- Chase United Business Card, Earn up to 150,000 miles.
- Chase United Business Club Card, Earn 75,000 miles.
- Chase United Gateway Card, Earn 20,000 miles.
- Chase United Explorer Card, Earn 50,000 miles.
- Chase United Quest Card, Earn 70,000 miles.
- Chase United Club Infinite Card Card, Earn 80,000 miles.
Table of Contents
United card offers
United has limited time offers available on their credit cards. The United cards have some of the best perks for travelers out of all the airline cards, making them a must have for anyone flying on United. All of these United cards offer expanded saver award availability, an incredible perk that no other airline card offers! Plus you can pay yourself back for the annual fee at an excellent value of 1.5 cents per mile!
While United miles are not as valuable as they used to be, they no longer expire and there are advantages to using miles over cash or bank points.
When you use cash or bank points you won’t get benefits like free bags for using your United card, whereas with miles you can put the taxes on your credit card to get those benefits.
Plus, you can cancel award tickets for free 30+ days before your flight and get back all of your miles and taxes. As there are free date changes at any time before departure, that effectively means you can always cancel and get back your miles. That’s a huge peace of mind that is hard to calculate and accurately value when comparing the value of a mileage ticket to a cash ticket.
- Chase United Business Card
- Limited time offer: Earn up to 150,000 bonus miles. Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership and earn another 75,000 bonus miles after spending another $15,000 in the first 6 months of card membership.
- This card previously offered 60,000 bonus miles for spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.
- $99 annual fee. You can currently redeem 6,600 United miles to pay for the card’s annual fee thanks to a value of 1.5 cents per mile towards refunding the annual fee!
- A free checked bag worldwide for the cardholder and a companion, even on basic economy fares.
- 2 miles per dollar on United, restaurants, gas stations, office supply stores, local transit, taxis, tolls, mass transit, and ride share services.
- 5,000 bonus miles every card anniversary if you have this United business card and any United consumer card.
- $100 annual statement credit if you make 7 United purchases of $100 or more on the card.
- 25% statement credit for food, beverage, and WiFi purchases on United flights.
- A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- Priority boarding for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- The ability to use online checkin and get a boarding pass in advance on basic economy fares. United does not allow online checkin on basic economy fares unless you have elite status or a United card with free bags.
- 2 free United Club passes every year for being a cardmember.
- Primary rental car CDW insurance in the US when renting for business purposes and in every other country for any rental purpose.
- Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes.
- If you spend $12K/year on the card it will give you 500 PQPs and if you spend $24K/year you’ll get 1,000 PQPs. PQPs from multiple cards can stack together up to 5,000 PQPs.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
- Chase United Business Club Card (Click on apply now to reach this card application)
- Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.
- This card previously offered 50,000 bonus miles.
- This card has a hefty $450 annual fee, though that’s cheaper than even top-tier United elite members pay for a Club membership, which is included with the card. You can currently redeem 30,000 United miles to pay for the card’s annual fee thanks to a value of 1.5 cents per mile towards refunding the annual fee!
- Full United Club membership: Cardholders get a full United Club membership. You can bring your entire family, or you and 2 guests, to enter over 1,000 United and partner lounges and Star Alliance lounges worldwide when flying United or Star Alliance airlines. Club membership normally costs $650 per year.
- Earn 1.5 miles per dollar everywhere and 2 miles per dollar on United purchases.
- 2 free checked bags worldwide for the cardholder and a companion, even on basic economy fares. A value of up to $680 round-trip!
- A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- Premier Access: Priority check-in, security screening, boarding, and baggage handling privileges.
- Avis President’s Club Status.
- The ability to use online checkin and get a boarding pass in advance on basic economy fares. United does not allow online checkin on basic economy fares unless you have elite status or a United card with free bags.
- Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes.
- If you spend $12K/year on the card it will give you 500 PQPs and if you spend $24K/year you’ll get 1,000 PQPs. PQPs from multiple cards can stack together up to 5,000 PQPs.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
- Chase United Gateway Card
- Earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.
- No annual fee.
- Earn 2 miles per dollar on United purchases, gas stations, transit and commuting, including ride share services, taxicabs, train tickets, tolls, and mass transit.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
- Chase United Explorer Card
- Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.
- $0 intro annual fee, then $95
- Earn 2 miles per dollar on hotels and dining as well as on United purchases.
