Benji Stawski is a former reporter for the site, covering all things points, miles, credit cards, travel and aviation.
August 4, 2021 • 11 min read
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Quick summary
American Airlines is discontinuing its reduced mileage awards benefit for eligible cobranded cardholders after Sept. 30, 2021.
This program allows travelers to save between 1,000 and 7,500 miles per round-trip on select domestic award flights, depending on the route and card type.
A rotating list of up to 190 airports is eligible for discounts from August through November 2021, with 66 airports available all four months.
Bookings must be made by Sept. 30, 2021, even for travel in October or November, and changes or cancellations are permitted without fees.
What to consider
Discounts only apply to American Airlines-operated flights within the U.S. and require MileSAAver award availability.
Reduced mileage awards cannot be booked online; travelers must call to reserve, but the phone-booking fee is waived.
The offer may no longer be available.
What you'll miss from the article
A detailed breakdown of eligible airports by month, discount codes required for booking and tips for maximizing the final days of this benefit.
Generated by AI with support from our editorial team.
Update: Some offers mentioned below are no longer available. View the current offers here.
Along with the ability to defeat basic economy, American Airlines' cobranded credit cards have long offered a lesser-known — but quite valuable — perk: reduced mileage awards. This benefit allows you to save between 1,000 and 7,500 miles per round-trip, depending on the route and the type of card you have. However, this benefit will be discontinued on Oct. 1, 2021, so now's your last chance to take advantage of it.
While American Airlines reduced mileage awards are valid at select cities each month, it's a robust list of options. The current list has a whopping 190 qualifying airports for at least one month from August through November 2021. Of these, 66 are on the list for all four months, giving you plenty of options for your potential summer vacations.
In fact, the list can be a little overwhelming. We’ve found it helpful to have maps of all the monthly options. You’ll find those maps below. Notable cities that are listed for all four months include Cincinnati (CVG), Long Beach (LGB), Seattle (SEA), St. Louis (STL) and West Palm Beach (PBI).
Just note that you must book these flights by Sept. 30, 2021, even if you're looking at a flight to or from the below airports that depart in October or November. Fortunately, American allows all AAdvantage awards, including reduced mileage awards, to be changed or canceled for free if your plans change.
How do AA Reduced Mileage Awards work?
Before you scroll down, here’s a quick reminder of how reduced mileage awards work. Say you live near Long Beach (LGB) or near any other airports currently listed all four months. If you have an eligible credit card and can find saver award availability, you can fly to any airport in the U.S. for just 17,500 miles round-trip from April through July 2021 — since your airport is listed for all four months. For flights less than 500 miles nonstop each way (i.e., San Francisco to Los Angeles), the cost is just 6,500 miles one-way or 13,000 round-trip.
However, even if your airport isn’t listed for a month, you can still fly from your airport to any of the airports mapped below for as little as 13,000 miles (for direct flights less than 500 miles) round-trip — again, if there’s award availability on the route. Also, although some of these deals are for travel in October and November, remember that you must book by the end of September. As of Oct. 1, 2021, you'll no longer be able to book reduced mileage awards.
Other credit cards listed here are no longer open to new applicants.
The information for the Citi AAdvantage Platinum card, CitiBusiness AAdvantage Platinum card, Barclays Aviator 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.
Or, you’re eligible for 2,500 miles off a one-way award ticket if you have one of the following:
Citi® / AAdvantage® Gold World Elite™ Mastercard®
Other credit cards listed here are no longer open to new applicants.
The information for the Citi AAdvantage Gold World Elite Mastercard has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.
If you have multiple types of cards (i.e., both the Citi Executive and the Citi Platinum Select), you'll only get the discount once.
Nonstop saver award flights of less than 500 miles normally cost just 7,500 AAdvantage miles. These sub-500-mile award flights aren’t eligible for the full 7,500-mile round-trip discount noted above. Instead, there's a savings of 1,000 miles each way. This means that you’ll pay just 6,500 miles one-way for flights of less than 500 miles.
Here's how the numbers break down for flights both longer and shorter than 500 miles:
One-way flights
Within the U.S. (excluding <500)
Flights under 500 miles
Award chart cost
12,500
7,500
Reduced Mileage Award discount
(3,750)
(1,000)
Mileage cost
8,750
6,500
Reduced Mileage Awards vs. Web Specials
Reduced Mileage Awards offer a discount on saver-level awards. Although American also offers Web Special awards, they don't qualify for the additional discount. In some cases, Web Specials can be cheaper than Reduced Mileage Awards and vice versa, so it's important to compare the different rates. Unlike traditional MileSAAver awards, Web Special pricing varies by day, route and when you book.
There are 66 airports available for all four months. If you live in one of these cities, you can fly anywhere you can find saver award space from August 2021 through November 2021 for just 8,750 miles each way. Or, you can visit these cities for just 8,750 miles each way during the next four months:
August offers a whopping 142 airports at the discounted award rates. Here are some notable options to consider if you haven't locked down your upcoming travel plans:
Once you’ve found MileSAAver award availability on American Airlines’ website, call American Airlines at 800-882-8880 — or your elite reservations number, if applicable — to book the award ticket. As these awards aren’t available to book online, the terms and conditions state that the standard $30 phone-booking fee will be waived. However, if you book in person through an airport agent or AA travel center, a booking fee of $35 will apply.
For August – November 2021 reduced mileage awards, the discount codes that you’ll have to provide the agent for the larger discount are as follows:
The discount applies to flights both to and from the listed airports. There periodically are AAgents that insist otherwise, so you might have to employ the HUCA (Hang Up Call Again) technique. One thing is clear, though: American Airlines agents are instructed to only apply the discount for flights inside the U.S. to/from the listed airports. So, unfortunately, this keeps you from applying this discount for flights between a listed airport and Europe, Asia or the Caribbean.
Unfortunately, the discount only applies to American Airlines-operated flights; Alaska-operated flights don’t qualify for the discount.
The airports on the previous RMA list for August and September 2021 aren’t necessarily still available. Discounted award flights to/from the airports on the previous list had to be booked by July 31. To avoid missing out, make sure to book award flights for the airports listed above before Sept. 30, 2021.
Remember that American no longer charges a close-in booking or change fee for award tickets.
Reduced mileage award discount codes can be applied to domestic business and first-class awards. The savings of 7,500/2,000 (5,000/1,000 for lesser cards) miles are the same regardless of the cabin booked.
By commenting, you agree to our Community Guidelines to help create a positive space for conversation. The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser, our partners, or The Points Guy (“TPG”). They have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any of these parties. All responses are submitted by individual contributors, and neither the bank advertiser, our partners, nor TPG are responsible for ensuring that all posts and/or questions are answered.
