How to Cancel a United Flight

Most United Airlines tickets are technically nonrefundable — but even if you can't get a cash refund, you might still be able to get a flight credit. Here is the United flight cancellation policy.

Canceling within 24 hours of booking

• Most ticket types, including basic economy, are eligible for a full refund within 24 hours of booking so long as you booked your trip at least a week before departure and booked directly with United. This rule is due to the airline’s 24-hour flexible booking policy.

• Your refund will be credited as cash back to your original payment.

• Tickets booked using e-certificates aren't eligible.

• If you paid a FareLock fee to hold a reservation, you can’t get that fee refunded.

• You must cancel for all passengers on the reservation.

Canceling more than 24 hours after booking

More than 24 hours after booking, cancellation rules vary depending on the ticket type purchased.

• Basic economy: No cancellations are allowed beyond 24 hours from booking, but you may be able to get a partial travel credit if you cancel before the scheduled departure time.

• Nonrefundable tickets: Most United tickets are nonrefundable, which means you're not going to get cash back. However, you may be eligible to apply the value of your ticket toward the price of a new ticket using its travel credits. Whether a ticket is eligible for a refund depends on the fare type (there are over 20 different kinds), so check the terms and conditions when you book.

• Refundable tickets: If the ticket purchased is refundable, you can cancel and get refunded to your original form of payment before the flight departs.

• Award tickets: If you redeemed MileagePlus miles for your flight and want to cancel, you can redeposit the miles into your account. There’s no redeposit fee unless you are a no show. In this instance, you will be charged a flat fee of $125 to redeposit your award miles.

» Learn more: Valuable benefits of United Airlines credit cards

Is it better to cancel a flight or change it?

If you know you’ll want to rebook your United flight and you already know the dates, changing your flight instead of canceling outright could save you money.

There are no change fees for tickets in Economy, Economy Plus® or a premium cabin ticket.

Basic economy flights must be upgraded to an economy or premium cabin before making any changes. International flights originating outside the U.S. may incur change fees.

How to cancel your United flight

There are two ways to cancel a United flight.

1. Call 1-800-UNITED-1 (1-800-864-8331) to request a cancellation.

2. Log in to your United Airlines account online or using the app and select "My trips.” Verify your trip details, then select "Manage." From there, you'll see "Cancel flight.”

Then, you'll see a confirmation screen, where you will have to “Confirm cancellation.” Once you do that, you can see if you can get a refund or a travel credit.

Canceling your flight online is likely the quickest option, especially if call wait times are long.

Can I cancel a United flight booked with miles?

If you paid for your ticket with United MileagePlus miles, you can cancel your flight online or by calling customer service. You can cancel an award ticket at any time before departure and have the miles redeposited without paying a fee. Taxes and other fees paid with cash will be refunded to your original payment method.

The only circumstance when this doesn't apply is if you are a no show for your award flight. In this case, you have the option to redeposit your miles for a $125 fee.

» Learn more: What you need to know about United Airlines baggage and other fees

United Airlines refund for your canceled trip

If you’ve canceled your United flight and think you're entitled to a cash refund, follow this process to get reimbursed.

• Fill out a refund form, and United will contact you to let you know if you qualify for a ticket refund.

• You can also use the refund form page to check the status of your refund.

The type of refund you will be offered will depend on the type of ticket you purchased and the reason for canceling. In some cases, you may get a refund straight to your original form of payment, or you may be eligible for a flight credit.

FREQUENT UNITED FLYER?

United credit cards earn bonus miles not only on purchases with the airline, but also on common everyday expenses. They also offer day-of-travel benefits and other perks that can more than make up for the annual fee. Options:

How to use a United future flight credit to rebook

If you canceled a United Airlines flight, you might have a future flight credit to use. Here’s what you’ll need to do to use the credits to rebook.

• Use the future flight credit search tool to verify that you have future flight credits. You can do this by logging into your account and selecting your credits.

• Find your new flights.

• Once verified, use the credit to book your new flight by selecting “travel credits” as your payment method.

Future flight credits have a “travel by” date as their expiration; usually, this is 12 months after the date of issue.

You can also use future flight credits to pay for things like Economy Plus seating.

» Learn more: Plan your next redemption with our airline points tool

Other options for getting your money back

If United Airlines won’t help you, travel insurance might. This optional standalone insurance can be purchased separately from your airfare.

You might not even need to pay out-of-pocket for trip insurance; many credit cards offer travel insurance as a built-in benefit to customers who pay for a flight on that card.

Sometimes, though, not even trip insurance will guarantee a refund. Unless you’ve purchased a Cancel For Any Reason policy, which is usually more expensive, you’re only entitled to a refund if you cancel for a covered reason.

» Learn more: Is Cancel For Any Reason travel insurance worth it?