1. How valuable is the sign-up bonus?
Since earning a credit card sign-up bonus is one of the best ways to earn rewards quickly, looking over bonus offers among American Airlines credit cards is a savvy first step. Some things to consider when evaluating the bonus:
- How does the value of the miles compare to other cards’ bonuses? Compare the value of airline miles here.
- Can you meet the spending threshold?
- Do you meet the eligibility requirements? (Read the offer terms carefully — for example, you may not qualify if you have opened other AAdvantage cards in the last few years.)
- How does the value of the bonus compare to the annual fee? (You might go for a lower annual fee card if you’re only interested in earning miles.)
The
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® has one of the most generous sign-up bonuses among co-branded American Airlines credit cards: For a limited time, earn 100,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $10,000 within the first 3 months of account opening.
2. Can you afford the annual fee?
American Airlines offers credit cards with annual fees ranging from $0 to $595. To decide if you’ll be able to justify an annual fee, look at the benefits and rewards offered by each card. Typically, higher annual fee cards come with premium protections and card benefits. If you don’t think you’ll rack up enough rewards or get enough use out of a card’s benefits to cover the annual fee, you’ll want to opt for the no-annual-fee choice.
For example, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® has the highest annual fee at $595, but it comes with a long list of benefits — including a complimentary Admirals Club® membership valued at up to $850. This benefit alone can make up for the additional cost. Meanwhile, the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard® comes with a $99 annual fee, but offers a free checked bag for you and up to four companions on every flight. That free checked bag benefit alone may justify paying $99 a year, especially since a first checked bag for domestic flights paid at the airport typically costs $40 ($35 if paid online).
3. Is it easy to spend the card’s miles?
American Airlines branded credit cards are designed to be used in the AAdvantage platform. Your miles can be redeemed for American Airlines flights or flights with one of its oneworld partners including Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Japan Airlines and more.
If you don’t think you’ll get the most use out of your miles by redeeming them for American Airlines flights, consider a general travel card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve®. These cards allow you to get 25% and 50% (respectively) more value from your points when you redeem for travel through Chase’s travel portal. You can also transfer points at a rate of 1:1 to 11 airline partners and three hotel partners, or redeem for cash back and gift cards.
4. Will you use the card’s benefits?
One of the main reasons to get a co-branded AAdvantage card is to score a range of important airline perks, including free checked bags and discounts on inflight purchases. The more you fly with American Airlines, the more you can use those benefits — making the card even more valuable.
If you rarely fly with American Airlines, or if you’re unlikely to use the airline perks, a general travel card may be the better way to go.