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United Airlines offers many opportunities to redeem MileagePlus miles, but some redemption options are better than others. We’ll look at the different ways to redeem your United miles, from the good (e.g., business class award tickets) to the not-so-good (e.g., buying an iPhone).
Keep in mind that NerdWallet values United miles at 1.2 cents each. Ideally, you want to aim for redemptions that exceed that valuation. Generally, you'll find that award tickets booked in first or business class cabins result in better redemption values in terms of cents per mile.
» Learn more: How much are travel points and miles worth this year?
Redeem miles for flights on United Airlines
One of the best ways to use United miles is to redeem them for award tickets on United. As one of the largest U.S.-based airlines (with over 330 destinations worldwide and more than 4,500 daily departures), United's extensive reach provides several opportunities for award tickets.
With a user-friendly website, United has done a good job of designing its award search interface.
To search for an award flight, input your origin, destination and date, select the "Book with miles" option and click "Find flights." Below is an example for an award flight search from Chicago-O’Hare to Los Angeles in December 2025.
Awards are shown for each fare class as long as seats are available on the flight. United advertises a “last seat availability” benefit, which stipulates that any available seat can be booked with miles. That said, just because a seat can be booked with miles doesn’t mean it’s always a good redemption option.
If you’re looking to make good use of your miles, look for saver awards, which are the lowest award price on a particular flight. These are capacity-controlled, which means that during popular travel days, they may be difficult to find. You can book saver awards through Star Alliance partners, too. In the example above, the economy award for 15,000 miles is a saver award.
MileagePlus Premier members, especially Platinum and 1K elites, have expanded access to saver awards, while holders of some United co-branded credit cards can get discounts on them.
» Learn more: How to book United flights with miles
United credit cards
Annual Fee
$0 intro for the first year, then $150
$350
$695
$0
Earning Rate
• 5 miles per $1 on prepaid hotels booked through United.
• 2 miles per $1 on United purchases.
• 2 miles per $1 at restaurants and hotels (when booked directly with hotel).
• 1 mile per $1 on all other purchases.
• 5 miles per $1 on hotel stays through Renowned Hotels and Resorts.
• 3 miles per $1 on United purchases.
• 2 miles per $1 at restaurants, select streaming services and all other travel.
• 1 mile per $1 on all other purchases.
• 5 miles per $1 on hotel stays through Renowned Hotels and Resorts.
• 4 miles per $1 on United purchases.
• 2 miles per $1 at restaurants and all other travel purchases.
• 1 mile per $1 on all other purchases.
• 2 miles per $1 on United purchases, gas stations and local transit and commuting.
• 1 mile per $1 on all other purchases.
United benefits
• First checked bag free for you and one companion on your reservation.
• 2 United Club one-time passes each year.
• $100 United Travelbank credits after spending $10,000 in a calendar year.
• 10,000-mile discount after spending $20,000 in a calendar year.
• Credit every four years for TSA PreCheck, Global Entry or NEXUS.
• Priority boarding.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• First and second checked bag free for you and one companion on your reservation.
• $200 yearly United TravelBank credit.
• Yearly 10,000-mile discount.
• Another 10,000-mile discount after spending $20,000 in purchases per calendar year.
• 2 global Economy Plus seat upgrades after spending $40,000 in a calendar year.
• Credit every four years for TSA PreCheck, Global Entry or NEXUS.
• Priority boarding.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• First and second checked bag free for you and one companion on your reservation.
• Access to United Club airport lounges.
• A 10,000-mile discount after spending $20,000 in purchases per calendar year (up to two times per year).
• Credit every four years for TSA PreCheck, Global Entry or NEXUS.
• Priority boarding.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• No foreign transaction fees.
• 2 free checked bags after you spend $10,000 in a calendar year.
Bonus offer
Earn 70,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.
Earn 80,000 bonus miles and 3,000 Premier qualifying points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.
Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening.
Earn 30,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.
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Searching and redeeming with dynamic award pricing
United no longer publishes a region-based award chart. It now follows a dynamic pricing model, meaning the prices of award seats fluctuate based on demand.
