How to Transfer Credit Card Points to American Airlines

American Airlines AAdvantage Miles are incredibly versatile and can be used to redeem flights for extremely cheap

Transferring your credit card points to airline travel partners can be a great way to save money on flights and get the maximum value out of your points. When you transfer your points, you are essentially exchanging them for miles that can be used to book flights on that airline. This can be a much more efficient way to use your points than redeeming them for cash back or gift cards.

One of the best airlines to transfer your points to is American Airlines AAdvantage Program, which lets you book flights for cheap and gives you access to the entire OneWorld partner alliance (including British Airways)! By transferring your points to American Airlines, you open up a world of possible flight destinations, from close domestic flights to luxurious international destinations; American Airlines offers an extensive route map that can take you wherever you need to go (see below for AA flights from Boston). American Airlines makes also makes it on our list of the best airlines to fly from Boston, from Key West, and from Austin! Whether you're planning a quick getaway or a grand adventure, transferring your points to American Airlines gives you the opportunity to maximize your rewards and fly with a trusted airline.

American Airlines flight map from Boston to the rest of North America and the UK.

However, unlike airlines like JetBlue or Turkish Airlines which allow you to transfer credit card points from multiple different banks (American Express Points, Chase Ultimate Rewards), American Airlines is much more selective about where it lets you transfer points from. This can lead to a lot of confusion when it comes to trying to accumulate American Airlines AAdvantage points; with fewer transfer partners, it can sometimes feel like the only way to get AA miles is to exclusively fly on American or to get the American Airlines Citi credit cards!

Luckily for frequent travelers, there are still a few different methods of transferring points to American Airlines. While these methods of transferring might not be as common as for some other airlines, these are still reliable ways to get more AAdvantage miles. We will also include some tips on how you can transfer points to fly on American Airlines using some more standard point redemptions.

Now that we’ve gone over the background, let’s jump into the guide:

What credit card points transfer to American Airlines AAdvantage?

1. Bilt Rewards Points

The Bilt Rewards Mastercard from Wells Fargo

The only credit card (outside the American Airlines Citi cards) that allows you to transfer points directly to American Airlines is the Bilt Mastercard offered by Wells Fargo. The Bilt Rewards card is one of the newer and most unique credit cards currently on the market, and one of the biggest competitors to the Capital One Venture X and the Chase Sapphire Preferred. While the BILT card has a lot of standard credit card benefits (3x points on dining, 2x points on travel, etc.), the biggest selling point of the card is that it lets you use a credit card to pay your rent and earn points without any fees! For anyone renting, this is an incredible bonus and can return you thousands of extra points a year, all with no annual fee. The Bilt card can even be used beyond rent, for things like utilities, HOA fees, and more!

Bilt points transfer to American Airlines AAdvantage at a 1:1 ratio, meaning that any points you earn from paying your rent can go directly to your American Airlines flights. Transferring your points from Bilt to AA is very straightforward, with all that’s required to transfer is linking your accounts and choosing how many points you want to convert to miles. With Bilt being the only credit card to transfer to AA, this can be an extremely valuable card for anyone who pays rent and likes to fly on American Airlines. If you’re interested in checking how likely you are to get approved for the Bilt card, make sure to check out our guide to learn more about your approval odds.

2. Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott Bonvoy points are another great way to bolster your AAdvantage Miles

While it is much lesser known than some of the other point transfer methods, Marriott Bonvoy points can be transferred directly to the American Airlines AAdvantage program. Marriott Bonvoy points are very easy to earn, with point redemptions through their line of Bonvoy-branded credit cards, hotel stays, and purchasing through Uber and Uber Eats. If you already stay at Marriott properties and want to start flying with AA, transferring your Marriott Bonvoy points to American Airlines is a great option.

However, the biggest downside to using your Marriott Bonvoy points for American Airlines flights is the redemption value. Unlike other credit card transfers (such as transfers from the Bilt program) which transfer at a 1:1 point-to-mile ratio, transferring your Mariott Bonvoy to American Airlines (or almost any other airline that participates in the Marriott transfer program) can only be done at a 3:1 ratio. For every 3 Marriott Bonvoy points you have, you only get 1 American Airlines AAdvantage mile. While this is a bit of a bummer for the perceived value of your points, in reality, hotel points are often extremely inflated compared to credit card points or airline miles, and so it’s an unfortunate reality of using hotel points for any transfers.

3. OneWorld Alliance Partners

The OneWorld Alliance is an extremely useful set of airlines for booking American Airlines points

A little-known travel hack for booking flights on American Airlines with points is by booking through OneWorld Alliance Partners. Not many people know that you can actually book your American Airlines flights through Qantas, Alaska Airlines, British Airways, and other partners. The best part: you can use all sorts of points in order to get these tickets! For instance, Iberia Airlines is a transfer part of both American Express and Chase Bank, meaning that you can combine your Chase Ultimate Rewards and American Express points together to book an American Airlines flight through Iberia. There are many different variations of this, such as American Express and Capital One Miles transferring to Qantas, or Chase and American Express transferring to British Airways. It is very likely that at least one of these combinations will work for booking your American Airlines flights (see below for the full list of OneWorld Alliance partners).

While this method of booking flights doesn’t use American Airlines AAdvantage miles to make the booking, it is one of the most effective ways to book American Airlines flights, and can even be cheaper than booking directly with AA!

The full set of OneWorld Alliance member airlines. Almost any of these can be used to book American Airlines flights with points

Summary

Overall, transferring your points to book American Airlines can be a great way to save money on flights and make the most of your existing points. While the only direct credit card transfer partner is the Bilt points system by Bilt and Wells Fargo, you can also transfer Marriott Bonvoy points to book American Airlines flights through AAdvantage miles. As well, you always use a smart travel hack and can book your American Airlines flights through the OneWorld Alliance partners using more common credit card points (e.g., American Express, Chase), often for a fraction of the price of booking directly with AA.

We hope you found this blog post helpful for figuring out which credit card points transfer to American Airlines! If you have any questions, please make sure to leave a comment below. If you’re interested in getting a credit car just for flying, make sure to check out our guide for the best airline credit cards for earning miles!