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If you’re an AAdvantage member looking to rack up some extra miles for an upcoming award flight, this sign-up bonus could be for you. Currently, you can earn 60,000 miles when you sign up for the Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard and spend $5,000 in the first three months. Read on for the full offer details and for a look at whether this offer makes sense for you.
This new sign-up bonus gets you 10,000 more miles than the previous offer, with the same minimum spending requirement of $5,000 in the first three months. Other benefits include:
- Earn 60,000 American Airlines AAdvantage® bonus miles after spending $5,000 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening*
- Admirals Club® membership for you with guest privileges*
- Complimentary Admirals Club® lounge access for authorized users
- 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles from American Airlines after $40,000 spent on purchases every year (January through December billing statement)*
- No Foreign Transaction Fees on purchases*
- Earn 2 AAdvantage® miles for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases and 1 AAdvantage® mile for $1 spent on other purchases*
- First checked bag is free on domestic American Airlines itineraries for you and up to eight companions traveling with you on the same reservation*
Is It Worth It?
If you don’t currently hold the Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard, this is a nice opportunity to earn more miles than usual. TPG values AAdvantage miles at 1.5 cents apiece, so the extra 10,000 miles you’ll earn with this offer are worth $150, while the total sign-up bonus is worth $900. The minimum spending requirement of $5,000 is on the high side, but you’d have to spend that much to get the previous sign-up bonus of 50,000 miles, too.
Also on the steep side is the annual fee of $450. This card does help justify that charge with some great benefits, though; full Admirals Club membership is an especially nice perk — especially since authorized users get membership as well. With the latest price hike, Admirals Club lounge memberships cost $550 for a new member without elite status, so this feature alone cancels out the annual fee.
This card also offers some elite-like benefits that could come in handy if you don’t hold AAdvantage elite status, including a free checked bag for you and up to eight travel companions on domestic itineraries, plus priority check-in and airport screening and early boarding. The ability to earn 10,000 elite-qualifying miles (EQMs) when you spend $40,000 on the card in a calendar year can also come in handy if you need a boost in your progress toward the next level of AAdvantage status.
As for what the 60,000 miles can get you, you could book a round-trip business-class MileSAAver award within the US or from the US to Mexico, or a one-way business-class MileSAAver award to Europe. Of course, those are just a few options; make sure to see the AAdvantage award chart and American’s partner award chart for more info.
Finally, it’s worth noting that we’ve seen higher sign-up bonuses for this card in the past, including a 75,000-mile offer from last summer that required spending $7,500 rather than $5,000 in the first three months. There was even a 100,000-mile offer available a while ago, but it’s unclear when and if either of these will return.
Bottom Line
The Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite MasterCard has a steep annual fee of $450, but if you’ll use the Admirals Club membership on a regular basis, that alone can make it worth the price. Other perks like the ability to earn 10,000 EQMs after spending $40,000 in a calendar year can come in handy if you’re working toward elite status, too. The higher-than-usual current sign-up bonus of 60,000 miles makes this a great time to get this card if you haven’t yet, so this offer is definitely worth considering if you’re a frequent American traveler.
Source: thepointsguy.com