Katie has been in the points and miles game since 2015 and started her own blog in 2016. She’s been freelance writing since then and her work has been featured in publications like Travel + Leisure an...
Edited by: Keri Stooksbury
With years of experience in corporate marketing and as the Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Qatar, Keri is now Editor-in-Chief at UP, overseeing daily content operations and r...
33 comments
Louis
February 17, 2022
Is it possible to get Silver status just from credit card spending without actually flying?
Christine Krzyszton
February 17, 2022
Hi Louis. Unfortunately not. Regardless of how many PQP you earn by spending on your United credit card (note that maximums apply to each card), you must fly 4 qualifying flights on UA to earn any status.
Piers Vaughan
February 17, 2022
Hi! I’ve just received an invitation to join Silver Status for a dollar amount. My question is this: if I were to purchase my Silver Status, does that mean I ‘d only have to get 8 PQFs and 3,000 PQPs to get to Gold Status, or would I have to get the full 16 PQFs and 6,000 PQPs to qualify?
Piers Vaughan
February 17, 2022
I just spoke with United’s Chatbox, and it’s correct: if I buy Silver that’s the equivalent of paying the 3,500 PQP for a significantly educed rate, so I can get Gold for only 3,000 PQP and 8 PQFs! Given that Status lasts till Jan 2024 that’s actually quite a good deal! I was expecting to get Silver this year, so now I can pay up front and go for Gold!
Jarrod West
February 18, 2022
Hi Piers,
You’d still have to get the full 16 PQF’s and 6,000 PQP’s to qualify for Gold status.
Alan Weisberger
May 27, 2022
If I accumulate enough to earn 1K status in mid year, do I gain anything immediately or not until the next year begins on February first of next year?
Chris Hassan
May 27, 2022
Hi Alan,
You would receive most of the benefits immediately, no need to wait until the new year.
Uche A
August 13, 2022
If I use my points to book UA or UE segments, would those still count toward the segment requirement?
Jarrod West
August 15, 2022
Hi Uche,
Unfortuantley, only cash tickets count towards the segment requirement.
Jyll
September 29, 2022
I’m short 50 PQP’s to reach gold. Without purchasing another flight, how can I earn 50 PQP’s?
Jarrod West
October 03, 2022
Hi Jyll,
You can also earn PQPs without flying by using United credit cards.
Thomas
October 03, 2022
I have 39 flights so far this year on United…enough for 1K status.
BUT, I’m behind in the PQPs. I need about 4000 to fully qualify for 1K.
My flights are usually domestic and not too expensive, I guess.
What’s my best strategy to get over the line here?
Jarrod West
October 03, 2022
Hi Thomas,
Have you considered using United credit cards to earn extra PQPs? For instance, you can earn up to 3,000 PQPs each year with the United Quest card, and up to 4,000 PQPs each year with the United Infinite card.
Jamie
November 29, 2022
When do these PQPs come through for using United credit cards? I’ve used mine plenty this year and don’t see where these are coming in. I’m behind on PQPs and almost have PQFs for 1K, but worried Platinum will be short because of the way these PQPs are being chosen by whomever. They make no sense from Costa Rica to domestic flights. I’ve seen more with a domestic, 2hr flight PQPs, than a 4hr international flight segment. How is this possible for the bean counters to selectively hand out PQPs? This doesn’t make sense.
Christine Krzyszton
November 30, 2022
Hi Jamie. You earn very few PQP for spending on United credit cards, just 500 for $12,000 in spending. Once you’ve reached that spending level, the PQP will post after the credit card statement closes. PQP are also earned based on ticket price so it is possible that an expensive short flight would earn more than a long international flight, depending on the ticket price. To learn more about how PQP are calculated, here is some more information:https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly/mileageplus/premier/qualify.html
Greg
October 24, 2022
If I am between Gold & Platinum status on United – is there a fee I can pay to qualify for Platinum?
Jarrod West
October 24, 2022
Hi Greg,
Usually, towards the end of the year, United will offer the opportunity to buy up to the next status level. The fee for this can vary — generally speaking though it is usually not a great deal.
Kin M
October 31, 2022
I have 19 PQF but only 4000 points so still only quality for Silver. Any chance I can request United to upgrade me to Gold based on this years activities? I wanted to qualify for Star Alliance gold status
Jarrod West
October 31, 2022
Hi Kin,
You can always ask, but I would say that it is unlikely they will do so.
Kin
November 01, 2022
Thanks Jarrod. Is there a dedicated mileage plus status email for united?
Jarrod West
November 01, 2022
Hi Kin,
The exact details of the email vary from year to year, but offers are usually sent out in December.
Greg H.
