United Airlines is reshaping its MileagePlus loyalty program to heavily favor cardholders, introducing richer mileage earning, automatic discounts on award tickets and expanded access to its lowest priced award seats starting this spring.
Richer Mileage Earning Begins April 2
United’s new MileagePlus earning rules take effect for tickets purchased on or after April 2, 2026, and they dramatically widen the gap between members who hold a United co-branded credit or debit card and those who do not. Under the updated structure, primary MileagePlus cardholders will earn up to twice as many miles per dollar on United-operated flights as non-cardholders, even before factoring in the extra miles that come from using a United card to pay for the ticket.
The new framework introduces elevated base earning rates tied to both elite status and cardholder status. A general MileagePlus member who holds a qualifying card will earn 6 miles per dollar from United on eligible tickets, compared with half that amount for a similar traveler without a card. Premier members see even steeper accelerators, with base earning of 8 miles per dollar for Premier Silver, 9 for Premier Gold, 10 for Premier Platinum and 12 for Premier 1K when they hold an eligible MileagePlus card.
Payment behavior also becomes a lever in the program. Cardholders who pay for their tickets with certain United credit cards earn additional miles on top of the enhanced base rates. For example, travel industry analyses show the United Explorer card adding 3 miles per dollar to the base, the United Quest card adding 4 miles per dollar and the United Club card adding 5 miles per dollar. That combination allows top-tier MileagePlus 1K members using a United Club card to reach 17 total miles per dollar on eligible tickets, one of the most aggressive accrual rates among major U.S. airline loyalty programs.
United officials frame the changes as a recalibration to reward loyalty that is expressed both through flying and through card spending. By creating a noticeably higher mileage payoff for cardholders, the airline is clearly encouraging members to move a United co-branded card to the front of their wallet whenever they book flights.
Automatic Discounts on Every Award Ticket
Alongside the mileage-earning overhaul, United is launching permanent discounts on award tickets that are exclusive to primary MileagePlus cardholders. Starting with travel booked under the new rules, cardholders will receive at least 10 percent off every United or United Express award flight they book, regardless of route or cabin, as long as the redemption is priced entirely in miles.
The discount becomes richer for members who combine cardholder status with Premier elite status. According to details released by the airline, MileagePlus Premier members who hold an eligible card will enjoy at least 15 percent off United-operated award flights. That tiered structure effectively introduces an always-on “cardmember fare” in miles, with the savings clearly flagged during the booking process in United’s app and website.
Sample pricing scenarios underline the impact for travelers who routinely redeem miles. A United Economy award that would normally cost 15,000 miles will now price at 13,500 miles for a general member with a MileagePlus card, reflecting the 10 percent discount. In the premium cabin, a United Polaris business class award typically priced at 200,000 miles would drop to 170,000 miles for a Premier cardholder, a 15 percent reduction that can translate into substantial savings on long-haul itineraries.
Importantly, United is positioning these award discounts as permanent program features rather than limited-time promotions. The airline has indicated that it plans to display the full, undiscounted award price side by side with the cardholder price, which could highlight for non-cardholders the miles they might be forgoing on each redemption.
Exclusive Access to More Saver Awards
In a further shift toward rewarding card-centric loyalty, United is expanding cardholder access to Saver Award inventory, the airline’s lowest priced award tier. Historically, a substantial portion of Saver seats, particularly in premium cabins such as United Polaris business class, has been reserved for MileagePlus elites at Platinum and 1K levels. Under the new policy, general members who are primary cardholders will gain access to additional Saver seats that were previously out of reach.
United says that about one third of flights with Saver Awards available already carry extra inventory set aside for cardholders and Premier members. Those seats appear on many of the airline’s most popular routes, including long-haul services to London and Tokyo and high-demand leisure destinations such as Hawaii, Florida and Cancun. With the new changes, general MileagePlus members who hold a card can now tap into more of that protected space, expanding their options for lower mileage redemptions.
The combination of expanded Saver access and the new cardholder award discounts further magnifies the value gap. For example, published examples show Polaris Saver awards that have been available to cardholders and elites for as low as 80,000 miles each way. With the 10 percent cardholder discount applied, a general member with a card would see that seat price at roughly 72,000 miles. A Premier member with a MileagePlus card would benefit from a 15 percent reduction, bringing the same seat down to about 68,000 miles.
For frequent international travelers, particularly those based near United hubs, this reconfiguration could make premium-cabin awards meaningfully more attainable if they hold a card. Industry observers note, however, that the flip side of the policy is increased scarcity for non-cardholders who may now find it harder to secure the lowest-priced awards on high-demand flights.
Basic Economy Flyers Face Tougher Earning Rules
While MileagePlus cardholders are seeing their benefits expand, United is tightening conditions for members who fly on basic economy tickets without holding a United card or elite status. As part of the April 2 changes, general members who purchase basic economy fares will only earn miles if they are primary cardholders on an eligible MileagePlus credit card, a sharp departure from earlier policies in which all members accrued at least some miles on such tickets.
Updated earning tables circulated to loyalty enthusiasts highlight just how significant the divergence has become. Under the new structure, a general member without a card earns no redeemable miles on basic economy, while a general member with a MileagePlus card earns 3 miles per dollar. Premier members without cards still earn a reduced mileage amount on basic economy, but cardholders layered with elite status can more than double that earning in some cases, up to 9 miles per dollar for Premier 1K cardholders.
