Dec 17, 2021, 11:25 am
Last edit by: jbeckett
American Airlines announced that starting in 2022, the way to earn Elite status has changed. No more Elite Qualifying Miles (EQM), Elite Qualifying Segments (EQS), or Elite Qualifying Dollars (EQD)!
Now, you can get AA Elite status by earning Loyalty Points (LPs): https://aadvantagestatus.com/?anchor...=newaadvantage
How many LPs do I need for elite status?
How do I earn LPs?
Flying
What you get for redeemable miles (RDM) is what you'll get for LPs.
AA and B6 flights:
No status: 5 LPs per $ spent in base fare plus fees (excludes taxes)
Gold: 7 LPs per $
Platinum: 8 LPs per $
Plat Pro: 9 LPs per $
EXP: 11 LPs per $
Partner flights (other than B6):
Distance flown x accrual rate* x (1 + cabin bonus + elite bonus**)
* Certain discount fares earn less than 100% of miles flown. In those cases, the discounted accrual rate (0% to 75% depending on the partner and the fare class) should be applied to the flown miles. Otherwise, the accrual rate is 100%. If there is a cabin bonus, it should not be added to the accrual rate; it is applied separately within the parentheses. The accrual rate can never be more than 100%.
** 40% for GLD, 60% for PLT, 80% for PRO, 120% for EXP.
So for example, an EXP on a 5000-mile flight on QR booked in J would earn 5000 x 100% x (1 + 25% + 120%) = 5000 x 1 x 2.45 = 12250 LPs.
A PLT on the same flight booked in P would earn 5000 x 75% x (1 + 0% + 60%) = 5000 x .75 x 1.6 = 6000 LPs.
Earning chart for QR
Here's a great online LP calculator:
https://lpcalculator.com/#/calculator/
AAdvantage non-flying partners:
Generally, 1 LP per base mile earned. But in many cases you can earn large bonuses that post as base miles; see link here: https://exploreamerican.com/newaadva...nloyaltypoints
There are differences among how these programs work, ranging from minor to significant, in terms of awarding LPs. You will need to skim through the thread as there are too many different promo offers to address here. But here are the popular ones:
BookAAHotels and RocketMiles: You can earn large mileage bonuses here, separated into "base" miles and "promo" miles by the portals. For now they are all posting as base miles on aa.com, but there is a suspicion that the "promo" miles may start posting as bonus miles (and so would not count as LP). You don't even have to actually check in or stay at the hotel as long as you pay for the stay.
SimplyMiles: You must link a MasterCard to the account. Then you can add their promos to your card by activating the offers. When you accept one of their offers and then pay for it using your linked card, you will get the associated miles which currently post as base miles on aa.com.
AAdvantage eShopping: Once you click through the AAdvantage eShopping portal to a vendor offer and make a purchase, you will eventually get the associated miles posted to your AAdvantage account as both redeemable miles and Loyalty Points. If the merchant advertises an increase in the miles per dollar spent, you'll earn the higher amount in both redeemable miles and an equal number of Loyalty Points. The same applies if a merchant advertises a higher fixed amount per purchase, rather than a per dollar amount. Examples of this would appear on the portal as, "Extra miles. Was 1 mile/$. Now earn 3 miles/$" or "Extra miles. Was up to 3700 miles. Now up to 6200 miles." However, if the website advertises a "Limited-time bonus offer" for "bonus miles" after meeting a spending threshold, that bonus will only post as redeemable miles and not Loyalty Points. If a bonus is offered for some site-wide activity such as 1000 miles for installing an extension, or 500 miles for enrolling in the portal, or 2000 miles for meeting a spending threshold across multiple merchants, the bonus will only post as redeemable miles and not Loyalty Points.
(If a vendor has offers with both SimplyMiles and eShopping, activate the offer on SimplyMiles first and then make the purchase through eShopping with the MasterCard linked to your SimplyMiles account. Apparently that you can get a double-dip. You can also get a double-dip by stacking the promos with discount offers from your credit card issuers, basically reducing the cost to you.
