American AAdvantage Business Program: A Practical Guide
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If you’re running a business, whether it’s a growing team or just you as a consultant, AAdvantage Business could be a cool way to turn those work trips into miles for your company and help your people get status faster. This guide will walk you through what you need to know — like, who can join, how the miles work, how to use them, and about that AAdvantage Business Select level. We will also show you how to set it all up right from the start.
What’s this program all about?
This is the business part of the AAdvantage program, which is designed for small and medium-sized businesses located in the US or Canada that typically purchase AA/oneworld tickets and want to accumulate company miles (helping their travelers achieve status faster) or consultants who want to separate their business miles from their personal status items.
To register, a business must have a tax identification number or business number. Participation in the program is free.
How it works: your company earns miles when your employees fly on eligible flights. And if they register under your account, they will also earn loyalty points (LP) for those trips. This is in addition to what they earn as AAdvantage members! You can book flights anywhere (aa.com, the AA app, or a travel agency) and still earn those miles through the program.
Please note: this program replaced Business Extra in 2023. The old paper documents are gone, and now the way you earn and spend miles has changed.
Getting Started (5 Minutes)
- Head to aadvantagebusiness.aa.com and click “Register your company.” Sign in with your usual AAdvantage account. Then, fill in your company info and tax ID (for U.S. peeps) or business number (if you’re in Canada).
- In the travel area, invite your employees (you can upload a list), add another Travel Manager, and set up your company’s travel rules.
- Tell your travelers to finish signing up so they get those extra LPs on their business trips. They’ll need to put both the company account number and their own AAdvantage number when they book.
Earn Miles with American AAdvantage Business Program
For the traveler (on their own account):
- For AA flights, they get 5 miles for every $1 they spend (but only 2 miles per $1 for Basic Economy). Plus, they get 1 LP for each mile they fly, and their usual status bonuses still count.
For the business (on the company account):
- You get 1 AAdvantage mile + 1 Loyalty Point for every $1 spent on those flights if the traveler is signed up under your account. (Those extra LPs help your travelers get status faster.)
With the Citi / AAdvantage Business Mastercard:
- You get +2 miles for every $1 spent on AA (for the business account). Card spending also gets 1 LP per $1 for each cardmember.
- AA sometimes does deals where the main cardholder gets the same LP earnings as their employees on eligible purchases.
Where you book: You can buy eligible flights from AA or through a travel agent or online booking site. Just remember that taxes and fees don’t count toward earning miles.
Coming in 2025: AAdvantage Business Select
Business Select is the new top tier of the AAdvantage Business program for companies that fly a lot with American. Reach an annual spending level of $250,000 on eligible AA travel, and you’ll receive three practical benefits that make everyday travel cheaper and more convenient.
Business Select Perks
If your company drops $250,000 on eligible AA travel in a year, you’ll get Business Select Perks
- You can save up to 4% on certain flights booked. This discount works for some AA fares, but there are a few rules depending on the ticket type. If your team often books tickets that are last-minute or kinda pricey, this can save your business real money.
- Your employees get Group 5 boarding. This means they board sooner than others, which helps them get overhead space and keeps them on schedule for those trips packed with meetings. This perk happens automatically because your traveler is linked to your Business Select account.
- You get immediate access to company miles, no minimum needed. Usually, you need 5 registered travelers and $5,000 spent on flights in the last year before you can use those miles. But with Business Select, those requirements are waived, so you can start using miles right away after you join.
How it works: If you qualify, you’ll get an email within a couple of days. There are some rules about where you buy the tickets and Basic Economy and some fare types don’t get the discount.
The Tricky Stuff
- Using miles: To spend those business account miles (either to book travel or send to employees), AA wants you to have at least 5 active, signed-up travelers and $5,000 in flight spending in the last year. BUT, if you have the Citi Business card or you’ve hit Business Select, you don’t need to sweat it.
- Signing up is key: Travelers only get those extra LPs if they’re signed up and the account is in good shape (meaning you need to have some activity). But again, the card or Business Select skips this.
- Miles run out: Business account miles disappear after 24 months if you don’t use the AAdvantage Business account (this is separate from your personal AAdvantage stuff).
- Where you’re located: Right now, you need a U.S. or Canadian business address and tax ID/business number to sign up.
How To Spend Those Company Miles – Two Ways
- Book flights for work trips right from the portal or aa.com (the miles come out of the company account).
- Move miles to your signed-up employees for them to use however they want.
How To Make the Most of It
Day 1
Sign up your company, add a backup Travel Manager, upload your employee list, and tell everyone to sign up ASAP.
If you can, get the Citi / AAdvantage Business Mastercard to skip the spending minimum, get extra miles on AA buys, and give LPs to each cardholder.
Booking Smart
Tell whoever books the flights to always put in both the company and traveler numbers so you get the miles and they get the extra LPs.
If you use a travel agency, make sure they have your AAdvantage Business number in your traveler profiles.
Using Miles
If you’re just starting and don’t have enough travelers or spending yet, wait until you do to use the miles. Or, just get the Citi Business card to skip all that.
Keeping it clean
Use the online portal to hand out Trip Credits, set your travel rules, and see how close you are to hitting Business Select. Add a second admin to avoid problems if someone leaves.
Quick questions
Can we join American AAdvantage Business Program from outside the U.S. or Canada?
Does Basic Economy count?
How fast do the miles show up?
What’s the Business Select spending goal?
$250,000 in eligible travel within a calendar year. Benefits include up to 4% savings, Group 5 boarding, and immediate access to company miles.
Bottom Line
If you’re a U.S. or Canadian business that flies American a lot, AAdvantage Business is worth a look. You’ll get miles for your company, help your employees get status faster, and maybe even unlock Business Select perks. Get the Citi Business card to get even more miles and skip those early steps, teach your team to put both numbers on every booking, and you should see the upside from day one.
