Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard Review

Who is the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard for?

The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard is for the avid traveler who wants to earn rewards on all of their travel-related purchases. Cardholders get double miles on American Airlines purchases and 1x miles on all other purchases. Also, the card comes with double miles on expenditures at restaurants and gas stations. On top of all that, you get a $125 American Airlines flight discount after you spend $20,000 or more in purchases during your card membership year and renew your card. 

Including all of those rewards you can get 50,000 miles if you make $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months of account opening. The miles system is user-friendly and can be used on many travel-related purchases. The signup bonus allows you to get rewards soon after you open up your account to make your flights and vacations cheaper. 

Cardholders also get a number of security and travel benefits with this card. It can help make your travel experience cheaper and also more comfortable when you use the Platinum Select Mastercard. Also, with no foreign transaction fee, this card is perfect if you love to travel overseas. 

Signup Bonus

There is potential for a large signup bonus when you apply for this card and open an account. You can earn 50,000 American Airlines bonus miles if you make $2,500 in purchases within the first 3 months of opening the account. These points can be redeemed for American Airline flights or other travel-related purchases. This can quickly make your vacation much cheaper. 

Rewards 

This card comes with a lot of rewards that help you earn miles on almost any purchase. First, you earn double miles on eligible American Airlines purchases, and you can even earn 1x miles for every $1 spent on other purchases. Even if you do not use American Airlines you can still earn rewards almost anywhere. Second, cardholders can get double miles for every $1 spent at qualifying restaurants. When you are traveling you are more likely to eat at a restaurant so you can earn points through everyday purchases. Finally, you can earn double miles for every $1 spent at gas stations. This card will cover your domestic and international travel with the points on airlines and gas stations. This card helps any type of traveler earn points.

Additionally, You can earn a $125 American Airlines Flight Discount after you spend $20,000 or more in purchases during your card membership year and renew your card. Initially, that may seem like a lot of money to spend but that is taking into account all purchases. If you use this card for a majority of your purchases it may be easy to get to $20,000 and get an even further discount on American Airlines flights. 

Your AAdvantage miles can be used for many travel-related purchases. You can use your miles for flights on American Airlines, American Eagle, any Oneworld airline, or any partner airline to nearly 1,000 destinations worldwide. Also, you can get flight upgrades to the next cabin on most domestic and international flights on American Airlines, British Airways, and Iberia. Finally, you can redeem them on car rentals, hotels, activities, and tours. There are many ways to make your traveling cheaper through this card, which can benefit anyone from the avid traveler to the occasional vacationer. 

Benefits

The first checked bag is free on domestic American Airlines itineraries for you and up to four companions traveling with you on the same reservation. This can be really helpful if your family has a lot of luggage and you need to save some money on checked bags. Second, you can enjoy preferred boarding on other airlines. These benefits can help you have a stress-free and cheap travel experience. Also, you can receive 25% savings on eligible in-flight food and beverage purchases when you use your card on American Airlines flights. 

The only drawback to these benefits and rewards programs is the dependence on American Airlines flights and other related products. If you do not use American Airlines a lot or do not prefer it this card may not be for you, as you are losing out on many of the benefits that you could get. 

Another major benefit with this Citi card and all other Citi cards is their Citi Entertainment feature. You get special access to purchase tickets to many events, including presale tickets and exclusive experiences for anticipated concerts, sporting events, dining experiences, and more. This unique feature lets you get access to all the events you would ever want to go to and nicely compliments the travel rewards you receive. 

Services and Features

The first feature that Citi provides is its Digital Wallets feature. Digital Wallets let you shop online anywhere and it can speed you through checkout at many retailers. It lets you keep your information secure and a quick way to pay for anything. This feature helps keep all of your sensitive information safe as long as there is a digital pay point such as Apple Pay wherever you are. 

This is also the same with contactless pay. You can shop safely by tapping your card at payment readers and go in seconds. Both of these features emphasize the importance of security when discussing credit card information. 

Rates and Fees

The purchase and balance transfer APR are both variable rates between 15.99% and 24.99%. It is important to pay attention to your interest rates on large purchases because these rates can get higher than normal. However, if you have a good credit score then the APR would be relatively low and then you can reap all the benefits of this card with paying a high interest rate. Also, there is a 25.24% APR for cash advances so it is important to pay attention to the rate you are paying on all of your purchases. Finally, make sure you do not make any late payments because there is a 29.99% penalty APR.

This card also has some fees associated with it. For balance transfers it is 3% for each transfer with a minimum of $5. Also, for cash advances it is 5% for each cash advance with a $10 minimum. It is important to review how you are transferring balances from card to card because you do not want to keep paying fees. You can avoid these fees as long as you pay attention to how you are moving money between credit card accounts. There is also up to $40 in fees for both late payments and bounced payments. It is crucial that you do not have late payments because that can really increase the amount you have to pay in interest and fees.

There is also an annual fee of $99 but it is waived for the first 12 months. You have to consider as a customer whether it is worth spending that money every year to get these rewards. If you are getting more rewards than you are spending in fees then it is definitely a card to consider. 

What is really beneficial is that there is no foreign purchase transaction fee. With a travel card such as this you can earn miles no matter where in the world you are. You don’t have to track how you are spending money on vacation and you can rack up miles without anything coming from your pocket. 

Conclusion

The Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select Mastercard is ideal for someone who travels a lot or uses American Airlines frequently. The card comes with many rewards including 2x miles on restaurants, gas stations, and American Airlines purchases. It also comes with a generous signup bonus if you satisfy the conditions. There is no foreign transaction fee so you can earn miles wherever in the world you are. However, there is a penalty APR and an annual fee so if you are willing to closely keep track of your payments and pay the annual fee this card is perfect for the avid traveler who needs a reliable credit card.