Booking directly with hotels, car rental companies, etc.: The picture here is a bit unclear but it appears that if you book with a hotel that offers 5x miles, only 1 mile will post as base and the rest as bonus.
Credit card spend:
1 LP per $ spent on an AA branded card (except for one card which earns 0.50 LP per $ and several non-US cards which earn 2 LP per $). See the list of cards, and a lot more small print here: https://creditcards.aa.com/aadvantag...hange_ExecCard
What about spending bonuses?
E.g., your card gives 2x miles for hotels, or 3x for AA purchases, etc etc. These do NOT count.
These bonuses count:
Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard (the $450 annual fee card that gives Admirals Club access): 10K LP bonus when hitting $40K spend for the year.
AAdvantage Aviator Silver Mastercard: 5K LP bonus when hitting $20K spend, another 5K LP bonus when hitting $40K spend, and another 5K LP bonus when hitting $50K spend for the year.
Do miles earned at Bask Bank count?
No.
Will Loyalty Points count toward Million Miler℠ status?
No, Million Miler℠ status will still be earned the same way as today, based on miles earned from flying with American and its partners.
Now, you can get AA Elite status by earning Loyalty Points (LPs): https://aadvantagestatus.com/?anchor...=newaadvantage
How many LPs do I need for elite status?
Code:
Gold: 40K Platinum: 75K Plat Pro: 125K EXP: 200K
Flying
What you get for redeemable miles (RDM) is what you'll get for LPs.
AA and B6 flights:
No status: 5 LPs per $ spent in base fare plus fees (excludes taxes)
Gold: 7 LPs per $
Platinum: 8 LPs per $
Plat Pro: 9 LPs per $
EXP: 11 LPs per $
Partner flights (other than B6):
Distance flown x accrual rate* x (1 + cabin bonus + elite bonus**)
* Certain discount fares earn less than 100% of miles flown. In those cases, the discounted accrual rate (0% to 75% depending on the partner and the fare class) should be applied to the flown miles. Otherwise, the accrual rate is 100%. If there is a cabin bonus, it should not be added to the accrual rate; it is applied separately within the parentheses. The accrual rate can never be more than 100%.
** 40% for GLD, 60% for PLT, 80% for PRO, 120% for EXP.
So for example, an EXP on a 5000-mile flight on QR booked in J would earn 5000 x 100% x (1 + 25% + 120%) = 5000 x 1 x 2.45 = 12250 LPs.
A PLT on the same flight booked in P would earn 5000 x 75% x (1 + 0% + 60%) = 5000 x .75 x 1.6 = 6000 LPs.
Earning chart for QR
Here's a great online LP calculator:
https://lpcalculator.com/#/calculator/
AAdvantage non-flying partners:
Generally, 1 LP per base mile earned. But in many cases you can earn large bonuses that post as base miles; see link here: https://exploreamerican.com/newaadva...nloyaltypoints
There are differences among how these programs work, ranging from minor to significant, in terms of awarding LPs. You will need to skim through the thread as there are too many different promo offers to address here. But here are the popular ones:
BookAAHotels and RocketMiles: You can earn large mileage bonuses here, separated into "base" miles and "promo" miles by the portals. For now they are all posting as base miles on aa.com, but there is a suspicion that the "promo" miles may start posting as bonus miles (and so would not count as LP). You don't even have to actually check in or stay at the hotel as long as you pay for the stay.
SimplyMiles: You must link a MasterCard to the account. Then you can add their promos to your card by activating the offers. When you accept one of their offers and then pay for it using your linked card, you will get the associated miles which currently post as base miles on aa.com.
AAdvantage eShopping: Once you click through the AAdvantage eShopping portal to a vendor offer and make a purchase, you will eventually get the associated miles posted to your AAdvantage account as both redeemable miles and Loyalty Points. If the merchant advertises an increase in the miles per dollar spent, you'll earn the higher amount in both redeemable miles and an equal number of Loyalty Points. The same applies if a merchant advertises a higher fixed amount per purchase, rather than a per dollar amount. Examples of this would appear on the portal as, "Extra miles. Was 1 mile/$. Now earn 3 miles/$" or "Extra miles. Was up to 3700 miles. Now up to 6200 miles." However, if the website advertises a "Limited-time bonus offer" for "bonus miles" after meeting a spending threshold, that bonus will only post as redeemable miles and not Loyalty Points. If a bonus is offered for some site-wide activity such as 1000 miles for installing an extension, or 500 miles for enrolling in the portal, or 2000 miles for meeting a spending threshold across multiple merchants, the bonus will only post as redeemable miles and not Loyalty Points.
