platinum executive travel cost

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What Is the Value of American Airlines Executive Platinum? An Overview of Status, Upgrades & Seating

James Larounis

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How To Earn AAdvantage Executive Platinum Status

Unlimited auto-requested complimentary upgrades ($2,750), upgrades on alaska airlines (value varies), complimentary upgrades on award tickets ($50), complimentary upgrades for 1 companion, loyalty point rewards ($3,000), choosing and using the systemwide upgrades, complimentary preferred seats ($200), complimentary main cabin extra seats ($1,000), final thoughts.

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The American Airlines AAdvantage program is the largest frequent flyer program in the world and has 4 public elite status tiers: Gold, Platinum, Platinum Pro, and Executive Platinum.

The most benefits come with the Executive Platinum level, which is regarded as one of the best airline elite levels worldwide.

In this post, we’ll do a deep dive into the top public tier Executive Platinum level, the benefits, and what this status is worth so you can make a sound decision on whether to pursue this tier.

Specifically, we’ll focus on upgrades and seating options , and a second post will look at benefits at the airport and alliance-wide perks .

We’ll look at what benefits are associated with Executive Platinum, their value, and how to maximize each benefit to receive the most value. We’ll discuss whether to pursue Executive Platinum status based on the worthiness and value of each perk, as well as how to earn the status.

To figure out what a benefit is worth, you must first look at the overall requirements for status.

In 2022, American moved to a system based on Loyalty Points to determine status. Any flying you do, as well as co-branded credit card spend, coupled with hotel stays, online shopping, and other activities related to American, will count toward these Loyalty Points. To earn Executive Platinum status, you will need to earn 200,000 Loyalty Points, which theoretically can be earned without a single bit of flying.

The Benefits of AAdvantage Executive Platinum Status

Let’s take a look at each of the status perks, starting with upgrades.

As an Executive Platinum, upgrades within the U.S., Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean are complimentary.

This is a monumental benefit. Not only will you be amongst the highest to potentially receive an upgrade, but Executive Platinums have traditionally reported some of the highest upgrade percentages across any elite tier in any elite program across any airline , which is a real testament to the value of this status.

When requesting an upgrade for an eligible trip, here is how the upgrade displays according to the airport priority list (PALL):

• UPG1: ConciergeKey
• UPG2: Executive Platinum
• UPG3: Platinum Pro
• UPG4: Platinum

Executive Platinums only fall directly behind ConciergeKey members , of which there are assumed to be just several thousand of, so upgrade chances are very decent.

Unlike United and Delta’s programs, American elites are eligible to upgrade on practically every domestic route, including premium transcontinental services and long-haul Hawaii routes such as:

• Boston (BOS) to Los Angeles (LAX) aboard the A321T, which is American’s premium transcontinental plane
• Dallas (DFW) to Honolulu (HNL) aboard a 777 that contains lie-flat seats
• Miami (MIA) to Los Angeles (LAX) aboard a 777
• New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX) aboard the A321T
• New York (JFK) to San Francisco (SFO) abroad the A321T

Hot Tip: If you’re flying from New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX), choose a late-night flight for the best upgrade odds.

As you can see, many of American’s premium-type routes are operated by aircraft with flat-bed seats. Upgrading to these seats doesn’t require any additional certificates or purchasing requirements, which adds to the value of this benefit.  

When an upgrade clears into the premium cabin on an eligible route, it clears into “R” class , which is the complimentary upgrade fare bucket.

A fare bucket is the letter code that your ticket is assigned depending on factors including the cost of the ticket and associated rules regarding refundability and changes. Some fare codes, such as “R,” are assigned a specific purpose and aren’t available for purchase — in this case, “R” signals to the computer that the passenger has received a complimentary upgrade.

This “R” fare bucket is not protected, meaning that if there are irregular operations and you need to take a different flight, you are placed back on the upgrade list. The upgrade does not carry over from flight to flight and you aren’t guaranteed to remain in the premium cabin.

Some airlines will attempt to sell first class seats to non-elite status passengers before offering those seats for upgrading via the loyalty program. It really depends on the routes and time of day as to whether an Executive Platinum gets upgraded , but overall, the chances are much better than other airlines since American does not upsell premium cabin seats from under elite passengers attempting to upgrade.

In fact, if any elite is requesting an upgrade, American’s policy is to not offer a day of departure load factor-based upgrade (an upgrade assuming there will otherwise be empty seats that will go out on the flight) for purchase to any non-status passenger — the system is that good.

There will be hit-or-miss routes — such as New York (LGA) to Dallas (DFW), or Washington, D.C. (DCA) to Dallas (DFW) that may seem impossible to clear an upgrade, and rightly so. But if you think strategically — perhaps flying from New York (JFK) to Dallas (DFW) or Washington, D.C. (IAD) to Dallas (DFW), the upgrades can be plentiful.

