Why small businesses that use American AAdvantage need a cobranded business card

The AAdvantage Business program is designed to let businesses earn American Airlines miles on employee travel while rewarding employees with additional Loyalty Points. However, to fully participate in the program, businesses usually need to maintain $5,000 in eligible program-flown revenue and have at least five registered and active business travelers.
Many small businesses find these requirements infeasible given their company’s size. Luckily, businesses can bypass these requirements if an authorized representative for the business is a cardholder of an eligible AAdvantage Business cobranded card, such as the Citi® / AAdvantage Business™ World Elite Mastercard® (see rates and fees ).
So, here’s how and why your small business might want to get an AAdvantage Business card.
How does the AAdvantage Business program work?
Through the AAdvantage Business program, your business earns 1 mile per dollar, and travelers earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar on eligible flights purchased through American-owned channels (including aa.com, American Airlines Reservations and the American app). As a reminder, miles are redeemable toward flights, while Loyalty Points are the metric through which you can earn elite status with American Airlines .
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These earnings are on top of what the traveler’s already earning through the American AAdvantage program. So, the traveler usually won’t lose any earnings by becoming a traveler for their company’s AAdvantage Business account. One exception is travelers who work for multiple businesses with AAdvantage Business accounts, as the AAdvantage Business terms and conditions prohibit individuals from being registered as a traveler for more than one business, even if the traveler is an employee or contractor for multiple businesses.
A business can earn and hold AAdvantage miles but can’t redeem miles. Instead, businesses can transfer miles to the AAdvantage accounts of business travelers or travel managers, who can redeem the miles as usual.
Related: Best uses of American Airlines AAdvantage miles
How small businesses benefit from an AAdvantage Business card
Businesses must typically meet both of the following requirements to fully participate in the AAdvantage Business program:

$5,000 in eligible program-flown revenue over the last 12 months
Five business travelers who have taken at least one flight over the last 12 months

If a business doesn’t meet these requirements, travelers won’t earn extra Loyalty Points through the AAdvantage Business program, and the business can’t transfer miles to individuals. However, small businesses can bypass these requirements if an authorized representative has an eligible AAdvantage Business cobranded card like the Citi/ AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard .
So, even if you are a sole proprietor and you spend well under $5,000 on business-related flights each year, you could get the Citi / AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard and earn extra miles and Loyalty Points through the AAdvantage Business program when you travel for business reasons.
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Likewise, a partnership with two employees who travel frequently to job sites might meet the requirement of $5,000 in eligible program-flown revenue but not the requirement of five travelers. However, an authorized representative from the partnership could get the Citi / AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard — perhaps even adding other employees as authorized users — and then the business and travelers could benefit from the AAdvantage Business program when traveling for work.
In short, an eligible AAdvantage Business cobranded card like the Citi / AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard has become critical for small businesses that would otherwise not meet one or both standard requirements for the AAdvantage Business program. Check out our review of the Citi / AAdvantage Business  World Elite Mastercard for more information about this card.
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Bottom line
Many small businesses likely struggle to meet the spending or traveler requirements for the AAdvantage Business program. Luckily, businesses don’t need to meet the standard requirements if an authorized representative is a Citi / AAdvantage Business World Elite Mastercard cardholder.
Related reading:

Best business credit cards
Best credit cards for American Airlines flyers
How to earn miles in the American Airlines AAdvantage program
9 reasons to get a business credit card
Do I need a business to get a business credit card?