Starting August 25, 2026, domestic American Airlines flights sold with three cabins – where premium economy is a separate cabin – AAdvantage members with status will no longer receive complimentary upgrades from coach all the way to business class.
- Coach passengers will receive complimentary upgrades to premium economy, provided relevant space is available within their upgrade window.
- Premium economy passengers will receive complimentary upgrades to business class, provided relevant space is available within their upgrade window.
This currently applies to New York JFK and Boston – Los Angeles, New York JFK – San Francisco, Dallas – Honolulu/Kona/Maui, Phoenix – Honolulu, and Chicago – Honolulu/Maui.
Passengers who purchased an ‘instant upgrade’ with cash or miles from coach to premium economy are premium economy passengers still eligible for upgrades from premium economy to business class. And there are no changes to confirmed upgrades (systemwide upgrades). Those still go from coach to business class).
Already-confirmed upgrades will be honored for travel August 25 onward. So, for instance, an upgrade might clear on August 24 for travel on August 26th and that will remain intact unless your itinerary is changed. For existing trips where you’re still waiting for upgrades in the days following August 25, though, things may be a little bit messy. American Airlines warns,
On Aug. 25, 2026, we’ll begin updating existing upgrade requests from Main Cabin to reflect Premium Economy on eligible flights. It will take a few days for this update to be completed.
I think this is broadly fine, although it’s clearly less value to status members who have been jumping from coach to business class. To fly business with an upgrade you’ll need to first be in the premium economy cabin which costs more. I largely expected American to do this not just with domestic upgrades but with systemwide upgrades and for long haul international flights – about seven years ago. The airline does seem to systematically be squeezing out areas where they’ll probably missing out on revenue.
Meanwhile they are promoting several other changes which are likely to be less controversial.
- I’ve already noted the new benefit choice at 15,000 status miles to claim two inflight food and beverage coupons. Even as an Executive Platinum member this can make sense (main cabin extra gets free alcoholic beverages, and Executive Platinums receive a free buy on board snack) if only to get snacks for family – although the Citi AAdvantage Executive Card will start offering a $100 annual credit that can be sued towards this.
- They’ll also be offering a 15,000 Loyalty Point benefit option to “choose a 12-month subscription to enjoy your favorite content every day.” In other words, a merchant-funded offer that brings subscribers to a service you can opt into. Along the same lines, AAdvantage members will “get 24-hour access to FOX One when they sign up on board.” In other words, they’re selling customer eyeballs to FOX.
- Million Milers will receive “an expanded selection of exclusive gifts in addition to the rewards members already receive.” It’s not yet clear what that list includes, or whether anyone crossing a million miler threshold before this is rolled out will receive the choice. I am still rounding towards four million…
Update: American tells me, “depending on the milestone, options include Loyalty Points, gift of AAdvantage status, systemwide upgrades, AAdvantage® bonus miles and more.”
- They’ll be introducing cash and miles which will let you pay for tickets partially in miles, first on domestic U.S. flights “with more routes to come.” It’s not clear whether miles will have a fixed (low) value or whether the mileage value will be dynamic, similar to how miles value ranges from about 0.9 to 1.1 cents when redeeming for Instant Upgrades. This will almost certainly be a low value use of points.
- American Airlines Vacations currently earns the same as American tickets towards redeemable miles and status, i.e. 5 to 11 miles per dollar. That’s useful in conjunction with the new Citi Executive card’s $250 semi-annual AA Vacations credit.
What do you make of these changes? Is your take on them different than mine? The only one I’m looking forward to is getting more at million mile thresholds though it’s unclear how valuable this will be. Nonetheless, this midyear update doesn’t contain major program devaluations and at this point that’s the bar for evaluating changes to airline (and hotel) loyalty programs – the needle doesn’t move for me in either direction with respect to the value of AAdvantage. Regular transcon and Hawaii flyers may feel different.
Now, THAT a load of barnacles, and a real devaluation for elites. While the a321T is still around, those Business to First complimentary upgrades are nice; but, to remove it altogether for, say, the XLR, yikes, no bueno, bad news bears. Basically, AA status only good for OWE better lounges, and I’m sure they’ll be hacking away at that, too, soon enough.
Gary “think(s) this is broadly fine”… so, you not flying these routes, or just doin’ WFBF and/or OPM/business expense, these days?
Because anyone who takes these routes and still enjoys the occasional complimentary upgrade on AA should be absolutely livid.
Wow, the email from AA was badly communicated. I temporarily read “Premium Economy” as economy plus, i.e., Main Cabin Extra, thinking that all upgrades to Business were now just extra legroom (instead of a tweak to upgrades on a tiny percentage of flights) … One extra sentence could have clarified that and saved me some panic!