- Cardholders get Global Entry/Pre-Check for free.
- A free checked bag worldwide for the cardholder and a companion, even on basic economy fares.
- A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- Priority boarding for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- The ability to use online checkin and get a boarding pass in advance on basic economy fares. United does not allow online checkin on basic economy fares unless you have elite status or a United card with free bags.
- 2 free United Club passes every year for being a cardmember.
- Primary rental car CDW insurance in every country.
- Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes.
- If you spend $12K/year on the card it will give you 500 PQPs and if you spend $24K/year you’ll get 1,000 PQPs. PQPs from multiple cards can stack together up to 5,000 PQPs.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
- Chase United Quest Card
- Earn 70,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months of card membership.
- $250 annual fee. You can currently redeem 16,667 United miles to pay for the card’s annual fee thanks to a value of 1.5 cents per mile towards refunding the annual fee!
- Earn 3 miles per dollar on United purchases.
- Earn 2 miles per dollar on travel, dining, and streaming
- Cardholders get Global Entry/Pre-Check for free.
- Get a rebate up to $125 every cardmembership year, equal to the amount spent on United tickets, upgrades, seat assignment fees, WiFi, inflight food and beverages, baggage fees, or other United charges. This will also work for United Travel Bank funding valid for future United flights with a minimum 5 year validity!
- Get a rebate of 5,000 miles, up to 2 times per cardmembership year starting with your first card anniversary, for a total of up to 10,000 miles per year, when the primary cardholder flies on an award that includes at least 1 United flight segment. You’ll get the 5,000 mile rebate even if the award cost less than 5,000 miles! You’ll want to redeem 2 one-way awards as those will each trigger a 5,000 mile rebate.
- 2 free checked bags worldwide for the cardholder and a companion, even on basic economy fares. A value of up to $680 round-trip!
- A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- Priority boarding for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- The ability to use online checkin and get a boarding pass in advance on basic economy fares. United does not allow online checkin on basic economy fares unless you have elite status or a United card with free bags.
- Primary rental car CDW insurance in every country.
- Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes.
- Earn 500 PQPs towards elite status for every $12K/year spent on the card, up to 3,000 PQPs for $72K/year spending. PQPs from multiple cards can stack together up to 5,000 PQPs.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
- Chase United Club Infinite Card Card
- Earn 80,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership.
- This card previously offered an annual fee waiver with no bonus miles.
- This card has a hefty $525 annual fee, though that’s cheaper than even top-tier United elite members pay for a Club membership, which is included with the card. You can currently redeem 35,000 United miles to pay for the card’s annual fee thanks to a value of 1.5 cents per mile towards refunding the annual fee!
- Full United Club membership: Cardholders get a full United Club membership. You can bring your entire family, or you and 2 guests, to enter over 1,000 United and partner lounges and Star Alliance lounges worldwide when flying United or Star Alliance airlines. Club membership normally costs $650 per year.
- 4 miles per dollar on United purchases, including tickets, upgrades, WiFi, inflight food and drinks.
- 2 miles per dollar on all other travel and dining and 1 mile per dollar elsewhere.
- Cardholders get Global Entry/Pre-Check for free.
- 2 free checked bags worldwide for the cardholder and a companion, even on basic economy fares. A value of up to $680 round-trip!
- IHG Platinum elite status which gives free internet, 50% bonus points, upgrades, welcome amenity, late checkout, and more. Plus your IHG points will never expire if you have status.
- $75 IHG hotel credit for use in 2022.
- Avis President’s Club Status.
- Instant discount on select United awards: Cardholders get a 10% instant discount on saver awards within the US48 and Canada. This applies to X class (saver awards available to everyone) and XN class (expanded saver awards available only for United cardholders) flights.
- Signup for CLEAR and get 10,000 miles: Cardholders who enroll in CLEAR will get 10,000 bonus miles if they enroll by 6/30/22. You will also be able to enroll in CLEAR for $109. You must provide your MileagePlus account number here when you sign up for CLEAR to get the discount price and bonus miles. Allow 4-6 weeks after the sign-up for miles to post to your account.
- Infinite Club Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes for the cardholder with status and a companion!
- A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.
- Premier Access: Priority check-in, security screening, boarding, and baggage handling privileges.
- 3 free years of Shipt for free deliveries from Target stores and more.
