April 8, 2026

United MileagePlus® Explained: Earning, Cards, Pooling & More

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United MileagePlus® Explained: Earning, Cards, Pooling & More
United MileagePlus® Explained: Earning, Cards, Pooling & More

Click MORE to see Ad disclosures If you fly United — or even if you're just thinking about it — this episode is your starting point for understanding their MileagePlus® program from the ground up. I'm covering how dynamic pricing and saver awards work, the full United credit card lineup and what cardholder pricing actually means for your bookings now, ways to stack your earnings with the MileagePlus X app, and one of my favorite United features that no other major airline offers: miles poolin...

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Season 3

Click MORE to see Ad disclosures

If you fly United — or even if you're just thinking about it — this episode is your starting point for understanding their MileagePlus® program from the ground up. I'm covering how dynamic pricing and saver awards work, the full United credit card lineup and what cardholder pricing actually means for your bookings now, ways to stack your earnings with the MileagePlus X app, and one of my favorite United features that no other major airline offers: miles pooling for families and friends.

This is part one of a two-part series. Next time, I'll show you how to book United flights through partner programs like Avianca LifeMiles®, Air Canada Aeroplan®, and Turkish Miles & Smiles® — which is especially helpful if you have Amex®, Capital One®, or Citi® points. All the links and resources I mention are in the show notes below!

ACTION STEPS

  • Download the MileagePlus X (MPX) app and spend a few minutes browsing the stores and earn rates to decide if the e-gift card strategy makes sense for you.
  • Link your Lyft® and United MileagePlus® accounts if you have an upcoming trip — or wait until you know you'll have two Lyft rides within 30 days to earn the 1,000 bonus miles. https://promo.united.com/offers/lyft
  • Set up a family miles pool now if you have family members with small United balances, even before you need it — so the 72-hour waiting period is already behind you when you're ready to book.

RESOURCES

New Here?

Hi, I’m Katie from Katie’s Travel Tricks! I am here to help you learn the secrets that my family has been using for over a decade, using everyday expenses and welcome offers to supercharge your points earning. When you learn to do this, you can cover entire vacations every year.

Our family has been to Hawaii, Asia, the Caribbean, Europe — and more — all thanks to strategically earning and redeeming points. We've done this on a limited travel budget and now want to help you do it, too.


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Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the card links and other products that appear on this podcast are from companies which Katie's Travel Tricks will earn an affiliate commission. Katie's Travel Tricks is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as CreditCards.com. The content in this podcast is accurate as of the posting date. Some of the offers mentioned may no longer be available. Editorial Disclosure: Opinions expressed here are the author's alone...

00:00 - Welcome And Series Roadmap

01:45 - MileagePlus Pricing And Saver Awards

03:13 - Earning Miles From Flights Transfers

05:05 - Lyft Shopping Dining Extra Miles

07:29 - United Cards That Change Pricing

13:36 - MPX App For Stacking Miles

17:52 - MPX Caveats And Protection Tradeoffs

19:36 - Booking United Awards With Confidence

21:28 - Miles Pooling Rules And Limits

24:58 - Pooling Loopholes And Next Steps

WEBVTT

00:00:08.960 --> 00:00:18.640
United is the largest airline in the world by available seat miles, with hubs in Newark, Chicago, O'Hare, Denver, Houston, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Washington Dulles.

00:00:18.800 --> 00:00:26.480
Today we're gonna dive into its mileage plus program with a big compilation of tips about earning and redeeming miles with United.

00:00:26.719 --> 00:00:29.039
Welcome back to Points for Normal People.

00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:34.560
I'm Katie and I'm here because I know that travel costs add up, especially with the family.

00:00:34.799 --> 00:00:37.520
But I believe that travel isn't just for the rich.

00:00:37.759 --> 00:00:53.439
That's why on Points for Normal People I share the tips and tricks that my family has been using for over a decade to help you use your everyday expenses and credit card welcome offers to supercharge your travel points so that you can pay for entire vacations every year.

00:00:53.679 --> 00:00:58.479
This is going to be a two-part series because it got a little too long for just one part.

00:00:58.719 --> 00:01:03.600
Part one today is all about United's own loyalty program, Mileage Plus.

