American Airlines AAdvantage miles are some of the hardest airline miles to earn. The airline program is only a transfer partner of one major transferable credit card issuer, Citi ThankYou Rewards.
However, though American Airlines is not a direct transfer partner of most issuers, specifically Chase Ultimate Rewards, this shouldn’t stop you from redeeming your hard-earned Chase points for American flights.
Let’s dive into the various ways to fly on American metal using Chase points.
Transfer Chase points to airline partners to book American Airlines flights
For instance, this American Airlines flight from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) to Aruba’s Queen Beatrix International Airport (AUA) is bookable through British Airways with 30,000 Avios plus $16 in taxes and fees for economy.
Or, you could book this direct flight from Charlotte Douglas International Airport (CLT) to Frankfurt Airport (FRA), operated by American, through Qatar Airways for 25,750 Avios and $240 in taxes and fees.
There are five airline loyalty programs through which you can book American flights with Chase points: Aer Lingus AerClub, British Airways Club and Iberia Club. Though Finnair Plus and Qatar Airways Privilege Club are not direct Chase transfer partners, you can easily transfer Avios between the five programs at a 1:1 ratio.
All of the above airlines use Avios as their loyalty currency. However, you may see different award rates or availability on each airline’s site.
For instance, the Charlotte-to-Frankfurt example that I found on Qatar Airways is also available through British Airways for 25,750 Avios and $233 in taxes and fees. The cost in Avios is the same, but the taxes and fees vary slightly. The Atlanta-to-Aruba flight, on the other hand, isn’t available on Qatar’s site. It’s worth checking each partner airline in case you find better prices or availability on one of them.
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Don’t forget to check TPG’s list of current transfer bonuses before you transfer rewards. Chase occasionally runs promotions that allow you to earn bonus points or miles when you transfer, helping you stretch your points further when transferring points to book American flights.
Transferring your Chase points to partners to book American flights can help you save money, but it may not be the best way to maximize your points. TPG values Ultimate Rewards points at 2.05 cents per point, per our July 2025 valuations, so you want to shoot for a similar value when redeeming your points. Make sure you compare the cash rate of the American flight to the award price.
Related: How to decide when to use cash or miles for buying airline tickets
Book American Airlines flights through the Chase Travel portal
Another route for booking American flights with Chase points is through Chase Travel℠, the issuer’s travel booking platform, where you can redeem points instead of cash to pay for travel.
If you can’t find the American flight you’re looking for through a partner airline or the partner’s redemption rates aren’t a good value, try this option instead. Chase Travel offers a wide variety of travel bookings, including American Airlines flights. However, American isn’t among the select airlines eligible for Chase’s Points Boost (for now), meaning you won’t be able to maximize the value of your points on American flights.
Chase Sapphire Reserve® (see rates and fees) and Chase Sapphire Reserve for Business℠ (see rates and fees) cardholders who applied before June 23, 2025, can redeem their points at a flat rate of 1.5 cents apiece on American flights (on points earned prior to Oct. 26, 2025, and redeemed until Oct. 26, 2027, then 1 cent thereafter). Similarly, Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card (see rates and fees) and Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card (see rates and fees) cardholders who applied before June 23 can get a value of 1.25 cents per point on American redemptions during the same time frame.
Meanwhile, those who applied after June 23 for any of the above cards will only get 1 cent per point in value when redeeming for American flights.
Depending on the flight, redeeming Chase points through the portal may not be the best option. Let’s look at our earlier example flight from Charlotte to Frankfurt. This flight costs $494 on Chase Travel or 39,520 points with my Chase Sapphire Preferred since I can currently redeem them for 1.25 cents each. I’d be better off transferring 26,000 points to British Airways Club, then transferring those points to Qatar Airways Privilege Club and booking the award flight for 25,750 Avios — saving myself nearly 14,000 points.
But this isn’t always the case. Sometimes, when award rates are high or partner airlines have limited availability, your best bet will be to redeem Chase points through Chase Travel.
You can generally get more value when you transfer Chase points to partners, but still, 1.25 or 1.5 cents per point is nothing to sneeze at. Unfortunately, this number will eventually drop to 1 cent per point for all cardholders, on par with other issuers’ travel portals, like American Express Travel, Capital One Travel and Citi Travel.
However, if Chase adds American Airlines to its list of Points Boost-eligible airlines, Chase Sapphire Reserve and Sapphire Reserve for Business cardholders could redeem their points for up to 2 cents each on American flights, while Chase Sapphire Preferred and Ink Business Preferred cardholders could redeem for up to 1.75 cents per point.
Related: Why Chase’s Points Boost is an outstanding (kind of surprising) new way to book hotels on points
Bottom line
Even though you can’t transfer Chase points straight to AAdvantage, there are multiple other avenues to book American Airlines flights with Chase points.
If you’re looking to earn more Chase points, the Chase Sapphire Reserve PID and the Sapphire Reserve for Business are fantastic cards to consider. Right now, new applicants who get approved for the Chase Sapphire Reserve can earn 100,000 bonus points plus a $500 Chase Travel credit* after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first three months from account opening — the best offer we’ve seen on this card. With the Sapphire Reserve for Business, you can earn 200,000 bonus points after spending $30,000 in the first six months from account opening.
*The promotional credit is valid for one-time use only. If you apply it to a transaction less than $500, you will forfeit the remaining balance.
Based on the previous example, 100,000 points are almost enough to fly two people round-trip from Charlotte to Frankfurt on American Airlines if you transfer your points to British Airways Avios and then to Qatar Airways Avios.
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