Is there already a thread on this subject?

I get $150 off the AMEX platinum fee thru my company's green card. As I'm flying more lately (and not using my southwest card ever again) I think one of these cards could be nice to replace my Freedom cash back card as the primary card in my wallet. If I can access lounges and earn miles to take a free flight every year, I'm happy.

Look at other cards as well......

First off decide if you want to be tied to american.
Then look at you spending.

While that card does give "free" admirals lounge access, I'll be honest those lounges suck with over crowding, poor food, and scrappy drinks.

Look at what you generally spend money on.
The AA executive card only give bonus points on things purchased through the AA travel portal.

What I have is the free AA mile up card for home spending getting 2x miles on groceries then for work travel i have the platinum card which gives 2x points on dining and gas. I would have to look but I'm pretty sure both cards give 2x points/miles for spending on AA.
The executive card only give 1x mile for all spending.
I also have a chase sapphire reserve card for non-work singing and other spending. These points can go to hotels or transfer to other airlines.

I forget if the aa executive card also does the coverage of global entry, but I get that through my chase card so for me I didn't see any gain by getting that card over the platinum whoch jas bonus miles for what I'd be spending on.

Long story short, I looked very hard at the AA cards, and you should too.
If you are dead set on admirals club access, then that covers the CC fee.
If you generally take business flights and have to book through an employee portal, the executive card will not give much bonus miles.

I have an Amex platinum for work and decided against the admirals club card and went with the basic AA card. With my research it basically seemed as if there was a priority pass lounge anywhere there was an AA lounge. And sometimes these international lounges you get access to with priority pass are much nicer than your typical United ones and even some centurions (eg Turkish airways lounge in Miami)

Above poster is right: 2 wks ago centurion had an hour wait. United clubs are often so busy you can hardly find a seat for two people together (I've not been in an AA lounge but assume it's similar )

One more thing to add.

The chase sapphire reserve also provides primary insurance on rental cars while the the AA cards do not.

Again... I suggest looking at your spending, what would maximize the return on points/miles, do you mainly book through an employer portal or direct from the airline, are you "married" to an airline, and what perks really come with the card.

Airport lounges are the pits. They were originally a great idea, but as stated above 95% of the the time they are way overcrowded and the food quality is passable to mediocre at best. Other than a few free drinks, they are no longer a restful stop before a flight. I would rather sit at a quieter restaurant and pay for a beer or two.

The lounge question depends heavily on where you're based and which airline you fly. Beyond that, what you value in a lounge is an important question. For me personally, I'm based in DFW, fly almost exclusively on AA, and do find significant value in access to the Admirals Club. There are 5 of them at DFW, and with the exception of the ones in terminals B and E, are all pretty spacious.

They did degrade the one in D (it used to be massive but they took a huge chunk of the space during a renovation a few years ago to make the Flagship Lounge, so what's left of the AC there is kind of a big open loud room.

I've never been turned away, but have definitely seen during periods of high traffic when they'll stop admitting people who have day passes.

For me, the real value comes in the business centers. Having a semi-quiet place to work in a cubicle with a decently sized desk has been a life saver.

Also, if you have flight delays or need help with rebooking, the front desk staff can do almost anything within reason, and very fast. They are nicknamed "AAngels" for a reason. This is in contrast to calling in and getting the dreaded "wait time is 90 minutes" message, or standing in a mile-long line in the terminal for the regular customer service desk.

Agree that the food options can be underwhelming, but with some upgrades they put in place a year or so ago I've had no problem making a quick workable meal at all hours of the day.

To answer another question above... yes, the Citi AA Executive card does reimburse for Global Entry fees.

Scruffy said:

---

One more thing to add.

The chase sapphire reserve also provides primary insurance on rental cars while the the AA cards do not.

Again... I suggest looking at your spending, what would maximize the return on points/miles, do you mainly book through an employer portal or direct from the airline, are you "married" to an airline, and what perks really come with the card.

---

I have this card and didn't know this. I really need to get better at looking at the benefits

Also consider that if you've been using your freedom 'cash back' card and have a significant amount of 'cash back' on it, if you get the Sapphire Preferred or Reserve, you can actually combine this 'cash back' to become transferrable chase rewards points. Every $0.01 becomes one point, so if you've got $500 in 'cash back' that is actually 50,000 chase points which is enough for a one-way business class to Europe, give or take.

I wouldn't make the AMEX platinum your primary card for spend. If you're looking to amass points (membership rewards) verify that you're earning points on your green card. I have a corporate one and have the option to pay some fee to turn that on - your situation may differ from that. I think the green card gets 3 Membership Rewards points/dollar on travel/dining/transit. If you travel international frequently, see below.

The Amex Platinum is great for travel benefits (centurion lounge for one now, priority pass, hotel credit, airline fee credit, Marriott Gold Status, Hilton Gold Status, premium status with car rental companies, TSA Fee credit, Clear fee credit, etc). But this is not a great card for most of your credit card spend if you are trying to earn points.

The AA Executive World Elite card is good for two things - Admirals Club Access and loyalty point bonuses towards status. If you are flying AA regularly, get this card and then determine your temperance for multiple credit cards. You can make it real easy and use just this card for everything to focus on getting status. You'll earn AA miles but its a sub-optimal strategy if you really want to get into the miles/points world. If you'd prefer some more flexibility, get this card for its benefits and use it where it make sense. Then get another card for your regular spend.

Since you have the freedom card, I'd recommend getting the Chase Sapphire Preferred card ($95/annual fee). The cash back you're earning on the freedom card can be converted to ultimate rewards points which can be transferred to many travel partners for bookings (Hyatt, United, Southwest, British Airways, IHG, Marriott, etc).

So pick one of the premium cards (AMEX Platinum or AA Executive) based on your travel needs, but that's not your main card. Either point-a-rize the Green card if possible or get the Chase sapphire preferred. Or ignore all of this and just get the premium card and put all of your spend on it. But there's opportunity to maximize your earnings if you go the other route.

I have both, use the Citi card for the lounge access as well as topping off Loyalty Points (I live in DFW so I'm tied to AA) and the Platinum for travel expenses where you can get 5x points as well as access to the lounges (though rare) and Fine Hotels & Resorts program.

It's a pain but if you are diligent about using your benefit credits and Amex offers you can usually make your fee back and then some. Supposedly the benefits are getting upgraded again this fall in response to actions Chase is taking.