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Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard 60,000 Mile Bonus

Brian Kelly
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Brian Kelly is the CEO of The Points Guy. Need I say more?
Oct. 12, 2013
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3 min read
Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard 60,000 Mile Bonus
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Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.

While the public offer on the Citi Executive AAdvantage World Mastercard usually hovers around the 30,000-mile mark when you spend $1,000 in 4 months, there is currently an offer available for double the bonus miles - 60,000 miles when you spend $5,000 in 3 months.

I've been considering this card for a long time now myself, and was tempted by an offer for 50,000 miles when you spend $5,000 in 3 months on the card that was available in Admirals Clubs over the spring and summer, but this higher bonus, which is the highest I've seen on the card, might just be the offer to finally get me to apply. Here are the card details:

  • Your first eligible checked bag is free
  • Priority Boarding and 25% savings on eligible in-flight purchases
  • Earn 2 AAdvantage miles per $1 spent on eligible American Airlines purchases
  • Earn up to 10,000 elite qualifying miles per calendar year
  • No foreign transaction fees
  • SmartChip technology
  • $450 annual fee

Update: As of March 22, 2014 the Platinum Cards (personal, business and Mercedes-Benz versions) no longer give access to the Admirals Club or US Airways lounges.

With that hefty $450 annual fee, you might think the real draw is Admirals Club membership, but I already get that through the lounge access benefit on the the Mercedes-Benz Platinum Card from Amex (and if you have the personal Platinum Card or the Business Platinum Card, you get that as well). In fact, you might be wondering why, when the Mercedes-Benz Platinum card has a $475 annual fee, I'd take on another card with an annual fee in the hundreds of dollars. The fact is, all the other benefits of the Platinum Card - the $200 annual airline credit, lounge access to American, Delta and US Airways as well as Priority Pass Select membership, Global Entry application fee refund worth $100 and added benefits of booking through Amex Fine Hotels & Resorts among others all add up to way more than the annual fee on that card, so I think it's money well spent (and savings!).

The reason I’m particularly interested in the Citi Executive AAdvantage World Mastercard is that you can earn 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs) as a calendar year spending bonus when you spend $40,000 or more on the card in a year, and that can be the extra little push you need to requalify for elite status - especially since American elite-qualifying miles are hard to come by without flying.

While $40,000 might seem like a lot of spending for just 10,000 miles, those 10,000 miles to me might mean the difference between requalifying or not for top-tier American AAdvantage Executive Platinum status, which comes with a ton of perks including unlimited complimentary domestic upgrades (no more banking on 500-mile upgrade requests), 8 annual EVIP systemwide upgrades on any published paid fare - which can equate to thousands of dollars per flight in value - a 100% elite mileage bonus (Platinums get this as well), waived fees on ticketing and award mileage reinstatement.

What with the increased sign-up bonus and moderate minimum spending requirement, I think the time is right for me personally to apply for this card and then start planning my spending strategy for next year to earn those 10,000 EQMs.
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