- The ability to use online checkin and get a boarding pass in advance on basic economy fares. United does not allow online checkin on basic economy fares unless you have elite status or a United card with free bags.
- Primary rental car CDW insurance in every country.
- Earn 500 PQPs towards elite status for every $12K/year spent on the card, up to 4,000 PQPs for $96K/year spending. PQPs from multiple cards can stack together up to 5,000 PQPs.
- 1 year free DoorDash membership, activate by 3/31/22.
- $10 monthly GoPuff credit through 12/31/23.
Comparison chart
| United Gateway | United Explorer | United Quest | United Club Infinite | United Business | United Club Business | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Signup Bonus | Earn 20,000 bonus miles after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of card membership. | Earn 50,000 bonus miles after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months of card membership. | Earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 in the first 3 months of card membership. | Earn 80,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership. | Earn up to 150,000 bonus miles. Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership and earn another 75,000 bonus miles after spending another $15,000 in the first 6 months of card membership. | Earn 75,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 in the first 3 months of card membership. |
| Annual Fee | None | $0 Intro annual fee, then $95 | $250 (or use 16,667 miles) | $525 (or use 35,000 miles) | $99 (or use 6,600 miles) | $450 (or use 30,000 miles) |
| Annual credit on United tickets and fees | $0 | $0 | $125 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Access to expanded saver and standard award space | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| United Club | No | 2 annual one-time passes | No | Full membership | 2 annual one-time passes | Full membership |
| Annual anniversary credit | None | None | Up to 2 rebates of 5K miles each when you redeem for a United award | None | 5K miles if you also hold any United Consumer card. $100 United credit for making 7 United flight purchases of $100. | None |
| Foreign transaction fees | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| 25% back on in-flight purchases. | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| First checked bag fee waiver for cardholder and companion, even on basic economy | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Second checked bag fee waiver for cardholder and companion, even on basic economy | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| Free full size carry-on bag on basic economy for cardholder and companions | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Priority boarding for cardholder and companions, even on basic economy | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Premier Access Checkin, baggage handling, security, and boarding | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Allows the use of online checkin on basic economy for cardholder and companions | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Miles per dollar on everyday purchases | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on United purchases | 2 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Miles per dollar on restaurant purchases | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on gas | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on transit, commuting, and rise sharing | 2 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on hotels | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on office supply stores | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on streaming | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1.5 |
| Miles per dollar on car rentals | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1.5 |
| Roadside Assistance | No | No | 4 free incidents per year | 4 free incidents per year | 4 free incidents per year | 4 free incidents per year |
| Return protection | No | No | No | $500/item, up to $1,000/year. | No | $500/item, up to $1,000/year. |
| Purchase protection | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $500 | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $10K. | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $10K. | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $10K. | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $10K. | 120 days theft or damage coverage, up to $10K. |
| Extended warranty | 1 year | 1 year | 1 year | 1 year | 1 year | 1 year |
| Car Rental CDW Insurance | Secondary | Primary | Primary | Primary | Primary for business purposes only | Primary for business purposes only |
| Global Entry/Pre-Check credit | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Baggage Delay insurance | No | $100/day up to 3 days | $100/day up to 3 days | $100/day up to 3 days | $100/day up to 3 days | $100/day up to 3 days |
| Lost Baggage insurance | No | $3,000/passenger | $3,000/passenger | $3,000/passenger | $3,000/passenger | $3,000/passenger |
| Trip Delay Insurance | No | $500 trip delay insurance coverage/ticket on 12+ hour delays | $500 trip delay insurance coverage/ticket on 12+ hour delays | $500 trip delay insurance coverage/ticket on 12+ hour delays | $500 trip delay insurance coverage/ticket on 12+ hour delays | $500 trip delay insurance coverage/ticket on 12+ hour delays |
| Trip Cancellation/Trip Interruption Insurance | $1.5K/person and $6K/trip. | $1.5K/person and $6K/trip. | $1.5K/person and $6K/trip. | $10K/person and $20K/trip. | $1.5K/person and $6K/trip. | $10K/person and $20K/trip. |
| IHG Platinum Status | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| IHG $75 Hotel Credit In 2022 | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Avis Presidents Club Status | No | No | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| PQPs from spending | No | 500 PQPs for $12K spending, capped at 1K PQPs/calendar year for this card and 5K PQPs/calendar year per United account | 500 PQPs for $12K spending, capped at 3K PQPs/calendar year for this card and 5K PQPs/calendar year per United account | 500 PQPs for $12K spending, capped at 4K PQPs/calendar year for this card and 5K PQPs/calendar year per United account | 500 PQPs for $12K spending, capped at 1K PQPs/calendar year for this card and 5K PQPs/calendar year per United account | 500 PQPs for $12K spending, capped at 1K PQPs/calendar year for this card and 5K PQPs/calendar year per United account |
| Premier upgrades on award tickets | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Premier upgrades with a companion upgrade on award tickets | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| Instant discount on select United saver awards | No | No | No | 10% discount | No | No |
| 10K bonus miles for enrolling in CLEAR | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
| 3 free years of Shipt Membership | No | No | No | Yes | No | No |
Welcome bonus terms
You can receive the bonus on each of these cards if you haven’t received a bonus on the same exact card in the past 24 months and don’t currently have the same exact card.
