American Airlines Raises Admirals Club Membership As High As $1,400 — Pushing Flyers Toward Citi Card

Along with raising the annual fee of the Citi AAdvantage Executive Card, which comes with American Airlines Admirals Club membership, American is raising the membership cost of the lounges as well. They’re adding lounges and the lounges are getting better, so they can raise prices along the lines of what Delta and United charge By widening the gap between the card’s cost and a paid membership, the card becomes a much better deal And they really want customers to take the card, because it’s highly profitable for both American and Citibank New, Higher Membership Fees For Admirals Clubs American Airlines is raising lounge membership prices – by quite a lot. Think of them as pushing hard on card acquisition. They don’t want you to buy a membership, they want you to be a Citi Executive cardmember. The current lounge wifi password is citiexeccard for a reason. There will be two levels of membership, a full membership that includes guests and access to other airline lounges and a ‘single’ membership that is Admirals Clubs only with no guests included. They are dropping ‘household’ memberships, which is really double the price of a solo membership and creates complications (such as when a member gets divorced). Current pricing runs $700 – $800 for a standard membership. New pricing will be: Single membership: $750 or 75,000 miles Full membership: General member: $1,400 or 140,000 miles AAdvantage Gold: $1,350 or 135,000 miles AAdvantage Platinum: $1,300 or 130,000 miles AAdvantage Platinum Pro: $1,250 or 125,000 miles Executive Platinum: $1,200 or 120,000 miles ConciergeKey: continues to receive complimentary membership Denver Admirals Club Current members can renew before October 3, 2026 to keep the current lower prices for another year – the new pricing going into effect August 23 applies to new members. Anyone can purchase a new membership at current pricing before the increase up until that date. When considering just the single membership I’d flag that if you want to bring in guests, you can buy them a day pass for $79 (each) which could work out to be a better deal than prepaying for guests with the higher membership (that also comes with access to Alaska and other lounges), but day passes aren’t always accepted at all lounges. In fact, I frequently see signs up turning those away – though you should still ask because often they just forget or do not bother to take down the sign. American’s Admirals Club Access Policy Remains Better Than Delta’s While I don’t like to see price increases, and while I prefer American’s new design aesthetic over competitors, I do think that overall Delta’s lounges are better than the average American club. So I don’t like to see prices going up this much. However, American does not impose a limit on access 3 hours prior to flight, like Delta does They do not ban club members from entering the lounge when flying on a basic economy ticket, like Delta does They don’t limit the number of visits their premium lounge card offers, like the Delta Reserve Amex does That said, these rates are really a strong incentive to get the Citi Executive Card. Anyone eligible who wants Admirals Club membership should consider that. DFW A Terminal Admirals Club American Is Investing In Its Clubs Again The new lounge aesthetic debuted at Washington National airport on the E concourse four years ago, and was followed by Denver, Newark and Philadelphia A-West. Washington National D is being renovated and new lounges are coming at Chicago O’Hare L; Charlotte; Dallas Fort Worth C (and a Provisions in F); New York JFK (Provisions); Miami (D30); Austin and Nashville and they promise “more to come.” The food in Admirals Clubs has gotten better, too. It’s not just a guacamole station anymore. It still lags what Delta offers, but it’s a real improvement over where things were. Of course, a major reason for lounge access is live agent help during irregular operations. The agents in my home club in Austin are just phenomenal. They recognize regulars by name walking in the door, and they work magic with itineraries with an unmatched conscientiousness – I’ve landed off of delayed flight at a hub only to find that itinerary was improved while I was in the air. Staff at the Austin Club are Great – But The New Lounge Can’t Come Soon Enough Other Ways To Get Lounge Access Not everyone is eligible for the premium Citibank card, of course. American is a global airline and it’s not available to non-U.S. customers! Expat professionals in the United States may have strong incomes but not get approved for the card. Not everyone is willing to take a new credit card, for a variety of even non-Dave Ramsey reasons. In that case, consider an Alaska Airlines ‘Plus’ lounge membership at $795 per year which includes access to American Airlines Admirals Clubs when flying on American and other oneworld airline itineraries. That’s a better deal than paying for a full Admirals Club membership and still gets you access to Admirals Clubs. An Admirals Club membership can be claimed as a Loyalty Choice Reward. Personally, I’ve been using status matched Royal Jordanian status for access to American’s business class Flagship lounges even when flying domestically. But for most heavy U.S. American Airlines flyers, the card is the logical path. Topics on this page