Start here: AAdvantage

Steps 1–2: the programme and joining

What it is. AAdvantage is offered by American Airlines and its affiliates and subsidiaries, and members may earn miles and Loyalty Points through AAdvantage Partners as well as receive certain benefits through the oneworld Alliance. [5] The airline's AAdvantage pages group the programme's main uses as earning on American flights, using miles for flight upgrades, earning on cruises, vacations and experiences, buying, gifting or transferring miles, and holding an AAdvantage credit card. [1]

Two mile types, one wallet. Base Miles are standard AAdvantage miles that also earn Loyalty Points; Bonus Miles earn no Loyalty Points and usually arrive through promotions and through Buy Miles, Gift Miles and Transfer Miles transactions. [5] For redemption purposes the two are identical. [5] Loyalty Points are a separate measure that American uses to track qualification towards status. [5]

Joining. Enrolling as a member, or using any AAdvantage rewards and benefits, means accepting the AAdvantage terms. [5] Only individuals are eligible, except in connection with the AAdvantage Business programme or where American expressly permits otherwise, and each eligible individual is limited to one membership. [5] The name, date of birth and address on the account must match those in a reservation before rewards, including miles and Loyalty Points, can be credited. [5] American may change the terms at any time, posting amended versions on aa.com; continuing to take part afterwards counts as acceptance. [5]

Step 3: how earning works

Two methods. Eligible members earn miles on eligible purchased tickets in one of two ways, applied at American's discretion: from the ticket price or from distance flown. [5] Price-based earning uses the base fare plus any mandatory carrier-imposed fees, and excludes government-imposed taxes and fees and optional airline fees such as change fees and ticketing fees. [5] Distance-based earning applies to some partner-marketed flights and to fare types whose actual fare is not disclosed, such as consolidator, bulk fare or student tickets, and is set as a percentage of distance flown according to the booking code purchased. [5]

What does not earn. Not every flight earns, and some fares are ineligible. [5] Miles and Loyalty Points accrue once per eligible flight however many seats were bought, and the same flight, hotel stay or car rental cannot normally earn under AAdvantage and another loyalty programme at the same time. [5] Travel to and from Cuba earns only on American-operated flights. [5] Buying, gifting or transferring miles produces Bonus Miles with no Loyalty Points, as do promotional offers and another programme's currency converted into AAdvantage miles, and transactions paid or redeemed with a cash-and-miles combination may also accrue neither. [5]

Beyond flying. American's status page names AAdvantage eShopping, AAdvantage Dining, car rentals and hotel stays among the non-airline partners that earn base miles [3]; the airline miles course covers how partner earning works in general.

Missing credit. Members can request credit for past eligible transactions up to 12 months after the activity date, and any claim for uncredited miles or Loyalty Points must reach American within 12 months of earning. [5] Activity before enrolment is largely excluded: partner flights more than 30 days, and American-marketed and -operated flights or non-flight transactions more than 6 months, before the enrolment date. [5]

Step 4: how to use miles

Flight awards and upgrades are the main travel uses, and American also offers redemption on certain onboard products and on partner-run third-party sites. [5] The glossary defines the award terms used below.

Availability and pricing. Miles may not be usable to every destination or on every flight, and any flight award may be withdrawn or made subject to higher mileage requirements or new restrictions at any time before ticketing. [5] Awards on American and American Eagle flights may be booked into any available seat, including the last one, though the mileage price can be higher when availability is tight, and partner awards may carry their own seating limits and mileage levels. [5]

Shape of an award. Flight awards cover one-way travel unless stated otherwise, and some special awards require a round trip; immigration rules in some places require proof of onward or return travel. [5] A one-way award within the United States or Canada allows at most three segments, and four segments elsewhere, including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. [5]

Costs on top. The passenger or member pays immigration fees, surcharges, departure fees and taxes, security and federal inspection fees, passenger facility charges and similar charges on an award ticket, and any additional per-ticket fees are paid by credit card. [5] An award ticket has no cash value and cannot be transferred or assigned. [5] If American or a participating carrier stops serving a destination for which an award was redeemed, the miles for that award are redeposited. [5]

Names and dates. An award ticket can be issued in any name the member designates at the time of ticketing, but the recipient cannot be identified later. [5] Once ticketed, the member has one year from the ticketing date to complete all award travel unless otherwise noted. [5]

Steps 5–6: status and a first award

Status. Tiers qualify on Loyalty Points earned during the 12-month period starting each 1 March, and status is valid from the time it is reached through 31 March of the following full year. [5] The status page lists five levels — AAdvantage Member, Gold, Platinum, Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum — with benefits such as free checked bags, complimentary upgrades and priority privileges. [3] The terms also treat ConciergeKey and Million Miler as AAdvantage Status. [5]