If you do have the exact same card you can change to another United card, wait 3-4 days, and apply for that card again.
5/24
While all Chase cards are typically subject to 5/24 restrictions, there have been many reports of that not being enforced for United consumer cards. If you apply for a United card and are over 5/24, please let us know what happens!
In general, 5/24 means that you won’t be approved for a Chase card if you have been approved for 5 or more consumer credit cards in the past 24 months. Read more about that here.
Spend Threshold:
You can pay your federal taxes for a 1.87% fee. If you overpay your taxes you can request a refund or apply it to your next year’s taxes.
My local natural gas company allows me to prepay up to $1,000 on a credit card for a $1.65 flat fee. That’s a great way to earn miles and help meet a spend threshold. My electricity supplier allows me to pay with a credit card for free as long as I am enrolled in autopay.
See this post for more ideas on meeting a credit card spend threshold.
Card convertibility
You can change a consumer card between all 4 United consumer card products:
- Chase United Gateway Card (No annual fee)
- Chase United Explorer card ($99 annual fee)
- Chase United Quest card ($250 annual fee)
- Chase United Club Infinite Card ($525 annual fee)
You can change a business card between both United business card products:
- Chase United Business Card ($99 annual fee)
- Chase United Business Club Card ($450 annual fee)
Pay yourself back for the annual fee:
You can redeem United miles to pay yourself back for the annual fee at a rate of 1.5 cents per mile!
You can pay back all or part of the annual fee at that rate.
You have 90 days from when the fee is billed to pay yourself back and you can do so even after paying the annual fee.
You can use miles from the card’s signup bonus or you can transfer points from Ultimate Rewards to United to pay back the annual fee.
Card benefits
In addition to the benefits listed above, all 6 cards offer:
- No foreign exchange fees.
- A 25% rebate on inflight WiFi, food, and drink purchases.
- Exclusive cardmember access to auctions that allow you to use your miles for once-in-a-lifetime experiences. A few years ago I used 25K miles for 4 field box seats to an Indians game along with the right to run onto the field before the top of the 7th inning and swipe 2nd base right off the field. Nobody could believe it as I walked around the ballpark with 2nd base. I even got it signed after the game by the Indians wining pitcher that night, Justin Masterson, who was equally shocked that I actually had 2nd base.
- United miles never expire, even if you close your card.
- Trip Cancellation / Trip Interruption Insurance
- Extended Warranty Protection
- Purchase Protection
United Cards As Part Of A Chase Quinfecta Strategy
All of the United cards have unique benefits, so which should you get?
That depends on which benefits you value and how much they would cost you otherwise.
It’s worth noting that you can get the signup bonus for each United card as long as you didn’t get the bonus for that exact card within the past 24 months and don’t currently have that exact card.
If you have a United consumer card you can change to any currently offered United consumer card and if you have a United business card you can change to any currently offered United business card. After waiting 3-4 days you can apply for that card again.
It certainly makes sense to have a United card on top of a Chase Quinfecta strategy as just having the card makes your points more valuable. That consists of:
- Sapphire Reserve or Sapphire Preferred or Ink Preferred for mileage transfers and bonus value on points.
- A no-fee Freedom Unlimited or Ink Unlimited for 1.5 points per dollar everywhere.
- A no-fee Freedom Flex for 5 points per dollar in rotating categories.
- A no-fee Ink Cash for 5 points per dollar on wireless and office supply stores, including gift cards to stores like Amazon and hundreds more.
