American Airlines will soon let customers book flights using a combination of cash and AAdvantage miles.

Airline loyalty programs are highly profitable, and carriers are constantly looking for ways to make them more appealing.

United Airlines, Delta Air Lines and other carriers already offer cash plus miles mixed payment options.

On May 1, 2026, several American Airlines planes were parked at gates at New York's LaGuardia Airport.

American Airlines Group Inc (NASDAQ: AAL) will join a host of its peers in opening up a mixed cash-and-miles ticket purchasing model to travelers, the carrier's latest change aimed at expanding its lucrative customer loyalty program.

American Airlines said travelers will see a slider on the checkout page that lets them combine AAdvantage member miles with cash to pay for tickets. The feature is particularly useful for users who do not have enough miles to redeem a full ticket but want to use miles to offset part of the fare.

American Airlines' main competitors, including United Airlines Holdings Inc (NASDAQ: UAL) and Delta Air Lines Inc (NYSE: DAL), along with other carriers, have long supported paying for flights with a mix of frequent flyer miles and cash. For example, in the first week of November, a one-way United Airlines ticket from New Jersey's Newark Liberty International Airport to Paris offered three options: spending 40,000 MileagePlus miles plus $5.60 in taxes; paying the full cash price of $428.50; or paying $369 in cash plus 6,000 miles.

With the slider tool American Airlines will roll out in the coming days, travelers can choose to spend more miles in exchange for a larger fare discount. Major airlines are engaged in fierce competition for high-spending travelers, with the battlefield extending to brand-new airport lounges, upgraded premium cabins and status match campaigns, and American Airlines' updated tool is a move in that broader context.