Watch your aircraft, too — the premium New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX) market is on a flatbed-equipped A321T (T stands for transcontinental). This is a very, very elite-heavy route, with many Executive Platinums outright purchasing first or business class. Since this plane is eligible for complimentary upgrades, many elites know this and try to book this aircraft on purpose in the hopes of receiving a flatbed seat across the country. It’s not uncommon for there to be 20+ Executive Platinums on these types of flights.

Bottom Line: American Airlines Executive Platinum members receive an unlimited amount of complimentary domestic upgrades, which are also valid on routes to Hawaii as well as premium transcontinental routes.

Executive Platinum members are eligible for complimentary upgrades on all Alaska Airlines flights. These upgrades can clear at 120 hours prior to the flight and will occur after any Alaska Airlines MVP Gold 75K members have been upgraded (MVP Gold 100K members clear at the same window as MVP Gold 75K, but are prioritized).

A perk for Executive Platinums is complimentary upgrades on award tickets on qualifying routes. Essentially, any route that ordinarily gets you a complimentary upgrade on a paid ticket also gets you an automatically requested upgrade on an award ticket.

That said, when you request an upgrade on an award ticket, you’re actually placed behind all other Executive Platinums that are on paid (cash) tickets.

In the case of Executive Platinums, there are normally 4 upgrade designations that can happen (in order of preference):

• VIP2 (using a systemwide upgrade)
• MLG2 (using a mileage upgrade)
• UPG2 (using a complimentary upgrade)
• UPGA2 (using a complimentary upgrade on an award ticket)

As you can see, all other upgrades within the Executive Platinum ranks will clear first before any passenger on an award ticket. On elite-heavy routes, especially those hub to hub, you’ll be placed behind cash-paying passengers within the Executive Platinum level but will have priority over other elites, regardless of how they are upgrading.

An economy class award ticket is any ticket ticketed in “T” class. This is the class you must be booked in to request an upgrade to a higher cabin. Like upgrades on paid tickets, it is only good for 1 class of service upgrade on qualifying routes.

Hot Tip: Per the AAdvantage terms and conditions, you can only upgrade an economy class award ticket when you use AAdvantage miles to book the ticket and no other airline miles. 

For example, technically if you use British Airways Avios on an award ticket, you aren’t allowed to replace your British Airways Executive Club number with your AAdvantage number. However, several Oneworld airline websites will let you do this, and when the American system recognizes your number, you’ll be placed on the upgrade queue just like American-booked tickets.

No other elite tier receives these benefits of upgrading on award tickets, so if you redeem miles often, this could certainly be a valuable perk.

There won’t be many award tickets an Executive Platinum will be flying on during a year that will be eligible for upgrades since it needs to be a flight within the U.S. and select local international routes. For valuation purposes, it’s assumed as 1 segment a year upgraded at $50 of value.

American Airlines elites used to need to use 500-mile sticker upgrade certificates to upgrade a companion, but now that happens automatically. All 500-mile upgrade certificates were retired in July 2022.

When you book a reservation and have 2 people on the same record, you can either request to “split” or “no split” the reservation. If you chose to split the reservation and only 1 upgrade seat opens up, 1 person will receive the upgrade and the other person will remain on the list. If you chose “no split” and an upgrade becomes available, both people chose not to split up and the upgrade moves to the next solo traveler on the upgrade list.

Normally, you want to split the reservations so that at least 1 person can upgrade and the person who doesn’t clear can remain on the list. When traveling with a companion, the companion carries the Executive Platinum UPG2 designator throughout the process (the same weight as if they were an Executive Platinum themselves).  

The companion’s name doesn’t need to be on the same reservation for you to be able to upgrade them — it can be listed separately in a completely different reservation made at a separate time. If this is the case, prior to travel you’ll want to “link” these 2 reservations together by calling American. You can’t merge them into 1, but any reservations agent can associate them together for upgrade purposes.

If your companion’s upgrade does not clear prior to the airport and that companion has elite status of their own (presumed to be lower than the EP) and it goes to the gate waitlist, have an agent remove the companion’s frequent flyer number from the reservation and input the Executive Platinum membership number of the primary traveler (as odd as this sounds).

This will prevent the companion traveler from being listed separately on the waitlist according to his/her status level and will ensure that they are brought up to the level of the Executive Platinum.

The chances of a companion upgrade clearing vary depending on the route — there have been many times that a Monday morning Miami (MIA) to Washington, D.C. (IAD) flight has cleared for companions when the next later flight is full, so it’s tough to place a value on this solely based upon the flights you anticipate the upgrades clearing on. In general, assuming upgrades clear prior to the waitlist going to airport control, there is a fairly decent chance both you and your companion will clear.

Now, depending on when you clear, you may be placed in the only remaining seats in the cabin, which may not be together, so you may need to play a game of musical chairs, if possible, to be able to sit together.

