Aviator AAdvantage Red World Elite Mastercard review — a solid choice for loyal American Airlines flyers

American Airlines miles can be extremely useful for booking domestic and international award flights, and the AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard is one of the best ways to earn them. This card has an exceptionally easy-to-earn welcome bonus and a solid set of benefits for American Airlines flyers, making it worthy of consideration for loyal AA customers.

Below, CNBC Select details the benefits, welcome bonus, rewards and fees of the AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard so you can decide if it's the right travel credit card for you.

New AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard members can earn 60,000 bonus AAdvantage miles after making their first purchase during the first 90 days from account opening.

This is one of the easiest intro bonus spending requirements to meet. Many of the best rewards credit cards require new cardholders to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to earn the bonus. With this card, you can qualify by buying a pack of gum at the gas station.

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard can save you money or improve the experience of your next American Airlines flight in several ways.

Cardholders can use the following benefits:

• First checked bag free: You and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation will receive your first checked bag free on domestic American Airlines itineraries
• Priority boarding: The primary cardholder and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation receive Group 5 boarding when traveling with American Airlines
• In-flight savings: You'll get a 25% statement credit on in-flight food and beverage purchases with American Airlines when you use your credit card to pay
• Wi-Fi credit: Receive up to $25 back per year for in-flight Wi-Fi purchases
• Annual companion certificate: Each card anniversary you can earn one companion certificate valid for domestic economy travel after spending $20,000 on purchases and keeping your account open for 45 days after your anniversary date. With this perk, you can bring along a guest for $99 plus taxes and fees.

Some of the benefits overlap with the perks you would get from having American Airlines elite status. For example, AAdvantage Gold status grants you Group 4 boarding and one free checked bag. But for the occasional American Airlines flyer who hasn't earned status, this card is a good way to experience some of those benefits.

Beyond the travel perks and benefits, the card also provides a good balance transfer offer which can help you save on credit card interest payments and pay off debt. New card members receive an intro 0% APR on eligible balance transfers for the first 15 billing cycles, after that a variable 21.24%, 25.24% or 29.99% APR applies. There is a balance transfer fee of 5% of the amount you transfer with a $5 minimum. Keep in mind, to qualify for the intro APR the balance transfer must be completed within 45 days of opening the account.

Earning

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard earns American Airlines AAdvantage miles at the following rates:

• 2X miles on eligible American Airlines purchases
• 1 mile per dollar spent on all other purchases

Spending on a co-branded American Airlines card also helps you get a leg up on earning American Airlines elite status. With this card you earn one Loyalty Point per dollar spent. However, you won't earn additional Loyalty Points from bonus spending categories. Although this card earns 2X miles on eligible American Airlines purchases, you'd only receive 1X Loyalty Points.

Redeeming

The best way to redeem American Airlines miles is typically for flights with American and its partner airlines. American has a long list of Oneworld alliance and non-alliance partners including:

• Aer Lingus
• Air Tahiti Nui
• Alaska Airlines
• British Airways
• Cape Air
• Cathay Pacific
• China Southern Airlines
• Etihad Airways
• Fiji Airways
• Finnair
• GOL Airlines
• Hawaiian Airlines
• Iberia
• IndiGo
• Japan Airlines
• JetSMART
• Malaysia Airlines
• Qantas
• Qatar Airways
• Royal Air Maroc
• Royal Jordanian Airlines
• Silver Airways
• SriLankan Airlines

There is no longer a fixed award chart for American Airlines flights. Instead, the miles prices are dynamic with different starting costs depending on the region and ticket class. There are still useful awards, if you can secure a lower price. One-way flights with American from North America to the Caribbean, Mexico or Central America start at 10,000 miles in economy and 20,000 miles in business class, but can cost more.

However, award flights with American's partners have fixed costs. As long as there are award seats available with the partner airline you want to travel with, you can book some amazing deals with your AAdvantage miles. For example, you could fly one-way from the continental U.S. to the Maldives in Qatar Airways Qsuite business class for 70,000 miles. If you want to stretch your miles further, off-peak one-way partner economy awards from the U.S. to Europe only cost 22,500 miles.

You can also redeem AAdvantage miles for rental cars, hotels, travel packages, Admirals Club lounge access and upgrades. However, these types of redemptions usually aren't as valuable.

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard has a variable purchase APR of 21.24%, 25.24% or 29.99% based on your creditworthiness. There is a $0 annual fee for the first year, then $99. This card has no foreign transaction fees. Late payments and returned payments are both subject to a fee of up to $40.

AAdvantage Aviator Red card vs. Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard®

The Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite Mastercard® has the same $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99, but it can be more rewarding than the AAdvantage Aviator Red card. It earns 2X miles at restaurants and gas stations — that's double what you earned on those purchases with the Aviator Red card.

For the most part, these cards share similar benefits with a few notable exceptions. Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select card members earn a $125 American Airlines Flight Discount after spending $20,000 on the card in a card membership year, instead of the companion certificate you get for spending the same amount with the Aviator Red card. While the Platinum Select's discount could be more useful for solo travelers, the Aviator Red's companion certificate is likely to save you more money, provided you have someone to use it on.

The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select card also doesn't offer the Aviator Red's 0% intro APR on balance transfers or a credit for in-flight Wi-Fi purchases.

AAdvantage Aviator Red card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Credit Card

The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card is an excellent all-around travel credit card. It comes with a healthy intro bonus, useful travel and purchase protections and earns valuable travel rewards. If you want a card that provides benefits you can apply to most travel bookings, the Chase Sapphire Preferred can be a good option.

Sapphire Preferred cardholders receive coverage for lost luggage, delayed baggage, trip delays and trip cancellations/interruptions. The Ultimate Rewards points you earn can be used to pay for flights, rental cars, hotels, cruises and more when you book through the Chase travel portal. You can also transfer Chase points to 14 airline and hotel partner travel programs.

If you expect to mostly fly with American Airlines, the Aviator Red card has benefits that can improve your experience and save you money. Otherwise, a general travel card such as the Sapphire Preferred will give you more options and has benefits that aren't tied to a single travel provider.

The AAdvantage Aviator Red card offers a lot of value for American Airlines flyers. The welcome bonus is not only valuable but also unusually easy to earn. The ongoing perks, such as free checked bags and in-flight Wi-Fi credits can make the annual fee worth it. However, if you're unsure whether you'll travel with American Airlines enough to utilize all of the Aviator Red card's perks, a more general travel card could make more sense. Also, there are better options for earning American Airlines miles from credit card spending.

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red World Elite Mastercard is a co-branded American Airlines credit card. It has a valuable welcome bonus that is far easier to qualify for than most intro offers. Anyone who travels with American Airlines is likely to find this card's ongoing benefits useful. However, you may find an airline-agnostic travel card a better choice if you don't frequently fly with American Airlines.

At CNBC Select, our mission is to provide our readers with high-quality service journalism and comprehensive consumer advice so they can make informed decisions with their money. Every airline credit card review is based on rigorous reporting by our team of expert writers and editors with extensive knowledge of credit card products. While CNBC Select earns a commission from affiliate partners on many offers and links, we create all our content without input from our commercial team or any outside third parties, and we pride ourselves on our journalistic standards and ethics. See our methodology for more information on how we choose the best credit cards.

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