What is the best Citibank AA card?

This question is about Best American Airlines Credit Card

Lisa Cahill, Credit Cards Moderator

@lisacahill 02/18/21 This answer was first published on 02/18/21. For the most current information about a financial product, you should always check and confirm accuracy with the offering financial institution. Editorial and user-generated content is not provided, reviewed or endorsed by any company.

Permalink Report

The best Citibank AA card is the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® because it offers 50,000 bonus miles when you spend $2,500 in the first 3 months after opening an account. Platinum Select also gives 2 miles / $1 spent on American Airlines purchases, 2 miles / $1 spent at restaurants and gas stations, and 1 mile / $1 spent on everything else. The annual fee is $0 intro the first year and $99 after that. There is a 0% foreign transaction fee.

Best Citibank AA Cards

Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® - Best overall
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® - Best for lounge access
American Airlines AAdvantage MileUp℠ Card - Best for light spenders
CitiBusiness® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® Mastercard® - Best for business owners

Citibank AA cards offer a variety of options for American Airlines flyers. But they do have one perk in common – 25% savings on in-flight food and beverage purchases. And all of them except the MileUp card offer preferred boarding and a free first checked bag for at least you (and sometimes for companions).

Before you apply for a card, consider how much you fly American Airlines and if you’ll earn enough bonus miles to offset the cost of any annual fees.

2021's Best American Airlines Credit Card

Compare Cards

People also ask

How do I upgrade my Citi AAdvantage Platinum to Executive?

To upgrade from Citi AAdvantage Platinum to the AA Executive card, visit the Citi AAdvantage upgrade page and type in the invitation code from your targeted mail offer, along with your last name, the last 4 digits of your Social Security number, and your billing ZIP code. Then, click “Get Started,” followed by the “Upgrade now” button to complete the upgrade.… read full answer

Bear in mind, that if you receive a targeted upgrade offer, it does not guarantee you’ll be approved, but it should increase your chances if you apply. If you don’t have a targeted upgrade offer, you can call Citi customer service at 1 (800) 374-9700 and request one. Citi recommends that you have the AA Platinum Select card for at least 12 months before requesting an upgrade.

Once you’ve upgraded, you should receive your new Executive card in about 7-10 days. The new card’s number and security code will be different, but your AAdvantage Platinum Select credit limit and APR will transfer over to the new Executive card. The AAdvantage Executive card’s $450 annual fee will post to your first billing statement, and refunds on Platinum Select’s $0 intro 1st yr, $99 after annual fee will be pro-rated, based on the number of months since the fee was paid, and posted as a separate entry.

While you wait for the new card to arrive in the mail, you can use your AAdvantage Platinum Select card - it will have all the functions of the upgraded card.

show less

What credit score do you need for a Citi credit card?

You need a good credit score for a Citi credit card in most cases. So you’ll have a shot with a credit score of 660+, and your odds will be good with 700+. But it really depends on which card you’re after. Some Citi credit cards require higher scores, and one has no minimum score at all.… read full answer

For example, some of the Citi credit cards that require good credit or better for approval include Simplicity (0% for 21 months on balance transfers), and Double Cash (2% cash back). Among the Citi credit cards you need excellent credit (a score of 750+) to get are ThankYou Preferred (2X points on dining and entertainment), Premier (3X points on travel), and the two Expedia cards. And even people with bad credit can get the Citi Secured Card.

Below, you can see what Citi cards your credit score will allow you to pursue, along with other information about approval.

Here’s what else you should know about the credit score you need for a Citi credit card:

Bad credit (below 640): You only have one option for a Citi card if you have bad credit. That’s the Citi Secured Mastercard. It doesn’t give any rewards, but it does have no annual fee and can help you rebuild your credit. There’s a $200 minimum security deposit.

Fair credit (640-699): With fair credit, you have a good shot at getting one of Citi’s various store cards. These cards can only be used at their associated store. Some examples of stores that offer fair credit cards through Citi are Staples, Best Buy and Goodyear.