Bottom Line: Companion upgrades are a benefit of American Airlines elite status. If only 1 upgrade is released at a time, 2 companions will not receive the upgrade in advance, so it is important to split the reservations if you want at least 1 person to get upgraded.

Executive Platinum members get complimentary upgrades cleared as early as 100 hours prior to departure , down from the 120 hours that a ConciergeKey member sees upgrades start to process.

Upgrades are released as “R” inventory is released — generally, the more seats for sale, the more “R” inventory that will be released for upgrades.

That said, even some flights that are nearly sold out will have elites upgraded in order to open up more space in the economy cabin for oversold passengers.

For the most part, Executive Platinum upgrades clear somewhere in the neighborhood of 80 to 100 hours, and then from there, the remainder clear somewhere around the 24-hour mark. In some rare cases, upgrades may clear in advance of 100 hours, though this technically shouldn’t happen and shouldn’t be expected.

Loyalty Point Rewards are perks that can be earned by reaching specified levels of Loyalty Points. While these aren’t specifically tied to status level, there are some Loyalty Point Rewards you can earn on the way to Executive Platinum (plus many you can earn beyond that).

Once a member earns 175,000 Loyalty Points, 1 of the following Loyalty Point Rewards can be chosen:

• 2 systemwide upgrades
• 20,000 AAdvantage bonus miles ( AAdvantage credit cardmembers receive an additional 5,000 bonus miles for a total of 25,000 miles)
• 6 Admirals Club  1-day passes
• $200 trip credit ($250 for AAdvantage credit cardholders)
• Carbon emissions offset
• $250 donation to your choice of 1 of 10 partner charities
• One-time 15% off award discount (rebate post-travel)
• 2 gifts of AAdvantage Gold status

Once the Executive Platinum member passes over the Executive Platinum threshold (200,000 Loyalty Points), there are additional levels of Loyalty Point Rewards they can reach.

At 250,000 Loyalty Points , an Executive Platinum member can choose 2 rewards:

• 20,000 AAdvantage bonus miles (AAdvantage credit cardmembers receive an additional 10,000 bonus miles for a total of 30,000 miles)
• Admirals Club individual membership (requires 2 choices)
• Gift of AAdvantage Gold status
• Choice of 1 Bang & Olufsen product (requires 2 choices)
• 1 Flagship Lounge single visit pass (2 visit passes for AAdvantage cardholders)

New to the program are Loyalty Choice Rewards that encourage loyalty beyond the 200,000-point threshold.

• 400,000 Loyalty Points : Choose 2 rewards
• 550,000 Loyalty Points: Choose 2 rewards
• 750,000 Loyalty Points : Choose 2 rewards
• 1,000,000 Loyalty Points : Choose 1 reward
• 3,000,000 Loyalty Points : Choose 1 reward
• 5,000,000 Loyalty Points : Choose 1 reward

Choices vary by Loyalty Point level but can include:

• Systemwide upgrades
• AAdvantage bonus miles
• Admirals Club 1-day passes
• Admirals Club individual membership
• Donation to your choice of one of 10 partner charities
• Gift of AAdvantage status
• Flagship Lounge or Flagship Dining passes

If you choose to take the systemwide upgrades, these will expire 1 year from issue , so there is a hard expiration with little chance for extension beyond this date.

Perhaps one of the most coveted benefits of Executive Platinum status is systemwide upgrades that can be selected on the Loyalty Points Rewards list. These are like gold to any high-tier elite and can provide some of the most value in elite status.

The upgrades are valid for one-way flights, up to 3 segments: perhaps one of the greatest features of any systemwide upgrade and generating the most value. Upgrades are good for as many as 3 segments (an individual flight that may be part of a larger itinerary), in any single direction of travel. For example, Dallas (DFW) to Los Angeles (LAX) to Sydney (SYD) contains 2 segments.

In this case, you’re really only using the upgrade for 1 true international, long-haul segment — the sector where you normally get the most value. If you think about it, however, there are some true gems that you may be missing out on — what if you traveled London (LHR) to New York (JFK) to Los Angeles (LAX) to Sydney (SYD), all on 1 systemwide upgrade? If you add several international segments, you can really get the most from these upgrade certificates.

The upgrades are also valid on any flight marketed and operated by American. When you use a systemwide upgrade, you can only use it on flights where it says “American” on the side of the plane. The ticket also must be purchased with the flight being marketed and operated by American — meaning that when you purchase, the flight must have an AA flight number.

Unlike United and other airlines that require fare restrictions, the upgrades are valid on any fare (including Basic Economy)  to upgrade 1 class of service. If you apply a systemwide upgrade and don’t clear, you won’t feel like you’ve wasted money up-faring a ticket for no reason.

