How To Use the United MileagePlus Shopping Portal to Earn More Miles
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If you’re planning to shop online, what would you say if we told you you could earn extra miles just by clicking a few extra buttons? Pretty sweet, huh?
This article will teach you how to use the United shopping portal to do just that!
Table of contents
Table of Contents
How To Log in & Basics of Using Program
You can view the bonus miles offered for shopping at various retailers without logging in, but you will need to log in to actually earn rewards when you’re ready to shop.
If you already have a frequent flyer account with United, you’re in luck! You won’t need to create a new account to log in and start shopping. The United shopping portal uses your frequent flyer information as login information.
Once you are logged in to the shopping mall, you just need to search for the retailer you want to shop with to see the number of bonus miles you can earn for purchases!
Let’s say you are interested in shopping at Macy’s. At the time of writing, we found a bonus of 2 United miles for each dollar spent on Macys.com purchases which is double their usual offer.
In order to earn the bonus points, click “Shop now” to be redirected to Macy’s online store, and then complete your purchase in the new window. You don’t need to do anything else to earn the bonus!
Special Shopping Offers
Occasionally the MileagePlus Shopping portal will offer bonus miles for spending various amounts of money. These offers come and go throughout the year.
You should keep an eye out for United’s special shopping mall bonuses; they make easy ways to earn even more points! Here are some examples of past bonuses to be on the lookout for:
- Autumn 2018 Bonus: Spend $125 in the next two weeks and earn 500 bonus miles.
- Holiday 2018 Bonus: Spend $150 and earn 500 bonus miles; spend $750 and earn 2,500 bonus miles; spend $1,500 and earn 5,000 bonus miles.
Example Retailers
The number of miles earned through the online shop and the available retailers change regularly. At the time of writing, here are some of the better bonuses being offered through United Airlines Shopping!
- 1-800-Flowers.com: 30 mi/$1
- Norton: 12 mi/$1
- Shoes.com: 5 mi/$1
- Dun & Bradstreet: 8 mi/$1
- Vinesse: 5 mi/$1
- …and many more!
Hot Tip: If you are curious how these bonuses compare to other portals, use CashBack Monitor to easily check over 40 different shopping portals.
United MileagePlus Shopping Button
Don’t miss out on extra miles by downloading United’s MileagePlus Shopping Button.
If you’re the type of person that forgets to login to your account and click through via the normal shopping portal then download this browser extension for Chrome and you’ll never miss out on another mile again!
Every time you visit a retailer’s website that is part of the program you’ll get an alert telling you that can earn points when shopping on their website. Everything then happens automatically when you purchase on the retailer’s website. It’s that simple!
Using Credit Cards To Earn Extra Points
Even though you’ll be earning bonuses through the shopping portal, that isn’t an excuse to put your charges on a debit card! You’ll want to make sure you’re paying with a credit card that will give you rewards for spending too.
If your main focus is earning United miles, you should use cards that earn United miles directly or cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points, which can be transferred to United at a 1:1 ratio.
Consider whether your earnings can be multiplied further by taking advantage of a specific credit card’s category bonuses too!
Below you’ll find rewards cards that earn United miles as well as Ultimate Rewards points.
Chase Ultimate Rewards Cards
Recommended Chase Cards (Personal)
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card - This is our favorite beginners travel rewards card which has a 60,000 point bonus (highest ever) after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. This sign up bonus is worth $750 in travel purchases (flights, hotels, car rentals etc) when you redeem your points through Chase's travel portal, which works like Expedia. The bonus alone could get you multiple round-trip flights or hotel stays. |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® - Consider this premium card if you want to get into a lot of airport lounges. The current sign up bonus is 50,000 points after you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. You'll also get a $300 travel credit per year which wipes away a big chunk of the $550 annual fee. |
| Chase Freedom Unlimited® - A simple, no annual fee card that earns you a $200 bonus after you spend $500 in your first 3 months. Earn 1.5% cash-back on all purchases, but you won't get any travel benefits or the ability to earn bonus points with this card. |
Recommended Chase Cards (Business)
| Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card - This is our #1 recommended business card and right now comes with a 100,000 sign up bonus after you spend $15,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening. This bonus is worth $1,250 when you redeem through Chase Ultimate Rewards for travel purchases (flights, hotels etc). Pay your cell phone bill with this card to receive up to $600 in cell phone insurance coverage per year. |
| Ink Business Cash℠ Credit Card - earn $500 bonus cash back after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months after account opening. This no annual fee business card earns up to 5% cash back on a range of business expenses such as office supply stores, internet, cable, and phone services. |
United MileagePlus Cards
| CREDIT CARD | BENEFITS & INFO |
|---|---|
UnitedSM Explorer Card |
|
UnitedSM Business Card |
|
United ClubSM Infinite Card Card |
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Final Thoughts
Utilizing United Shopping is an easy way to earn an extra mile or more per dollar spent on most of the purchases you’ve already made online. You may also want to check out their dining program to really maximize your awards.
The more rewards you earn, the closer you will get to redeeming your United miles for a much deserved vacation!
I want to find how many miles I have so I can get magazines, but I cannot seem to get to my account.
Hi LeVeta,
I am happy to help out with your issue, but keep in mind we are not affiliated with United so we are not able to access your account for you. Have you tried resetting your password?
I have made three purchases through The MileagePlusX app, purchasing after it links through the app. None of my purchases have shown up in my miles. $155 at Macy’s. A small amount at Target (just as a test) and most recently around $150 at Walmart.com. What is going wrong? My miles haven’t changed at all.
Hi Greta,
How recently did you make these purchases? Sometimes it can take a few weeks for your miles to show. Have you contacted United about the issues you’re having?