00:01:03.759 --> 00:01:22.319
We're going to cover how the program works, how to earn miles in ways you might not expect, the United Credit Card lineup, and what cardholder benefits actually mean for your award searches, how to search for awards, and one of my favorite things United offers that no other major airline does: miles pooling for families and friends.

00:01:22.480 --> 00:01:34.480
Part two is coming next, and that's where we'll get into partner programs, like how to book the exact same United flight through partners like Avianca Life Miles or Air Canada Airplan, sometimes for fewer points.

00:01:34.719 --> 00:01:41.840
If you have Amex, Capital One, or City Points and can't figure out how to get onto United flights with them, that's going to be the episode for you.

00:01:42.079 --> 00:01:44.959
But let's start with the foundation over here with United.

00:01:45.200 --> 00:01:50.319
United's loyalty program is called Mileage Plus, and United is part of the Star Alliance.

00:01:50.480 --> 00:01:53.599
Now, United doesn't have a published award chart anymore.

00:01:53.840 --> 00:01:57.439
United moved to fully dynamic pricing in November 2019.

00:01:57.599 --> 00:02:03.040
The number of miles a flight costs varies based on demand, the time of year, and other factors.

00:02:03.200 --> 00:02:08.879
The same route might cost 8,000 miles on a Tuesday and 30,000 over spring break.

00:02:09.199 --> 00:02:13.360
Dynamic pricing will be familiar to you if you've listened to other episodes this season.

00:02:13.520 --> 00:02:17.599
Delta and American both have dynamic pricing as well for award flights.

00:02:17.759 --> 00:02:22.000
But unlike Delta, United still has the concept of a saver award.

00:02:22.240 --> 00:02:25.840
So when you're searching, it will mark certain awards as saver awards.

00:02:26.000 --> 00:02:34.560
And this will be a really good indication that, first of all, you likely have the lowest price for that flight, but also that it might be possible to book it with a partner.

00:02:34.639 --> 00:02:36.960
And that's what we'll go over next week, that second part.

00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:46.719
But because pricing is dynamic, you're not guaranteed to find a saver award on any given flight, even if you start searching the minute flights are released in the schedule.

00:02:46.879 --> 00:02:54.000
So domestic saver awards in economy typically start around 12,500 miles each way, though shorter routes can be less.

00:02:54.319 --> 00:03:02.560
United Now also advertises last seat availability, which means theoretically that any seat for sale can technically be booked with miles.

00:03:02.719 --> 00:03:10.639
So this often goes hand in hand with dynamic pricing because airlines can make every seat available with dynamic pricing, but just charge a lot for it.

00:03:10.879 --> 00:03:13.360
Before you can book anything, you need the miles.

00:03:13.439 --> 00:03:14.960
So let's talk about how to earn them.

00:03:15.120 --> 00:03:18.400
And United has some unique ways that you can be earning them.

00:03:18.639 --> 00:03:22.080
So the first is flying any Star Alliance airline on a paid ticket.

00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:27.520
I'm actually not sure that I went over this in other episodes, but this is true for other airline alliances as well.

00:03:27.680 --> 00:03:36.159
Anytime you fly any Star Alliance airline on a paid ticket, which means not an award ticket, you can choose which airline you want to earn miles with.

00:03:36.400 --> 00:03:45.599
So if you get a good flight deal on Lufthansa and paid with cash, you could choose to credit those miles earned to other Star Alliance airlines like United.

00:03:45.759 --> 00:03:58.560
Even if you book via a bank travel portal like Chase Travel or Capital One Travel and then offset your purchase with miles, those are, from the perspective of the airline, a cash fare and you can earn miles on those.

00:03:58.719 --> 00:04:05.840
If you forgot to add your mileage plus member at the time, you usually have 30 days to six months to ask for retroactive miles.

00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:12.000
Now with United, if you fly on a paid United ticket, you can earn even more miles if you're a United cardholder.

00:04:12.159 --> 00:04:14.879
And sometimes now you'd actually earn no miles.

00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:21.600
Like if you're a general member without a United card, you'd earn zero miles if you buy a basic economy ticket.

00:04:21.759 --> 00:04:28.959
If you fly United, having a United card or status has become a lot more important for earning and redeeming miles.

00:04:29.040 --> 00:04:32.639
And I'm going to go over that in a minute when we get to the details on the card lineup.

00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:42.720
When it comes to earning all of those United cards, of course, also can earn miles on your everyday spending, and they also can give you a big chunk of miles when you open them through a welcome offer.