You can use a systemwide upgrade to:

• Upgrade from Basic Economy/Main Cabin/Premium Economy to business on a 3-class plane
• Upgrade from business to first on a 3-class plane
• Upgrade from Basic Economy/Main Cabin/Premium Economy to business on a 2-class plane
• Upgrade from Basic Economy/Main Cabin to first on a 2-class domestic plane

Main Cabin and Premium Economy are treated the same for this purpose, so you can’t use an upgrade to travel from Main Cabin to Premium Economy, for example. Since these are treated as the same cabin, your next upgrade class would be business class, which on international long-haul flights means all flatbeds (where the real value lies).

You can gift a systemwide upgrade to any person , even if you’re not traveling with them, though when they’re traveling alone they’ll upgrade based upon their individual status, if any.

On the airport priority list, here’s how the upgrades are listed for using a systemwide upgrade:

• VIP1: ConciergeKey
• VIP2: Executive Platinum
• VIP3: Platinum Pro
• VIP4: Platinum
• VIP: non-status member

For education, the same system is used for passengers upgrading with a miles and cash co-pay award:

• MLG1: ConciergeKey
• MLG2: Executive Platinum
• MLG3: Platinum Pro
• MLG4: Platinum
• MLG: non-status member

Hot Tip: Systemwide upgrades and miles and cash co-pay cannot be used on award tickets.

You’ll find that towards the end and beginning of the year,  in the December and January timeframe, many Executive Platinums realize they won’t be using all of their systemwide upgrades and want to give them away to others. So, if you’re not an Executive Platinum, you may find a nice person willing to give you their upgrade for free (the AAdvantage program explicitly prohibits selling or bartering for upgrades).

When looking for an upgrade, you’re looking for 1 of 2 upgrade fare buckets, which are visible using a service such as ExpertFlyer, or by calling American’s reservations team:

• “C” is used to upgrade to domestic first class or international 2-class/3-class business class
• “A” is used to upgrade to first class from international 3-class business class or a 3-class transcontinental A321T

The “C” fare bucket can be hard to come by (since this would allow someone to confirm an upgrade at the time of booking), so many Executive Platinums report difficulty in applying and using their systemwide upgrades — but there are several things you can do to help improve your chances.

Use a service like ExpertFlyer that can search a wide variety of dates easily for “C” inventory  and then alert you if or when that inventory opens up. If you set an alert and then get an email when that inventory opens, you can call American to manually process the upgrade and clear you into the premium cabin.

Watch your routes. It’s well-known that Los Angeles (LAX) to Hong Kong (HKG) is a far easier upgrade than Dallas (DFW) to Hong Kong (HKG), for example. The same can be said for New York (JFK) to London (LHR) flights in the daytime, or the reverse departing in the late evening.

If you watch the route and the time of day, you can almost be sure that there will be upgrade inventory available.

If you’re upgrading from business class to first class, there’s almost always upgrade inventory available  since you’re already seated in a premium cabin and American doesn’t tend to sell every first class seat on every 3-class flight. “A” inventory is pretty regularly available on eligible flights since it is both a revenue fare bucket (one that you can purchase as a discounted first class seat) and an award fare bucket (the ability to upgrade into first class using a systemwide upgrade, for example).  

What most people don’t know is that when any passenger uses a systemwide upgrade (or miles and cash co-pay), they are protected in the premium cabin should something go wrong, so long as the ticket is reissued.

For example, let’s assume you’re flying Dallas (DFW) to Hong Kong (HKG) and your systemwide upgrade has cleared on the route 10 days prior to departure and the ticket was reissued.

Should the flight get canceled on the day of departure due to a mechanical issue, you’re re-protected in business class (or first, if you upgraded from business to first) on American and select Oneworld partners with a joint venture agreement to get you to your final destination. This could mean routing from Dallas (DFW) to Los Angeles (LAX) to Hong Kong (HKG) on American’s flight, protected in business class.

If you’re flying New York (JFK) to London (LHR), for example, and your flight gets canceled or significantly delayed, you will be protected in business class on British Airways or Iberia, since both are Oneworld partners. For full clarification, you don’t need award availability or some type of upgrade availability to be protected on another flight — if the flight you need to change to due to irregular operations has at least 1 business class seat for sale, American will protect you in it.  

Bottom Line: This is an absolute golden benefit and significantly increases the value of systemwide upgrades. Unlike other airlines where you’ll need to go back on the upgrade list should a flight be canceled or delayed, on American, it’s as if you had a premium cabin ticket booked to begin with.  You will retain the premium cabin on any new flight you are moved to. Note that this isn’t available for complimentary upgrades, but only when using an upgrade certificate.  

As another example, let’s say your upgrade clears at the gate. If the flight is canceled and you need to move to another flight, you are not protected because your ticket at that point is not reissued (gate upgrades aren’t reissued). In a scenario like this, you would need to speak with an agent to have your ticket manually reissued before investigating options for further protection and rerouting.

