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
Oct 29, 2021, 9:15 pm
#811
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: DEN
Programs: AA EXP, AA Million Miles, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 2,596
AA can structure the program how it sees fit based on its business. I'll evaluate the changes, and decide if it makes sense for me or not. No point in being emotionally entangled with a loyalty program.
And as I said - giant thread already where these issues have been discussed ad nauseum. No need for a splinter conversation here.
Oct 29, 2021, 9:21 pm
#812
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: rural Indiana - IND
Programs: DL reject, Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Jelly of the Month, formerly NWA Plat (RIP)
Posts: 947
I know this is the direction we have been headed for a while with loyalty programs and status based on spend rather than flights/stays. But this seems to take it to the next level and it is no longer a frequent flyer/traveler program but is now a frequent spender program. The AA Advantage program does not care if you ever set foot on an airplane as long as you use their branded credit card. A lot.
Some have said that this will make it easier to earn status, "All" you have to do is spend a bunch of money with their card. For those of us who do not spend nearly that much in a year, let alone on a credit card, it seems that programs like this are no longer interested in our business. I do enjoy the perks of status for airline/hotel/car rental, but this removes the incentive to give AA (or whoever) my business on a regular basis if I am not going to spend big bucks. They will gain some big spenders who will earn "status" through spend, but how many customers (like me) wiill they lose simply because there is no incentive to remain brand loyal unless you are a big spender?
Some have said that this will make it easier to earn status, "All" you have to do is spend a bunch of money with their card. For those of us who do not spend nearly that much in a year, let alone on a credit card, it seems that programs like this are no longer interested in our business. I do enjoy the perks of status for airline/hotel/car rental, but this removes the incentive to give AA (or whoever) my business on a regular basis if I am not going to spend big bucks. They will gain some big spenders who will earn "status" through spend, but how many customers (like me) wiill they lose simply because there is no incentive to remain brand loyal unless you are a big spender?
Oct 29, 2021, 9:22 pm
#813
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: EWR
Programs: Mucci, AA EXP, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 587
I disagree. This is a new paradigm for ff programs. The main thread is addressing how to deal with the changes. I am criticizing the changes as a new model, which shifts ff loyalty from actually flying to credit cards.
Oct 29, 2021, 9:31 pm
#815
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: rural Indiana - IND
Programs: DL reject, Hilton Diamond, IHG Plat, Jelly of the Month, formerly NWA Plat (RIP)
Posts: 947
Frequent spender program instead of frequent flyer/traveler program
It is all about chasing the $$$. The new model is we want big spenders to use our branded credit card and we don't really care if you fly our airline.
Oct 29, 2021, 9:38 pm
#817
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2014
Programs: Top Tier with all 3 alliances
Posts: 11,749
I did a check of the formula, it works. The only thing that it does not have is the amount of taxes if you book AA. So the formula above calculates the break even amount of the fare, without the taxes included (on an AA fare), which should be added to the break even amount from the current formula, to find the true break even amount of the fare. Unless I am missing something.
Last edited by nk15; Oct 30, 2021 at 10:27 am
Oct 29, 2021, 10:11 pm
#818
Join Date: May 2008
Programs: Marriott Titanium, Hilton Diamond, Hyatt Globalist, AA Plat, UA Silver, Delta Silver
Posts: 453
I’m gonna be honest that I’m not disappointed by the changes.
I normally hit the EQD waiver with CC spend and fly enough to get low level gold status.
I also do use the dining program and shopping portal here and there.
These changes might actually make it easier for me to hit higher levels of status but I do see how many are disappointed by them.
YMMV
I normally hit the EQD waiver with CC spend and fly enough to get low level gold status.
I also do use the dining program and shopping portal here and there.
These changes might actually make it easier for me to hit higher levels of status but I do see how many are disappointed by them.
YMMV
Oct 29, 2021, 10:22 pm
#819
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Wesley Chapel, FL
Programs: American Airlines
Posts: 30,065
Oct 29, 2021, 10:25 pm
#820
Join Date: Aug 2020
Posts: 829
The only true frequent flyer program left is Alaska, which could work if you're a primary west coast flyer. Otherwise all FF programs have been revenue-driven and not mileage-based a long time ago. Good luck with your sanctimonious outrage. Next time use the main thread and let's not clutter the forum with these useless posts.
