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 22, 2022, 2:08 pm
#1681
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
That caught my eye too. However, when you click through to the 2022 Loyalty Choice Rewards section in your link, the Level 1 reward option lists as "20,000 AAdvantage® bonus miles". So are they "bonus miles" that don't count for LP, or are they actually base miles that do count towards LP?
And who at AA is in charge of developing and writing the jumbled, conflicting, and contradictory rules for all of this? They need to find another career that better suits their talents.
And who at AA is in charge of developing and writing the jumbled, conflicting, and contradictory rules for all of this? They need to find another career that better suits their talents.
The 2021 list had both bonus miles and EQM, as separate choices. The 2022 list only has bonus miles. If they do replace the EQM, then there should be a different choice for LP (that presumably would not include RDM). Maybe it will be added in March?
Jan 22, 2022, 2:54 pm
#1682
Join Date: May 2006
Location: SAN
Programs: Lots of faux metal
Posts: 6,424
Jan 22, 2022, 3:27 pm
#1683
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: District of Columbia
Programs: AA ExecPl, AT Gold, Hyatt Globalist, IHG Diamond, Hilton Diamond, National
Posts: 2,440
And this FAQ seems to lend support for my view:
How do I earn Loyalty Points from AAdvantage eShoppingSM purchases?
- All base miles earned through eShopping purchases will count toward Loyalty Points. The rate at which you earn base miles via eShopping partners varies by store.
- For example, stores like Walmart, Apple and Best Buy currently earn 1 base mile per dollar spent whereas stores like Home Depot and Nike currently earn 4 base miles per dollar spent.
Jan 22, 2022, 3:48 pm
#1685
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,533
I think they are different.
The 2021 list had both bonus miles and EQM, as separate choices. The 2022 list only has bonus miles. If they do replace the EQM, then there should be a different choice for LP (that presumably would not include RDM). Maybe it will be added in March?
The 2021 list had both bonus miles and EQM, as separate choices. The 2022 list only has bonus miles. If they do replace the EQM, then there should be a different choice for LP (that presumably would not include RDM). Maybe it will be added in March?
Originally Posted by VFTW
And the major difference from last year is that there’s no longer an option for 10,000 elite qualifying miles (which might have been, perhaps, 20,000 loyalty points under the new scheme).
Cheers.
Jan 22, 2022, 3:58 pm
#1686
Join Date: Jan 2013
Location: California
Programs: AA EXP 2MM, HH DIA, Hertz PC, GE + Pre✓, Amazon Super Special Prime
Posts: 1,008
As a data point, here is a screen grab of my AA activity.
Mostly eShopping and AA CC's miles posting. eShopping is coding as a base mile, regular CC miles are coding as base, and appropriate CC bonus categories are posting as bonus.
I have not had and SimplyMiles info post yet, nor any of the bookAAhotels activity (later this year we will have some).
But since eShopping is listed just like these other avenues as a legit source for LP's.... I am a bit confused by the skepticism on LP's being awarded. It is not exactly some grand conspiracy?
Edit to add:
Bloom and Motley Fool offers posted, the former without an actual purchase - just going thru the motions of registering for an account but no purchase. A free 1200 ? - Sure, I'll take it!
Mostly eShopping and AA CC's miles posting. eShopping is coding as a base mile, regular CC miles are coding as base, and appropriate CC bonus categories are posting as bonus.
I have not had and SimplyMiles info post yet, nor any of the bookAAhotels activity (later this year we will have some).
But since eShopping is listed just like these other avenues as a legit source for LP's.... I am a bit confused by the skepticism on LP's being awarded. It is not exactly some grand conspiracy?
Edit to add:
Bloom and Motley Fool offers posted, the former without an actual purchase - just going thru the motions of registering for an account but no purchase. A free 1200 ? - Sure, I'll take it!
Jan 22, 2022, 4:04 pm
#1687
Join Date: Dec 2018
Programs: $9 Fare Club
Posts: 1,480
The 3.5cpp valuation some of you are using is comical.
AA themselves, in their own prospectus, pegged the value of a mile at 1cpp when they were out in the marketplace in 2020 rattling the bucket for a few corporate debt dollars.
Personally I value them at about 1.3cpp, I'll consider hotels/portal offers that settle around that valuation.
AA themselves, in their own prospectus, pegged the value of a mile at 1cpp when they were out in the marketplace in 2020 rattling the bucket for a few corporate debt dollars.
