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When flying American Airlines, all it takes to avoid , receive priority boarding or even relax in an airport lounge beforehand is holding the right . In addition to helping you earn valuable AAdvantage miles to travel almost anywhere in the world, certain American Airlines co-branded credit cards can expedite your path to elite status. With numerous options available from two different issuers — Citi and Barclays — rounded up the best credit cards for occasional and frequent American flyers.
(Read about below.) The can provide a lot of value to anyone who flies with American Airlines a few times a year or more. American Airlines charges $40 for your first checked bag on domestic flights ($35 if you pay online).
But with the , you'll get the first checked bag free for yourself and up to four companions on domestic American Airlines flights, saving you $70 to $80 per person round-trip. The stands out if you want for less than the cost of a standard annual membership. The comes with an Admirals Club membership that grants you and your immediate family (spouse/partner and children under 18) or up to two guests unlimited lounge visits when traveling with American Airlines or an eligible partner airline.
This includes and all Alaska Airlines Lounges and Qantas Clubs. The is ideal if you have (scores 580-669) since most American Airlines cards require a good or excellent score (670+). While this card doesn't earn American miles, the rewards you earn with this card can be redeemed for American Airlines flights — and you earn them at unusually generous rates.
Plus, it charges no foreign transaction fees. The is geared toward small business owners who live in an American Airlines hub city (or frequently travel to one). Every cardmember year, you can earn an after you spend $30,000 or more on your card.
With it, you can bring a guest along on eligible domestic American Airlines flights for $99 plus taxes and fees. The is a better fit if you travel with American Airlines less often because it has . The AAdvantage MileUp card earns 2X miles on groceries, which makes it the for earning American Airlines miles.
If you want to earn American Airlines miles in a hurry, the has a valuable and . Most of the require thousands of dollars in spending over the first few months you have the card. However, with the , you'll earn its bonus after making a single purchase.
The is one of the most popular American Airlines-branded cards thanks to its low annual fee, generous welcome bonus and valuable ongoing perks. Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $3,500 in purchases within the first four months of account opening. $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $99 You can take advantage of priority boarding, 25% back on inflight purchases and free checked bags for you and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation (for domestic American Airlines flights).
You'll earn a $125 American Airlines flight discount when you spend $20,000 or more on your card during a card-membership year. This card has . The is a with a big annual fee, but its lounge access and other elite status-like perks can make it worth it.
Earn 70,000 miles after spending $7,000 within the first three months of account opening. $595 As the primary cardholder, you'll get a free Admirals Club lounge membership, which normally costs up to $850 a year for an individual membership (the cost varies depending on your elite status level). You'll also save time at the airport with priority check-in, boarding and screening when traveling with American Airlines.
Plus, your fee is reimbursed once every 4 years (worth up to $120). If you value AAdvantage status or you're trying to , you'll appreciate this card's Loyalty Point bonuses. You can earn up to 20,000 bonus Loyalty Points every status qualification year (10,000 bonus Loyalty Points after reaching 50,000 Loyalty Points and an additional 10,000 after reaching 90,000 Loyalty Points).
You also have access to several credits that can help offset this card's annual fee, including up to $120 in credit every year (up to $10 back per month), up to $120 in credit every year (up to $10 back per month) and up to $120 in credit for prepaid every year with and Budget. The is a flexible travel card that allows you to earn rewards in bunches while improving your credit score. None $95 You can use this card when traveling internationally and enjoy no foreign transaction fees.
Eligible purchases are also covered by this card's built-in , as well as shopping coverages like retail protection, return protection and extended warranty. Your points can be redeemed for travel, statement credits, merchandise, gift cards and more. The can help you turn your business expenses into American Airlines miles.
Earn 65,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in purchases within the first four months of account opening. $0 intro annual fee for the first 12 months, then $99 This card offers preferred boarding, 25% back on eligible inflight purchases and a free first checked bag for you and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation. Every cardmember year after you spend $30,000 or more on your card, you'll earn an American Airlines Companion Certificate.