A search for nonstop award seats from Newark to London-Heathrow in December 2025 reveals the following award seats on United:
There are six saver awards seats for 33,400 miles in economy and four award seats at 80,000 miles in business class. If you’re flexible on your travel dates, you could pull up the 30-day calendar to look for the price of awards on other days.
A scan of the calendar for the same route illustrates that some days are pricier to travel than others. Note the calendar is filtered by nonstop flights only. If you’re open to having a connecting flight, you’d have more options for lower-priced economy and business class awards.
You’ll generally get the best value when you redeem your miles for a business or first class ticket. Consider the following round-trip saver award in business class from Newark to London-Heathrow for 314,700 miles plus $363 in taxes. The high taxes on the return leg aren’t United’s fault, as the U.K. is notorious for adding high taxes to departing flights.
If you were to book that same business class flight in cash, you would pay $19,034, including taxes and fees. Note that the taxes are slightly higher on the flight paid in cash versus the flight paid in miles.
By using miles, you would extract a higher value in points than our valuation of 1.2 cents. Although not everyone is willing to spend over $19,000 on a round-trip business class flight to London, this example illustrates the potential value of redeeming miles for premium cabin awards.
Redeeming for United award deals
United publishes flight award deals to various destinations for as low as 7,400 miles one-way at the time of writing. These are separate from saver awards and may be worth it depending on your flexibility.
Select the flight you’re interested in, and on the following results page, choose the 30-day calendar to see if other dates are also priced at the low mileage level.
For example, tickets from Houston to Cancun were listed for as low as 8,000 miles and $49 for travel in March 2025.
When you hover over the flight and click on it, you will see a seven-day calendar across the top, along with tickets priced at the advertised level of 8,000 miles.
You can also view the 30-day calendar to see other dates.
The calendar shows awards for 8,000 miles available throughout the month as well as some dates for fewer miles — as little as 7,300.
So if you’re seeing an award that isn't on the date you want, it might be worth digging in a little deeper and checking alternative dates for that same, or lower, route pricing.
Buy a United flight with Money + Miles
United's Money + Miles payment method allows travelers to pay for just a portion of any fare with miles, covering the remainder of the fare with cash.
Using this tool at checkout means you can choose the number of miles you'd like to put toward your flight while earning miles on the portion of the fare paid in cash, excluding taxes and fees.
» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now
Use miles for flights on Star Alliance and other partner airlines
United is a founding member of Star Alliance, which boasts 25 member airlines. Due to United’s participation in Star Alliance and its partnerships with 17 additional airlines, United has access to a comprehensive international route network you can earn and redeem United MileagePlus miles with.
Award tickets on all partners can be booked on United.com (just like United award tickets), which makes booking travel convenient.
Here’s a list of all airlines with award tickets that can be booked using United miles:
United partner airlines:
- Aegean Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Air Canada (Star Alliance).
- Air China (Star Alliance).
- Air India (Star Alliance).
- Air New Zealand (Star Alliance).
- ANA (Star Alliance).
- Asiana Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Austrian (Star Alliance).
- Avianca (Star Alliance).
- Brussels Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Copa Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Croatia Airlines (Star Alliance).
- EgyptAir (Star Alliance).
- Ethiopian Airlines (Star Alliance).
- EVA Air (Star Alliance).
- JetBlue Airways (Partner).
- LOT Polish Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Lufthansa (Star Alliance).
- Lufthansa City Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Shenzhen Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Singapore Airlines (Star Alliance).
- South African Airways (Star Alliance).
- SWISS (Star Alliance).
- TAP Air Portugal (Star Alliance).
- THAI (Star Alliance).
- Turkish Airlines (Star Alliance).
- Aer Lingus (Partner).
- Air Dolomiti (Partner).
- Airlink (Partner).
- Azul (Partner).
- Cape Air (Partner).
- Discover Airlines (Partner).
- Edelweiss (Partner).
- Emirates (Partner).
- Eurowings (Partner).
- Flydubai (Partner).
- Hawaiian Airlines (Partner).
- JSX (Partner).
- Lufhansa City Airlines (Partner).
- Olympic Air (Partner).
- Silver Airways (Partner).
- Virgin Australia (Partner).