Oct 29, 2021, 10:29 pm
#821
Suspended
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Wesley Chapel, FL
Programs: American Airlines
Posts: 30,065
The only true frequent flyer program left is Alaska, which could work if you're a primary west coast flyer. Otherwise all FF programs have been revenue-driven and not mileage-based a long time ago. Good luck with your sanctimonious outrage. Next time use the main thread and let's not clutter the forum with these useless posts.
Oct 29, 2021, 10:30 pm
#822
Join Date: Sep 2017
Location: DCA/IAD & BUF
Posts: 1,414
A good way to generalize this formula is that $ = Miles*(1+Cabin+Elite)/(AA Multiplier) as the max amount for a partner.
In your example, this is miles*(1+.25+1.2)/11 = miles*2.45/11 = miles * 250/1122.45. This is the same as your formula, but seems more intuitive to me since it in terms of the variables that can be found from existing tables.
Thanks for making me think about it this way
Cheers.
In your example, this is miles*(1+.25+1.2)/11 = miles*2.45/11 = miles * 250/1122.45. This is the same as your formula, but seems more intuitive to me since it in terms of the variables that can be found from existing tables.
Thanks for making me think about it this way
Cheers.
But can anyone help me with calculations and approach on mixed tickets? i.e., AA code share + AA partner. Example: IAD-DOH-JRO booked through AA. IAD-DOH is an AA codeshare operated by QA, while DOH-JRO is QA.
It's easy enough to pull out both the LP earn if booked through QA in this example (total miles X cabin bonus X elite%), and also the portion of QA LP earned if booked through AA (DOH-JRO).
But I don't know where to start on total LP booked through AA. AA.com doesn't display award miles on mixed tickets, or display the ticket price broken down by segment. So how do I know how AA will price the IAD-DOH AA codeshare segment from my total ticket price? For example, If I purchased a $5K ticket, and AA decided the codeshare segment was only $2500, I would be significantly shafted on earn. If I'm understanding the LP calculation correctly. (Perhaps a big IF)
Thanks for any help, as I try to come up to speed on stuff I didn't pay much attention to before and the new program.
I guess it's always been this way with mixed tickets when it came to RDM. But I always made higher on EQD than I could possibly qualify for on EQM, and there was always points coming in on RDM between bonuses and any credit card spend and vacations and flights that I didn't worry about maximizing it, because I already had 500K miles sitting in my account. Or even trying to figure out and understand at low details where it was coming from and how it was calculated. My focus was mostly on earning the EQMs, mostly through cabin bonuses.
Oct 29, 2021, 10:42 pm
#823
Join Date: Oct 2015
Programs: AA: EXP, 1MM Marriott: Ambassador, LTT
Posts: 408
Appreciate you working through this
Based on what's (not) published, this very much depends on the partner/special EQM multiplier translating 1:1 to the LP multiplier, right?
Given that AA is adding the elite bonus to the mix, I'm not convinced the cabin bonuses will remain static when the details are fleshed out.
Based on what's (not) published, this very much depends on the partner/special EQM multiplier translating 1:1 to the LP multiplier, right?
Given that AA is adding the elite bonus to the mix, I'm not convinced the cabin bonuses will remain static when the details are fleshed out.
Oct 29, 2021, 10:55 pm
#824
Join Date: Oct 2015
Programs: AA: EXP, 1MM Marriott: Ambassador, LTT
Posts: 408
A good way to generalize this formula is that $ = Miles*(1+Cabin+Elite)/(AA Multiplier) as the max amount for a partner.
In your example, this is miles*(1+.25+1.2)/11 = miles*2.45/11 = miles * 250/1122.45. This is the same as your formula, but seems more intuitive to me since it in terms of the variables that can be found from existing tables.
Thanks for making me think about it this way
Cheers.
In your example, this is miles*(1+.25+1.2)/11 = miles*2.45/11 = miles * 250/1122.45. This is the same as your formula, but seems more intuitive to me since it in terms of the variables that can be found from existing tables.
Thanks for making me think about it this way
Cheers.
Yes this is definitely a better way to generalize the formula and as you noted is functionally equivalent. I am lazy and forgetful and was trying to keep it to one variable
Oct 29, 2021, 11:25 pm
#825
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2014
Programs: Top Tier with all 3 alliances
Posts: 11,749
That being said, we shouldn't be really booking fares close to the break even point, but rather quite lower than that, and on partners, if we are going to be optimizing this...