- Having a United card on top of the cards above creates a Chase Quinfecta as your United miles (and by extension your Chase points) become more valuable thanks to expanded award availability.
Here is a summary comparing what the currently available United cards have to offer:
- If you just want expanded award availability, go for the no-fee United Gateway Card. However you should get a premium consumer card with a higher signup bonus and downgrade the card after your first year as the higher signup bonus will more than offset the first year’s annual fee. Plus you can redeem miles to directly cover the annual fee and still come out ahead.
- If you also want to be able to get a free bag and bypass onerous basic economy restrictions, go for the United Explorer Card or United Business Card.
- If you will be able to take advantage of the Quest card’s $125 and 10,000 mile rebates, then the United Quest Card will effectively be cheaper than the Explorer card, plus you’ll get 2 free bags to boot!
- If you can meet a big spending threshold in 6 months, the 150,000 bonus miles offered on the United Business Card is very compelling.
- If you want United Club access, go for the United Business Club Card (Click on apply now to reach this card application) or if you want a consumer card, the Chase United Club Infinite Card Card
- Grandfathered cards like the old United Presidential Plus card (good for earning more PQPs towards United elite status) and the old consumer United Club card (similar to the current United Business Club card) can’t be had anymore, so think twice before you close those.
Expanded award ticket availability
The reason the United cards are the best airline cards you can get isn’t for the spending benefits, it’s for the perks. And they are awesome.
The United cards are the only airline card that offers expanded award ticket availability.
All 4 of these cards offer this benefit.
This increases the value of your miles significantly and in turn makes the Chase Quadfecta/Quinfecta spending strategy even more valuable.
Cardholders have access to significantly expanded saver coach award availability (XN class), last seat standard coach award availability (YN class), and last seat standard business/first class award availability (JN class).
If you’re not a United cardholder, there are no dates with saver award space nonstop from Newark-Tel Aviv in November-December:
If you are a United cardholder, there are many dates with saver award space:
This availability differential applies to all domestic and international routes and makes it crucial to be a United cardholders.
Expanded Plan B availability
As you have better access to saver coach awards you’ll also have better ability to do Plan B awards.
Plan B allows you to redeem for saver business class awards when there’s only saver coach available! Read more about Plan B in this post.
No airline besides United offers a Plan B style award redemption.
Discounted awards for cardholders
United runs promotions offering discounts on award flights for cardholders.
They have offered these discounts for travel to Tahiti, Ski destinations, Hawaii, Mexico, The Caribbean, and more.
Here Is United’s Hidden Award Chart
United no longer publishes an award chart, but rates for United flights found in their old award chart are still correct.
United does charge a close-in mileage surcharge and they can be found in the chart below. Note that the you’ll want to book travel as 2 one-ways to avoid paying the surcharge on the return leg when it wouldn’t apply when booked separately. However if you do that you would lose your ability to take a free stopover.
Partner award rates have gone up and they can be found in the unpublished award chart below with one-way rates for flights to/from the mainland US:
| United flights | Partner flights | |
|---|---|---|
| Close-in surcharge within 7 days | 2.5K-3K miles | 1K-3.5K miles |
| Close-in surcharge 8-21 days in advance | 2K-2.5K miles | 1K-3.5K miles |
| Mainland US/Canada | 12.5K Coach 25K Business 35K Premium Business | 14K Coach 27.5K Business |
| Alaska | 17.5K Coach 30K Business 40K Premium Business | 19.5K Coach 33K Business |
| Hawaii | 22.5K Coach 40K Business 50K Premium Business | 25K Coach 44K Business |
| Mexico | 17.5K Coach 30K Business | 19.5K Coach 33K Business |
| Central America | 17.5K Coach 30K Business | 19.5K Coach 33K Business |
| Northern South America | 20K Coach 35K Business | 22K Coach 38.5K Business |
| Southern South America | 30K Coach 60K Business | 33K Coach 66K Business |
| Europe | 30K Coach 60K Business | 33K Coach 77K Business 121K First |
| Africa | 40K Coach 70K Business | 44K Coach 88K Business 143K First |
| Middle East | 42.5K Coach 75K Business | 47K Coach 93.5K Business 154K First |
| Central Asia | 42.5K Coach 75K Business | 47K Coach 93.5K Business 154K First |
| South Asia | 40K Coach 75K Business | 44K Coach 99K Business 154K First |
| North Asia | 35K Coach 70K Business | 38.5K Coach 88K Business 132K First |
| Japan and Oceania | 35K Coach 70K Business | 38.5K Coach 88K Business 121K First |
| Australia and New Zealand | 40K Coach 80K Business | 44K Coach 99K Business 143K First |
Excursionist Perk
While American and Delta have eliminated free stopovers, United continues to offer a free excursionist perk as described in this post. Just use the multi-city award search on United.com to piece it together.
