Can you upgrade award ticket aa

Not all flights have seats available for systemwide upgrades. Search for flights while logged in to your account and a "systemwide upgrades" tab will appear below if the flight is eligible. Click on that tab to see which flights will accept your systemwide upgrade. A green checkmark, like the one shown above for a Charlotte-to-London nonstop flight, indicates you can use your systemwide upgrade. American also operates a program for small businesses known as Business Extra , which offers upgrade certificates as an award option.

This applies only to eligible small-business owners and their travelers. You can check to see if your company can participate online.

Holding elite status with American Airlines is the single best way to increase your chance of getting upgraded. American Airlines AAdvantage elite members can upgrade eligible purchased premium economy or main cabin tickets to the next service class business or first class on flights greater than miles within North America flights less than miles receive complimentary upgrades.

To request a mile upgrade, log in to your AAdvantage account and find your trip to check if it is complimentary, auto-requested or if you need to manually request it. Each mile upgrade is valid for a segment of your flight.

No, only current American Airlines AAdvantage elite members can use mile upgrades for flights. If you previously had status with American Airlines and have some remaining mile upgrades in your account, you will need to regain elite status before you can use the upgrades. Those who do not have status with American Airlines can upgrade their flights only when they are traveling as companions of elite members. No, mile upgrades do not expire. However, they can be used only by American Airlines AAdvantage elites.

So if you currently have status and some mile upgrades in your account, but you lose your status, you will not be able to use the upgrades until you regain your status.

The upgrades can be purchased on AA. No, elite qualifying dollars, or EQDs, are earned based on the price of a flight base fare and carrier-imposed fees; government taxes and fees are excluded on American Airlines flights and based on the distance flown and fare class on Oneworld partner airlines.

Yes, as of Aug. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of , including those best for:. Upgrade priority for American Airlines. Your AAdvantage elite status. American Airlines elite members. The type of upgrade requested. Elite qualifying dollars earned in the last 12 months. Fare class of ticket purchased. Paying for an upgrade with your AA miles. How elite members can get domestic upgrades. What if you booked a seat in basic economy?

This includes:. When you check-in online or at a kiosk, American Airlines might give you a chance to fill an empty premium cabin seat for a price. If you feel the price is fair, the upgrade is yours. But, upgrading with miles is a bit more complicated. For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. All American Airlines-marketed and operated flights — with one big exception — are eligible to upgrade with AAdvantage miles.

Note that you can only apply mileage upgrades to up to three segments in a single direction of travel. If you originally booked a flight using miles, you also have the option to upgrade to a higher class of service. American Airlines has an extensive chart on its website listing the miles and cash copay to upgrade to the next cabin of service. That means passengers can upgrade from either economy or premium economy into business class. American Airlines only operates Flagship First Class on two aircraft types, meaning there are a limited number of routes where you can upgrade from business class to first class.

In addition to the copay amount in the chart above, you may also have to pay additional taxes and carrier-imposed fees as a result of upgrading to a higher class cabin.

Related: What is American Airlines elite status worth? Value is subjective. Some travelers are fine with shelling out thousands of dollars more to fly in a lie-flat seat for an overnight flight. Other travelers are going to turn down an upgrade costing just a few hundred dollars more. This is where the value gets really subjective. However, it might be a price too high for other travelers.

Related: Choosing the best credit cards for American Airlines flyers. When upgrade space opens, American Airlines would theoretically clear the upgrade requests according to the priority order laid out above.

If you want to use this trick, you will want to use an ExpertFlyer account to set up an availability alert. If more than one elite member has applied for an upgrade, American Airlines utilizes a few tiebreakers. The final upgrade option open to all American Airlines travelers is paid upgrades. If there are unsold seats in business or first class, American Airlines may offer travelers the option to upgrade during online check-in or when checking in at a kiosk.

The cost of these upgrades is dynamic and can vary wildly from one flight to another. The newest upgrades on American Airlines are those available to Alaska elite members.

As part of a renewed partnership with Alaska, American is now offering certain Alaska Mileage Plan elite members upgrades on American Airlines flights. Starting April 5, , Alaska MVP Gold 75K elites and up to one companion get access to complimentary, space-available upgrades when flying on domestic and short-haul international American Airlines flights. This unlimited upgrade benefit is meant to emulate the mile upgrades that AAdvantage elites get when flying on the same American flights.

That essentially prioritizes them behind all AAdvantage elite members. As you can see, there are plenty of ways to get upgraded on American Airlines flights. Any AAdvantage member can use mileage upgrades or pay for a day-of-departure upgrade. AAdvantage Gold and Platinum elites will rely mostly on mile upgrade certificates, while upper-tier AAdvantage elites get unlimited upgrades on short flights and can apply systemwide upgrades to long-haul flights.

Even Alaska elites can now get upgraded on American flights. By knowing all of your upgrade options, you can make the most of your hard-earned elite upgrades and AAdvantage miles. As a digital nomad for nearly three years, JT's travels prove that credit card rewards can drastically reduce the cost of travel. She has visited over 45 countries and lived in Thailand, China, and Ireland where her son was born.

Her kids have over 20 stamps in their own passports. Her passion lies in showing families how to travel more while keeping their savings and sanity. Her guidebook, Disney World Hacks, is a bestseller on Amazon. Select Region. United States. United Kingdom. JT Genter, Dia Adams. Contributor, Editor. Editorial Note: Forbes Advisor may earn a commission on sales made from partner links on this page, but that doesn't affect our editors' opinions or evaluations. Upgrade Order Elite Level Upgrade Type 1 ConciergeKey Systemwide or mileage upgrade 2 ConciergeKey mile upgrade on purchased tickets 3 ConciergeKey mile upgrades on award tickets 4 Executive Platinum Systemwide or mileage upgrade 5 Executive Platinum mile upgrade on purchased tickets 6 Executive Platinum mile upgrades on award tickets 7 Platinum Pro Systemwide or mileage upgrade 8 Platinum Pro mile upgrade on purchased tickets 9 Platinum Systemwide or mileage upgrade 10 Platinum mile upgrade on purchased tickets 11 Gold Systemwide or mileage upgrade 12 Gold mile upgrade on purchased tickets 13 Non-elites Systemwide or mileage upgrade.

Divya Agarwal Forbes Advisor. Was this article helpful? Share your feedback. Send feedback to the editorial team. Rate this Article. Thank You for your feedback! Something went wrong. Please try again later. More from. Information provided on Forbes Advisor is for educational purposes only. Your financial situation is unique and the products and services we review may not be right for your circumstances. We do not offer financial advice, advisory or brokerage services, nor do we recommend or advise individuals or to buy or sell particular stocks or securities.