American Airlines Loyalty Point Rewards: What’s New for 2025, Best Picks & Selection Deadlines

The road to American Airlines elite status comes with plenty of perks, largely thanks to the AAdvantage program’s Loyalty Point Rewards. These rewards let you choose from a variety of benefits as you reach different Loyalty Point milestones.

Loyalty Point Rewards have been around for a few years, but there are some small updates for the 2025 elite status year — which just started March 1, 2025 — including a personalized bag tag and new perks like elite status and free nights with World of Hyatt.

In this guide, we’ll break down all the available Loyalty Point Rewards and help you decide which options make the most sense as you reach each selection threshold.

American Airlines Loyalty Point Rewards Overview

Loyalty Point Rewards have evolved over the years, but the concept has stayed the same. The program started as Elite Choice Rewards, later became Loyalty Choice Rewards, and eventually landed on its current name: Loyalty Point Rewards.

But the idea is simple: As you earn Loyalty Points from flying, AAdvantage credit card spending, and other qualifying activities, you unlock a selection of perks at set milestones between elite tiers. You can start choosing rewards with as few as 15,000 Loyalty Points.

Credit: American Airlines

And the more Loyalty Points you earn, the better the rewards get. Some of the most notable options for the 2025 qualification year include Systemwide Upgrades (SWUs), Admirals Club memberships, World of Hyatt elite status, and more.

Earn Loyalty Points to unlock Loyalty Point Rewards and elite status

It's worth mentioning that Loyalty Points don’t just unlock Loyalty Point Rewards. They’re also the only metric for earning AAdvantage elite status. For 2025, here’s how many Loyalty Points you’ll need to qualify for each tier:

• Gold: 40,000 Loyalty Points
• Platinum: 75,000 Loyalty Points
• Platinum Pro: 125,000 Loyalty Points
• Executive Platinum: 200,000 Loyalty Points

Just like in previous years, you can qualify for elite status without ever stepping on a plane. As long as you’re earning Loyalty Points — whether through co-branded credit card spending, SimplyMiles, AAdvantage eShopping, or other qualifying activities — you’re on your way to both elite status and Loyalty Point Rewards.

Credit: Tyler Glatt/AwardWallet

Related: Complete Guide to American Airlines AAdvantage Loyalty Points

American Airlines Loyalty Point Rewards Tiers

You'll earn your first reward after collecting 15,000 Loyalty Points, but the gaps between tiers widen from there, eventually topping out at a massive 5,000,000 Loyalty Points. Below is a breakdown of the Loyalty Point Rewards and AAdvantage elite status benefits:

You’ll find the fine print for each Loyalty Point Reward at the bottom of this American Airlines webpage, but here are a few key things to keep in mind:

• Some benefits are only available if you have an American Airlines credit card.
• Certain perks, like an Admirals Club membership, can only be selected once — and may require multiple choices.
• Rewards involving physical products — such as the personalized luggage tag or Bang & Olufsen items — are only available while supplies last.

Which Loyalty Point Rewards Should You Pick?

The beauty of American Airlines' Loyalty Point Rewards is that you get to pick the benefits that matter most to you. If a particular option doesn’t appeal to you at a given threshold, you can choose something else that provides better value.

That said, some rewards are more valuable than others. Here’s our take on the best Loyalty Point Rewards at each threshold where you're given a choice:

15,000 Loyalty Points (Choose One)

At this threshold, you'll automatically unlock Group 5 boarding for the AAdvantage membership year, so if you're planning to keep earning, the 1,000 bonus Loyalty Points might be the best pick. Otherwise, the personalized luggage tag or five Preferred Seat coupons could be more appealing.

Main Cabin on an American Airlines Boeing 787. Credit: American Airlines

175,000 Loyalty Points (Choose One)

If you can maximize them, two Systemwide Upgrades or 20,000 bonus miles (25,000 if you have an AAdvantage credit card) are excellent choices. You can also opt for World of Hyatt Explorist status, which could prove valuable if you can take advantage of perks like room upgrades and late checkout.