Good credit (700-749): Good credit opens you up to some of Citi’s more attractive credit card offerings. You can get the best cashback card on the market, Citi Double Cash, with good credit, or the Citi Simplicity card.

Excellent credit (750 and up): You’ll be eligible for all of Citi’s cards with a score in this range, assuming your income and other information check out. Some excellent-credit-only offerings include Citi ThankYou Preferred (15-month 0% APR), Expedia+ Voyager (travel rewards) and Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard (airline miles).

Other requirements: It takes more than just a good enough credit score to get Citi credit card approval. In particular, you need enough income to pay the monthly bills, along with your existing debts. You’ll also need a valid Social Security number (or ITIN) and U.S. mailing address.

Check your credit score before applying for a Citi credit card. That will tell you which cards you have the best chances of getting. And you can check if you’re pre qualified for any Citi cards on their website.

show less

How do I get the American Airlines credit card with 75,000 miles?

To get the American Airlines credit card 75,000 miles bonus, apply for the Citi/AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard and spend $7,500 within 3 months of being approved. You’ll get the 75,000 miles within 8-10 weeks of qualifying for the bonus. The AAdvantage Executive Card requires excellent credit for approval and has a $450 annual fee. But 75,000 AAdvantage miles are worth about $1,050 in American Airlines airfare.… read full answer

American Airlines Credit Card 75,000 Miles Offer:

You can earn 75,000 miles by spending $7,500 in the first 3 months with the Citi/AAdvantage World Elite Mastercard.

You need excellent credit (750+ credit score) to get approved for the Citi/AAdvantage World Elite Mastercard.

Earning the bonus requires spending at least $2,500 per month. You’ll also earn 2 miles per $1 on American Airlines purchases and 1 on everything else.

Your 75,000 bonus miles will show up in your account 8-10 weeks after you reach the spending threshold.

75,000 miles (worth about $1,050) cover the cost of the Citi/AAdvantage World Elite Mastercard’s $450 annual fee for more than 2 years.

You are not eligible to earn the initial bonus if you have opened or closed any other Citi/AAdvantage card in the past 24 months (with the exceptions of AAdvantage MileUp and Citibusiness/AAdvantage).

The executive card has a few other bonuses, like a free Admirals Club lounge membership and a free first checked bag for you and up to 8 companions on the same reservation. And if you spend $40,000 in a year, you get 10,000 Elite Qualifying Miles (EQMs). They can’t be used for free flights. But the more you have, the better perks you get on AA flights.

The American Airlines credit card 75,000 miles bonus is valuable. It’s worth over $1,000 in airfare. But you do have to spend a lot of money to get it. So frequent travelers can benefit greatly from this card, while occasional travelers will likely end up losing money due to the $450 annual fee. show less

WalletHub Answers is a free service that helps consumers access financial information. Information on WalletHub Answers is provided “as is” and should not be considered financial, legal or investment advice. WalletHub is not a financial advisor, law firm, “lawyer referral service,” or a substitute for a financial advisor, attorney, or law firm. You may want to hire a professional before making any decision. WalletHub does not endorse any particular contributors and cannot guarantee the quality or reliability of any information posted. The helpfulness of a financial advisor's answer is not indicative of future advisor performance.

WalletHub members have a wealth of knowledge to share, and we encourage everyone to do so while respecting our content guidelines. Please keep in mind that editorial and user-generated content on this page is not reviewed or otherwise endorsed by any financial institution. In addition, it is not a financial institution’s responsibility to ensure all posts and questions are answered.

Ad Disclosure: Certain offers that appear on this site originate from paying advertisers, and this will be noted on an offer’s details page using the designation "Sponsored", where applicable. Advertising may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). At WalletHub we try to present a wide array of offers, but our offers do not represent all financial services companies or products.

Ask a Question

140

Ask Question

WalletHub Transparency

We are committed to being fully transparent with our readers. Opinions expressed here are the author’s and/or WalletHub editors'. WalletHub editorial content on this page is not provided, commissioned, reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any company. In addition, it is not any company’s responsibility to ensure all questions are answered.