United’s MileagePlus program has made some current adjustments, akin to devaluing first-class accomplice redemptions in 2024 and overhauling its cobranded bank cards earlier this yr. Nevertheless, since United miles by no means expire, PlusPoints and miles can be utilized to verify long-haul Polaris upgrades and MileagePlus now allows you to pool miles, this system nonetheless has many brilliant spots.
This information will give you all the required data on this system, together with methods to earn United miles and standing and methods to maximize your miles for award journey.
Associated: Greatest frequent flyer applications for US vacationers
United MileagePlus overview
With over 100 million members, United MileagePlus is without doubt one of the largest loyalty applications on the planet.
MileagePlus members can earn miles by flying United and its companions, in addition to by spending on their bank cards, purchasing and eating. You may redeem your miles for award journey on the airline in addition to its Star Alliance companions.
MileagePlus members also can earn United elite standing by assembly a sure threshold of Premier qualifying factors. Elite standing contains extra advantages, akin to upgrades, most popular and Economic system Plus seating, precedence boarding and free checked baggage. Moreover, United affords numerous cobranded bank cards that may assist members earn miles extra shortly and luxuriate in extra perks.
Associated: The right way to get most worth from the United MileagePlus program
United Airways companions
You may earn and redeem miles with numerous worldwide airways by United Airways’ membership in Star Alliance, the world’s largest airline alliance. United Premier members can usually get pleasure from perks like lounge entry (relying on standing) and additional baggage allowance when touring with these companions.
This is a take a look at United’s present Star Alliance companions:
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- Aegean Airways
- Air Canada
- Air China
- Air India
- Air New Zealand
- All Nippon Airways
- Asiana Airways
- Austrian Airways
- Avianca
- Brussels Airways
- Copa Airways
- Croatia Airways
- Egyptair
- Ethiopian Airways
- EVA Airways
- Juneyao Airways (a connecting accomplice)
- LOT Polish Airways
- Lufthansa
- Shenzhen Airways
- Singapore Airways
- South African Airways
- Swiss
- TAP Air Portugal
- Thai Airways
- Turkish Airways
United additionally companions with a number of airways exterior of Star Alliance:
- Aer Lingus
- Air Dolomiti
- Airlink
- Azul Brazilian Airways
- Cape Air
- Uncover Airways
- Edelweiss
- Emirates
- Eurowings
- FlyDubai
- Hawaiian Airways
- JSX
- Lufthansa Metropolis Airways
- Olympic Air
- Silver Airways
- Virgin Australia
Companions can have their very own limitations concerning MileagePlus members — together with relevant bonuses, eligible fare courses and excluded routes — so you should definitely evaluation United’s airline companions web page for full particulars of every one.
Associated: The very best web sites to seek for Star Alliance award availability
United Airways Premier standing
MileagePlus has 4 ranges of elite standing: Premier Silver, Premier Gold, Premier Platinum and Premier 1K. There’s additionally an unique International Companies tier, which you’ll be able to solely earn after finishing 4 million flight miles or receiving a private invitation.
There are two methods to earn United Premier standing: With a mixture of Premier qualifying factors and Premier qualifying flights or by incomes PQPs alone. To earn any degree of standing, it’s essential to additionally take at the very least 4 United or United Specific flights.
You may earn PQFs and PQPs by flying United or its companions. It’s also possible to earn PQPs by spending on most of United’s cobranded bank cards.
That is what it takes to qualify for United standing in 2025 (legitimate by Jan. 31, 2027):
| Tier | Premier qualifying factors + Premier qualifying flights | Premier qualifying factors solely |
|---|---|---|
| Premier Silver | 5,000 PQPs + 15 PQFs | 6,000 PQPs |
| Premier Gold | 10,000 PQPs + 30 PQFs | 12,000 PQPs |
| Premier Platinum | 15,000 PQPs + 45 PQFs | 18,000 PQPs |
| Premier 1K | 22,000 PQPs + 60 PQFs | 28,000 PQPs |
United Premier members get pleasure from perks like bonus miles on paid tickets, free checked baggage and complimentary waitlisted upgrades on most United-operated flights.
Increased-tier members have entry to extra beneficial perks like complimentary Economic system Plus seating, PlusPoints (which can be utilized to verify upgrades), Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite standing and Star Alliance Gold standing (which supplies advantages like lounge entry, precedence boarding, further baggage and extra once you fly on different Star Alliance carriers).
Associated: United unveils massive Premier standing, PlusPoints adjustments for 2025
The right way to earn United miles
You may discuss with our information on methods to earn United miles for the whole image, however listed here are among the hottest methods to spice up your MileagePlus stability.
Fly on United Airways
When flying on United-marketed and -operated tickets, you earn MileagePlus miles (as much as 75,000 miles per ticket) based mostly in your ticket’s worth minus taxes and your MileagePlus standing quite than the space you fly.
This is what number of miles you may earn per greenback spent based mostly in your degree of standing:
- Basic member: 5 miles
- Premier Silver: 7 miles
- Premier Gold: 8 miles
- Premier Platinum: 9 miles
- Premier 1K: 11 miles
For instance, suppose you purchase a one-way United ticket from San Francisco Worldwide Airport (SFO) to Los Angeles Worldwide Airport (LAX) with a base fare of $200 and $30 in taxes and charges. In that case, you’d earn 1,000 miles as an everyday MileagePlus member however 2,200 miles if you happen to’re a top-tier Premier 1K member.
These incomes charges additionally apply if you happen to guide United’s primary financial system fare class.