You can read this post for more about hacking excursionist perks.
A round-trip to 2 Hawaiian Islands is just 45,000 miles round-trip thanks to the free excursionist perk:
A round-trip ticket to 2 European or South American cities is just 60,000 miles round-trip thanks to the free excursionist perk:
A flight to 2 of my favorite cities in Asia, Hong Kong and Chiang Mai, Thailand is 80K miles thanks to the perk:
You’re even allowed a free open jaw in addition to the perk to really maximize your travel. For example this itinerary includes travel to London, Paris, and Zurich. You can take a train or use 4.5K BA Avios to get from London to Paris to fill the hole in the open jaw:
Of course the free stopover isn’t just useful from the US.
You can stopover in NYC and LA when flying from Tel Aviv to the US:
If you find yourself in Japan you can fly on the island hopper to 2 cities in Micronesia (I’ve been hankering to get back to Palau since the moment I left) for 30K miles:
You can also hack the excursionist perk for even more value.
You can use the multi-city search to book 2 flights within a single region and then you can book a free one-way within any other region sandwiched in between your flights.
For example if you book a round-trip from Cleveland to Chicago for 6,240 miles you can add in a free Excursionist Perk flight anywhere else in the world in between your flights, such as onboard the United Island Hopper from Palau to Kosrae via Guam, Chuuk, and Pohnpei, a flight that costs $598 or 12.5K miles on its own:
Or if you book a one-way flight from Cleveland to Chicago and then Chicago to Kansas City for 6,240 miles you can add in a free Excursionist Perk flight anywhere else in the world in between your flights, such as Johannesburg to the Seychelles, a flight that costs $473 or 19.5K miles on its own.
Partner airlines
United has dozens of partner airlines which means lots of great award opportunities. It can be worth checking for award space on partner sites like ANA or Aeroplan.com to search for award availability and then call United to book if you don’t see availability on United.
Partners airlines include:
- ANA
- Aegean Airlines
- Aer Lingus
- Air Canada
- Air China
- Air Dolomiti
- Air India
- Air New Zealand
- Aeromar
- Asiana Airlines
- Austrian Airlines
- Avianca Airlines
- Azul Brazilian Airlines
- Brussels Airlines
- Cape Air
- Copa Airlines
- Croatia Airlines
- EVA Air
- Edelweiss
- Egyptair
- Ethiopian Airlines
- Eurowings
- Germanwings
- Hawaiian Airlines
- Island Air
- Juneyao Airlines
- LOT Polish
- Lufthansa
- Scandinavian Airlines
- Shenzhen Airlines
- Silver Airways
- Singapore
- South African Airways
- Swiss International Airlines
- TAP Portugal
- THAI
- Turkish Airlines
Business card information:
Some of these are business cards, but you may already have a business that needs a card to keep track of expenses. For example if your name is Joe Smith and you sell items online, or if you have any other side business and want a credit card to better keep track of business expenditures you can open a business credit card for “Joe Smith” as the business. You don’t need to file any messy government paperwork to be allowed to do that. Just be sure to select “Sole Proprietorship” as the business type and just use your social security number in the Tax Identification Number field.
It’s important to just write your own name as the business name if you are just applying for your own small business as a Sole Proprietorship that doesn’t have any business paperwork.
If you’re like me and you run more than one business, you can signup for multiple of the same card for each business to manage each businesses expenses separately.
Business cards from most banks, including Chase business cards, do not get added to your 5/24 count of recently opened cards. That’s because business cards from most banks don’t show up on your personal credit report and the 5/24 count is based off of your personal credit report. That means that applying for Chase business cards won’t “hurt” your 5/24 count.