Also, gotta love the AA marketing department’s choice of euphemisms… “more choice” and “new ways to experience travel” … *proceeds to announce a major downgrade* shameless.
Serious question: Do people make flight and airline decisions based on getting upgrades anymore? I know I don’t. They never seem to materialize and in fact the CEOs essentially brag about not giving upgrades even while they try to sell their loyalty programs as providing upgrades.
Big downgrade for transcon fliers, win for nonrevs – there are lots of peaks and valleys in the transcon market that made this a nice perk.
I wonder if that guy flying JFK-LAX who posted his viral video of being singled out for a seat swap because he was a free upgrade expedited this internally.
@Thing 1 — Maybe some people ‘roll the dice,’ but, I’d say, no, most folks who take the time to spend and to earn these statuses find out quickly that the rates of success (for complimentary upgrades) are exceedingly low, especially these days, and it’s only getting worse. I’ve never reached invite-only, but over the years I have been a EP, 1K, and Diamond, each organically, and a Mosaic 3 (that was just a status-match). In my opinion, the only things that matter are when it’s a confirmed in-advance at-booking ‘upgrade,’ like a Delta RUC/GUC or Move to Mint certificate. No, SWUs and PlusPoints aren’t as good because they rarely confirm in-advance (Waitlist, nearly always). Otherwise, gotta do as Gene does (‘Want First, Buy First,’ etc.) That said, it’s still disappointing that American is getting rid of one remaining sweet spot on these transcons and Hawaii routes (and pretending it’s a ‘new way to experience travel’ when it’s just simply a devaluation.) You got any better ideas, or should I find ‘Thing 2’ and ask it?
You can still do this with Delta although I realize the chances of a free upgrade are slim. It has happened though.
To me, this sounds like them testing a new idea: “Coach to Premium Economy” as an expectation of status upgrade.
How soon that “Coach to Main Cabin Extra” is what you get?
How long until domestic first is barred from all upgrades entirely?
Things tend to go away quickly once they start, unless there is serious pushback.
I’m a pessimist about AA being Customer Focused in their choices based on past performance.
I need to find a new airline to fly with. I have been Executive Platinum for 20 years, and this is the final straw for me. Upgrades are rarely available anyway, but removing the benefit outright is extremely disappointing.
First, they stopped treating Central America as an international destination for Flagship Lounge access, and now this. Over the years, they have cut one benefit after another, and I have finally had enough.
No, thank you. I have flown more than three million miles with American Airlines, but this is where I draw the line.
@zebraitis — That’s pretty much what Delta already does. They treat Comfort+ as a separate upgrade class rather than just selectable seat map inventory. The only nuance is that Gold Medallions don’t get it at booking. Only Platinums and Diamonds select C+ gratis right after booking. Golds have to wait for the 72-hour window and Silvers wait for 24 hours. As one carrier/program does something, expect the others to follow, especially when it’s a devaluation. Soon AA/UA points will be as bad as SkyPesos, etc. (Yeah, like, 1 million points for one-way J on an empty plane from ATL to Riyadh in the heart of August during a regional conflict… what a deal… *facepalm*)
As EXP I have accepted the fact that free upgrades are a thing of the past, I don’t mind paying for the upgrade if the price is reasonable. My problem is that EXP should at least get first right of refusal on theses real cheap upgrades, That would make EXP more valuable without costing AA anything.
It’s “broadly fine” because it logically makes some degree of sense. Except… in practice my guess is folks who buy PE are less likely to be status members than folks who buy J (could be wrong about this of course). So on a plane like the XLR with 12 PE and 20 business you might have 5-10 business seats open but only have a handful of PE flyers even eligible for an upgrade. So as @Greg says – huge win for nonrevs… which doesn’t seem to be the market that AA should be going after for increased revenue.
Eventually I guess the real question is whether this leads to even more aggressive TOD-style upgrades for business in the days leading up to the flight because presumably AA would rather make something on the seat versus give it to a nonrev. And they put in such a small PE cabin so it’s harder to continue to monetize that cabin if it sells out quickly.
Oh no, @Peter. Maybe it’s the heat and humidity in the city getting to you… Stockholm Syndrome! (This is not ‘fine,’ but there’s little we can do, I guess.)
On the bright side, was booked in J for LAX-JFK on a321T, and AA swapped aircraft to XLR, keeping me in J, so I get to experience those new Flagship Suites (with doors!) later this year. Was worried they’d downgrade me from lie-flat to recliner. I guess those booked in F get downgraded to mere J, but probably less broken seats on the newer aircraft (one hopes.)