00:04:42.959 --> 00:04:48.480
You can also get United miles by transferring them in from Chase Ultimate Rewards or Built Rewards.

00:04:48.639 --> 00:04:52.000
Both programs transfer to United at a 1 to 1 ratio.

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Marriott also transfers to United at a 3 to 1 ratio with a 10,000 mile bonus for every 60,000 points.

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Generally, that Marriott transfer is not a great deal, but it could be useful for topping off a balance to get the award that you want.

00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:09.839
Next, here's a few ways to earn miles that will be familiar if you've listened to the other episodes.

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So United and Lyft have a partnership where you can link your United Mileage Plus account to your Lyft profile and earn miles on every ride.

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Pre-scheduled rides to and from the airport earn four miles per dollar, which is their best rate.

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Extra Comfort Lift Black and non-scheduled airport rides earn three miles per dollar, and then other standard rides earn just one mile per dollar.

00:05:30.560 --> 00:05:34.319
Keep in mind that with Lyft, you have to pick one partner to earn miles with.

00:05:34.399 --> 00:05:42.160
So you might choose instead to link Lyft to built where you earn two points per dollar, or at most where you earn two to three points per dollar.

00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:47.279
But if you want to go all in with United, I'll put the link in the show notes of how you can link your accounts.

00:05:47.519 --> 00:05:53.120
New users also get a thousand bonus miles after linking and completing two rides within 30 days.

00:05:53.279 --> 00:05:56.800
So this could be a good way to get an extra boost on United Miles.

00:05:56.959 --> 00:06:03.680
You can actually change your rewards partner at any time with Lyft, so you can switch back and forth between these different partners.

00:06:03.920 --> 00:06:10.000
That means you could get those thousand bonus miles right before a trip with United and then switch back to another partner later.

00:06:10.160 --> 00:06:21.759
Like a lot of airlines, United has an online shopping portal with over 1,100 retailers where you earn extra miles for purchase when you click through, and a dining program where you can earn miles at participating restaurants.

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So if you really want to go all in with United, you could install the Mileage Plus shopping browser extension so that it pops up to remind you to activate your earnings before you check out at any store.

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That shopping portal also sometimes runs periodic spend bonus promotions, things like earn 500 bonus miles after spending 150 through the portal by a certain date.

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These come and go usually around the holidays or the end of the quarter.

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One quick note about the dining program.

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So it has a dining program just like Southwest or Built or Rakuten, but those dining programs, as I've mentioned before, typically only allow you to register any given card to one of them since they're almost all running on the same rewards network.

00:07:00.639 --> 00:07:04.000
So you'll have to pick one to use as your primary dining network.

00:07:04.160 --> 00:07:12.959
So if you want to go all in on United Miles, you could focus by adding the card you typically pay for restaurants with to United Mileage Plus Dining specifically.

00:07:13.120 --> 00:07:18.079
But you could also choose to link to Built, which is gonna let you also transfer those points to United.

00:07:18.240 --> 00:07:28.879
I'm gonna talk a little bit more in depth about the United cards, and then I'll go back to one more way you can be earning United Miles where you can potentially even triple or quadruple dip your earnings.

00:07:29.120 --> 00:07:35.279
So the United card you hold or whether you hold a card at all does have an impact on your award bookings.

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And I think that if you plan to fly United once a year, holding a card can really make sense.

00:07:40.800 --> 00:07:45.920
So all of these cards are Chase-issued cards that will be linked to your mileage plus account.

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At the lowest level is the United Gateway card, which has no annual fee.

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This card doesn't have many great benefits unless you spend$10,000 on the card in a calendar year.

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At that point, you'd unlock card holder award pricing and free check bags.

00:08:00.240 --> 00:08:04.639
Well, it actually might take about four weeks for that pricing to activate according to the terms.

00:08:04.800 --> 00:08:10.639
But most people will want to skip this card because you're not getting a lot unless you're spending$10,000 on it.

00:08:10.879 --> 00:08:19.439
It's good to know as an option, especially that it's an option you could downgrade one of the other United cards to if you're taking a break from Flying United for a few years.

00:08:19.600 --> 00:08:26.560
The United Explorer card has a$150 annual fee, and that annual fee is often waived the first year that you have it.

