August 23, 2023
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United MileagePlus is worth it for travelers who fly United or partner airlines even infrequently. The airline loyalty program is free to join, and you can start earning valuable miles on day one.
With the wide reach of United, MileagePlus members have an array of ways to redeem United miles for free flights. United flies to more than 210 U.S. and 120 international destinations and has more than 35 partner airlines. This flexibility and the rich program perks make membership very rewarding.
You can get free flights, as well as benefits ranging from complimentary checked bags to club lounge access and upgrades that could make your travel a whole lot more enjoyable.
So you may want to consider joining the United MileagePlus frequent flyer program and booking a ticket with United before you jet off on your next business trip or vacation.
United MileagePlus is the frequent flyer program for United Airlines, which is a member of Star Alliance. The United frequent flyer program is known for its wide range of award travel destinations, excellent economy award availability and a variety of ways to earn and redeem miles. United Airlines operates out of eight hubs and serves dozens of countries around the world.
There are four levels of elite status you can reach to earn more miles per dollar spent on United flights to get various perks when you fly. These benefits, available at different status levels, include:
| United MileagePlus quick facts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Airline lounges | Over 45 United Club locations, plus access to participating Star Alliance lounges | |
| Countries served | 48 | |
| Hub airports (U.S.) |
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| Airline alliance | Star Alliance | |
| Number of miles needed for a free flight | Around 5,500 miles and up | |
| United miles value | 1.3 cents | |
| Pros |
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| Cons |
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United Airlines miles value is lower than many other airlines. United miles are worth about 1.2 cents per mile, coming in above American but below three other popular airlines in our valuations.
United miles are more valuable than American Airlines miles (1 cent), but are worth less than miles or points from three other top U.S. airlines: Delta (1.3 cents) and Southwest Airlines (1.5 cents) and JetBlue (1.6 cents).
Ultimately, though, your choice of a frequent flyer program will also depend on factors beyond just the value of the miles, such as where you live, where you fly and the value of elite status perks.
First, take a look at the United Airlines miles value. We peg the value of United miles at around 1.2 cents per mile — so if a fare is worth around 1.2 cents per mile, then it’s likely worth it to use miles. To calculate the value of United miles, use this simple equation:
Cash price (minus taxes and fees) / Number of miles needed for fare = Miles value for that specific fare
Even though award ticket prices are often higher than what other programs charge, United MileagePlus does have a leg up: United does not levy fuel surcharges. United has never charged these fees on their own awards; however, many other partner airlines do, to the tune of hundreds of dollars. (For example, Air Canada Aeroplan charges just 55,000 miles for business class flights between the U.S. and western Europe on partner Lufthansa, but these often require $500 or more in fuel surcharges for a one-way flight.)
United does not pass these charges along, meaning, for some of United’s partner airlines, you can save significant money by booking an award flight on these airlines through United’s Star Alliance and MileagePlus airline partners.
The United MileagePlus program is worth joining if you fly with United or its Star Alliance partners even occasionally, especially if you live in or near a United hub. And it’s definitely worth it for any United frequent flyer.
It’s free to join MileagePlus, and you can begin earning miles as soon as you sign up.
But should you try to earn United elite status? The value of United MileagePlus elite status depends on your travel habits and the level of status you can reach. MileagePlus offers little value for infrequent flyers — but it does offer excellent value for frequent and very frequent travelers.
For example, we’ve crunched the numbers and determined that you’d probably be better off getting a United credit card than trying to attain Silver status since a card allows you to more easily and cheaply get many of the same perks such as a free checked bag.
However, it is worthwhile to get United Premier Gold, United Premier Platinum and United Premier Platinum 1K status. These levels of status are packed with value, including additional free checked bags, free same-day flight changes, upgrades and access to discounts and status with other loyalty programs.
The United MileagePlus program offers the best value for frequent and very frequent flyers who are United loyalists, live near a United hub city and also fly other Star Alliance airlines. The United MileagePlus program has many advantages but, like all frequent flyer programs, also has its downsides.
There are many ways to rack up United miles that can get you free flights and other awards. Buying plane tickets and opening a United credit card with a welcome bonus are two of the best ways to earn United miles. Here are all the ways you can bulk up the balance of your MileagePlus account.
