American Airlines AAdvantage miles expire 24 months from account inactivity, which can be extended by earning or redeeming at least one mile. However, your miles won’t expire if you are under 21 years old, but the 18-month clock will start on your 21st birthday.
How to See When Your Miles Expire
You can see when your American AAdvantage miles expire easily in your account.
Just sign into your account and you will see when your miles expire on your account home screen.
Earning American AAdvantage Miles
Below are all the ways you can earn American Airlines AAdvantage miles, which also earn Loyalty Points toward elite status:
Flying on American Airlines
When flying on American Airlines, you earn miles based on the cash price of your ticket minus taxes and fees:
- No status: 5 miles per dollar.
- Gold: 7 miles per dollar.
- Platinum: 8 miles per dollar.
- Platinum Pro: 9 miles per dollar.
- Executive Platinum: 11 miles per dollar.
For example, a $500 ticket would earn 2,500 with no status, 3,500 miles for Gold members, 4,000 miles for Platinum, 4,500 for Platinum Pro, and 5,500 for Executive Platinum.
Flying on Partner Airlines
You can also earn AAdvantage miles when flying on American's partner airlines. If you book the flight via American Airlines, then you will earn miles based on the rates above for American Airlines.
If you book a ticket via a partner airline or third party and credit it to AAdvantage, then you will earn miles depending on (1) the partner airline, (2) the fare class you booked, (3) the distance flown, and (4) your AAdvantage elite status (40%, 60%, 80%, or 120% bonus).
American Airlines is part of the Oneworld Alliance, which includes the following airlines: Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Finnair, Iberia, Japan Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Royal Air Maroc, Royal Jordanian, SriLankan Airlines, Fiji Airways (connect member), and Oman Air (future member).
American Airlines also partners with these airlines: Aer Lingus, Air Tahiti Nui, Cape Air, China Southern, Etihad Airways, Fiji Airways, GOL Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, IndiGo, JetSMART, and Silver Airways.
AAdvantage Credit Cards
You can earn American Airlines miles via several co-branded Citi and Barclays credit cards:
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®: Earn 80,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles after $3,500 in purchases in the first 4 months.
- CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard®: Earn 65,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after $4,000 in purchases within the first 4 months of account opening.
- Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®: Earn 70,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles after $7,000 in purchases in the first 3 months.
- American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®: Earn 15,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after $500 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening.
- AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard®: Earn 70,000 miles after making your first purchase and paying the annual fee in full, both within the first 90 days.
- AAdvantage® Aviator® World Elite Business Mastercard®: Earn up to 75,000 Bonus Miles: 60,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 90 days and 15,000 bonus miles a total of $15,000 on purchases in the first 12 months.
Transfer Partners
American Airlines has two transfer partners: Bilt Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.
Bilt Rewards transfers nearly instantly at a 1 to 1 ratio. Marriott Bonvoy points transfer at a 3 to 1 ratio and take approximately 48 hours.
AAdvantage E-Shopping Portal
You can earn AAdvantage miles by clicking through American's eShopping portal before making a purchase online. The eShopping Portal includes hundreds of major retailers, including Nike, Adidas, Macy's, Dell, Best Buy, CVS, and more.
AAdvantage Dining
You can earn up to 5 miles per dollar spent on dine-in and takeout and thousands of restaurants via AAdvantage Dining. All you need to do is (1) enroll in the dining program), (2) link your credit cards to AAdvantage Dining, (3) finding a participating restaurant, and (4) pay with your credit card linked to AAdvantage Dining.
The amount of miles you earn will depend on your dining status:
- 5 AAdvantage miles per dollar for VIP members (dine 11 times to become a VIP member for the current year plus the entire following year).
- 3 AAdvantage miles per dollar if you're a select member (become a select member by opting to receive emails from AAdvantage Dining).
- 1 AAdvantage mile per dollar for basic member.
Hotel Stays
You have several options to earn AAdvantage miles when staying at hotels:
- Travel Portal: You can book hotels via AAdvantage Hotels (powered by Rocketmiles) and earn AAdvantage miles and even more if you are an elite member with an AAdvantage credit card. However, you forgo the ability to earn hotel points or use elite benefits.
- Hyatt Hotels: Earn 500 miles per stay at Hyatt Hotels.
- Marriott International: Earn 1 to 2 miles per dollar at Marriott Bonvoy brands (Luxury brands earn 2x miles, and budget brands earn 1x miles).
- IHG One Rewards: Earn 1 to 2 miles per dollar at hotel brands in IHG One Rewards.
Other Ways to Earn Miles with AAdvantage Partners
Car Rentals: You can earn American miles when booking a car rental.
American Airlines Vacations: You can earn at least 1,000 miles by booking your flight, hotel, and rental car (or a combination of two out of three) via American Airlines Vacations. Plus, American regularly offers special deals offering 10,000+ bonus points.
American Airlines Cruises: You can earn 1 mile per dollar (up to 10,000 AAdvantage miles) when booking a cruise with American Airlines, including on major cruise lines such as Royal Caribbean, Holland America, Norwegian, Carnival, and Celebrity.
SimplyMiles: You can load special offers at hundreds of merchants via SimplyMiles to any of your Mastercards.
Donate: You can earn 10 miles for every $25 donation to Stand Up to Cancer.
Bask Bank: Depositing money into a Bask Bank savings account can earn you 2.5 miles per dollar. For example, a $10,000 deposit would earn you 25,000 AAdvantage miles in the first year. (Miles from this partner does not earn Loyalty Points towards elite status.)
Redeeming American AAdvantage Miles
American Airlines AAdvantage miles offer excellent value for savvy travelers, particularly for international premium cabin redemptions with its Oneworld partners. While domestic awards can be reasonable, the real sweet spots lie in partner airline bookings and long-haul flights.
One of the best uses is flying to the Middle East or India in business class for just 70,000 miles one-way. This can get you on Qatar Airways' renowned Qsuite or Etihad's luxurious business class product. Another standout option is business class to Africa for 75,000 miles, accessing destinations like South Africa or Kenya via Middle Eastern hubs.
Asia is another region where AAdvantage miles shine. You can fly business class to Japan or South Korea for 60,000 miles, or to destinations like Thailand or Singapore for 70,000 miles. While availability can be challenging, patience can score you seats on top-rated airlines like Japan Airlines or Cathay Pacific.
For those eyeing American's own premium cabins, dynamic pricing sometimes yields attractive rates, especially on connecting itineraries. You might find business class to Europe for 62,000 miles or even first class to Australia for 75,000 miles.
AAdvantage also excels in bookings between other regions. For instance, Middle East to Asia in business class for 40,000 miles or South Pacific to Asia for the same price can offer exceptional value.
Comparison of U.S. Airlines’ Expiration Policies
Below are the mileage expiration policies of every major U.S. airline.
