In 2022, American Airlines announced changes in how you could qualify for AAdvantage status such as AAdvantage Gold and Platinum. They introduced Loyalty Points and the interesting part was that you could earn them through spending on your credit card, the AAdvantage e-shopping portal, etc.

These changes were mainly due to the pandemic: AAdvantage had high thresholds for many of its levels, but there was a significant reduction of flights (and people traveling) thanks to the COVID travel restrictions.

I’ve been using the AAdvantage e-shopping portal for many years now, especially for some offers like Booking.com and Marriott. Sometimes they have 4x or 5x multipliers that help rack up AAdvantage miles quickly.

Through my spending, I got a total of 47,245 loyalty points which were enough to qualify for AAdvantage Gold. I was 27k points short of Platinum.

A few weeks days after the loyalty points were posted to my account, I got an email welcoming me to the Gold status:

Welcome email to AAdvantage Gold status (2023)

Recently, AAdvantage also announced new program changes starting in March 2023. Read the full email below.

AAdvantage program changes in 2023

As an AAdvantage^® member, you can unlock all we offer to make travel better. And soon you’ll have access to even more — before, between and beyond status.

Starting in March 2023, enjoy new ways to earn rewards, redeem miles and reach your travel goals with the AAdvantage^® program. You’ll experience more rewards even before reaching status – and more often after you do. Plus, you can choose the rewards that matter to you and design your perfect experience.

More Rewards

You’ll be rewarded earlier and more often with Loyalty Point Rewards. As a reminder, you earn 1 Loyalty Point for every eligible AAdvantage^® mile earned when you fly, use an AAdvantage^® credit card for purchases or engage with AAdvantage^® partners. The more Loyalty Points you earn, the more Loyalty Point Rewards you’ll unlock. 

Loyalty Point Rewards

Earn rewards before reaching status
Unlock more rewards between each status tier
Continue earning Loyalty Points to enjoy more rewards even after reaching top-tier status

Exclusive cardmember benefits: Choose from exclusive rewards at select Loyalty Point Reward levels when you become an AAdvantage^® credit cardmember

More Simplicity

No more flight segment requirements: Unlocking rewards is simpler than ever – just earn Loyalty Points

Say goodbye to the 75,000-mile maximum: There will be no limit to the miles you can earn on a single ticket

More Access

Maximize your status with our partners: Enhance your full travel experience: Earn more travel benefits and multiply your Loyalty Points to reach higher AAdvantage^® status faster with select travel partners

Save on vacation packages: Starting March 1, 2023, AAdvantage^® members will have exclusive access to travel deals through American Airlines Vacation

Updates to AAdvantage Gold^® status, Basic Economy and award travel
Starting in March 2023, AAdvantage Gold^® can be reached by earning 40,000 Loyalty Points. Basic Economy tickets issued on or after January 1, 2023 for travel on or after March 1, 2023 will earn miles at a rate of 2 miles per dollar. Status members will continue to earn a mileage bonus on top of these base miles. Also in 2023, award travel on American will become fully dynamic with a new, simplified award chart.

AAdvantage in 2023: Wrap up

With the introduction of the AAdvantage Loyalty Points in 2022, I managed to use the AAdvantage e-shopping portal to qualify for AAdvantage Gold. Starting in March 2023, AAdvantage will introducte new changes to simplify the program and make the qualification easier. Some of these changes are exciting to me, as I can try to qualify for higher tiers of the program, considering that I look forward to travel a lot to the US. However, many frequent flyers argue that these changes dilute the value of the program, making the higher levels less exclusive.