James (Jamie) started The Forward Cabin blog to educate readers about points, miles, and loyalty programs. He’s spoken at Princeton University and The New York Times Travel Show and has been quoted in...
Edited by: Keri Stooksbury
With years of experience in corporate marketing and as the Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Qatar, Keri is now Editor-in-Chief at UP, overseeing daily content operations and r...
14 comments
Dan Giacoletto
July 08, 2019
Thank you for writing one of the most comprehensive articles on a frequent flyer program. The details and plain English made it easy to follow.
Jarrod West
July 09, 2019
Thank you, Dan! We appreciate the kind words and are happy to have you as a reader!
AP
February 04, 2022
Great article as I was looking for reasons why I should/should not pay $2100 to upgrade to Platinum (those annual targeted promotions) from Gold. But based on your reasoning (thank you for breaking it down!), I don’t see much difference in Platinum and Gold from a financial sense – obviously, the non-quantifiable things like earlier boarding and potential of increased upgrades are better, but not worth it (stress: for ME). Most are the same as Gold, just lower priority, which you mentioned.
Only thing I will note is the $35 per 500 mile upgrade – believe it is $45 for a while now. Thanks for the article!
Travis
March 02, 2022
They are all fairly worthless in 2022. Recently flew a long route that is not hub to hub and that I fly frequently. (MSP-PHX). I was receiving offers to upgrade for $49 up to 12 hours before boarding. I’m Platinum Pro from miles flown. In theory that can upgrade 48-72 hours prior. It’s clear American is switching to a credit card company and away from airline focused. With the announcement that everyone receives free upgrades, they will continue to focus more on gathering any revenue from those upgrades by offering discounted pay for upgrades right up to boarding and only comping at the last minute and if they have to.
Tim
April 11, 2022
The Paid upgrades have certainly been the bane of elites for years! However $49 for that routing, I would pay it even if I could theoretically get it for free from MSP – PHX.
Michael J
May 26, 2022
I agree! I would totally pay $49 for an upgrade on MSP-PHX (3 hrs 25 m flight time) to lockin first class vs pining for an upgrade that most likely will never come. I agree it’s a bummer that you have to pay instead of being comped, but I’d rather be mad about it in first class!:D
Gaurav
September 18, 2022
Is the free baggage allowance still applicable if booking a code share flight on BA metal? Esp on basic economy.
Jarrod West
September 22, 2022
Hi Gaurav,
Yes, American Airlines Platinum would give you Oneworld Sapphire. In which case you’d received one additional bag, weighing up to 23kgs, up to a maximum of two pieces, on international trips that use the piece system.
Roy Williams
January 10, 2023
I flew for years Executive Platinum. It did not matter because I was paying for first class tickets. I am well over 3 million miles. When I retired I was made Platinum for life. Very much appreciated. Within a few years Platinum Pro was introduced. That made my status effectively Gold. So much for loyalty. Today I called the Platinum Desk to request a one day waiver because I qualify for Platinum Pro one day after my flight leaves to Hawaii. Actually I qualify two day before but it takes three days for AA to post miles. The service representative said sorry.
Charity C
June 19, 2023
That’s insane!! Thanks for the info Roy; my aspirations of earning EP status have dwindled down now.
Camden
February 07, 2023
Math is incorrect again, under item 2. 60% mileage bonus equates to 8 miles/$ spent on base fare. Member rate is 5pts/$ x 1.6 = 8pts/$
Jarrod West
February 08, 2023
Hi Camden,
Thanks for pointing that out – I’ve corrected the post.
Lee
May 07, 2023
I am trying to determine if I will earn American miles if I use my American Advantage credit card to pay my real estate taxes. I am not getting a straight answer from the credit card company. Any thoughts? Thank you
Keri Stooksbury
May 07, 2023
Hi Lee – you should be earning AAdvantage miles through every American AAdvantage card. Which card is it that you have? You may want to also consider our guide to the best cards for paying taxes to see how the earn rates would compare.
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