The Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® is packed with travel benefits to make up for its annual fee of $595. Big spenders will also find themselves on the fast-track to elite status thanks to the card being part of American Airline’s suite of co-branded credit cards.
MoneyGeek’s Take
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® Review
Updated: June 11, 2024
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Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
Rewards Rate
Earn 4x AAdvantage® miles for every $1 spent on el...APR
21.24% - 29.99% variableAnnual Fee
$595Recommended Credit
670-850 (Good to Excellent)Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® Overview
The Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® benefits grant frequent flyers an added level of comfort. Review exactly what this card has to offer below.
- Rewards rate: Earn 10 AAdvantage® miles on eligible car rentals booked through aa.com/cars, 10 AAdvantage® miles on eligible hotels booked through aa.com/hotels, 4 AAdvantage® miles per $1 on eligible American Airlines purchases; 1 mile per $1 on all other spending
- Welcome offer: Earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $7,000 within the first three months
- Regular APR: 21.24% to 29.99% (variable)
- Annual fee: $595
- Intro APR offer: None
Important Card Details
The high annual fee of the Citi AAdvantage Executive World Elite Mastercard is something that requires considerable evaluation. Take a look at all the details that come with owning this card.
High Annual Fee
This card's annual fee of $595 is no small change, but if you're in it for the travel perks then this card may just be worth it. The value of the Admirals Club membership alone, which gives you access to 50 American Airlines' Admirals Club lounges across the globe, is worth more than the cost of the annual fee.
Valuable Sign-Up Bonus
You can earn a bonus of 70,000 AAdvantage® miles after spending $7,000 in the first three months. While not the highest welcome offer seen for this card, this still has a value of around $1000, which should be enough to cover a domestic round-trip flight.
Elite Travel Benefits
One of the biggest draws of this card is its complimentary Admirals Club membership, worth $650. This gives access for you, your immediate family and up to two others traveling with you to any of 50 Admirals Club lounges worldwide. You'll also get a credit of up to $100 toward a Global Entry of TSAPreCheck application, so if you're a frequent traveler you'll be able to get through security faster and spend more time enjoying a luxury lounge experience.
Standard Earning Rate
The rewards earning potential is pretty limited for this card as it offers 4 miles on American Airlines purchases and only 1 mile for all other spending. This is great for AA loyalists who fly a lot, but you won't get much ongoing value from this card if you don't fit that bill.
How the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard® Compares To Other Cards
Compared to other travel rewards credit cards, the Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®’s benefits are lacking. It can be helpful to evaluate the card against a similar option to determine if it’s right for you.
How This Card Compares
Citi® / AAdvantage® Executive World Elite Mastercard®
- Rewards rate: Earn 10 AAdvantage® miles on eligible car rentals booked through aa.com/cars, 10 AAdvantage® miles on eligible hotels booked through aa.com/hotels, 4 AAdvantage® miles per $1 on eligible American Airlines purchases; 1 mile per $1 on all other spending
- Welcome offer: Earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $7,000 within the first three months
- Regular APR: 21.24% to 29.99% (variable)
- Annual fee: $595
- Intro APR offer: None
- Best for: access to Admirals Club
American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp®
- Rewards rate: 2X miles on grocery store purchases and eligible American Airlines purchases; 1X miles on everything else
- Welcome offer: Earn 15,000 bonus miles after spending $500 within the first three months
- Regular APR: 21.24% to 29.99% (variable)
- Annual fee: $0
- Intro APR offer: None
- Best for: additional earning for infrequent flyers
About Doug Milnes, CFA
Doug Milnes is a CFA charter holder with over 10 years of experience in corporate finance and the Head of Credit Cards at MoneyGeek. Formerly, he performed valuations for Duff and Phelps and financial planning and analysis for various companies. His analysis has been cited by U.S. News and World Report, The Hill, the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times and many other outlets.
Milnes holds a master’s degree in data science from Northwestern University. He geeks out on helping people feel on top of their credit card use, from managing debt to optimizing rewards.
*Rates, fees or bonuses may vary or include specific stipulations. The content on this page is accurate as of the posting/last updated date; however, some of the offers mentioned may have expired. We recommend visiting the card issuer’s website for the most up-to-date information available.
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Editorial Disclosure: Opinions, reviews, analyses and recommendations are the author’s alone and have not been reviewed, endorsed or approved by any bank, credit card issuer, hotel, airline, or other entity. Learn more about our editorial policies and expert editorial team.
Advertiser Disclosure: MoneyGeek has partnered with CardRatings.com and CreditCards.com for our coverage of credit card products. MoneyGeek, CardRatings and CreditCards.com may receive a commission from card issuers. To ensure thorough comparisons and reviews, MoneyGeek features products from both paid partners and unaffiliated card issuers that are not paid partners.