250,000 Loyalty Points (Choose Two)

At this threshold, you get two choices, so you might consider using both to splurge for an Admirals Club membership. But if you already have lounge access or don’t spend enough time in airports to justify it, you could go for 20,000 bonus miles (30,000 if you have an AAdvantage credit card) with one choice and two Systemwide Upgrades with the other.

American Airlines Boeing 777 business class cabin. Credit: American Airlines

400,000 Loyalty Points (Choose Two)

With two choices at this threshold, we'd lean toward the 25,000 bonus miles (one choice) or an Admirals Club membership, if you haven’t already selected it. If you can get more than a couple hundred dollars in value from a Hyatt Category 1-4 Free Night Award, that’s another solid option.

550,000 Loyalty Points (Choose Two)

If you didn’t pick an Admirals Club membership earlier, this is still a great spot to do so. Otherwise, gifting AAdvantage Platinum status to a friend or family member isn't something you should overlook. You could also use both selections toward a Bang & Olufsen product if that’s something you’d use (or resell).

Credit: American Airlines

750,000 Loyalty Points (Choose Two)

The options here are nearly identical to the 550,000 Loyalty Point tier. The Admirals Club membership, gift of status, or Systemwide Upgrades are your best bets — but skip the single-visit lounge passes.

1,000,000 Loyalty Points (Choose One)

You've hit one million Loyalty Points! Nearly all the choices here are excellent, but you only get one. If you frequently redeem AAdvantage miles, consider the mileage rebate (up to 100,000 miles back on award redemptions), four Systemwide Upgrades, or the Hyatt Category 1-7 Free Night Award.

Hyatt Regency Koh Samui Resort. Credit: Hyatt

3,000,000 Loyalty Points (Choose One)

The jump from the last threshold to this one is huge — and unfortunately, you still only get one choice. It’s hard to go wrong with up to 300,000 miles back on award redemptions, the gift of Executive Platinum status, or six Systemwide Upgrades.

5,000,000 Loyalty Points (Choose One)

Finally, the end of the road. At five million Loyalty Points, you get one choice, and the best options are either 10 Systemwide Upgrades or up to 500,000 miles back on award redemptions.

Credit: Tyler Glatt/AwardWallet

Related: How To Play the American Airlines Loyalty Points Game to Unlock AAdvantage Elite Status

Loyalty Point Rewards Choice Deadlines

The deadline to choose your Loyalty Point Rewards is March 31 of the year the status qualification period ends. Since the qualification year runs from March through the end of the following February, the timing can be a bit confusing. Here’s how it breaks down:

• If you earned Loyalty Point Rewards between March 2024 and February 2025, you have until March 31, 2026, to make your choices.
• For the current qualification period (March 2025 to February 2026), you’ll have until March 31, 2027, to choose your rewards.

Since you have plenty of time to decide, there’s no rush.

In addition, if you end up flying or spending more than expected before the qualification year ends, you might unlock better perks with elite status, making an early choice (like Preferred Seat coupons or preferred boarding) feel like a wasted opportunity.

Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) Admirals Club. Credit: American Airlines

Bottom Line

For yet another year, American Airlines is rolling out a refreshed set of Loyalty Point Rewards. Perks start at 15,000 Loyalty Points and run all the way up to 5,000,000 Loyalty Points — rewarding everyone from the occasional program participant to the airline’s most valuable customers. At most tiers, AAdvantage members get to pick from a selection of rewards, so you can choose what perks and benefits matter most to you.

AwardWallet Tip of The Day

Curious about which of your loyalty program balances have recently changed? AwardWallet shows an indicator (to the left of the account) for accounts that have changed in the last 24 hours. Look for this indicator to easily spot any accounts that have been recently updated.
Show me how

Hide image