Buying plane tickets for United flights is one of the fastest ways to earn United miles. The miles you earn for buying tickets on flights operated by United and United Express are based on the dollar amount of the fare, as well as your tier of United elite status.
Entry-level MileagePlus members earn 5 miles for every dollar spent on United flights. If you have elite status, you can earn an additional 2 to 6 miles per dollar spent based on your level.
| Elite status | Award miles per $1 |
|---|---|
| Premier 1K® | 11 |
| None | 5 |
| Premier Gold | 8 |
| Premier Platinum | 9 |
| Premier Silver | 7 |
Savvy traveler tip: You do earn United miles on Basic Economy fares just as you would when you buy any other flight. But some specialty tickets, such as those purchased through a group tour, may earn miles based on distance rather than cost. And not all flights earn miles. For example, you may not earn miles on award flights or on flights with “unpublished or opaque” fares, including those purchased through Hotwire or Priceline.com.Earning United miles on Star Alliance partners is another quick and easy way to rack up rewards.
Another way to earn United miles quickly: an airline credit card.
In fact, getting a United credit card may be the fastest way to earn United miles next to buying a flight.
Not only can you earn a generous sign-up bonus that could get you a free flight right away, but you can also earn United miles for your everyday spending. And if you fly even a few times a year, the amount you save on United baggage fees alone could make it worth having a United credit card.
What are the best United Airlines credit cards? Here are several options for United co-branded cards from Chase:
| Card | Welcome bonus | Earnings | Annual fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| United Gateway℠ Card | Earn 20,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases. | 2 miles per $1 spent on United® purchases, at gas stations and on local transit and commuting. 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. | $0 |
| United℠ Explorer Card | Earn 60,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. | Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on dining, hotel stays and United® purchases. 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases | $0 Intro for the First Year, then $95 |
| United Quest℠ Card | Earn 60,000 bonus miles and 500 Premier qualifying points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. | 3 miles per $1 spent on United® purchases. 2 miles per $1 spent on dining, select streaming services & all other travel. 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. Plus, each year, receive up to a $125 United® purchase credit and two 5K-mile anniversary award flight credits (terms apply) and earn up to 6,000 Premier qualifying points. | $250 |
| United Club℠ Infinite Card | Earn 80,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. | Earn 4 miles per $1 spent on United® purchases, 2 miles per $1 spent on all other travel and dining and 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. | $525 |
| United℠ Business Card | Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99. | Earn 2 miles per $1 spent on United® purchases, dining, at gas stations, office supply stores and local transit and commuting. Earn 1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases. | $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $99 |
Savvy traveler tip: Consider applying for the United Gateway℠ Card if you’re a new traveler, the United℠ Explorer Card if you’re an average traveler and the United Club℠ Infinite Card if you’re a very frequent traveler. If you have a small business, the United℠ Business Card could be the one for you. Another option: consider applying for one of the best Star Alliance credit cards.The MileagePlus X app allows you to quickly rack up miles while going about your daily life. Just download the app on the App Store or Google Play, then log in and look for offers that allow you to earn as much as 12 miles per dollar or more by shopping or dining at hundreds of merchants. Plus, United credit cardholders can also get a 25% bonus.
Using the app involves jumping through a few extra hoops, but it could definitely be worth it to earn extra United miles.
Each time you want to use the app, you’ll click on the name of the merchant you’re purchasing from in the app, then buy an e-gift card to the merchant in the exact amount of your total. To pay, you then use the barcode/gift card number and PIN you receive to pay.
This can be a great way to “double-dip” and earn United miles shopping both via the app and through the linked credit card you use to pay for your purchase.
Want to know how to earn United miles while eating at your favorite restaurants? MileagePlus Dining offers an easy and delicious way to earn extra miles for eating out at restaurants. You join United MileagePlus Dining, then link a credit card, find restaurants that are part of the program, eat at those restaurants and pay with your linked card.
New members can earn bonus miles — there’s currently an offer for up to 3,000 bonus miles when you join MileagePlus Dining and dine out four times:
You get 1,500 bonus United miles the first time you dine and 500 bonus miles each for each of the next three times you dine.
There are three levels of earnings with MileagePlus Dining depending on whether you choose to get emails from the program and on the number of transactions you make:
As soon as you complete the required number of transactions, you automatically start earning at the VIP level.