00:08:26.720 --> 00:08:30.639
This is the sweet spot for most occasional to moderate United flyers.

00:08:30.800 --> 00:08:36.799
So the cardholder is going to get their first check bag free for themselves, plus one other person on their reservation.

00:08:36.960 --> 00:08:38.559
Personally, I think that's a bit stingy.

00:08:38.639 --> 00:08:41.200
A lot of other airlines, it's everybody on your reservation.

00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:50.399
You also get two United Club passes per year, which could be used by the card holder authorized users, or you can use it with other people that are flying with the cardholder.

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Now, United Club passes can be useful if you're at an airport like Chicago O'Hare, which doesn't really have a priority pass lounge.

00:08:57.200 --> 00:09:02.879
But with only two passes per year, it isn't the most useful benefit for a family or groups that travel together.

00:09:03.120 --> 00:09:05.600
This card also gets a bunch of little credits.

00:09:05.759 --> 00:09:08.960
So it does get a credit for TSA Precheck or Global Entry.

00:09:09.120 --> 00:09:18.080
It also gets up to$60 per year in rideshare credits, up to$100 on United Hotel purchases, and up to$50 towards Avis or budget car rentals.

00:09:18.240 --> 00:09:22.879
That sounds like a lot, but I don't think most of these credits are that valuable to most people.

00:09:23.120 --> 00:09:31.840
Like the rideshare credit is doled out at$5 a month, and the hotel credit is two$50 credits that have to be booked via United Hotels.

00:09:32.080 --> 00:09:35.360
So there's potential value there, but it's kind of a pain to unlock it.

00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:46.080
Like all the Chase co-branded cards, it does give you a complimentary three-month Instacart Plus membership and$10 off each month at Instacart while you have Instacart Plus.

00:09:46.240 --> 00:09:54.559
So I have a full article on how to maximize these Chase Instacart benefits on my website, and I'm going to link that in the show notes because I think it's a really underused perk.

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This card also gets United Cardholder pricing, which as of April 2nd, 2026, just got even better.

00:10:01.440 --> 00:10:06.960
So now eligible cardholders get at least 10% off every United Award flight they book.

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If you have status, so if you're a Premier member with a card, you get at least 15% off.

00:10:12.480 --> 00:10:21.360
So previously the benefit was a little more vague and just said that cardholders see expanded saver award inventory that non-cardholders couldn't access.

00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:26.159
But now even saver pricing is at least 10% off for cardholders.

00:10:26.320 --> 00:10:30.480
All the credit cards with annual fees got this pricing discount automatically.

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Like I said, the no annual fee gateway card, and then there's also a debit rewards card.

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They require$10,000 in spend first and then waiting up to four weeks for that cardholder pricing to take effect.

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For everyone else, cardholder pricing should activate within a few days of approval.

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It's not necessarily instant based on data points, but usually a few days after your account is approved, and then it'll link through the United System.

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One more family-specific note on this.

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Starting in April 2026, cardholders can link up to eight children's mileage plus accounts to share the cardholder earn rate and award pricing.

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Both the parent and the child need a date of birth saved on their accounts for this.

00:11:10.320 --> 00:11:15.679
When a linked child turns 18, they would automatically stop receiving the cardholder rates and pricing discount.

00:11:15.840 --> 00:11:23.840
Now, this is mostly applicable if you're paying cash for United flights for your kids, but it would still be good to know and to do if you do that.

00:11:24.159 --> 00:11:33.519
United also has two higher fee cards, the United Quest card with a$350 annual fee, and the United Club card with a$695 annual fee.

00:11:33.679 --> 00:11:38.879
As you expect with cards with higher annual fees, these are going to come with higher levels of benefits.

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Both of these, for instance, come with your first and second checked bag free, though again, I still think it's a bit stingy that you only get it for the cardholder plus one companion on the reservation.

00:11:50.559 --> 00:12:00.559
Both cards come with higher levels of ride share and Instacart credits, and they both give you a head start toward earning premier status each year if you're trying to earn status with United.

00:12:00.720 --> 00:12:06.799
The United Club card, as you might guess by the name, also gives you expanded access to United Clubs.

00:12:06.960 --> 00:12:15.840
This access is decent for a family as you do get access for the card holder, plus one adult guest, plus all dependent children under 18 traveling with you.

00:12:16.080 --> 00:12:19.840
Just as a note, authorized users don't get club access at all on their own.