» Learn more: Sweet spots to get the most value from your United miles
Redeem miles for United upgrades
United offers four types of upgrade awards. Complimentary Premier and PlusPoints upgrades are free and don't require MileagePlus miles, so we’ll look specifically at the two forms of upgrades you can use your miles on.
MileagePlus Upgrade Awards
These upgrade awards are available on paid tickets on United and United Express flights. Depending on your fare class and cabin, the upgrade cost can be a combination of miles and cash.
If you haven’t purchased your ticket, you can find out how many miles you’ll need to upgrade during the search process. After you input your flight search details, you’ll have the option to select an “Upgrade type.” In the example below, we’ve selected “MileagePlus Upgrade Awards.”
After clicking “Find flights,” you’ll see the results page. In the example below, the price for a one-way flight from Chicago-O’Hare to Paris-Charles de Gaulle is $513 in economy. To upgrade to premium economy, you’ll need 20,000 MileagePlus miles. If you want to upgrade to business class, you’ll need to pay a service fee in addition to 20,000 miles.
If you didn’t request an upgrade during booking, you can do so after you’ve booked your flight by calling United Reservations at 1-800-UNITED-1 (1-800-864-8331).
Star Alliance Upgrade Awards
You could also use your miles to upgrade paid tickets on Star Alliance and partner airlines. Fare classes C and D (business class) and Y and B (economy class) are eligible for upgrades. Additional fare classes may be permitted depending on the airline.
To find out if there’s upgrade availability on your flight, you can complete this form after booking. If there is availability, you’ll be able to request and confirm the upgrade.
Currently, you can use upgrade awards on the following partner airlines:
- Aegean Airlines.
- Air Canada.
- Air China.
- Air India.
- Air New Zealand.
- ANA.
- Asiana Airlines.
- Austrian.
- Avianca.
- Brussels Airlines.
- Copa Airlines.
- Croatia Airlines.
- EgyptAir.
- Ethiopian Airlines.
- EVA Air.
- LOT Polish Airlines.
- Lufthansa.
- Shenzhen Airlines.
- Singapore Airlines.
- South African Airways.
- SWISS.
- TAP Air Portugal.
- THAI.
- Turkish Airlines.
» Learn more: Valuable benefits of United Airlines credit cards
Spend miles on flight and airport benefits
You could also use your miles on a variety of flight and airport benefits.
United Club membership
There are more than 45 United Club locations in airports globally. A United Club membership could be a valuable choice if you fly frequently. An annual membership to United’s Club lounges costs $650 or 85,000 miles, resulting in a value of just under 0.8 cent per mile.
In-flight Wi-Fi subscription
You could also purchase a package for in-flight Wi-Fi, starting at $49 or 7,500 miles a month, resulting in a little less than a 0.7 cent per mile value.
TSA PreCheck
TSA PreCheck expedites your time at the airport and gives you access to a designated line for security screening. Additionally, when you go through security, you don’t need to remove your laptop, liquids, belt or light jacket. A TSA PreCheck membership is valid for five years.
If you already have Global Entry, you don't need to purchase TSA PreCheck as the benefits overlap. Many premium travel cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the American Express Platinum Card® offer a statement credit when you use the card to pay for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck enrollment. Terms apply.
If you don’t already have reimbursement through a credit card and are considering a TSA PreCheck subscription, you could use 11,000 United miles to pay for the $78 application fee.
Airport dining
You can use United miles to pay your bill at select restaurants at Newark and Houston-Intercontinental airports. You’ll need to scan your boarding pass to start your order; when you’re ready to check out, you’ll be able to select miles or cash to pay for your total bill.
The value is just under 0.7 cent per mile.
Other ways to use United miles
In addition to flying and upgrading, there are numerous other ways to use your United miles. Although you'll generally get the most value out of redeeming your miles on premium cabin award tickets on long-haul flights, it's good to know that other methods of redeeming miles exist.
Newspaper and magazine subscriptions
You could use your United miles to pay for a magazine or newspaper subscription. A glance at current subscriptions shows the following options for the Financial Times:
A 24-week subscription to the eEdition of the Financial Times costs $49 or 1,960 miles, reflecting a redemption value of 2.5 cents per mile. This is actually a pretty good value considering that NerdWallet values United miles at 1.2 cents each.
