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The American AAdvantage business model: what an airline can take and how to build it

Resources · Case study

American AAdvantage received $6.2 billion in cash from partners in 2025, according to American Airlines' 10-K, with more than 1,000 non-flight partners. This guide explains how the model works, what an airline of any size can take from it and how to build it with Qurable.

Updated · 6 min read

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Case study note based on public information. American Airlines is not a Qurable client.

Public figures on American AAdvantage

American Airlines is not a Qurable client. These figures are public and each one carries its source.

  • $6.2Bin partner cash in 2025American 2025 10-K
  • 1,000+non-flight partnersAmerican 2025 10-K
  • 115MmembersAmerican Airlines, 2021
  • +7%enrollments in 2025, a recordAmerican Q4 2025 results

Airline and travel programs on Qurable

  • SKY Airline
  • CU Travel
Read the SKY Plus case

Key takeaways

  1. American AAdvantage received $6.2 billion in partner cash in 2025, with more than 1,000 non-flight partners.
  2. Status is measured in Loyalty Points and, at each milestone, members pick their reward.
  3. An airline can take partners through a single API and milestone rewards, with Qurable on top of its current program.

How it makes money

How American AAdvantage makes money.

Three pieces explain the model. Every figure comes from a public source, listed under the table on this page.

  • Partners buying miles

    Revenue comes from outside

    Banks, hotels and retailers buy miles for their customers. Citi is the exclusive card issuer from 2026, in a deal of about 10 years.

    Public figure
    $6.2B in partner cash in 2025.

  • Loyalty Points

    Everything counts toward status

    Every mile earned from flights, the card or partners adds Loyalty Points. With Loyalty Point Rewards, members choose rewards at each milestone.

    Public figure
    Milestones from 15,000 to 5 million Loyalty Points.

  • Card-linked

    Miles on card purchases

    SimplyMiles lets members link up to 3 Mastercard cards and earn miles and Loyalty Points at participating merchants.

    Public figure
    Up to 3 linked Mastercard cards.

What your airline can take

Three pieces that work for an airline of any size.

You don't need American Airlines's size to use its model. These pieces are added on top of the program you already run.

  • Partners through a single API

    Every partner buying miles is revenue. With Qurable they connect through a single API and every transaction is reconciled in the ledger.

  • Milestone rewards of choice

    At each milestone, members pick their prize from the options you define: an upgrade, an extra bag or lounge access.

  • Miles on card purchases

    With Qurable the benefit is decided inside the card authorization, in ~150 ms, and the member sees it in the same payment.

How to build it

What American AAdvantage does and how you build it with Qurable.

Each row is a piece of the model and how it is solved on top of your core and your PSS. Sources are under the table.

The American AAdvantage model and how to build it with Qurable
American AAdvantageWith Qurable
Partners1,000+ non-flight partners; $6.2B in cash in 2025Partners connected through a single API to award and redeem miles, reconciled in the ledger
StatusLoyalty Points: every mile earned counts toward tiersTiers by flights, spend or partner purchases, with rules by segment
Milestone rewardsLoyalty Point Rewards: members choose at each milestoneMilestone rewards of choice: members pick from the airline's options
Card-linkedSimplyMiles: up to 3 linked Mastercard cardsBenefit decided inside the card authorization, in ~150 ms
Co-branded cardCiti, exclusive from 2026 for about 10 yearsA wallet and a card with your brand; Qurable handles issuance, processing and compliance

Sources on American AAdvantage: American Airlines, 2025 Form 10-K · American Airlines, Q4 2025 results · American Airlines, 40 years of AAdvantage (2021) · Business Traveller, Citi and American · American Airlines, Loyalty Point Rewards (accessed 10/15/2026) · AwardWallet, SimplyMiles (accessed 10/15/2026)

American Airlines, AAdvantage, SimplyMiles and Citi are trademarks of their owners. American Airlines is not a Qurable client. This page uses only public information available as of October 15, 2026. If you find anything outdated, write to us and we will fix it.

With Qurable

A layer on top of your program, no migration to start.

Qurable connects to your program core and your PSS with REST APIs, a sandbox and webhooks. You start with one front and add the rest in stages.

  • Points plus cash at checkout

    Authorize, capture and reverse miles for tickets and ancillaries, decided in ~150 ms.

    Loyalty at the POS and checkout

  • Partners through a single API

    Banks, hotels, car rentals and retailers award and redeem miles, with every transaction reconciled in the ledger.

    Loyalty coalition

  • Wallet and your own card

    A card with your brand: Qurable handles issuance, processing and compliance.

    Airline loyalty

Questions

What people ask about American AAdvantage.

Short answers with public data, and what your airline can take.

American Airlines reported $6.2 billion in partner cash in 2025, up from $6.1 billion in 2024, according to its 10-K. It has more than 1,000 non-flight partners.

They measure status: every mile earned from flights, the card or partners adds Loyalty Points. With Loyalty Point Rewards, members choose rewards at milestones from 15,000 to 5 million points.

Partners connected through a single API, milestone rewards of choice and miles on card purchases. With Qurable they are added on top of the current program, in stages.

No. This page analyzes AAdvantage's public model. The airline program running on Qurable is SKY Plus, by SKY Airline.

Last reviewed

Further reading

The overview guide, other programs and the case of an airline on Qurable.

Bring the model to your airline.

In a 30-minute technical session we review your program and show you which pieces Qurable adds on top of your core and your PSS.

Read the documentation