How to Change an American Airlines Award Flight Online

Plans change. And so does award pricing, for that matter.

If you’ve booked a flight with American Airlines AAdvantage miles, you don’t necessarily need to call to change it. Most award trips can be changed online, whether you need a different flight or happen to stumble across a cheaper option after booking.

There are no change fees, although you’ll pay any increase in miles or taxes. And if the new award happens to cost less, you’ll get the difference back.

Here’s how it works.

How to Change an American Airlines Award Flight Online

Changing an American Airlines award flight online is quick and easy.

Start by signing in to your AAdvantage account and opening the reservation you want to change. If you aren’t signed in, you can also find the trip using your six-character confirmation code.

From the reservation page, select “Change trip.”

American will ask which flight you want to change. Select the applicable flight and confirm that you want to make a change.

On the next screen, you can change any of three things:

• Origin
• Destination
• Date

You don’t have to change all three. If you just want to look for another flight on the same route and date, leave the existing information in place and continue.

American will search for new options much like it would if you were booking a new award ticket. The difference is that it knows what you’ve already paid.

At the top of the results, you’ll see your previous trip value, previous tax value, and available AAdvantage miles. The results below show how much more each new itinerary would cost compared with your existing award.

For example, this trip from Wilmington (ILM) to Porto (OPO) was originally booked for 21,000 AAdvantage miles plus $5.60.

Changing the departure to March 31 would cost another 21,500 miles, while March 28, 29, and 30 show some itineraries with no additional miles required.

Once you’ve found the itinerary you want, select the fare and continue to the confirmation screen. You’ll see any additional miles and taxes due before completing the change. If the new award costs less, you’ll get miles back instead.

The process in the American Airlines app is nearly identical.

What Happens to Your Miles When You Change an Award?

There’s a little more happening behind the scenes than the change screen suggests.

American says it reinstates the miles from the original trip to the AAdvantage account they came from. It then deducts the miles required for the replacement award from that same account, even when the new award costs the same amount.

American also says to allow up to 72 hours for a mileage reinstatement to process. Your AAdvantage balance will update once the reinstatement is complete.

Taxes are settled as part of the change as well. If the new itinerary requires additional taxes, you’ll pay the difference. If you’re owed a refund, American sends it back to the credit card used for the original booking.

After the change is complete, American sends a confirmation email with the new itinerary and ticket number.

Changing Can Be Easier Than Canceling and Rebooking

The online change option is also worth knowing about when you find something better after booking.

American dynamically prices awards on its own flights, so the mileage price can change as the cash fares fluctuate. Most partner awards work differently, although American uses variable pricing for awards on a small number of partners.

If the price drops, you don’t necessarily need to cancel the original award and start over. An online change keeps you within the existing reservation and shows what the new option costs compared with what you’ve already paid. If the replacement costs fewer miles, you’ll get the difference back.

You can do the same thing if a different flight, date, origin, or destination becomes a better option.

More on This: How to Use Points Price Alerts

Not Every Award Can Be Changed Online

American describes online changes as available for “eligible” trips, so you won’t necessarily see the option on every reservation.

American directs travelers to its reservations center for certain awards, including trips that have already started and some itineraries involving partner airlines. Trips affected by circumstances outside your control may also require assistance.

But if your reservation is eligible, you’ll see “Change trip” on the reservation page. From there, you can see what the alternatives cost before confirming anything.

So before canceling an award or calling American, check the reservation online. The change you want to make may only take a few minutes.