February 04, 2023
Hi,
I believe you’re incorrect about award travel not qualifying for PQF. https://www.united.com/ual/en/us/fly/help/faq/premier-qualification.html. Award travel on a partner airline does not qualify, but if you travel on United with award travel it will be counted towards status PQF.
Jarrod West
February 24, 2023
Hi Greg,
Thanks for pointing that out. We have corrected the post.
richard h
February 14, 2023
Your article above mentioned “A flight segment is simply a takeoff and a landing. Basic Economy tickets and award travel tickets do not earn PQFs.”
I believe that is partially incorrect. Per UA’s website “Members will earn PQP when they travel on award tickets based on the number of miles redeemed at a rate of 100 miles to 1 PQP. So, if you fly on an award ticket that required 10,000 miles, you will earn 100 PQP. Each flight segment on an itinerary will earn 1 PQF.”
This is part of the “new” changes
Katie Seemann
February 15, 2023
Hi Richard,
Yes, you are correct and this post is going through an update right now. Thanks for reading!
TNP
March 24, 2023
My ticket to Europe on United has a segment from Frankfurt to Copenhagen operated by Lufthansa. Does that leg count as a PQF?
Christine Krzyszton
March 24, 2023
Yes, United Star Alliance partner flights count as PQF. These flights do not count toward the 4 minimum flights you need on United metal to qualify for any Premier Elite Status.
Michael Karr
April 15, 2023
I applied for the Quest card in February this year and nearly have the spend completed for an 80K signup bonus. About a week after I was approved, I had a Club card offer for 90k come to me in the mail. I’m guessing by the time I was approved for the quest, that club mailer was already on its way.
I called Chase and had two different reps tell me different things about being able to take both sign up bonuses within a year. Am I able to grab the Club card sign up bonus as well if I am approved and meet the spend requirement? Should I hold the Quest for the full year and then downgrade it to a Gateway after the account anniversary?
For the long term, I think the Club card will be worth it since I usually fly United 8-10x a year on a consistent basis. I have not had either card in the last 24 months either and am 3/24
Katie Seemann
April 17, 2023
Hi Michael,
As long as you haven’t earned a bonus on either card in the last 24 months, you should be eligible for the welcome bonus. The only exception would be if there are different terms listed in the Club card mailer you received. I would double check that that offer has the usual terms and if so, you should be able to get both bonuses.
Madeline Gonzalez
June 13, 2023
How do credit card PQPs work for a couple? I’m assuming the 500 PQPs after spending $12,000 would go ONLY to the primary cardholder. Is this correct? So, if we always travel together, we would have the same PQPs granted on travel, but one of us would have more PQPs because they were earned on the credit card. Does this mean that one spouse could potentially have silver status and the other one gold?
Jarrod West
June 13, 2023
Hi Madeline,
That is correct. You will each earn PQPs based on how expensive the fare was, and one of you will earn slightly more by using the credit card for these purchases and meeting the PQP threshold.
Chris
August 19, 2023
I don’t see anymore the option “Upgrade to business buy Premium Economy” anymore when searching for PQP Upgrades on United.
Jeff H
September 21, 2023
Unfortunately I just found out that the statement “A flight segment is simply a takeoff and a landing.” is not quite true.
I recently booked a round trip from SFO to MSP through Denver both ways. Unbeknownst to me, my travel department booked the outbound on what is called a “through flight” – both flight segments have the same flight number (even though there was a change of planes in DEN). United treats this as a single flight segment – in more ways than one.
My PQF credit for the the SFO-MSP via Denver was only 1, not 2. As explained to me by multiple people at United, it is because this is a “through flight with a stop in Denver” where the 2 flights are on the same flight number. It is considered a single segment – just as if I had flown nonstop from SFO to MSP. The “takeoff and landing” definition does not apply.
The other issue with the “through flight” is that I didn’t show up on the upgrade list for the 2nd DEN-MSP flight. The DEN gate agent tried her best to get me added to the upgrade list and called several people. The system would not let her (or the others) add me to the upgrade list even though there were 3 seats empty and I was the only 1K on the flight (so certainly would have got the upgrade). According to them, if I had been upgraded on the 1st leg (I wasn’t – I was #1 on the list when we took off) then I would have been upgraded on the 2nd leg. But since I was not upgraded on the 1st leg, I was not upgraded on the 2nd.
This is even weirder when you consider that some people booked only the 2nd leg (DEN-MSP) and the 2nd aircraft was a different seat configuration – so how could they guarantee that if I was upgraded on the 1st leg I would be upgraded on the 2nd?
So as one of the persons the Gate Agent in DEN spoke with said “Never book a through flight on United!”
BTW, the gate agent moved me to an exit row seat and blocked the other seats, so at least I had an exit row to myself.
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