00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:27.039
But unless you're flying United almost exclusively, you're probably better off with a card that gives you access to a broader lounge network.

00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:36.799
But again, if you're really all in on United, the club card might make sense too if you're going to use those United clubs a lot, especially if you're at airports that don't have Priority Pass clubs.

00:12:36.960 --> 00:12:38.639
So those are the cards on the personal side.

00:12:38.720 --> 00:12:44.320
On the business side, there is also the United Business Card with an$150 annual fee.

00:12:44.480 --> 00:12:49.759
This one loosely mirrors the Explorer card, though usually the annual fee is not waived the first year.

00:12:49.919 --> 00:12:53.919
But it does often have a higher number of miles offered as the welcome offer.

00:12:54.159 --> 00:12:59.759
There's also a United Club Business Card, which generally mirrors that personal card again.

00:12:59.919 --> 00:13:04.960
There's now even a mileage plus debit rewards card, though I don't really think it's worth opening.

00:13:05.039 --> 00:13:09.440
You'd have to keep$2,000 or more in the account to keep it fee-free.

00:13:09.600 --> 00:13:13.600
And you have to spend$10,000 a year to unlock cardholder pricing.

00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:19.679
It's administered by the same bank that does the Southwest debit card, and customer service isn't great.

00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:24.320
Now you do get bonus miles for keeping miles in the account over the course of a year.

00:13:24.559 --> 00:13:33.840
So if you have bills that can only be paid by debit card and you really want to go all in with United Miles, this could be a path to get some extra United Miles.

00:13:33.919 --> 00:13:35.919
But I wouldn't broadly recommend it to people.

00:13:36.080 --> 00:13:49.200
Now with that background of the basics of earning United Miles, I want to talk a little bit about a way that you can triple or quadruple stack earning United Miles with the Mileage Plus X app, which I'll also refer to as MPX.

00:13:49.360 --> 00:13:52.159
But first, just a little normal people reminder.

00:13:52.559 --> 00:13:56.720
You don't have to maximize every single one of these earning opportunities.

00:13:56.960 --> 00:13:58.240
I certainly don't.

00:13:58.480 --> 00:14:04.159
For most people, you're going to focus on maximizing maybe one particular area of points.

00:14:04.399 --> 00:14:08.559
Maybe over time, as you build habits, you start maximizing another as well.

00:14:08.720 --> 00:14:18.480
The Mileage Plus X app is an earning area that I've known about for a long time, but I personally don't use it because I'm fairly maxed out on what I'm managing on a day-to-day basis.

00:14:18.720 --> 00:14:24.080
It does have some potential, and that's why I want to explain it here in case it piques your interest.

00:14:24.240 --> 00:14:29.600
But don't ever feel bad that you're not maximizing every opportunity, because that's impossible.

00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:39.519
So the basic idea of the MPX app is this: you earn United Miles by purchasing e-gift cards through the app for stores that you were already going to shop at anyway.

00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:41.919
You're not actually spending any extra money.

00:14:42.000 --> 00:14:46.159
You're just routing a purchase you were already planning through the app first.

00:14:46.639 --> 00:14:48.080
So here's how that could work.

00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:50.320
Let's say you're heading to Home Depot.

00:14:50.480 --> 00:14:57.120
Before you go, you can open the app, find Home Depot, and buy a gift card for however much you plan to spend.

00:14:57.360 --> 00:15:00.399
The app delivers the e-Gift card to you instantly.

00:15:00.559 --> 00:15:05.759
You walk in, pay with the gift card, and miles post to your mileage plus account.

00:15:05.919 --> 00:15:12.240
You could theoretically even do this right after you've rung up to get a gift card in the exact amount of the purchase.

00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:14.639
That just depends how many people are behind you in line.

00:15:14.799 --> 00:15:21.120
Now earn rates vary by merchant, typically about half a mile to five miles per dollar, but sometimes they're higher.

00:15:21.279 --> 00:15:29.360
And right now there's over 270 merchants in there, including Starbucks, Walmart, Best Buy, Apple, REI, lots of restaurant chains.

00:15:29.519 --> 00:15:34.960
The app also has a nearby feature that shows participating merchants close to your current location.

00:15:35.120 --> 00:15:42.240
So those United miles you're earning on the gift card purchase are the first layer of earning or the first level of this stack.