If you’re doing less traveling and more shopping from home these days, the United MileagePlus shopping portal is a good way to keep miles rolling into your account. You have a few different options for using it:
Through MileagePlus shopping, you may find offers of up to 30 or more miles per $1 spent, or see offers for a certain number of miles for signing up for a service or subscription. For example:
You can rack up miles by choosing United deals and partners next time you travel. For example, you can earn the following on hotel stays:
You can earn even more miles when you book a rental car through United. For example, get up to 1,250 bonus miles for each qualifying car rental from Avis or Budget. Your earnings rate depends on your MileagePlus status and if you have a United credit card:
If you’re in the market for something more than a staycation, booking a trip through United Vacations can earn you bonus miles on top of the miles you earn for the United flights. United Vacations offers vacation packages to over 250,000 resorts in over 400 destinations with 10,000 available activities. The packages include airport transportation and other services to make your vacation more seamless, as well as a best-price guarantee. United Vacations also offers 2 miles per $1 spent when you pay with your United℠ Explorer Card
In addition to United Vacations, United is offering a new tool in partnership with Priceline: United Packages. United offers 1,000 bonus miles on any package plus 2 miles per $1 spent for United Chase Visa cardmembers.
You don’t have to travel by plane to earn miles — you can also go by sea. When you book a cruise through United Cruises, you can earn up to 4 United miles per dollar spent depending on the category of room you book:
You may find special offers that will allow you to rack up even more miles. For example, United currently has a special offer for MileagePlus credit cardholders, who can earn up to 7 United miles per $1 spent on a cruise. Cardholders earn:
United offers cruises through several dozen cruise lines, including Carnival, Celebrity, Disney, Holland America, Norwegian and Princess, and also offers a best-price guarantee.
Need a few more United miles for that award ticket to Paris? You can buy 1,000 United miles at a cost of $35, plus taxes and fees. The minimum purchase amount is 2,000 miles, and you may buy miles for yourself or to give to another MileagePlus member.
Considering you’re paying 3.5 cents each for miles that are worth about 1.2 cents each, this is usually not a good way to get United miles. If, however, you need a small number of miles now to secure an award ticket for your dream vacation, it may be worth the cost to buy United miles.
There are plenty of ways you can redeem United miles for free flights, cruises, hotel stays and more. Keep reading to learn how to use United miles to get the best bang for your buck.
One of the best ways to use United miles is for free flights on United Airlines and on its 25 Star Alliance airline partners. First, let’s look at booking flights on United.
The United award chart used to be the first stop for determining the number of miles needed to book an award ticket. With the move to dynamic pricing, you’ll simply need to head to united.com and plug in your origin, destination and date(s) of travel to find out how much an award ticket costs. You can book awards over the phone, but United’s website has a sophisticated award search that will return plenty of results — plus, you’ll avoid the $25 phone booking fee charged to everyone except members with the two highest levels of elite status.
United has two levels of awards for each cabin class: Saver and Everyday:
There is no difference between the awards aside from these factors.
United award flight prices vary substantially based on the cabin class and when you’re flying.
Example: Economy Saver Award prices for the short hop from San Francisco to Los Angeles start around 5,000 miles, while a first-class Everyday award for the same hop costs around 25,500 miles.
Your trip to see family for the holidays may cost more as well.
Example: Transcontinental flights from San Francisco to Newark generally start at 10,000 one-way as an economy Saver Award. However, an ideally-timed nonstop economy flight on Dec. 23 costs 30,000 United miles, nearly three times the price.
Flights between the U.S. and other continents are subject to variable pricing as well. It used to be easy to calculate the cost for a Saver award using the United award chart, but that’s no longer an option.
Example: Economy Saver Awards between the U.S. and Australia start at 40,000 miles on United flights and 44,000 on partners. Business-class Saver Awards start at 99,000 miles on United partners — on the other end of the spectrum, you’ll pay as much as 250,000 miles for a partner business-class Everyday Award to the Central and Southern Africa zone.
Savvy traveler tip: Typically, you’ll get better value out of your miles by booking long-haul premium cabin awards versus domestic economy awards.United is a founding member of the Star Alliance network, which offers the most airline partners among the major alliances. The airline also has a long list of partner airlines outside of the Star Alliance network. You can earn or redeem United miles on flights with any of these airlines.