For this benefit, we’ll assume $600 per one-way upgrade certificate, though the value of each upgrade may change depending on where it’s used. If it’s used for a domestic flight only, the value will be much less. If it’s used on a long-haul international flight, it can run to about $600 in value, which is the approximate rough cost differential between many economy class and business class fares.

Preferred seats are seats in American’s Main Cabin (economy class) that have a desirable location , but not necessarily any additional legroom. For example, this might be an aisle or window seat, or certain seats with special configurations, such as 2-seater honeymoon style seats on wide-body aircraft. Because these seats are more desirable than seats in the rear of the aircraft or middle seats, there is normally a charge for non-elite passengers to select these.

Executive Platinum members can select these seats free of charge for themselves and up to 8 companions on the same reservation.

Main Cabin Extra seats are extra legroom seats on American aircraft. These seats can include aisle, middle, or window locations, but each has several more inches of legroom than the seats in the rear of the aircraft, allowing for a more enjoyable flight experience. In addition to these seats being primarily located in the front part of the economy cabin, you’ll also find them in the desirable exit rows.

Hot Tip: Executive Platinum members get to select Main Cabin Extra seating for themselves and 8 companions free of charge at the time of booking — by far one of the most valuable perks of this status level.

These seats can be very expensive, even as much as $50+ for a short 1-hour hop. If you plan on taking a transcontinental flight, you may be paying over $100, and if you’re headed over the ocean, it could be in the $200+ range.

Executive Platinum members can always select these seats for free, so for the most part, even if you’re stuck in economy, you’re still able to enjoy your trip to an extent knowing you won’t always be relegated to a middle seat in the rear.

Upgrades and enhanced seating options are some of the most valuable perks on American, and included with Executive Platinum status are some of the best parts of these perks. To look at the full list of valuations, and other benefits for travel prior to the airport, including ticketing, please see Part II to this article.

Alone, the systemwide upgrades represent a majority of the value, and the complimentary upgrade percentage is among the best of the legacy carriers. Attaining Executive Platinum simply for these benefits can be well worth it and should definitely be considered when thinking about pursuing this highest-tier status.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you get executive platinum status on american airlines.

To earn Executive Platinum status, you must earn 200,000 Loyalty Points from March to February each year.

What is AAdvantage Executive Platinum?

Executive Platinum is the highest public elite status tier in the AAdvantage program. It is below ConciergeKey, an invite-only level, and above Platinum Pro.

The perks of American Airlines Executive Platinum status include:

• Complimentary upgrades within the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean
• Complimentary same-day changes
• Complimentary same-day standby
• Oneworld Emerald status
• Complimentary Main Cabin Extra
• Complimentary preferred seats
• Waived phone assistance fee
• No fee to redeposit miles

Is AA Executive Platinum worth it?

Executive Platinum provides the most tiers out of any of the public status levels on American and comes with several really beneficial perks, including complimentary upgrades on all domestic routes and systemwide upgrades as part of a Loyalty Points Rewards program. If you tend to fly a lot during the year, you’ll certainly find the benefits of Executive Platinum to be worth it.

What boarding group is American Executive Platinum?

Executive Platinum members board in Group 1 with first class and uniformed military personnel.

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About James Larounis

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 dozens of travel publications.

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American Airlines elite status: What it is and how to earn it

Editor's Note

If you fly with American Airlines and its partners, you may have — or be interested in earning — American Airlines elite status.

In early 2022, American AAdvantage revamped how you earn American elite status . Loyalty Points are the sole metric you must focus on when striving for a specific American Airlines AAdvantage elite status tier. Here's what you need to know about American Airlines elite status and how to earn it.

What is American Airlines elite status?

American Airlines elite status gives extra perks and benefits to AAdvantage members who interact with the program frequently. These elite perks and benefits when flying American Airlines range from free checked bags to complimentary upgrades.

Unlike airline loyalty programs in which flying is the primary activity needed to earn status, American AAdvantage lets you earn Loyalty Points toward elite status through many activities unrelated to travel, including online shopping, dining and spending on cobranded American Airlines credit cards .

You can earn different American Airlines elite status tiers by accumulating set amounts of Loyalty Points each elite-qualification year, which runs for 12 months from March 1 through the end of February. The status you've earned based on the Loyalty Points accumulated by the end of each February will be valid through the end of the following March. Then, your Loyalty Points balance resets and you have 12 more months to earn Loyalty Points and requalify for status.

Related: Last-minute strategies for earning American AAdvantage elite status

American Airlines elite status tiers

You'll find four published tiers of American Airlines elite status that you can earn via accumulating Loyalty Points during the 12 months starting each March 1:

• Gold : 40,000 Loyalty Points
• Platinum : 75,000 Loyalty Points
• Platinum Pro : 125,000 Loyalty Points
• Executive Platinum : 200,000 Loyalty Points

In addition to these tiers, there's also the exclusive, invite-only Concierge Key status . However, American AAdvantage doesn't publish any specific requirements for this status.