Another benefit of business cards not reporting on your personal credit report is that when you spend money on personal cards your credit score will be hurt even if you pay your bill on time. A whopping 30% of your credit score is based on credit utilization. You can pay off your card bill before your statement is generated to avoid that, but that takes effort and laying out money well before you have to. Additionally it’s good to have the statement close with a couple dollars to show the card is active and being paid every month. On an business cards from banks like AMEX and Chase it’s just not reported, so you can wait until the money is due without it having a negative effect on your score. That also means if you close the card, it won’t have an effect on your credit score.
Will you signup for one of these cards? Which United cards do you have?
What can you do with united travel bank money?
Book flights on United.com
Thank you for pointing out the biggest advantage of the Chase United Explorer Card over the Jet Blue Plus card . “A free carry-on bag for the cardholder and companions, even on basic economy fares.” That is a huge plus that may be overlooked for those living in the greater NYC area where both United and Jet Blue have a hub .
Note that the flights themselves or the award fees for the flights must be paid with by the card and the card holder’s companions tickets must be on the same rez as the cardholder. Ask me how I know…. 😉
Yup, very stingy that JetBlue doesn’t waive that for cardholders!
Dan,
Can you explain? How do I get elite status and if I have elite status don’t I get upgrades even if I don’t have the card?
“Cardholders with United elite status get free upgrades on coach award tickets on upgrade eligible routes”
You get elite status from spending on the cards and flying on United and its partners.
Elites (besides for Global Services) only get upgrades on award tickets if they have a United card.
Elite companions only get upgrades on award tickets if the elite member has a United Infinite Club card or Global Services status.
Is there better saver award availability for business as well for cardholders?
No, that’s reserved for Platinum/1K/GS elites.
Can they book business saver awards for other people?
Platinum/1K/GS can book IN saver business for others, yes.
GS can only book T saver coach and PZ saver business for themselves and a companion.
Thanks for ur help:)
A very simple question for a complicated post… If I have a united explorer card what is the best way to get from Newark to Israel? How would I use the least miles? Where would I look to book on?
If you’re using United miles, you need to book on United.com.
If you’re using other points…then that’s not a simple question at all.
OK… I guess part of my question is is it smarter to use United points or transfer them to another airline like Turkish and book United flights thru them?
You can’t transfer airline miles to another airline.
Dan I have a United flight coming up booked with Turkish miles that did not yield a free luggage despite paying taxes with eligible United card. what do you suggest when I get to the airport I should do as I did use the right cc for taxes and my United FFN is on the reservation?
United.com shows your United FFN in the res?
Just tell the agent at checkin and show your card and receipt.
yes
what receipt?
that worked for you in the past agent is manually able to waive checked in baggage fee?
i once had clear then cancelled it can i renroll to get 10k miles on my united card? thank you
I’d use a different email address if you try.
understood , but it wont match up with my united email on file which is the same as the chase email on file?
Doesn’t need to.
based on your posts even if you stack 5,000 pqp you still need to spend 1k and take 16 fligth segments to get to gold statues is that correct?
Yes, or spend $2K on flights and 4 flight segments.
thank you
can someone clarify what that means that I can get premier upgrades on my club card for me and my husband? I have a united club card so even if I don’t have elite statues and book using points or buy a basic economy ticket, or maybe even booking on lifemiles I get an email before the flight saying that I have been upgraded
Dan any advice?
I bought a ticket but forgot to use the united card any way around to get free bagagge?
They match on the system?
Thanks
My recent experience on an United itineray: I was one of the passengers on an itinerary booked and paid by my wife (her own credit card, not United) and we got 2 free bags and priority boarding (because I have the United card)! She is not even an United member. The trip was to Mexico.
Is it possible to get cc number upon approval?
Dan, Do you like the business 150k card here or the venture x offer better?
Thinking for future use since I like the versatility of venture x miles but this is more miles doesn’t pull 2-3 credit reports. And nice to pay annual fee with Mikes to not.
Not much flying these days but still have my silver united and about 350k miles saved up.
so? did anyone over 5/24 try and get approved? I guess I might have to be the dp I want to see
People here were reporting success in November/December.
Let us know if you try!
can i transfer united miles to my wife’s account?
Not for free.
Do you need a paid card to have the Jaw and stopover capability or even free cards are good? Which one
No need for a card.
I need to give myself a month before applying to satisfy spending on another card. Is there expiration currently on this offer? You think it will be around in a month?
Is there any (significant) benefit to keeping my current explorer card if i get approved for the business card?
Does anyone know if purchasing 7x$100 travel bank credits will trigger the annual $100 credit on the business version?