- A separate thread exists to discuss the AAdvantage eShopping portal
- Another thread exists to discuss using the portal for a particular merchant, giftcards.com
- For additional questions about buying and using gift cards, refer to the separate Manufactured Spending forum.
(If a vendor has offers with both SimplyMiles and eShopping, activate the offer on SimplyMiles first and then make the purchase through eShopping with the MasterCard linked to your SimplyMiles account. Apparently that you can get a double-dip. You can also get a double-dip by stacking the promos with discount offers from your credit card issuers, basically reducing the cost to you.
Booking directly with hotels, car rental companies, etc.: The picture here is a bit unclear but it appears that if you book with a hotel that offers 5x miles, only 1 mile will post as base and the rest as bonus.
Credit card spend:
1 LP per $ spent on an AA branded card (except for one card which earns 0.50 LP per $ and several non-US cards which earn 2 LP per $). See the list of cards, and a lot more small print here: https://creditcards.aa.com/aadvantag...hange_ExecCard
What about spending bonuses?
E.g., your card gives 2x miles for hotels, or 3x for AA purchases, etc etc. These do NOT count.
These bonuses count:
Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard (the $450 annual fee card that gives Admirals Club access): 10K LP bonus when hitting $40K spend for the year.
AAdvantage Aviator Silver Mastercard: 5K LP bonus when hitting $20K spend, another 5K LP bonus when hitting $40K spend, and another 5K LP bonus when hitting $50K spend for the year.
Do miles earned at Bask Bank count?
No.
Will Loyalty Points count toward Million Miler℠ status?
No, Million Miler℠ status will still be earned the same way as today, based on miles earned from flying with American and its partners.
Loyalty Points discussion/questions - From 2022 now used for determining elite status
Jan 4, 2022, 12:12 pm
#1336
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
Jan 4, 2022, 12:16 pm
#1337
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: W29
Programs: It's Complicated...
Posts: 6,823
Jan 4, 2022, 12:23 pm
#1338
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: TX
Programs: Alaska, AA, Marriott
Posts: 943
Jan 4, 2022, 12:35 pm
#1340
Join Date: Oct 2021
Location: TX
Programs: Alaska, AA, Marriott
Posts: 943
Jan 4, 2022, 12:41 pm
#1341
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
The unclear aspect of the AA/Hyatt partnership is the 1 mile/dollar spent at Hyatt that members who are elite in both earn, the Hyatt website labels those as 'Bonus miles', but at least one blog specifically says they will earn LP.
Jan 4, 2022, 12:49 pm
#1342
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: W29
Programs: It's Complicated...
Posts: 6,823
Jan 4, 2022, 12:56 pm
#1343
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: DCA
Programs: UA LT 1K, AA EXP, Bonvoy LT Titan, Avis PC, Hilton Gold
Posts: 9,658
Jan 4, 2022, 1:38 pm
#1344
Join Date: Oct 2020
Location: NYC
Programs: Hyatt Globalist, GHA Titanium, AA Platinum Pro
Posts: 283
"Eligible qualifying activity in January and February of 2022 will count toward earning both 2022 and 2023 status – giving you an extra 2 months to earn status for both years."
"Starting in March 2022, if you qualify for AAdvantage Platinum Pro® or higher and fly a minimum of 30 flights, you’ll unlock Loyalty Choice Rewards."
My reading of the latter is that if you meet those reqs, you can select loyalty choice rewards, but only from March 2022. Earning them (i.e. segments) will count in Jan/Feb 2022.
Jan 4, 2022, 1:39 pm
#1345
formerly DreAAmliner
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 419
So data point, back to AA hotels...