This certificate is good for domestic economy travel and allows you to bring a guest for $99 plus the taxes and fee for the additional ticket. It has no foreign transaction fees and comes with access to travel management tools to streamline bookings and expense tracking. The can help you earn AAdvantage miles and Loyalty Points without paying an annual fee.
Earn 15,000 miles after spending $500 in purchases within the first three months of account opening. $0 When you use your AAdvantage MileUp card for inflight food and beverage purchases on American Airlines flights, you'll receive 25% back. You can add to this card for no additional fee.
The comes with a generous welcome bonus and a valuable . Earn 60,000 miles after making your first purchase within the first 90 days and paying the annual fee in full. $99 You can take advantage of an intro 0% APR on balance transfers for the first 15 months for balance transfers you complete within 45 days of account opening.
Once the intro APR expires, a variable 20.74% to 29.99% APR applies.
There is a balance transfer fee of 5% of the amount of each transfer with a $5 minimum. You'll also get 25% back on eligible inflight purchases, preferred boarding and the first checked bag for free for you and up to four travel companions (on the same reservation). Every card anniversary year, you can receive $25 back for inflight Wi-Fi purchases.
You can save on cash bookings if you qualify for this card's companion certificate, which you'll earn after spending $20,000 or more on the card in an account anniversary year (and the account stays open for 45 days after your anniversary date). The companion certificate is valid on domestic economy flights and costs $99 plus taxes and fees. Experts typically value American Airlines AAdvantage miles at around 1.
6 cents per point. That said, the value of an American Airlines mile depends on how you use it. You can use miles to pay for Admirals Club lounge access (day passes or annual memberships) and you'll receive one cent per mile in value.
You also use miles to pay for seat upgrades, and rental cars, however, you'll typically get the most value when you use your AAdvantage miles to book award flights with American Airlines and its partner airlines. Redeeming AAdvantage miles for flights typically offers the best value. American Airlines uses dynamic pricing for its own flights and has fixed prices for partner awards.
By taking advantage of the best deals (like international business-class flights), you can receive exceptional value for your miles. Awards flights operated by American Airlines start at 7,500 miles in economy and 15,000 miles in business class, though the price can be lower during award sales or much more expensive for flights with high demand. For example, at the time of writing, there is an economy flight from Charlotte to Dallas available for 8,500 miles and $5.
60 in taxes. This flight costs $199, which is a value of over 2.2 cents per point.
However, another $199 flight on the same day costs 13,000 miles (less than 1.5 cents per mile in value), so your value can vary. With international partner business-class flights, there is an incredible increase in the value of your miles.
You can book partner business-class awards from the U.S. to the Middle East for 70,000 miles one-way, including on airlines like Qatar Airways and Etihad.
These flights can easily cost well over $5,000, which is an exceptional value of over seven cents per mile. At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every credit card review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit card products.
While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See for more information on how we choose the best American Airlines credit cards. To determine which cards offer the best value for American Airlines flyers, analyzed over 250 major credit cards issued through FDIC-insured banks and NCUA-insured credit unions that are widely available in the U.
S. We compared each card on a range of features, including rewards, annual fees, welcome bonuses, introductory and standard APR and balance transfer fees and foreign transaction fees. We also considered additional perks (e.
g., ongoing travel or merchant statement credits), cardholder protections (e.g.
, purchase protection, $0 liability protection and travel insurance), the application process when available (e.g., is there a credit pull or required credit score) and how easy it is to redeem points (e.
g., are rewards are tied to a specific brand; if transferable, to how many/which partners, can you redeem for straight cash back). We also considered CNBC Select audience data when available, such as general demographics and engagement with our content and tools.
For the cards that offered a rewards program, we considered consumer spending data forecasts from location intelligence firm Esri to determine where U.S. consumers are spending the most money, like on dining and travel.
We used this to help determine what bonus categories are most useful for consumers. Since the value of a point or mile varies based on what they can be redeemed for, we also considered things like transferability and the ability to redeem for cash-back. When choosing the best AA cards, we focused on cards that earn AAdvantage miles and have benefits that are specific to travel with American Airlines.
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