By Shawn Gallagher
The Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard is the highest-level credit card that American Airlines offers through its Citi partnership. Although it has a pricey annual fee of $595, it comes with numerous benefits, including a complimentary Admirals Club membership.
Let’s go over the earning rates and benefits of this card and see if it’s worth it or not.
Benefits
Compared to other American Airlines cobranded cards like the Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard, this card comes with more benefits. Here’s a look at them:
- Complimentary Admirals Club membership
- 1 checked bag free (and for up to 8 travel companions)
- Group 4 priority boarding
- 25% savings on inflight food/beverage services
- Priority check-in (where available)
- Priority airport screening (where available)
- Statement credits of up to $120 each on Lyft, Grubhub, and Avis/Budget
- Global Entry/TSA PreCheck statement credit
The biggest benefit that sets this card apart is the Admirals Club membership. Paying for the membership will normally cost you up to $850, but this card will allow you access with the $595 fee.
Related: Citi / AAdvantage Platinum Select World Elite Mastercard Review
Admirals Club Membership
The primary cardholder will receive access for themselves and immediate family members or up to 2 travel companions. You must have a same-day boarding pass for an American Airlines flight or a partner airline.
Authorized users can also bring up to 2 travel companions. They receive Admirals Club access, which is different from a full membership the primary cardholder has (access to partner lounges, special pricing on conference rooms, other special offers, etc).
Earning Miles And Loyalty Points
Let’s take a look at the earning rates with the Citi / AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard:
- 4 AAdvantage miles per qualifying dollar spent on American Airlines purchases
- Once you spend $150,000 in a calendar year, 5 AAdvantage Miles per qualifying dollar spent on American Airlines purchases
- 10 AAdvantage miles per qualifying dollar spent on hotels and rental cars through American Airlines
- 1 AAdvantage mile on all other purchases
In addition to the usual 1 loyalty point per 1 mile you will earn with this card, you’ll also get a 10,000 loyalty points bonus when you reach 50,000 loyalty points. Once you reach 90,000, you’ll receive another 10,000 bonus loyalty points.
Related: Complete Guide To The American Airlines AAdvantage Loyalty Program
Welcome Offer
The current active welcome offer for this card is 70,000 bonus miles after spending $7,000 in the first 3 months of account opening.
This is some of the highest value welcome offer this card will give (100,000 bonus miles is said to be the highest offer seen), so I’d say it’s a great chance to jump on this opportunity.
Bottom Line
This is one of the best cards you can find if you’re a frequent American Airlines flyer. If you want to enhance your American Airlines experience, this card can do the trick with the Admirals Club membership and its other numerous benefits. You can also take advantage (no pun intended) of their welcome offer for a quick boost to your AAdvantage miles balance.
All photos taken by the author.