If your small business relies on American Airlines for work travel, the AAdvantage Business program can be a great way to earn miles and loyalty points on employee flights.
However, to fully participate in the program, businesses generally must meet minimum qualifying travel expense requirements of $5,000 and have at least five registered active business travelers—requirements that may be more difficult to meet for smaller teams.
Fortunately, this doesn’t mean you’re automatically excluded from the program. If an authorized representative of your business holds an eligible AAdvantage Business co-branded credit card, e.g. Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard® (See Rates and Fees), your company can still enjoy the full benefits of the program without meeting these thresholds.
For a limited time, Citi is offering a welcome bonus of 75,000 bonus miles to new Citi/AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard holders after they spend $5,000 in purchases within the first 5 months of account opening. TPG’s October 2025 valuation puts each AAdvantage mile at 1.55 cents, making the welcome bonus worth $1,163.
Whether you already have the AAdvantage Business Credit Card in your wallet or are considering applying, it’s a smart move for your small business.
How does the AAdvantage Business Plan work?
With the AAdvantage Business program, your business can earn 1 mile for every $1 spent on eligible American Airlines flights, and travelers can earn 1 loyalty point for every $1 spent. Eligible flights must be booked through American Airlines-owned channels, such as aa.com, the American Airlines app or Bookings.
As a reminder, miles can be redeemed for flights, while loyalty points can be used to earn elite status with American Airlines. These rewards are in addition to what travelers would normally receive through a personal AAdvantage account, so in most cases there’s no harm in signing up as a corporate traveler.
However, per the program terms, travelers can only sign up for one AAdvantage business account at a time, so travelers who work with multiple businesses will need to choose which account to link.
While businesses can earn and hold AAdvantage miles, they cannot redeem them directly. Instead, they can transfer miles to an employee or travel manager account for redemption.
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Related: Best uses for American Airlines AAdvantage miles
How Small Businesses Can Benefit from AAdvantage Business Cards
Businesses generally must meet the following two requirements to fully participate in the AAdvantage Enterprise program:
- $5,000 in qualifying program flight earnings in the past 12 months
- Five business travelers who have taken at least 1 flight in the past 12 months
If a business does not meet these requirements, travelers will not be able to earn additional loyalty points through the AAdvantage Business program, and the business will not be able to transfer miles to individuals.
However, if the authorized representative has an eligible AAdvantage Business co-branded card (e.g. Citi/AAdvantage BusinessWorld Elite Mastercard.
So even if you’re a sole proprietor and spend well under $5,000 per year on business-related flights, you can get a Citi/AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard and earn extra miles and loyalty points through the AAdvantage Business program when you travel for business reasons.
Likewise, a partnership consisting of two employees who frequently travel to their job sites may meet the $5,000 qualifying program flight income requirement, but not the five travelers requirement. However, a partner’s authorized representative can obtain a Citi/AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard and may even add other employees as authorized users, and businesses and travelers can then benefit from the AAdvantage Business program when traveling for business.
In short, an eligible AAdvantage Business co-branded card (such as the Citi/AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard) is critical for small businesses that would otherwise not meet one or both of the standard requirements of the AAdvantage Business program.
Related: Who qualifies for a business credit card?
bottom line
Many small businesses may have difficulty meeting the spending or traveler requirements of the AAdvantage Business plan.
Fortunately, if the authorized representative is Citi/AAdvantage BusinessWorld Elite Mastercard cardholder.
To learn more, read our full review of the Citi/AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard.
Apply here: Citi/AAdvantage BusinessWorld Elite Mastercard