You'll also earn Loyalty Point Rewards as you reach specific Loyalty Point thresholds. You'll earn your first Loyalty Point Rewards choice after earning just 15,000 Loyalty Points within the 12-month qualification period following March 1.

Related: Your guide to American Airlines lifetime elite status

How to qualify for American Airlines elite status

To qualify for American Airlines elite status, you must earn the required number of Loyalty Points during each 12-month qualification period following March 1. As discussed above, you'll need to earn 40,000 Loyalty Points for Gold status, 75,000 for Platinum, 125,000 for Platinum Pro and 200,000 for Executive Platinum.

We have a full guide to earning Loyalty Points . But, in short, you can earn two types of American Airlines miles: base and bonus. And while both base and bonus miles are redeemable, base miles also give you Loyalty Points. So, each time you earn a base mile with American AAdvantage, you'll also earn a Loyalty Point.

You can earn American AAdvantage base miles through many different activities. Here's a non-comprehensive list of some ways you can earn base miles (and hence Loyalty Points):

• Flights sold by American Airlines, British Airways and Iberia : Earn base miles based on your ticket's base fare and carrier-imposed fees.
• Flights sold and operated by other American AAdvantage partners : Earn base miles based on flight distance and the fare class of your ticket.
• AAdvantage eShopping portal : Earn base miles when you click through the AAdvantage eShopping portal before making purchases with select merchants.
• SimplyMiles : Earn base miles when you enroll in SimplyMiles offers with participating merchants and then make eligible purchases.
• AAdvantage Dining : Earn base miles when you use an enrolled card to pay at participating AAdvantage Dining restaurants, bars and clubs.
• Rocketmiles and AAdvantage Hotels : Earn base miles when you book hotels through AAdvantage Hotels or Rocketmiles .

There are many other ways to earn American Airlines miles . However, check whether you're earning base or bonus miles before you get too excited about how many Loyalty Points you'll earn. Bask Bank mileage accounts are one example of an activity that earns only bonus miles — and hence no Loyalty Points.

Related: Times you won't earn American Airlines Loyalty Points, even if you earn miles

American Airlines elite status benefits

American Airlines elite status comes with some valuable benefits. Here's a look at some of the most noteworthy benefits, including how they differ by status tier.

Upgrades and better seats

American Airlines elite members get complimentary upgrades from Main Cabin to the next class of service on select American-marketed and -operated flights. These upgrades are unlimited and automatically requested but are based on availability and only apply to flights within the U.S. and between the U.S. and Canada, Mexico, the Bahamas, the Caribbean, Bermuda and Central America. The upgrades include award tickets and can also apply to a companion traveling with you on the same flight.

However, members with different American Airlines elite status tiers can confirm these complimentary upgrades at different times. Executive Platinum members may have their complimentary upgrade cleared as early as 100 hours before departure, Platinum Pro members as early as 72 hours, Platinum members as early as 48 hours and Gold members as early as 24 hours.

American Airlines prioritizes upgrades — including complimentary upgrades, mileage award upgrades and systemwide upgrades — in the following order:

• AAdvantage status level (Executive Platinum, Platinum Pro, Platinum and then Gold)
• Type of upgrade (handled independently until at the airport, where systemwide upgrades and mileage award upgrades come before complimentary upgrades)
• 12-month rolling Loyalty Points (updated daily)
• Booking code (W, P, Y, H, K, M, L, V, G, S, N, Q, O and then T)
• Date and time of the request

Members with American Airlines elite status — and up to eight passengers traveling with you on the same reservation — can select Preferred seats without any extra fees during booking or anytime after booking (based on availability). Preferred seats have standard legroom but are located in more desirable locations throughout the economy cabin.

Main Cabin Extra seats with up to 6 inches of additional legroom are also available to AAdvantage elite members for free (based on availability). However, AAdvantage Gold members will have to wait until 24 hours before check-in to select these seats free of charge (if available).

Mileage bonuses

American Airlines elite members get a mileage bonus when flying on American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Gol Airlines, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc and Royal Jordanian.

The bonus is calculated based on the base miles earned on the flight, with different elite tiers earning the mileage bonus as follows:

• Platinum : 60%
• Platinum Pro : 80%
• Executive Platinum : 120%

The mileage bonus is treated as base miles, so you'll also earn Loyalty Points. As such, it's easier for higher-tier AAdvantage elite members to qualify for a specific American Airlines elite status tier based on flights than a traveler with lower-tier status or no AAdvantage status.

Benefits at the airport

AAdvantage elite members enjoy — when available — Priority access at check-in, security and boarding. Specifically, Executive Platinum members board in Group 1, Platinum Pro in Group 2, Platinum in Group 3 and Gold in Group 4. Boarding with any of these groups usually means there's still space in the overhead bin for your carry-on suitcase.