The move aligns MileagePlus with a broader industry trend that uses basic economy as a tool to steer customers toward higher fare classes or deeper engagement with the airline’s ecosystem. By turning off earnings entirely for the lowest fares unless the customer holds a card or elite status, United is signaling that occasional price-driven flyers who choose basic economy and avoid co-branded cards will sit at the back of the line for rewards.
Consumer advocates point out that this aspect of the overhaul will likely be felt most acutely by infrequent travelers who book the cheapest possible fares and do not wish to open a new credit card. For United, though, the calculus is clear: channel more value to high-engagement customers who both fly regularly and participate in the card program, while letting mileage earnings taper off for others.
Positioning Against Rival Airline Card Perks
United’s new MileagePlus structure lands in an environment where major U.S. carriers are increasingly using their co-branded cards as core pillars of their loyalty strategies. Delta’s TakeOff 15 benefit, which gives eligible cardholders 15 percent off many SkyMiles award redemptions on Delta-operated flights, has been closely watched in the industry. United’s move to offer at least 10 percent off all its own award flights for cardholders, and at least 15 percent off for Premier cardholders, appears designed to match or exceed that competitive benchmark for many customers.
Travel analysts note that United’s approach goes beyond a single headline discount. The airline is simultaneously raising earning rates for cardholders, bolstering Saver Award access and layering in card-specific features such as annual award discounts and ride-share or grocery delivery credits on certain products. By making both sides of the loyalty equation more generous for cardholders, United is attempting to lock in high-value customers who might otherwise split their flying and spending across multiple airline ecosystems.
The changes also fit with a growing emphasis on credit card revenue as a financial anchor for U.S. carriers. Co-branded card portfolios have become multibillion-dollar franchises, generating steady fee and interchange income that can smooth out volatility in ticket sales. Enhancing MileagePlus card benefits while curbing earnings for non-cardholders sends a clear message that United sees card relationships as central to its long-term loyalty economics.
For travelers choosing between airline card families, the new United framework may tilt the calculus, especially for frequent flyers who prioritize premium cabin redemptions. Higher earning rates on flights, combined with lower mileage prices for awards, can translate into more business and first class trips over time compared with a similar spend and flying pattern under a less generous structure.
What the Changes Mean for Everyday Cardholders
Beyond the headline numbers, the overhaul has practical implications for how existing MileagePlus cardholders and prospective applicants might strategize their travel and spending. For current cardholders, maximizing value now means not only using the card for everyday purchases but also making sure the card is used whenever they purchase United flights, to capture the extra miles per dollar layered on top of the new base earning rates.
The new award discounts encourage a more deliberate approach to redemptions. Cardholders may find it advantageous to shift more award bookings onto United-operated flights to take advantage of the 10 to 15 percent mileage savings, rather than redeeming miles with partners where the new discount does not apply. The enhanced access to Saver Awards, particularly in Polaris business class, could also motivate cardholders to plan further ahead for high-value trips and to monitor award calendars more closely.
United has also tied many of these benefits to the primary cardholder, which has implications for households that share travel responsibilities. Primary cardholders will see the discounted mileage prices and exclusive Saver inventory when logged into their accounts, and they may choose to consolidate award bookings for family members under a single MileagePlus profile to take full advantage of the perks. For some travelers, that centralization could make record-keeping and mileage management simpler, even as it deepens their reliance on United’s ecosystem.
Prospective applicants, meanwhile, will have to weigh the richer travel rewards against annual fees and their own flying patterns. For those who travel on United multiple times a year and value award travel, the new structure tilts the economics more decisively toward holding a MileagePlus card, particularly one of the higher-end products that unlock the most aggressive earning and ancillary credits.
Impact on Non-Cardholders and the Broader Loyalty Landscape
For MileagePlus members who do not hold a United card, the changes land as a clear devaluation. Non-cardholders will earn fewer miles for the same flights compared with the previous structure, lose out on the new award discounts and face restricted access to some of the lowest-priced Saver Awards. The elimination of mileage earnings for general members on basic economy tickets without a card is especially stark, effectively making those tickets non-earning currency for many customers.
This bifurcation raises questions about how loyalty programs define value and fairness. In the short term, United’s strategy is likely to push a segment of engaged flyers who had resisted co-branded cards to reconsider, particularly if they frequently book United flights or aspire to premium-cabin award travel. Over the longer term, the widening gulf between cardholders and non-cardholders may prompt regulators and consumer advocates to scrutinize how heavily airlines lean on card partnerships to shape customer behavior.
Within the broader loyalty landscape, United’s move underscores a trend toward more tightly integrated airline and card ecosystems. As carriers deepen these partnerships, casual travelers who avoid credit cards or spread their flying across multiple airlines may see their relative position weaken, while those who fully opt in to a single program enjoy steadily rising rewards. For MileagePlus, the latest update makes that trade-off explicit: the richest returns now flow to those who both fly United and keep a United card at the top of their wallet.
For travelers evaluating their options ahead of the April rollout, the choice is increasingly binary. Either embrace the MileagePlus card-centric model to unlock faster mileage accrual, ongoing award discounts and better access to Saver inventory, or accept a leaner stream of rewards when flying United without a co-branded card. As the new rules take hold, the divide between those two paths is set to become far more visible on every itinerary and every award search.