The status page sets out extra earn of 40%, 60%, 80% and 120% more miles and Loyalty Points on eligible flights, with checked-bag allowances of one, two or three bags and boarding from Group 4 through to Group 1 [3]; that published page is where to confirm which figure attaches to which tier. The ConciergeKey membership year runs differently, starting when membership is offered and accepted or on 1 May, whichever comes first, and ending on 30 April of the following year. [5]

Protecting status. If a Loyalty Points accrual becomes invalid — for example because a qualifying purchase is cancelled or returned — the points are removed and any status qualification or benefit they triggered may be reversed. [5] American's Instant Status Pass promotion matches status held with Delta SkyMiles, United MileagePlus, JetBlue TrueBlue or Southwest Rapid Rewards and begins with four months of the equivalent AAdvantage tier. [6] Keeping it needs a Loyalty Point goal every four months — 13,000 for Gold benefits, 25,000 for Platinum, 42,000 for Platinum Pro or 67,000 for Executive Platinum — and meeting all three goals qualifies the member for status for the rest of the membership year. [6] Applicants must be current AAdvantage members in good standing with a current status in one of those four programmes and matching names; matched, transferred, lifetime or promotional status does not qualify, nor do members who registered in the last two years or who already hold equivalent or higher AAdvantage status. [6] The offer runs for a limited time, American may change or end it, and review takes at least four weeks. [6] Elite benefits more broadly are covered in start here: status and lounges.

A first award, step by step. Check that the flights you want show award seats at all, since awards are not open on every flight and may be withdrawn or repriced before ticketing. [5] Check the trip fits the award's shape, with one-way travel as the default and segment caps of three inside the United States or Canada and four elsewhere. [5] Budget for the taxes, fees and surcharges, which the member pays. [5] Name the traveller at ticketing, because a recipient cannot be added afterwards, and remember the one-year window to finish travel. [5] Before ticketing, an award reservation can be changed or cancelled at no charge unless American states otherwise; afterwards, extra miles or fees may apply per ticket. [5] Miles come back for a wholly unused award cancelled before departure while the ticket is still valid, but not for expired tickets or partially used awards. [5]

Exceptions and limits

• Miles can expire. Under the 24-Month Qualifying Activity Requirement, all miles are forfeited if the account has no qualifying activity in any 24-month period; qualifying activity includes earning or redeeming with American or its partners, completing a Buy, Gift or Transfer Miles transaction, or earning through hotels, car rental companies, credit card companies and other programme partners. [4] Each qualifying activity extends every unexpired mile by 24 months from that date. [4] The requirement does not apply to members under 21, but an account without a birth date on file is still subject to it, and after the 21st birthday the member must earn or redeem within 24 months to keep the balance. [4]
• Reactivating expired miles. Miles can be reactivated within 24 months of expiry, up to 500,000 miles in a reactivation period, for a fee the terms currently list at US$60 to US$2,000; reactivated miles earn no Loyalty Points and do not count towards status or Million Miler. [4]
• Inactive accounts. American may terminate an account with no earning or redeeming activity for at least 36 consecutive months where the balance is zero, no co-brand credit card is open and in good standing, and there is no lifetime benefit or active status; accounts created within the previous 24 months may be terminated after 12 months without activity. [5]
• Miles stay inside the programme. Miles and Loyalty Points cannot be moved to another loyalty programme, and another programme's currency cannot be moved in, unless American expressly states otherwise. [5] AAdvantage miles can be moved between AAdvantage accounts through a Transfer Miles transaction when American offers it. [5]
• Upgrade limits. Complimentary upgrades apply on American-marketed and -operated flights offering a higher cabin within and between the 50 United States, Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, the Bahamas and Bermuda, and between the United States and Central America; they move a member to the next cabin on eligible fares, are subject to capacity controls, and unconfirmed members go onto the airport standby list at check-in. [5] Fixed-mileage upgrade awards have been withdrawn: American no longer accepts new requests, honours those requested on or before 11 August 2025, and has replaced them with Instant Upgrades. [5]

Related pages

Programme: AAdvantage. Courses: Start here: airline miles and Start here: status and lounges. Definitions: the frequent flyer glossary.

Sources

Sources checked on 18 October 2026. The course covers AAdvantage only: other programmes, including United MileagePlus, Delta SkyMiles, JetBlue TrueBlue and Southwest Rapid Rewards, are not covered and appear only where American's status-match page names them. Rules, fees and eligibility change, so confirm details on the official pages; the AAdvantage terms cited here are the version effective 1 March 2026.

1. AAdvantage program overview, American Airlines, checked 18 October 2026
2. Loyalty Points and status, American Airlines, checked 18 October 2026
3. AAdvantage terms and conditions, Chinese-language edition (effective 1 March 2026), checked 18 October 2026
4. AAdvantage terms and conditions (effective 1 March 2026), American Airlines, checked 18 October 2026
5. AAdvantage status match and Instant Status Pass terms, American Airlines, checked 18 October 2026