Welcome to Flyer Talk smjohnson

Either program may be good (or both if you're a really frequent flyer) depending on how you earn miles and use miles. You've obviously thought out some of the issues - preference for direct flights for example, but there are others to think of too. Eg will status (and benefits that come with it) be important or is your main focus the miles. Do you have a lot of credit card spend that can build up miles quickly (and for AA also counts towards lifetime status)? What kind of paid fares do you travel on - cheap coach or more flexible (higher fare) or even first?