00:15:42.480 --> 00:15:46.480
But you'll also earn points on whatever card you paid for the gift card with.

00:15:46.720 --> 00:15:53.360
So let's say you pay for a$100 Home Depot gift card, and let's just say the earn rate in MPX is three miles per dollar.

00:15:53.600 --> 00:15:57.919
And then you paid for that gift card with your Capital One venture rewards credit card.

00:15:58.080 --> 00:16:06.799
So you've earned 300 United Miles for the e-Gift card purchase in the app and 200 venture miles since you earn 2x with your venture card.

00:16:07.039 --> 00:16:09.039
So that's two levels of the stack.

00:16:09.200 --> 00:16:14.240
And then the next level of the stack is applicable if you hold any United co-branded card.

00:16:14.480 --> 00:16:19.679
In that case, you automatically get a 25% bonus on every MPX purchase.

00:16:19.840 --> 00:16:23.840
Now, importantly, you don't have to pay with the United card to get the bonus.

00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:26.159
Just holding it triggers it.

00:16:26.320 --> 00:16:31.840
So in our example, you would have earned another 75 United Miles if you have a United card as well.

00:16:32.080 --> 00:16:37.759
Then the fourth potential stack on the same purchase is to use an online shopping portal like Raccoutin.

00:16:38.000 --> 00:16:40.559
You could even use the United Miles shopping portal.

00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:43.759
So this won't work in store, but it would work online.

00:16:44.159 --> 00:16:51.600
So in the Home Depot example, this might mean that you would be shopping at Home Depot.com and then selecting in-store pickup.

00:16:51.840 --> 00:17:03.279
If your merchant also appears in a shopping portal, whether it's Raccoutin or the Mileage Plus shopping portal or any other one that we've talked about, you could also then earn cash back on points that way.

00:17:03.519 --> 00:17:05.839
So in this Home Depot example, I went and checked.

00:17:05.920 --> 00:17:16.559
And Home Depot is actually not in Raccoutin anymore, but I could find it in some other portals for anywhere from half a mile per dollar to 10% cash back, depending on the purchase category.

00:17:16.799 --> 00:17:20.319
So let's just say to keep it easy that it's one mile per dollar.

00:17:20.480 --> 00:17:22.400
So I could earn another 100 miles.

00:17:22.559 --> 00:17:29.519
In that case, what's happening is that you already have your e-gift card that you paid for in the MPX app.

00:17:29.680 --> 00:17:33.680
Then you click through your shopping portal to Home Depot.

00:17:33.839 --> 00:17:36.640
Once you're at Home Depot, you make your purchase.

00:17:36.799 --> 00:17:42.000
You've already activated the shopping portal, and then you just pay with your gift card that you bought from MPX.

00:17:42.160 --> 00:17:45.359
So some of you might hear this and you feel excited.

00:17:45.519 --> 00:17:48.079
And some of you might hear it and you feel tired.

00:17:48.319 --> 00:17:52.240
The good news is that everyone gets to decide how to pursue miles and points.

00:17:52.400 --> 00:17:56.720
To give you all the information, here's a few caveats and cautions to using MPX.

00:17:57.039 --> 00:18:01.359
So, first of all, e-gift cards through Mileage Plus X are non-refundable.

00:18:01.440 --> 00:18:07.920
So if you make a return, that return is going to go back to the gift card, and that money is now locked into that specific store.

00:18:08.160 --> 00:18:13.519
This might not be a problem if it's a place you frequent, but it might be a pain for certain purchases.

00:18:13.839 --> 00:18:25.599
Importantly, by buying a gift card rather than purchasing directly with a store and using a credit card to pay, you're giving up purchase protection and extended warranty benefits that are included on a lot of cards.

00:18:25.839 --> 00:18:36.559
That's why I personally would not use this for a big appliance purchase at Home Depot, for instance, because I'd usually rather have an extra year of warranty than a few more United Miles.

00:18:36.799 --> 00:18:43.680
But for restaurants or places that you don't need extra card protections, this could be a good way to stack up some extra earning.

00:18:43.839 --> 00:18:47.359
Also, I want to note that MPX earning rates will vary over time.

00:18:47.519 --> 00:18:52.480
So sometimes there's promotions with really good high rates or periods with lower rates.