Personally I value them at about 1.3cpp, I'll consider hotels/portal offers that settle around that valuation.
Jan 22, 2022, 4:10 pm
#1688
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,533
Cheers.
Last edited by brp; Jan 22, 2022 at 4:30 pm
Jan 22, 2022, 4:33 pm
#1689
Join Date: Oct 2019
Programs: AA Exec Plat/UA 1K/Delta Platinum
Posts: 122
Why do you think they would want to change it? They used to be more and more strict about earning status through flying because if you did mileage runs, it cost the airline - fuel, food & bev, etc. Now, they are just selling status miles to vendors, at a cost to AA that's basically nothing (except for the RDM cost, but that's the same whether they are base or bonus). The whole point of this change is to get us to use AA partners so AA can sell them miles. I, of course, may be wrong, but I highly doubt they will make significant changes.
And this FAQ seems to lend support for my view:
And yes, as always, it's subject to change. But I'm optimistic.
And this FAQ seems to lend support for my view:
And yes, as always, it's subject to change. But I'm optimistic.
The reason it will change is if having elite status becomes worthless. If people can earn elite status just by spend, then the value of that elite status slowly diminishes. Gold will be basically worthless, platinum even less so etc etc... you will eventually have issues from other oneworld carriers that too many X passengers are in lounges who barely ever fly.
It's not a direct issue right now, but it could become one in the future with this new model. The question becomes how hard do they want to make it for non flyers to earn LP's....
Jan 22, 2022, 4:33 pm
#1690
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 10,904
How far did you go in the Blooom flow? I've gotten as far as the part where they want me to give them access to my accounts, which is not going to happen
Jan 22, 2022, 4:39 pm
#1691
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: District of Columbia
Programs: AA ExecPl, AT Gold, Hyatt Globalist, IHG Diamond, Hilton Diamond, National
Posts: 2,440
The reason it will change is if having elite status becomes worthless. If people can earn elite status just by spend, then the value of that elite status slowly diminishes. Gold will be basically worthless, platinum even less so etc etc... you will eventually have issues from other oneworld carriers that too many X passengers are in lounges who barely ever fly.
It's not a direct issue right now, but it could become one in the future with this new model. The question becomes how hard do they want to make it for non flyers to earn LP's....
It's not a direct issue right now, but it could become one in the future with this new model. The question becomes how hard do they want to make it for non flyers to earn LP's....
Jan 22, 2022, 4:43 pm
#1692
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 7,904
I feel like status is now based on the US Airways Grand Slam Promotion. It had it's own forum (might contain some wine data). Did AA retain whoever came up with that? I think I still have some expired Biscoff spread.
Jan 22, 2022, 4:55 pm
#1693
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Mar 2004
Location: SJC
Programs: AA EXP, BA Silver, Hyatt Globalist, Hilton diamond, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 33,533
Cheers.
Last edited by brp; Jan 22, 2022 at 5:20 pm
Jan 22, 2022, 5:04 pm
#1694
Join Date: Apr 2010
Posts: 1,546
The 3.5cpp valuation some of you are using is comical.
AA themselves, in their own prospectus, pegged the value of a mile at 1cpp when they were out in the marketplace in 2020 rattling the bucket for a few corporate debt dollars.
Personally I value them at about 1.3cpp, I'll consider hotels/portal offers that settle around that valuation.
AA themselves, in their own prospectus, pegged the value of a mile at 1cpp when they were out in the marketplace in 2020 rattling the bucket for a few corporate debt dollars.
Personally I value them at about 1.3cpp, I'll consider hotels/portal offers that settle around that valuation.
We'll see if LP changes that valuation.
Jan 22, 2022, 5:27 pm
#1695
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: District of Columbia
Programs: AA ExecPl, AT Gold, Hyatt Globalist, IHG Diamond, Hilton Diamond, National
Posts: 2,440
Am I the only one who has different price points for buying and selling (redeeming) miles? If I bought at 3.5 cents and redeemed at 3.5 cents the program would not be worth my time to participate in unless I valued my time very lowly. At 1 cent, I'll exchange actual US dollars for AA miles, with the hope of redeeming them for 2-5 cents each. I won't exchange USD (or the opportunity to earn USD) for miles at 3.5 cents each, even though some of my redemptions exceed or far exceed that value.
We'll see if LP changes that valuation.
We'll see if LP changes that valuation.