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Link: Apply now for the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® with 50K bonus miles offer
Airline credit cards are among the most popular co-brand credit cards out there. Many people may be loyal to an airline because of where they live or their travel patterns, and picking up a co-branded airline credit card seems like the most logical way to extend that relationship. In this post I wanted to look at one of the most popular cards of the world’s largest airline.
Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card Basics For September 2024
American Airlines has credit cards issued by both Citi and Barclays, and in this post I wanted to look at the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®, which is a personal credit card that many American Airlines frequent flyers have.
There are a variety of reasons to get this card, including the card having a solid welcome bonus, an annual fee that’s waived for the first year, spending on the card can help you earn elite status, and the card also has some useful perks if you fly American frequently. Who should be considering applying for this card? Let’s break it down, point by point.
The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card is offering a welcome bonus of 50,000 American AAdvantage miles after spending $2,500 within the first three months. That’s a pretty reasonable spending requirement for a solid bonus. I value American miles at ~1.5 cents each, so to me, those 50,000 miles are worth about $750. There are so many great ways to redeem AAdvantage miles.
Keep in mind the general restrictions on being approved for Citi cards, which include that you can apply for at most one Citi card every eight days, and at most two Citi cards every 65 days.
Furthermore, note that the bonus miles aren’t available to those who have received a new cardmember bonus for this card in the past 48 months (however, you are eligible if you’ve received a bonus on a different American Airlines credit card). If you’re not sure whether you’ve received a bonus on the card in the past 48 months, I’d recommend calling up Citi and asking, as they can easily pull that up.
The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card has a $99 annual fee, though it’s waived for the first 12 months. This is a great way to try the card before you have to really pay for it. You can also add authorized users to the card at no extra cost.
When it comes to actually spending money on the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card, the card does have a few bonus categories:
There are no limits to how many miles you can earn with this card.
The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card has no foreign transaction fees, so this can be a good option for purchases you make abroad. That’s especially true if you’re spending in a category that’s eligible for bonus miles.
Nowadays elite status in the AAdvantage program can be earned with Loyalty Points, which is the currency that determines your status. AAdvantage elite status requirements are as follows:
Spending money on AAdvantage credit cards earns you Loyalty Points, as you earn one Loyalty Point per dollar spent. This means your spending on the card can help you earn elite status (all the way up to Executive Platinum), and it can also help you earn Loyalty Point Rewards, allowing you to select from perks like systemwide upgrades, bonus miles, and more.
In addition to the generous welcome bonus and the ability to earn elite status through spending, there are some other reasons to get the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card, which could cover the annual fee over and over. Let’s talk about the perks you should be aware of with this card.
Receive a first checked bag free on domestic American Airlines itineraries for you and up to four companions traveling with you on the same reservation. There’s no need to actually pay for the ticket with your card, you just have to make sure it’s linked to your AAdvantage account.
American Airlines charges $40 for the first checked bag, so that’s a $80 value per person roundtrip (and if you had four companions all checking a bag, that would be a value of $400).
Receive preferred boarding on American Airlines flights. Having this card allows you to board with Group 5 on American Airlines flights, which should help to ensure that you can board while there’s still room in the overhead bins. This applies globally, and there’s no need to pay for the ticket with the card, as long as you’re the primary cardmember with your AAdvantage account linked.
Receive 25% savings on inflight food & beverage purchases on American Airlines flights when paying with the card. You’ll pay the full amount in advance, and then you’ll receive a statement credit for 25% of that amount. If you fly American with any frequency and make inflight purchases, this could save you a bit of money.
Receive a $125 American Airlines flight discount after you spend $20,000 or more on purchases during your anniversary year and renew your card. With the card offering Loyalty Points for spending, many might find it worthwhile to spend $20,000 on the card in order to earn Loyalty Points plus this flight discount.
The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card offers a nice welcome bonus with the annual fee waived for the first year.
Furthermore, the card offers some benefits for those who travel with American on occasion, including a first checked bag free, preferred boarding, inflight savings, and more. With spending on the card counting toward elite status, I know many people find that to be worthwhile, and the $125 flight discount for spending can add value as well.
Let’s take a closer look at a few other considerations — how does this card compare to American’s no annual fee card, which cards should you be using for your everyday spending, etc.?
There’s also the American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® (review), which has no annual fee and offers some potentially valuable benefits, like 2x miles on supermarket purchases, and 25% savings on inflight food & beverage purchases.
However, I’d still highly recommend applying for the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card. Why?
How does the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card compare to the Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard® (review), aside from the obvious distinction that one is a business card and one is a personal card?
As you can see, the cards are quite similar, though the better bonus on the business card is a reason to consider that option.
In general, I’d only recommend spending money on the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card if your goal is to earn Loyalty Points toward AAdvantage status.
Otherwise I’d say there are more lucrative cards to spend on, though the best option depends on whether you want to earn cash back or travel rewards. I think a few of the otherwise most compelling cards include the following:
The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Card is offering a nice welcome bonus with the annual fee waived for the first 12 months.
The card also offers some potentially valuable perks, like a first checked bag free on American itineraries, preferred boarding, inflight savings, and more. Furthermore, spending on this credit card can help you earn AAdvantage elite status, which I know will interest many.
You can always get this card and then after a year decide if you want to keep it, or downgrade to the no annual fee AAdvantage MileUp Card.