I may be going to Austin for a night for work. i would not normally stay at a holiday in express, but the one in downtown Austin is $150/night paying out 5,000 AA miles.
This equates to a lovely 33.33 LP/Dollar. If one could find this consistently in their home city, you could theoretically "Mattress Run" EXP lite for $6k.
I think this is STEEP competition for those who travel some, but not enough to obtain something like Hyatt Globalist.
I would MUCH rather have mid-high elite status with an airline (even AA) than i would a hotel (I think?) and then pair it with my Amex Hilton Aspire.
I may be going to Austin for a night for work. i would not normally stay at a holiday in express, but the one in downtown Austin is $150/night paying out 5,000 AA miles.
This equates to a lovely 33.33 LP/Dollar. If one could find this consistently in their home city, you could theoretically "Mattress Run" EXP lite for $6k.
I think this is STEEP competition for those who travel some, but not enough to obtain something like Hyatt Globalist.
I would MUCH rather have mid-high elite status with an airline (even AA) than i would a hotel (I think?) and then pair it with my Amex Hilton Aspire.
Jan 4, 2022, 1:49 pm
#1346
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
If you were the product manager for bookaahotels.com and it was true that all the miles you're going to issue your customers counted as LP, wouldn't you promote that? How about just a simple banner on your site "Loyalty Points are here, you'll earn x,xxx Loyalty Points in the New AAdvantage Program with this booking in addition to your x,xxx AAdvantage Miles good for free travel!"
I mean, what the hell is going on, even those that this change should be a bonanza for businesswise don't seem to know what's going on, otherwise they should be promoting the heck out of it.
I mean, what the hell is going on, even those that this change should be a bonanza for businesswise don't seem to know what's going on, otherwise they should be promoting the heck out of it.
Jan 4, 2022, 2:22 pm
#1347
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 2015
Location: BOS, YVR, ZRH
Programs: *G
Posts: 17,408
So data point, back to AA hotels...
I may be going to Austin for a night for work. i would not normally stay at a holiday in express, but the one in downtown Austin is $150/night paying out 5,000 AA miles.
This equates to a lovely 33.33 LP/Dollar. If one could find this consistently in their home city, you could theoretically "Mattress Run" EXP lite for $6k.
I think this is STEEP competition for those who travel some, but not enough to obtain something like Hyatt Globalist.
I would MUCH rather have mid-high elite status with an airline (even AA) than i would a hotel (I think?) and then pair it with my Amex Hilton Aspire.
I may be going to Austin for a night for work. i would not normally stay at a holiday in express, but the one in downtown Austin is $150/night paying out 5,000 AA miles.
This equates to a lovely 33.33 LP/Dollar. If one could find this consistently in their home city, you could theoretically "Mattress Run" EXP lite for $6k.
I think this is STEEP competition for those who travel some, but not enough to obtain something like Hyatt Globalist.
I would MUCH rather have mid-high elite status with an airline (even AA) than i would a hotel (I think?) and then pair it with my Amex Hilton Aspire.
Jan 4, 2022, 2:27 pm
#1348
Original Member and FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: May 1998
Location: Kansas City, MO, USA
Programs: DL PM/MM, AA ExPlat, Hyatt Glob, HH Dia, National ECE, Hertz PC
Posts: 16,579
Keep in mind you'll also earn 200,000 RDM, it's not quite as stark as that comparison. Still not worth a mattress run, but a compelling proposition if you're spending 40 nights in a hotel somewhere.
Jan 4, 2022, 2:53 pm
#1349
formerly DreAAmliner
Join Date: Feb 2020
Location: DFW
Programs: AA EXP
Posts: 419
I suppose my $6k mattress run for EXP was a bit of hyperbole for effect. But i can see this being potentially helpful later in the year if you are short on LPs to get to a particular threshold.
Jan 4, 2022, 3:10 pm
#1350
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,535
Also a little confused here. There is www.bookaahotels.com that I can get from the AA main page. is this the same as, or different from. Rocketmiles?
I don't use this portal (only use AA Vacations).
Cheers.