Charles H. Miller
It is a common sense to have a credit card of your favorite (as in most-used) airline. It will get you something in return for the money you would be spending anyway. United Airlines has two such cards — the United MileagePlus® Explorer and United MileagePlus® Club Card, both of which will make your flights that much better. The former is more affordable with an annual fee of $95 (waived in the first year), while the latter costs $450 per year but for that money you get to use United Club and Star Alliance lounges all around the world. The two cards have the same variable APR in the 16.24%-23.24% range. Here are the details…
Highlights
- Up to 35,000 sign-up bonus miles / $100 statement credit
- 16.24%-23.24% variable APR / 16.24% variable APR for business cards
- Two United Club passes / United Club membership
- First checked bag free & priority boarding
- $95 annual fee (waived in the first year) / $450
How These Cards Work?
Earn miles: The United MileagePlus® Explorer card gets you 2 miles per dollar spent on tickets purchased from United Airlines and one mile for each dollar spent on all other purchases, while with the more expensive United MileagePlus® Club Card you get 1.5 miles per dollar spend on all other purchases. There is no limit to the number of miles you can earn, and miles do not expire.
Sign-up bonus: The United MileagePlus® Explorer Card includes 30,000 sign-up bonus miles after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first three months of account opening. Also, you can earn an additional 5,000 miles after you make a card purchase and add an authorized user to your account within the first three months of account opening. Things are easier with the United MileagePlus® Club Card — it offers a $100 statement credit after your first purchase.
Redeem: You can redeem miles for flights with United Airlines, as well as any Star Alliance member airlines. Economy class tickets start at 25,000 miles for a round-trip flight or 12,500 miles for a one-way Saver Award flight. In addition to airfare, miles can also be redeemed for hotel stays and merchandise, but (obviously) miles redeemed this way aren’t as worth as they are when used to book flights.
First checked bag free: As well as one companion’s first checked bag free when traveling on the same reservation with United Airlines. Put into dollars, that’s around $100 in checked bag fees for two travelers on a round-trip flight. And with the United MileagePlus® Club Card, first checked bag is also free for the second companion.
Priority travel: That’s priority boarding (before first and business class) for the United MileagePlus® Explorer cardholders and their companion, and a lot more for those with the United MileagePlus® Club Card (designated check-in lines and priority baggage handling).
Two United Club passes / membership: With the more affordable United MileagePlus® Explorer card, you get two one-time-use passes for the United Club airport lounge every 12 months. The United MileagePlus® Club Card, on the other hand, includes a full-blown United Club membership, which allows you and eligible travel companions to access United Club airport lounges whenever you want. These lounges provide members with complimentary beverages and snacks, high-speed wireless Internet and more. A single pass usually costs $50 whereas a year-long membership goes for $500.
Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection: With any of the two cards, users can enjoy room upgrades, complimentary daily breakfast for two, early check-in, late checkout and other amenities at more than 750 luxury hotels and resorts worldwide when they make a reservation using their United card.
Anniversary bonus of 10,000 bonus miles: Available with the United MileagePlus® Explorer, you can earn it every calendar year when you spend at least $25,000 in net purchases with your card.
Concierge service with United MileagePlus® Club Card: Get personalized assistance with referrals and reservations available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anywhere in the world.
APR: It is variable ranging from 16.24% to 23.24%, based on your creditworthiness.
Annual fee: The United MileagePlus® Explorer costs $95 (waived in the first year), while the more premium United MileagePlus® Club Card has an annual fee of $95.
Costs
- 16.24%-23.24% Variable APR / 16.24% variable APR for business cards
- 5% Balance Transfer Fee ($5 minimum)
- $0 Foreign Transaction Fee
- $95 Annual Fee (waived in the first year) / $450
Pros
- Sign-up bonus: That either comes in the form of 30,000 – 35,000 bonus miles or as a $100 statement credit. We like it in any case, but would like it even more if it was more generous with the United MileagePlus® Club Card.
- Anniversary spending bonus with the United MileagePlus® Explorer — the airline wants you to use this card and is ready to put some money behind that idea.
- Free checked bags and priority boarding — these two are (obviously) a bit more comprehensive with the premium United MileagePlus® Club Card.
- United Club access — that’s two passes per year with the United MileagePlus® Explorer Card, and a full-blown membership with the United MileagePlus® Club Card.
Cons
- Only good if you fly often with United Airlines — otherwise you are better off getting some general travel card that is offered by all major banks.
- Annual fee that will be easy to justify by any frequent United travelers, but it is still a thing we don’t like. You have to do the math and see which of the two cards works better for you. If you use United Club lounges often, you may have no problems paying $450 per year for the United MileagePlus® Club Card.
Head to Head Comparison
United Cards for Businesses
Which United MileagePlus® Card Should You Get?
First thing first — you should consider getting any United MileagePlus® card only if you fly United often. If you live or work near a United hub, chances are you do; so grab one of these cards to get something in return for the money you would be spending on airfare anyway. The more expensive United MileagePlus® Club Card obviously offers more perks, including the ever-useful United Club membership. In comparison, the “regular” United MileagePlus® Explorer gets you two one-time-use passes for the United Club airport lounge every 12 months. Also, with the United MileagePlus® Club Card you will be earning miles faster — 1.5x miles vs 1x mile on other-than-United purchases — though you won’t get sign-up bonus miles (but a $100 statement credit). At the end of the day, it’s up to you to do the math and determine which of the two cards works better for you. The following two links may be of help. 😉
