Lyft and United Expand Partnership, Letting You Earn and Redeem United Miles on Rides

In November 2025, Lyft and United launched a new partnership that lets you to earn up to 4x United MileagePlus miles on your Lyft rides. Now, that partnership has expanded to let you pay for Lyft rides using your United MileagePlus miles — available inside the Lyft app.

How does this work? Let’s take a closer look.

Lyft and United Partnership

Lyft users who are also members of the United MileagePlus loyalty program can link their accounts within the Lyft app and earn:

• 4x miles on pre-scheduled rides to and from the airport
• 3x miles on Extra Comfort, Lyft Black, and Black SUV rides; and non-scheduled rides to and from the airport
• 2x miles on Standard, Priority Pickup, and XL rides with your company business profile
• 1x miles on Standard, Priority Pickup, and XL rides

Additionally, if you’re a new Lyft rider, you can receive 1,000 bonus miles after signing up for Lyft, linking your United MileagePlus account, selecting “United MileagePlus” as your rewards partner, and completing 2 rides within 30 days.

Further, in early 2026, United MileagePlus members will be able to redeem MileagePlus miles directly for rides through the Lyft app and will receive automated flight alerts and ride reminders.

For more information on the collaboration and instructions on how to link existing MileagePlus and Lyft accounts, visit lyft.com/united or united.com/lyft.

Pay for Lyft Rides With United Miles

As of April 29, 2026, it’s also possible to pay for Lyft rides with your United miles. This feature is only available in the U.S., including Puerto Rico.

The minimum number of miles you can use for a ride is 1, while the maximum cost of a ride you can cover with miles is $250.

How many miles will you need? That’s a mystery. The terms of the program say this:

The redemption value of MileagePlus miles is determined by United and is subject to change at any time at its sole discretion, in accordance with the rules of the MileagePlus program and applicable law.

Thus, the value of using United miles on Lyft rides isn’t fixed. Terms like this usually aren’t good for consumers.

Additionally, you cannot cover add-ons or tips with your United miles. Moreover, if you don’t have enough miles to cover the whole ride, you can choose to redeem your full balance and pay the remaining balance with your credit card. Unfortunately, if you have sufficient miles to cover the full cost of the ride, you can’t opt to redeem miles for just part of the cost — it’s all or nothing in that situation.

Hot Tip:

Redeeming your miles for Lyft rides is unlikely to provide good value, especially since the terms say the value can change without notice. Other options for using your United miles will provide better value.

Other Options for Earning Rewards with Lyft

Lyft’s new partnership with United adds to a growing list of eligible partners where you can earn additional rewards on your Lyft rides, including Alaska Atmos Rewards, Bilt Rewards, and Hilton Honors.

Here is a quick comparison to help you choose the best rewards partner for you.

From a value perspective, most award travelers would likely be better off selecting Bilt as their Lyft partner, since the rewards are transferable and the Bilt program includes Alaska, Hilton, and United as 1:1 transfer partners.

That said, if you’re committed to earning points or miles within a specific program, having additional options to do so is great. Remember that you can switch what rewards you earn on your Lyft rides at any time through the app as well.

Final Thoughts

The expanded United partnership with Lyft means you can now use miles toward rides, and that’s on top of the ability to earn miles from your rides.

Remember that both of these require linking your United and Lyft accounts.

While we always get excited about new ways to earn and use miles, both sides of this equation aren’t equal. Earning United miles on Lyft rides is excellent. Using them to pay for your ride is unlikely to provide good value when compared against the other ways to use your miles.