollar spent on purchases even in these categories.
Any welcome bonus miles you earn from opening an American Airlines credit card will not count toward earning Loyalty Points and elite status. You’ll just earn redeemable miles.
Most co-branded American Airlines cards (except the American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®) come with early boarding privileges. The premium Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® includes Group 4 priority boarding, and the rest of the co-branded cards offer Group 5 preferred boarding.
American Airlines miles expire after 24 months of account inactivity. This means if you don’t earn or redeem AA miles within that time frame, you could lose your miles. Using an American Airlines credit card is a great way to generate earning activity in your account and keep your miles from expiring.
Why You Should Trust Us: How We Chose the Best American Airlines Credit Cards
We considered all of the American Airlines credit cards available right now and looked at several factors:
- Travel benefits — Does the card offer money-saving perks like free checked bags or other benefits like Loyalty Points for meeting spending thresholds, airport lounge access, or statement credits?
- Earning potential — Are there bonus categories outside of American Airlines purchases with the card, and are they appealing to a wide range of customers?
- Annual fee — Most American Airlines credit cards have an annual fee, but are the card’s benefits worth it?
- Cards for various types of travelers — We chose cards that appeal to different types of American Airlines flyers, including road warriors, leisure travelers, and small-business owners.
Be sure to read Personal Finance Insider’s guide to how we rate and review credit cards to learn more about our methodology.