Every time AA or Delta or United does some more to make their programs less and less appealing, I lose interest in loyalty more and more. The airlines do not care about us, so I no longer have loyalty to any of them. When I fly international, I do everything to avoid Delta, United or AA.
I’ve never gotten a complementary upgrade on AA as a Plat or Plat Pro (and precious few on UA back when I was 1K), so that just sounds like noise to me. It does strike me that this is akin to what their OW partner BA does – you can buy up only one class, so you have to be in PE to upgrade to business with miles. If AA made those available the way that BA does, it might not be so bad. BA offers mileage upgrades on a lot of flights – not cheap because of the PE cost, but still a lot cheaper than buying Club World outright.
To me, the advantage of AA status is OW Emerald, with free seat selection on BA, plus the AA.com 57.5k miles business class TATL rewards on BA, which is a good deal even with $800 in fees. I just got 4 of those for later this year and one in 2027. I’d prefer saver awards on other airlines, but those can be hard to find on a lot of dates, while BA often has them through AA.
Another reason not to fly them they keep on digging their financial grave
For an airline that avers that AAdvantage is the cornerstone of American’s attempts to show value and improve things for passengers, management is sure screwing over engaged loyalty members a lot. I spend thousands of dollars a year with AA on flights and six figures on their credit cards as well as other engagements with their ecosystem. Why they seem so determined to drive me and similar members away by destroying their loyalty program is puzzling. If I drove away my most engaged, profitable, and loyal customers I’d be doing myself a huge disservice. Isom and his ilk apparently feel differently.
Make it simple, you have a choice, I have gone full free agent. I particularly avoid AA since they have screwed me over more than any other airline and the FAs are like unhinged prison guards. I just book for convenience now, no longer care about any loyalty programs even though I have elite on two of the majors.
@D Fray — You’ve mentioned before that you’re in California; if you’re in the LA area, fortunately, you can afford to be a free agent, because, like a few other markets, including NYC, we have actual well-rounded competition. I feel for those at CLT, ATL, or other fortress hubs. where if they aren’t flying AA or DL, they’re pretty screwed.
Add family pooling of miles!
AA had already announced that PE would become a separate class of service on these flights. At least for now AA isn’t going with “basic business/first.”
Airlines are moving away from catering to the $49 fare customer and as long as the premium demand is there that’s the direction. Out of 50 flights one might have an empty first/business class seat. And usually it’s on a E175 or CR9.
@George Romey — As a CK, have you received any recent complimentary upgrades, or are you mostly booking F so it doesn’t really matter to you?
@1990
Yes, I live in Ventura County north of LA, but I grew up LA adjacent and my home office is in Hollywood. Yes, LAX does offer several choices of carriers and I frequently fly out of Burbank Hollywood (Bob Hope) airport for its convenience and low stress atmosphere. Unfortunately I despise LAX with a passion and for all flights west of the Mississippi, I fly out of Burbank. But you are correct, I do have many options. As mentioned before, I have business in Atlanta over the last 3 years I spent two weeks out of the month in Atlanta and I fully understand what you mean about being locked into a hub destination… Especially like Atlanta with DL… That’s how I earned my Diamond on DL which means nothing anymore.
@D Fray — Nice! Eh, Diamond Medallion ain’t too bad. Just have to set the right expectations. Personally, I value the finite things, like GUCs, RUCs, etc., when confirmed to D1. (Did recently score some decent RUC redemptions for JFK-LAX/SNA. Really had to hunt for those, though.) I no longer care to ‘die on the waitlist’ as they say. Been burned by UA’s PlusPoints and AA’s SWUs before.
@1990
A couple years back I noticed a steep decline in the upgrade generosity and kind of quit even hoping no matter what the status at least when flying for myself. I’m spoiled, my company let’s me book F and P for domestic flights so upgrades and the like don’t really matter to me when flying for the company. I can still rail about how the airlines treat us though…
@D Fray — You’re still ‘living the dream’ in most folks’ books!
I have no status on any airline. The amount of your life that you all spend in airports and on planes to achieve these meager rewards must be staggering. Yes, you get some perks, but at what cost to your sanity?
@ Gary — My million miler counter has been 2,955,000 for 8 years and counting. Maybe AA could offer actual incentives, like PlatPro for life to 3 million milers?
@Gene — That’s so close! Get it done! Just visit Australia for a weekend or something! Bah!