This list of airline partners is a big part of what makes United miles valuable. Booking on Star Alliance partners can offer some of the highest value United award redemptions, especially when choosing business- or first-class on airlines known for their incredible in-flight experiences.
ANA’s “The Suite” first class features a fully-enclosable suite, a massive in-flight entertainment screen and top-notch catering, including champagne and caviar.
Previously, the United award chart had different pricing for United flights versus partner flights for some region pairs. For example, business-class partner flights between the U.S. and Europe cost 70,000 miles one-way versus just 60,000 miles on United-operated flights. Although prices are no longer published, this trend is still widespread under the dynamic pricing model.
United Star Alliance partners
Other United partners
Apart from a long list of airline partners and the ease of booking online, another factor that increases the value of United miles is its “Excursionist Perk.”
Put simply, this perk allows you one free one-way flight embedded within a multi-city award ticket, allowing you to visit two or more cities for the price of one.
As always, though, there are some restrictions:
A common way to take advantage of the Excursionist Perk is to add an extra city into a European itinerary. Here’s an example United provides:
If you want to visit more cities, you can always add them after the Excursionist Perk, but you’ll have to pay the regular price for a one-way award.
However, you can do much more with the United Excursionist Perk. The fact that your ticket needs to begin and end in the same region means you could depart from the U.S. to Europe as your first segment, and then return to the U.S. from Southeast Asia — you won’t need to return from Europe.
You can also add as many “open-jaws” (i.e., breaks in your segments) into your itinerary as you’d like. The Excursionist Perk segment doesn’t even have to be in the same destination zone of your first qualifying one-way award. Here is a more advanced use of the Excursionist Perk:
There’s even more you can do with the Excursionist Perk. Go play with the multi-city award search tool.
Would you rather be stretching out in business class with a glass of champagne than cramped in economy? You can use your miles to make your upcoming flight much more comfortable and luxurious by snagging space in a premium cabin. Here are four ways you can get an upgrade with United miles:
Using United miles for upgrades can be a good way to use your rewards and, depending on the upgrade and the flight, can offer an excellent value.
Award flights are by far the best way to redeem your United MileagePlus miles, as you’ll generally get more than 1 cent per mile based on LendingTree’s valuation. However, there are other redemption options if you don’t wish to book flights, including:
In general, redeeming miles in these ways will yield less value than award flights. For example, redeeming United miles for hotel stays, car rentals or TSA PreCheck membership all yield less than 1 cent per mile. Redeeming for merchandise will give you little more than half a cent per mile. It is highly recommended to redeem your miles for award flights.
You can check out all the ways to redeem miles here.
If you have a premium Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card (i.e., one with an annual fee), you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to United, one of 10 different airline rewards programs and three hotel rewards programs that Chase cardholders can transfer points to. Points transfer at a 1:1 ratio, in increments of 1,000 points.
The transfer process is simple, and your points are converted into United miles almost immediately:
Savvy traveler tip: Chase doesn’t guarantee that your points will transfer immediately (points can take up to seven days to process). It’s a good idea to have a backup plan in case your seat gets sold before you can grab it.Wondering how to earn United elite status? There are four levels of United Elite status, and different requirements to attain each level. United grants elite status based on the number of Premier Qualifying Flights (PQF) you take and/or Premier Qualifying Points (PQP) you earn.
But what does that mean? We’ll break down those terms for you.
You get status based on a combination of the number of flights you take and the amount you spend on those flights. You can earn status based on a combination of PQFs and PQPs or only on PQPs. Here is a breakdown of the different levels of United elite status and the 2022 requirements for earning each one:
| Elite status level | Premier Silver | Premier Gold | Premier Platinum | Premier 1K |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Requirements to earn that level with PQF+ PQP | 8 PQFs and 3,000 PQPs | 16 PQFs and 6,000 PQPs | 24 PQFs and 9,000 PQPs | 36 PQFs and 13,500 PQPs |
| Requirements to earn that level with just PQP | 3,500 PQPs | 7,000 PQPs | 10,000 PQPs | 15,000 PQPs |
There are many benefits to United elite status, with fewer perks on the lowest tier and more on the higher tiers.