00:18:52.640 --> 00:18:59.279
It's also good to know that MPX generally passes through the merchant's category, so it will code on your credit card.

00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:06.240
So a Domino's gift card will often code as dining, and an Airbnb gift card will often code as travel.

00:19:06.400 --> 00:19:11.200
This is especially helpful if you have cards that have those as bonus earning categories.

00:19:11.440 --> 00:19:20.559
Recent data points show that this works fairly reliably with Chase cards, but Amex doesn't necessarily pass through category bonus on MPX purchases.

00:19:20.799 --> 00:19:28.559
The coding has also historically turned on and off, so treat it as a nice when it works bonus rather than something that you're really depending on.

00:19:28.720 --> 00:19:36.559
The MPX app also serves as a hub for United's dining program, and you can also access the United Mileage Plus shopping portal there as well.

00:19:36.799 --> 00:19:46.799
Okay, so talking through all the ways to earn United Miles was long, but the good news is that when it comes to booking with United Miles, it's actually pretty easy and painless.

00:19:47.039 --> 00:19:56.000
United has a flexible date calendar showing 30 days at a time, which makes it really easy to spot cheaper dates, and their website is really fast and easy to use.

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With United, there isn't any advantage to booking round trips from a cost perspective with award tickets.

00:20:01.839 --> 00:20:07.759
So I recommend that you search one way at a time because it's a lot easier to compare prices across dates that way.

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If you cancel an award before departure, your miles are going to be redeposited for free.

00:20:13.519 --> 00:20:16.559
There's zero cancellation fee and no redeposit fee.

00:20:16.720 --> 00:20:23.119
This means you could book speculatively when you find good pricing and cancel later if your plans change, assuming you have the miles.

00:20:23.359 --> 00:20:36.799
Once you book United Flight, I'd suggest that you even set up an award alert for that flight on seats.arrow or pointsia.com so that you can rebook if the price drops, so that you'd be notified if the price drops and then you know to rebook.

00:20:36.960 --> 00:20:41.599
United miles never expire as long as your mileage plus account stays open and active.

00:20:41.759 --> 00:20:44.400
So there's not an earning or redeeming schedule required.

00:20:44.480 --> 00:20:46.000
You just have to keep the account open.

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If you're traveling with kids under 12, United guarantees children will be seated next to an adult family member at no extra charge.

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This applies even in basic economy where seat selection is normally locked out entirely.

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If adjacent seats aren't available when you book your flight, United will allow a free flight change with no fair difference.

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When you go to book an award flight, if you're a cardholder, you'll be able to see clearly what that cardholder pricing is.

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And if you aren't, you'll see what it could be if you got a United card.

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I have to say that I do really like the United site for searching and booking flights.

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It is just really easy to use.

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I think it's one of the best interfaces of an airline award search site that we have.

00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:35.599
And the last unique thing to United I want to talk about is miles pooling, which no other major US airline has.

00:21:35.839 --> 00:21:41.039
So up to five mileage plus members can combine their miles into one shared pool account.

00:21:41.200 --> 00:21:44.079
You can invite family members, friends, travel buddies.

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You don't even have to be in the same household or share a last name or anything.

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There's no minimum age, which means your kids' miles can be pooled as well.

00:21:52.880 --> 00:21:59.759
So how it works is that someone over 18 becomes the pool leader and creates a pool for free through their mileage.

00:22:00.160 --> 00:22:01.839
Plus account at United.com.

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They can invite up to four other members using each person's mileage plus number and email.

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Everyone can choose how many of their personal miles they want to contribute to the pool.

00:22:12.079 --> 00:22:14.000
You don't have to put in your whole balance.

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Then the pool leader and any members they grant permission to can book award flights using the pooled total.

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So this really helps if you're a few miles short or if you have some people with just a few united miles in their account that are essentially orphaned miles.

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Before pooling, you are stuck transferring miles between accounts, and that costs fees that often wipe out the value.

00:22:34.640 --> 00:22:37.599
With pooling, you can combine what you have and book.

00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:42.160
A few things to note are that you want to choose your pool leader strategically.

00:22:42.480 --> 00:22:46.799
Award availability is based on the status and benefits of whoever is booking.

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So whoever does the booking from the pool should be whoever holds a United card or has the best mileage plus status.