@ 1990 — Any such flight would be better credited to Alaska. Still saving the trees over at American. 😉
@Arthur – largely agree with you, although I do get upgrades from time to time as an EP. But OWE is fantastic. And if you are originating elsewhere in Europe and can get a BA flight to LHR and then AA across the pond can still pay 57.5k but much, much lower fees (more in the $100 zip code than $800). Or vice versa.
@1990 – sure is humid… but awesome about the aircraft swap. I ended up in the suite because the flight time of my 321T changed enough that I could switch to an XLR flight. Really would be nice if you could get into Soho on a transcon though – especially now that Chelsea is going to be pretty much all BA once AA F goes away (other than CKs I guess – who is really buying business plus for lounge access….)
I think they should still be preserving upgrades from economy to J for CKs at a minimum. Could see it being an EP perk as well. Otherwise it’s just tons of empty seats going to nonrevs for absolutely no reason.
@Gene — Bah! Got’em! Let’s just say, you’d earn Atmos(t) 20K qualifying miles, anyway… *wink*
@Peter — (Seriously. What was up with the weather today. Felt like 100 degrees with the humidity, and almost got rained on early afternoon.) Indeed, the news on T8 is not great; I’ll miss Chelsea most (losing the transcon F). Still, Greenwich is alright. Soho does have the better food, usually. We’ll live. However, “tons of empty seats going to nonrevs for absolutely no reason.” Grrr, that’s very frustrating.
We make two flights a year to Central America, so AA is really the only choice flying out of Tampa. We generally have Gold Status due to our credit card (this year we hit Platinum for the first time). So we are not air warriors by any stretch. I book coach, usually at 9k-12k each way. For the last five years, we have always been upgraded to business. These flights tend to be on 737’s, so no lie-flat or anything. The main value is the luggage allowance – two 70-lb bags each vs one 50-lb bag in economy. Honestly, we would skip the upgraded seats just to have the luggage allowance. How will this affect us? I guess we’ll just need to see. I expected AA to cut back at some point; it just makes business sense.
The tell isn’t the upgrade table, it’s what this does inside managed travel programs. Corporate air policy increasingly runs on a duration ladder rather than a dollar cap: coach on shorter sectors, Premium Economy once a flight crosses a defined threshold, lie-flat only under tighter conditions. A complimentary two-cabin jump let a fully policy-compliant Main Cabin purchase produce a lie-flat outcome without the traveler or the employer ever revealing what they were actually willing to pay for the cabin in between. Rebuilding the ladder changes that. Some of those passengers now have to buy into paid Premium Economy inventory to stay eligible for the next step, which can clear a Concur or Navan policy engine without an exception and converts part of the former upgrade value into premium-cabin revenue. More durable than another leisure sell-up offer.
And there’s a second-order revenue management benefit. A complimentary clearance into Business records no revealed willingness to pay for the cabin below it. A paid Premium Economy decision does. These domestic three-cabin markets become a reasonably clean place to collect that signal as the XLR pushes further into long-thin international flying, where the cabin has to stand on its own. Probably not the driving reason, but a useful consequence of setting the rules now rather than revisiting them as the network grows.
Also worth noting: the rule keys off how the cabin is sold and marketed, not the physical seat. Where comparable recliners are sold domestically as Main Cabin Extra, the ladder doesn’t change, because there’s no separately merchandised cabin to ladder through. That designation is far easier to revisit than the aircraft. Watch how AA chooses to market those seats, not just which routes are on today’s list. This should be interesting.
If you haven’t been on a US to Europe flight this summer then you might not realize how popular Premium Economy is, especially if the passenger needs to make a last minute change on the ticket. My recent experience, AUS-DUS-LUX-AUS…PE $2300, Business $7200. With that price differential it makes little $$$ sense to go J for a 9 hour flight.
@One Trippe — Besides, even in the ‘golden age’ of commercial jet aviation, Pan Am only ever had recliners, anyway, right, One Trippe…? (Ignore the bunk beds on the Boeing 314 flying boats, and, no, a Sleeperette is more akin to a recliner with a stool in front.)
@ 1990. Used to do the ORD-DEL with no lie-flats on CR Smith. BTW, Bob6 was a choice but 1Trippe was my first since some ID’s don’t accept numerics in names
Most have said what I believe, I am disappointed in this additional change. Don’t mess with my international upgrades anymore. I used to be able to pay and use points for International upgrades, now I need to earn system wide upgrades, that that away in the future and there is no reason to earn the status for me.
Wow – Just when I was really getting used to being an AA elite status member, they pull the rug out from the program. Guess, I’ll move back over to UA or DL. Sure seems like the government shuttering Spirit merger really got the major airlines to squeeze their loyalty customers even more. SAD.