The best MileagePlus perks include:
This chart shows the main benefits of United elite status at each level:
| Member (no elite status) | Silver | Gold | Platinum | Platinum 1K | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miles earned per $1 spent on flights | 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 11 |
| Free checked bags | No | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Same-day flight change fees | A fare difference may apply | Free within same fare class | Free within same fare class | Free within same fare class | Free within same fare class |
| Free Economy Plus | No | At check-in for you only | At booking for you only | At booking (+ eight companions) | At booking (+ eight companions) |
| Free upgrade? | No | Day of flight | Two days before flight | Three days before flight | Four days before flight |
| Free snack and drink in economy | No | No | No | No | Yes |
| Free Marriott Gold status | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
It’s totally free to sign up for United MileagePlus, so you can get a frequent flyer number and start earning miles that can get you free flights and other rewards. However, you’ll need to spend money with United and its partner airlines, or sign up for a United credit card, in order to earn enough miles to make the program worthwhile.
You can sign up for United MileagePlus by filling out an online enrollment form. You fill in your name, birth date, gender, address, mobile phone number and email address. You choose five security questions and answers and a password. Once you’ve signed up, you get a frequent flyer number and you can start earning miles — it takes only a few minutes.
You can join the United MileagePlus program for free by filling out an online form. When you sign up, you become a MileagePlus member and you get a frequent flyer number that you’ll use when making reservations with United and partner airlines to earn miles and credit toward elite status. You also can earn miles in other ways, such as opening a United credit card with a welcome bonus or shopping through the MileagePlus shopping portal. When you earn enough miles, you can redeem them for free flights and other rewards.
You can earn elite status by taking a certain number of qualifying flights and/or earning enough qualifying points in a year. United has four levels of elite status: Premier Silver, Premier Gold, Premier Platinum and Premier 1K. Each level comes with its own perks, such as earning extra miles on flights and a certain number of free checked bags.
No, United MileagePlus is not a credit card. MileagePlus is the frequent flyer program for United Airlines. However, you can open a United Airlines co-branded credit card that will allow you to earn United miles by making everyday purchases. These cards also provide welcome bonuses and perks such as free checked bags.
You can’t transfer points from your MileagePlus account to a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve®. However, you can transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points earned by spending on a Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card or Chase Sapphire Reserve® to your United MileagePlus account — United is one of Chase’s transfer partners. Points can be transferred from your card account to your frequent flyer account, but not in the other direction.
You can add your MileagePlus frequent flyer number to an existing flight reservation by logging in to your United account online or on the mobile app. Click on your reservation and then choose “Edit traveler information” and add your MileagePlus number.
You may submit requests for credit for a previous flight up to 12 months after the date of the flight. You’ll have to log in to your account and fill out a mileage request form. You’ll need to enter your 13-digit ticket number. If the flight was operated by a partner airline and United can’t find the flight in their system, they may ask you to supply additional information in order to get credit for the flight.
If you’re a new MileagePlus member, you can submit a request for credit for flights taken during the 30 days before you signed up. If you want credit for a flight that doesn’t fit in that timeframe, you may pay a $50 fee to get credit for a flight you took in the previous six months before you enrolled.
If you misplaced your MileagePlus number, you can go to the MileagePlus sign-in page and click the “Forgot MileagePlus number?” link below the space where you enter your MileagePlus number to sign in. Or you can use this Forgot MileagePlus number link. Either way, you’ll end up on a page where you can enter your first name, last name, email address and date of birth and click the “Submit” button. United will then send you an email with your MileagePlus number. If you don’t get an email or still need help finding your MileagePlus number, you can call the MileagePlus service center at 800-421-4655.
You can merge two MileagePlus accounts only if they belong to the same person. If you’re a MileagePlus member and one of your family members also wants to join, they’ll need to create their own account. If you want to add one of your children who is under 18, you can sign them up for an account.
You can make a name change on MileagePlus by logging into your account online. Go to “Profile & Preferences,” select “Personal Information” from the drop-down menu and finally click on the “About Me” section to edit your information. You can make simple name changes this way, such as correcting a spelling error or changing from a nickname to a full name.
The above offers and/or promotions may have since changed, expired, or is no longer available. Check the Issuers’ website for more details.