00:22:53.839 --> 00:23:02.079
Pooled miles can only be used for United and United Express operated flights, not Star Alliance partner awards like Luftanza or Air Canada.

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If you want to redeem on a partner airline, that has to come from your individual account.

00:23:07.759 --> 00:23:10.079
There is a workaround though that I'll explain in a minute.

00:23:10.240 --> 00:23:15.759
So generally though, only contribute to the pool what you're planning to use for United operated flights.

00:23:16.000 --> 00:23:18.160
Just a few more rules so you know the lay of the land.

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New members do have to wait 72 hours after joining before contributing or redeeming.

00:23:23.519 --> 00:23:25.839
So this isn't something that you can do immediately.

00:23:26.079 --> 00:23:30.640
So it might make sense to set up a family pool even before you might use it.

00:23:30.880 --> 00:23:33.839
You can set it up without contributing any miles to it.

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Once you put miles into the pool, there is a 24-hour window to reverse it.

00:23:38.000 --> 00:23:41.759
But after that, those miles stay in the pool even if you leave.

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And if you leave, you have to wait 90 days before joining another pool.

00:23:45.920 --> 00:23:55.920
Okay, so that's the basics, but here's a few loopholes that can help you out, especially when it comes to dissolving a pool, that can help you move miles around actually for free.

00:23:56.160 --> 00:24:04.640
So if a pool leader leaves or dissolves a pool, remaining miles are split equally among all members at that time, including the leader.

00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:11.680
If a pool leader is the only person left in the pool, they get all the miles into their individual account.

00:24:11.839 --> 00:24:19.440
And at that point, those miles can then be used to book any flight for anybody, including Star Alliance partner flights.

00:24:19.680 --> 00:24:27.279
So if you want to move miles to someone else, or if you have pooled miles but then decide you need to book a partner flight, here's your workaround.

00:24:27.519 --> 00:24:30.720
You would want all the other members to leave the pool first.

00:24:30.880 --> 00:24:41.519
And then the leader will dissolve it as the sole remaining member, which means all the miles are going to go to the leader's individual account with no pool restrictions within about 24 hours.

00:24:41.759 --> 00:24:48.960
So that can also be useful for helping you consolidate, especially in a family if people have smaller balances, especially if kids have smaller balances.

00:24:49.119 --> 00:24:58.640
That's a way that over the course of a few weeks you could take the time to move all of the points into one person's account, which just makes it easier to book awards.

00:24:58.799 --> 00:25:01.519
So let's move into action steps and then wrap this up.

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First, I'd say download the MPX app and poke around.

00:25:05.680 --> 00:25:16.240
I think it's useful to spend just a few minutes to get a sense of the stores where you can buy those e-gift cards and earn extra miles to help you understand if it makes sense for you to pursue as a strategy.

00:25:16.400 --> 00:25:26.480
Like I mentioned, you might want to avoid it for purchases where you want credit card extended benefits or purchase protection, but you'll still find restaurants or even AMC theaters is in there too.

00:25:26.640 --> 00:25:33.680
If you spend a few minutes looking at it, then you could also decide that maybe you don't want to do it at all, but at least you've gone through that process and now you know.

00:25:33.920 --> 00:25:42.240
If you have an upcoming trip and plan to use Lyft, this would be a good opportunity to link your Lyft and United accounts to earn that 1,000 bonus miles.

00:25:42.400 --> 00:25:49.200
Otherwise, I'd suggest waiting until you will have two Lyft trips in 30 days so that you can be sure to get those 1,000 bonus miles.

00:25:49.440 --> 00:26:02.799
If you have family members with small United balances, I'd recommend you set up a pool right now so that you'll have the option to move miles into the pool and even eventually dissolve it if necessary to consolidate miles in one person's account.

00:26:03.039 --> 00:26:12.799
Next week in part two, we're gonna cover how to book United flights without using mileage plus at all through partners like Turkish Airways and Avianka Life Miles and Air Canada Aeroplan.

00:26:12.880 --> 00:26:17.599
That's gonna help you if you don't have Chase Ultimate Rewards or Built Rewards, but you want to be flying United.

00:26:17.759 --> 00:26:21.839
All the links in the resources from today are in the show notes so that you can find them easily.

00:26:22.000 --> 00:26:29.119
Thanks so much for spending time with me today, and I look forward to seeing you next time where we will continue to unlock these secrets of travel points together.