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The Daily Insight Hub

Do AA miles expire with credit card?

Author

William Jenkins

Updated on February 03, 2026

Do American Airlines miles expire? Yeah, after 18 months of inactivity — but there is no reason for this to happen. Of course, the easiest way to earn miles and keep them from expiring is to use an American Airlines credit card, like the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®.

Can AA miles be refunded?

If your plans change and you no longer wish to travel, you can cancel your trip anytime on aa.com. We’ll reinstate your miles and refund eligible taxes and fees up to 1 year after the ticket issue date, but you have to cancel your trip before the first flight departs. There is no fee to reinstate your miles.

Do AA miles expire?

Just earn or redeem miles on American or with an AAdvantage partner at least once every 18 months. We’ll automatically extend your mileage expiration date 18 months from the date of your most recent activity. Your wallet shows the number of miles you have and the earliest date they could expire.

Can I redeem AA miles for merchandise?

Yes, you can redeem American Airlines miles for gift cards for a wide variety of merchants for both online purchases and in-person shopping. Points.com is a loyalty wallet site that allows you to trade your miles and reward points for merchant gift cards.

Do credit card miles expire?

Miles earned with airline credit cards Miles do not expire. Points don’t expire as long as you have flight-earning or partner-earning activity at least once every 24 months. If you have a co-branded airline credit card, your rewards miles are deposited directly into your frequent flyer account.

How many miles do I need for a free flight American Airlines?

7,500 miles
You need at least 7,500 miles for a free flight on American Airlines. You can redeem 7,500 AAdvantage miles for a free one-way domestic MileSAAver award flight of up to 500 miles in distance. For a domestic flight longer than 500 miles, you’ll need 20,000-30,000 award miles.

What happens if you cancel a non-refundable flight?

Non–refundable fares must be cancelled prior to scheduled departure time. If trying to refund the non-refundable ticket prior to flight departure, the guest will receive a credit in the value of the refund minus any change fee.

What happens if I cancel a non-refundable flight on American Airlines?

What happens if you cancel a non-refundable American flight? To cancel a non-refundable ticket you will be required to pay between $200 and $750 depending on the length of the flight, location, and type of fare. The remaining fare will be given to you as an eVoucher for future use on an American flight.

Can I transfer my AA miles to someone else?

You can gift American Airlines miles, but expect a $35 transaction processing fee. You can buy up to 150,000 miles each calendar year to gift to your friends. Also, if you buy your miles with an American Airlines credit card, you can earn 2x bonus points for your account.

How much are AA miles worth in dollars?

American Airlines AAdvantage miles are worth 1.4 cents each, according to the average of the routes where we compared the price in cash to the cost of a ticket in miles.

What happens to my credit card when I return a purchase?

Here’s the quick version of what happens with your credit card when you make a return: The retailer issues a refund to your credit card account. A credit for the refunded purchase will appear in your credit card transactions, usually up to one week later. Cash back or points earned on the purchase are reversed.

How to recover points and miles if you cancel your trip?

The only sure way to get your points and miles back if you have to cancel your trip is to pay attention to airline and hotel cancellation policies and follow them as closely as you can — knowing there’s a chance you might have to incur a cash penalty to retrieve your miles.

What happens to my rewards when I return something?

Once the return is recorded, the points will be deducted from your account. If that were not the case, people could go out and make purchases just to rack up rewards, then return everything having made no real charges but rewarded with piles of points from the card issuer.

How long does it take for a credit card refund to reflect?

Cool? A refund usually takes about 7 to 14 working days to reflect. Users can cancel any Credit Card transaction for any purchase online or in brick-and-mortar stores. There are two options to cancel the transaction.