Elite members also get priority when standing by for a different flight on the same day of travel when flying to or from the United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Executive Platinum and Platinum Pro members can enjoy complimentary same-day flight changes on American when flying to or from the United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Canada and select destinations in the Caribbean.

AAdvantage elites also enjoy complimentary checked bags: Gold members get one checked bag, Platinum members get two checked bags and Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum members get three checked bags. Plus, Platinum, Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum members and others on the same reservation get their checked bags tagged as Priority, which means their bags should be among the first to reach the claim belt.

In addition, your free checked baggage allowance is based on the higher of their status at booking or check-in. In other words, if you book a flight and then lose your status (or drop to a lower tier) by your check-in date, you'll still receive the allowance of your status at booking. Likewise, if you book a flight and then reach a higher tier of status, you'll enjoy the higher baggage allowance.

Other benefits

American Airlines elite status offers a variety of other perks, including the following:

• Perks on Alaska Airlines : Complimentary space-available upgrades, better seats and more
• Oneworld status : Gold gets Oneworld Ruby, Platinum gets Sapphire, and Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum get Emerald
• Earn American miles on Hyatt stays : AAdvantage elite members earn 1 base mile per dollar spent on eligible Hyatt stays
• Executive Platinum perks in Main Cabin : Executive Platinum members traveling in the Main Cabin can enjoy a complimentary alcoholic beverage and a snack on American Airlines flights with full drink service

Loyalty Point Rewards

Finally, although Loyalty Point Rewards aren't tied to American Airlines elite status, they are tied to specific Loyalty Point milestones that you'll inherently meet as you progress toward AAdvantage elite status. Here's a look at the Loyalty Point Rewards you could choose as you progress toward the 200,000 Loyalty Points required for Executive Platinum status:

• 15,000 Loyalty Points : Group 5 boarding for the membership year plus a choice of Priority privileges and Group 4 boarding for one trip or five Preferred seat coupons. Starting with the new qualification year on March 1, 2024 , 1,000 Loyalty Points will also be a choice.
• 60,000 Loyalty Points : Avis Preferred Plus status and a 20% Loyalty Point bonus with select partners for six months.
• 100,000 Loyalty Points : Avis President's Club status and a 30% Loyalty Point bonus with select partners for six months.
• 175,000 Loyalty Points : A choice of two systemwide upgrades , 20,000 bonus miles (25,000 if you have an AAdvantage credit card), six Admirals Club one-day passes, a $200 trip credit ($250 if you have an AAdvantage credit card), carbon offset, $250 donation to select nonprofit organization, 15% award rebate (not offered in new qualification year starting March 1, 2024), two gifts of AAdvantage Gold status or 35,000 AAdvantage miles toward a Mastercard Priceless Experience (only available if you have an AAdvantage credit card). Starting with the new qualification year on March 1, 2024, 5,000 Loyalty Points will also be a choice.

Remember that you must accrue all these Loyalty Points within the 12-month qualification period following March 1. But, for those who have no issues earning Loyalty Points, there are also more Loyalty Point Rewards you can earn at higher milestones. Check out the AAdvantage Loyalty Point Rewards page for more details on these high-threshold tiers.

Can a credit card help earn American Airlines elite status?

Having a cobranded American Airlines credit card is extremely helpful if you want to earn American Airlines elite status. Although the sign-up and category bonuses provide bonus miles — which won't give you Loyalty Points — you'll earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar spent with most AAdvantage credit cards. This means you can boost your Loyalty Point balance as you use your card for purchases and even qualify for American elite status from credit card spending alone .

Here's a look at some of the currently available American Airlines credit cards:

• Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® (see rates and fees ): Best for Admirals Club membership
• American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® : Best for paying no annual fee
• Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® : Best for earning 2 miles per dollar at gas stations and restaurants
• CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® : Best for earning 2 miles per dollar on purchases at telecommunications merchants, cable and satellite providers, car rental merchants, and gas stations
• AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard : Best for 25% back as statement credits when you use your card to purchase food and beverages on American-operated flights

If you value getting Admirals Club access, the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard is an excellent choice. But I like the Barclay AAdvantage Aviator Silver Mastercard — which I got by upgrading my AAdvantage Aviator Red Mastercard — since it gives me up to $25 per day in statement credits toward food and beverages purchased on American-operated flights and lets me earn up to 15,000 additional Loyalty Points when I meet specific spending thresholds within my status qualification period.

The information for the AAdvantage MileUp, Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select, CitiBusiness / AAdvantage Platinum Select, Aviator Red and Aviator Silver cards has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

Related: American Airlines credit card spending now earns Loyalty Points based on purchase date

Is American Airlines elite status worth it?

American Airlines elite status is worth it for some travelers. For example, I've valued having Executive Platinum status since 2016 due to the domestic upgrades, waived checked bag fees, Priority check-in lines, systemwide upgrades and Oneworld Emerald status it provides. But, after struggling to earn Loyalty Points and reconsidering what I value in American Airlines elite status, this qualification period I'll likely only requalify for Platinum Pro . In short, I decided the incremental value of Executive Platinum over Platinum Pro didn't justify the extra costs I'd incur to earn the higher status.