Fly on United accomplice airways
You may earn MileagePlus miles when flying with United’s companions, however it may be difficult. For those who guide a accomplice flight by United (indicated by a 016 ticket quantity), you may earn miles based mostly in your ticket fare and elite standing.
However if you happen to guide on accomplice ticket inventory, you may earn miles based mostly on the size of your flight and fare class. Usually, you may see your fare class when reserving your flight or in your affirmation electronic mail. Mileage-earning charges differ by airline, so test your reserving class and use United’s accomplice airline listing to find out your award miles. As anticipated, premium cabin tickets earn extra miles than financial system tickets, and Premier members are eligible for bonus miles on choose companions.
Associated: United’s best-kept elite standing secret: The right way to earn PQPs sooner with accomplice flights
Get and use United Airways bank cards
United’s cobranded bank cards issued by Chase are among the many hottest methods to earn MileagePlus miles (and, on some playing cards, PQPs). This is a take a look at the present welcome bonuses on a few of our favorites:
Associated: Why somebody in your loved ones wants a United bank card
Switch bank card factors
There are two transferable currencies that accomplice with United MileagePlus: Chase Final Rewards and Bilt Rewards. You may switch factors from both program to your MileagePlus account at a 1:1 ratio, and transfers often occur immediately — making this a straightforward option to increase your stability for a United redemption.
Associated: The right way to switch Chase Final Rewards factors to United
Extra methods to earn United miles
Like most airways, United has an on-line purchasing portal the place you may earn miles on your on-line purchases. The MileagePlus X app supplies one other option to earn bonus miles on on a regular basis purchases, each in-store and on-line.
In the meantime, MileagePlus Eating awards as much as 5 miles per greenback once you dine at collaborating eating places and use a linked bank card.
Different methods to earn United miles embody shopping for miles and transferring Marriott Bonvoy factors, in addition to reserving resorts, automotive leases and cruises by the United journey portal.
Associated: Earn MileagePlus miles with United’s airline, lodge and bank card companions
United Miles pooling
In 2024, United introduced the addition of miles pooling, which is able to enable MileagePlus members of all ages to share and redeem miles in a single account.
That is particularly helpful for households. Since there isn’t any age restriction on becoming a member of MileagePlus, youngsters can earn miles and pool them with their mother and father’ miles towards a bigger redemption. A pool can have as much as 5 members. You may select what number of of your miles to place in a pool, and there’s no restrict to what number of miles you may contribute.
To get began pooling, you should be at the very least 18 years outdated to create a pool and change into the “pool chief.” You may then have the facility so as to add different members and resolve which members have redemption privileges.
There are just a few stipulations. Once you’re contributing miles to a pool, you will have 24 hours to reverse a transaction, after which you can’t get your pooled miles again. It’s also possible to solely function in a single pool at a time. For those who exit a pool, there is a 90-day “cooling” interval earlier than you may be part of one other pool or earlier than a brand new member can be part of your outdated pool.
Lastly, you can’t pool Premier qualifying factors, and pooling miles doesn’t have an effect on your Premier standing.
Associated: Airways that enable households to pool miles
The right way to redeem United miles
United has retired its award charts and now makes use of dynamic award pricing. Nonetheless, there are methods to maximise this system.
Usually, you may get probably the most worth out of your miles once you redeem them for flights, which is simple to do on United’s web site or app. United bank card holders and Premier members can entry extra award house on United flights, so you should definitely log into your MileagePlus account earlier than trying to find award flights if you happen to fall into these classes.
United additionally has a cost choice known as Cash + Miles. Nevertheless, we do not suggest this as a result of it affords a set charge of 1 cent per mile — nicely beneath our April 2025 valuation of 1.35 cents for United miles.
The identical goes for many different methods to redeem United miles, akin to with United Membership memberships, inflight Wi-Fi purchases, TSA PreCheck charges, automotive leases, lodge stays, retail merchandise and reward playing cards. The worth you may get from these redemptions is sort of all the time considerably decrease than what you may get on an award ticket.
Associated: The right way to change your undesirable reward playing cards for United miles
Greatest makes use of of United miles
You may discover award choices beginning round 5,000 miles on high-frequency, short-haul flights. Though these flights virtually all the time price lower than $100, these awards could be a good way to maintain your journey plans versatile since United not prices redeposit charges once you cancel award flights.
It’s also possible to discover transcontinental flights beginning at 15,000 miles in financial system class or 30,000 miles in enterprise class when there’s saver award house. You may contemplate maintaining a wholesome “simply in case” stash of miles in your MileagePlus account for last-minute conditions.
For one thing just a little extra advanced, the United Excursionist Perk is a good way to maximise your United miles when reserving multicity journeys. Mainly, the primary flight inside a area completely different out of your departure and vacation spot area is free in the identical class because the previous flight. For instance, if you happen to guide a round-trip business-class flight from Newark Liberty Worldwide Airport (EWR) to London’s Heathrow Airport (LHR) and again, you may as well get a “free” business-class flight from London to a different European airport, akin to Brussels Airport (BRU).
Lastly, you may think about using United miles to fly on high accomplice carriers — together with these with merchandise like ANA’s “The Room” enterprise class or EVA Air’s enterprise class, which provide high-end facilities however include excessive award charges.
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Backside line
Since United has a large community — and provides new routes ceaselessly — it is simple to earn and redeem MileagePlus miles on flights. For those who reside close to a United hub or need to benefit from the perks of elite standing, sticking with the MileagePlus loyalty program might make sense. Even if you happen to do not fly United fairly often or do not care about elite standing, you should still discover it helpful to switch miles from this system’s bank card switch companions.
Whichever sort of United flyer you’re, understanding the intricacies of the MileagePlus program could be rewarding.