New Offers To Buy a Higher Status Tier With United Airlines

Didn’t qualify for the elite status you wanted with United Airlines last year? You might be able to pay to move up a tier with these new offers.

Not everyone will be eligible. In fact, the majority of our team didn’t have any offers. Additionally, these status buy-up offers from United may not be worth it, and you’ll need to make some personal decisions about the value you place on MileagePlus elite status.

Here’s a look at this latest promotion and how to check your offer.

Pay To Upgrade Your United Elite Status

United Airlines knows not all MileagePlus members reached the elite tier they wanted last year, so it’s targeting various members with the ability to pay to upgrade from their current tier to the next tier above it.

You can check your current offer here. United will be very direct about it if you aren’t eligible for this offer.

What do the offers look like?

Someone who had Premier Silver status and didn’t requalify for it received an offer to buy it again for $1,499 or 149,940 miles.

Someone who did qualify for the Silver tier got an offer to upgrade from United Premier Silver to Premier Gold for $3,996 or 399,600 miles. Note that this price goes up after January 31, 2025. With the current offer, your miles are worth around 1 cent each.

Is It Worth It?

As offers are personalized, you’ll need to decide on your own how you value United elite status. What are the perks at the next tier worth to you, and is that a higher value than the price you’ll have to pay to move up — assuming you’re eligible for this promotion?

If you’re interested in some of the perks with United MileagePlus elite status, it’s also worth pointing out that just holding a United Airlines credit card can mirror some of those benefits. Depending on the card, you can get things like priority boarding or lounge access without any effort or flight requirements.

If you’re interested in the offer you received, paying cash is the better option — unless you just have so many United miles you don’t know what to do with them. We value United miles at 1.2 cents apiece, so redeeming them at 1 cent each for this offer isn’t a great value.

Final Thoughts

United Airlines is offering a status buy-up to select members, letting you pay to move from your current status tier to the one above it. Offers are targeted to each individual, and you can pay with cash or miles, though we advise against the latter.

If you have an offer, consider the cost carefully and compare that against the value you expect to obtain from the elevated benefits over the next year. Ensure the cost is worth it before pulling out your wallet.