Car rentals
Your miles could be used to book a car rental. To illustrate, a two-day economy rental in November 2025 costs 18,600 miles.
The car wasn’t bookable with cash on the United site, so we went to Budget to compare. If you pay in advance, it would cost you $154.65 to rent the car, resulting in a value of 0.8 cent per mile, which is far below the valuation of 1.2 cents.
Use United miles for hotels
You could also redeem your MileagePlus miles for hotel stays. For example, a one-night stay in Scottsdale in December 2025 will cost 25,010 United miles (with a cash cost of $247). If you used miles for this stay, you’d get just over a 0.9 cent per mile redemption, which is subpar.
Shopping and gift cards
United also allows you to use your miles to pay for online purchases, including Apple products. Although you likely won’t extract good value if you use your miles to pay for these, if you don’t expect to use them for travel, it's nice to have other options.
Whether it’s through Apple, the MileagePlus X app or United’s gift card portal, you’re looking at a value of only 0.3 cent per mile.
The rest of the rest
- Experiences: Bid on unique experiences or purchase tickets to events. Value varies based on the cash price of the ticket or auctioned experience.
- Make a donation: Browse through United’s donation search site for a list of current campaigns.
- Transfer United miles to someone else: This is usually a terrible value. Not only will you have to pay a fee for the cost of the miles, but you will also have to pay a processing charge. For example, a transfer of 10,000 miles would cost you $150.
- Credit card statements: United credit cardholders can use miles for airfare statement credits or to offset the cost of United tickets purchased at united.com. Generally, these uses result in poor value.
- Cruises: You could spend your miles to pay for a cruise. United frequently runs promotions through its cruise website for discounted options.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I redeem miles on United?
The simplest way to redeem United miles is to use them for award flights on United and its partner airlines. You will need to log in to your United MileagePlus account to search for available flights. Other ways to use United miles include: flight upgrades, hotel bookings, shopping and gift cards.
How many miles are needed for a free flight on United?
United has removed its award chart in favor of dynamic pricing, so the price of an award ticket fluctuates based on the date of travel and the airline. To see a list of the lowest award fares, check out United’s flight award deals to various destinations for as low as 8,300 miles.
Do United miles expire?
United miles do not expire, so you don’t have to worry about losing your hard-earned miles.
Can I book a United flight for someone else?
You can use your United MileagePlus miles to book an award flight for anyone. The booking process is the same as if you were purchasing the award for yourself, but you will need to know the traveler’s details (i.e., first and last name, date of birth and other relevant details depending on the origin/destination).
What are United miles worth?
NerdWallet values United miles at 1.2 cents each, which means that 10,000 United miles are worth $120.
Can you transfer United miles?
Yes, United miles can be transferred to others, however not only will you pay to do the transfer, but you’ll have to pay a processing fee as well. United charges $7.50 per 500 miles transferred plus a $30 processing fee. So, if you wanted to transfer 50,000 miles, you would have to pay $780.
A better option would be to use the United miles pooling feature. Doing so is free, although be aware there are restrictions on how pooled miles can be used.
Final thoughts on redeeming United miles
United offers plenty of opportunities to use your miles. Although the airline now focuses on dynamic pricing, you can still extract some decent value from your miles, especially if you redeem them for premium cabin awards.
If you’d prefer to use your miles on non-flying-related activities, United also offers plenty of redemption options through various partnerships. Surprisingly, using miles for newspaper subscriptions results in a decent redemption.
On the other hand, shopping credits, gift card purchases and hotel awards reflected some of the weakest uses of United miles.
Regardless of which option you choose, there is no such thing as the perfect redemption. Miles are meant to be used and not hoarded, so pick whichever redemption option best suits your needs.
To view rates and fees of the American Express Platinum Card®, see this page.
How to maximize your rewards
You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are some of the best travel credit cards of 2026:
- Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
- No annual fee: Wells Fargo Autograph® Card
- Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®
- Luxury perks: American Express Platinum Card®
- Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card
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