It's important to consider how much you'll use your AAdvantage perks and the cost of earning American Airlines status. If you'll organically earn American Airlines status through flights, then it's likely worth earning. But if you'll have to earn a significant number of Loyalty Points through other means, such as using the AAdvantage eShopping portal or spending on an AAdvantage credit card , there's an opportunity cost to doing so. After all, you could earn more valuable rewards on another credit card or through another online shopping portal for some purchases.

Finally, if you'll only use your American Airlines elite status perks occasionally or only need a specific perk, consider whether you can get what you seek through booking premium-cabin fares or getting a credit card that provides perks such as lounge access, preferred boarding and your first checked bag free on domestic itineraries. The Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard (see rates and fees ) is a good option for Admirals Club access, while the AAdvantage Aviator Red Mastercard and Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard provide a first checked bag free on domestic flights.

Bottom line

American Airlines offers four elite status tiers you can earn by accumulating Loyalty Points: Gold, Platinum, Platinum Pro and Executive Platinum. These tiers offer perks including Preferred seating, complimentary space-available upgrades on American Airlines and Oneworld perks on select partner airlines.

If you frequently fly with American Airlines, British Airways or Iberia on expensive paid fares or spend a significant amount on American Airlines credit cards or when shopping through the AAdvantage eShopping portal, you'll likely find it easy and worthwhile to earn American Airlines elite status. However, even lower levels of American elite status can provide significant value via Priority boarding and waived checked baggage fees — especially since these perks can extend to other travelers on the same reservation.

Welcome to AAdvantage Executive Platinum ®

You made it to the top — now make the most of it

AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® makes every travel moment easier

You earned it – now enjoy it

With AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® status, your travel experience is virtually unlimited

Loyalty Point Rewards

Flexibility to choose the rewards that matter most to you

Choose from a variety of rewards that enhance your experience such as systemwide upgrades, Admirals Club ® membership, Bang & Olufsen premium products and more - before and between each status tier, up to 5 million Loyalty Points.

Unlimited upgrades within North America.

Fly without limits

AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® members receive unlimited complimentary upgrades to the premium cabin (including award tickets) when traveling within North America on American Airlines. Your upgrade can be confirmed as early as 100 hours before the flight, when available. Additionally, you are also eligible for complimentary upgrades on Alaska Airlines.

Main Cabin Extra

More room to relax

Stretch out with more space and more comfort with complimentary access to Main Cabin Extra seats. If Main Cabin Extra isn’t available, you have access to Preferred seats reserved exclusively for loyal customers such as yourself.

Earn more award miles

When you earn a 120% mileage bonus per U.S. dollar spent, every flight can lead to more extraordinary adventures. And those extra miles also count toward earning Loyalty Points, helping you qualify for AAdvantage ® status and Loyalty Point Rewards faster.

Three free checked bags plus priority handling

Pack more than ever before and receive priority baggage handling that ensures your bag is among the first to arrive at baggage claim.

Complimentary food and drink

Enjoy one food item and drink on us when you travel in the Main Cabin.

Fly with the flexibility to get back to what matters most — your life

Free same-day flight change

Get ahead of your schedule

Travel can be unpredictable — plans change, meetings get moved or maybe you just can’t wait to get home. We get it. If you need to catch a different flight, free same-day flight change gives you the ability to fly on your own time, and at no extra charge.

AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® service desk

Let us take care of everything

Your status gives you access to the highest level of service. Let our dedicated representatives on the AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® desk handle all the details of your trip, with no reservation service fee.

Enjoy exclusive benefits around the world with one world ® Emerald SM status

Your AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® benefits entitle you to one world ® Emerald SM status. When you travel on one world ® airlines, you’ll receive priority from check-in to boarding and access to First Class, Business Class and frequent flyer lounges anywhere in the world on eligible flights.

Congratulations, again!

Enjoy your experience as an AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® member.

AAdvantage Executive Platinum ® benefits at a glance

• Oneworld Benefits one world ® Emerald SM benefits

Full benefit details and terms and conditions can be found on aa.com/statusbenefits *To learn more about rewards, visit aa.com/loyaltypointrewards . American Airlines reserves the right to change the AAdvantage program, exclusive offers and its terms and conditions at any time without notice, and to end the AAdvantage program with six months notice. Any such changes may affect your ability to use the awards, mileage credits, or benefits that you have accumulated. These reservation of rights apply to all aspects of the AAdvantage program, including without limitation, all status programs. For full AAdvantage program terms and conditions, visit aa.com/aadvantageterms . American Airlines, American Eagle, AAdvantage, AAdvantage Executive Platinum are marks of American Airlines, Inc. one world ® is a mark of the one world Alliance, LLC.

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