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Use our Best Rewards Credit Card Finder Tool to find the highest credit card offers and to calculate which credit cards will earn you the most rewards based on the monthly and yearly spend amounts you enter.
Use our Best Rewards Credit Card Finder Tool to find the highest business credit card offers and to calculate which credit cards will earn you the most rewards based on the monthly and yearly expenses you enter.
Calculate the transfer of points and miles between various loyalty programs worldwide and find out which credit card partners will earn you the most rewards.
This card is not available through The Point Calculator.
Earning Rates
Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on hotel stays and United® purchases.
Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on dining including eligible delivery services.
Earn 1 United mile per $1 spent on all other purchases.
Intro Bonus
Main Benefits
First checked bag free, priority boarding, two United Club passes annually, Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit, and discounts on in-flight purchases.
Rewards Details
Based on our valuations, United miles earned with the United Explorer Card are worth 1.3 cents each when used for award flights with United and their partners.
Ads & Promos
Short on United miles? Buy miles and get up to an 85% bonus. Ends July 31.
If you're looking to save on checked bags while also receiving a handful of solid benefits, the United Explorer Card is a great choice. If you're looking to maximize your United miles, on the other hand, you should consider United credit card partners or one of United's more premium credit cards.
Earning Rewards
The United Explorer Card earns United miles at the following rates:
2 miles per $1 spent on purchases from United, including tickets, Economy Plus, in-flight food, beverages and Wi-Fi, and other United charges.
2 miles per $1 spent on dining, including eligible delivery services.
2 miles per $1 spent on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel.
1 mile per $1 spent on all other purchases.
Rewards Value
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Perks & Benefits
Here are the main perks and benefits of the United Explorer Card:
First Checked Bag Free: Receive the first checked bag for free for yourself and up to one companion traveling with you on the same reservation.
United Club Passes: Every year, two United Club one-time passes will be deposited into your account.
Earn PQPs On Spend: Earn 25 PQP for every $500 you spend on purchases with your Explorer Card, up to 1,000 PQP in a calendar year.
Global Entry, TSA PreCheck® or NEXUS Fee Credit: Receive a statement credit of up to $100 every 4 years as reimbursement for the application fee for Global Entry, TSA PreCheck® or NEXUS when charged to your card.
25% Savings In-Flight: Receive 25% back as a statement credit on purchases of food, beverages and Wi-Fi on board United-operated flights and on Club premium drinks when you pay with your Explorer Card.
Priority Boarding: Receive priority boarding for yourself and companions traveling on the same reservation.
Travel & Purchase Coverage: Trip Cancellation Insurance, Trip Interruption Insurance, Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver, Trip Delay Reimbursement, Lost Luggage Reimbursement, Baggage Delay Insurance, Purchase Protection, and Extended Warranty Protection.
Card Fees
Annual Fee
The United Explorer Card has an annual fee of $0 the first year, then $95.
Like most entry-level airline cards, you can easily make up for the cost on the free checked bag perk alone. The United Club passes, priority boarding, and discounts on purchases also easily adds value to the card.
Authorized User Fee
There is no fee to add additional users to the United Explorer Card. Adding family and friends as authorized users can help you build your United miles faster and push you to higher status in the program thanks to the PQPs you can earn across all card spend.
Foreign Transaction Fee
The United Explorer Card does not have a foreign transaction fee. This means you can use the card to earn United miles outside of the United States with no penalty.
United Miles Calculator
Calculate how many United Miles you can earn with the United Explorer Card based on spend and the cash value of those points. Results can be compared side by side any U.S. credit card featured on the site.
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Credit Cards
Use this section to add credit cards to the calculator. You can search for a card or go through our top recommendations for each category.
Once you select a card, you'll be shown the details of the card. Any link you click on in the details will open up in a new tab, so you will not lose your calculations.
Clicking on Add Selected Card will add it to the calculator.
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Compare A Card
Add a credit card to compare side by side based on spend, benefits and fees.
Search Cards
Search for a credit card by name, rewards program, or the rewards currency it earns.
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Family Cards
These cards are part of the same family and generally earn the same type of rewards.
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Travel Cards
Travel credit cards are great for building rewards redeemable towards a wide variety of travel including airfare, hotels, car rentals, cruises, and more. Most travel cards also offer a range of benefits that can make your trips more enjoyable and save you money.
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Cash Back Cards
Cash back is one of the most flexible form of rewards and most easy to understand. Rewards earned are worth face value and they can be used towards almost anything.
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Business Cards
Put money back into your business by earning cash back, points, or miles on business expenses. Many cards also offer travel insurance, purchase protection, and more.
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Airline Cards
These are the best credit cards if you're looking to use rewards towards award flights. Some of these cards also offer various benefits such as lounge access the ability to earn qualifying miles through spending.
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Hotel Cards
If you're looking to use rewards towards free nights at hotels, these are the best cards for you. Many of these cards also offer great benefits such as annual free nights, complimentary elite status, and more.
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No Annual Fee
If you're looking to minimize your immediate costs while still earning plenty of value, you may want to consider a credit card with no annual fee. Some of these cards also offer lower interest rates and balance transfer offers.
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Intro Bonus:
Annual Fee:
Authorized User Fee:
Bonus Categories:
Loyalty & Memberships
Loyalty: When adding hotel rewards cards (and a select few others) you'll be able to factor in the points earned from elite status. If a card offers complimentary status, the proper status will be selected by default.
Loyalty is reflected by a blue LOY image. Adding a card with loyalty attached to it will add it to the calculator. It becomes its own entity once added to the calculator and can be removed independent of the card that added it.
Membership: If a card offers any kind of bonus rewards based on your membership in a program, the option will be listed here. Do note that some options calculate automatically.
Welcome Bonus: Any welcome bonuses that changes the earning rates of a card will also be listed here. This allows you to toggle the bonus on or off.
Use this section to enter how much you plan on spending either monthly or yearly across different categories for each card listed.
You can click on the option button for access to a lot of useful tools you can use to quickly adjust spending for the calculator.
Change the order of the categories in the Category Spending section. This has an impact on cards that have spend limits and bonus caps on categories.
Resets all fields in the Category Spending section for all columns. Also clears all saved spend values that carry from calculator to calculator.
Add Categories
Search for categories and click 'Add Category' to add it to the calculator. If you want to be more specific, you can specify domestic or international spend.
Type at least 3 characters.
Currently Selected:
Spend Region:
Category Spending Total
The amount of rewards earned from card spending.
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Rewards & Bonuses
If a card earns bonus points, miles, or cash back, it will be listed here. You'll be able to edit or toggle on/off most bonuses listed here.
Do note that some bonuses may be automatically calculated based on spend entered in the Category Spending section.
If you want to factor in an intro or welcome bonus, you can also do that here by entering it in the Extra Value field. You can click on View Offers when applicable to see current sign up bonuses for all top credit cards by category.
Extra Value
Use this field to add additional rewards to include in the calculation such as an intro or signup bonus.
Extra Value
Use this field to add additional rewards to include in the calculation such as an intro or signup bonus.
Extra Value
Use this field to add additional rewards to include in the calculation such as an intro or signup bonus.
Rewards & Bonus Total
The amount of rewards earned from card bonuses.
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Total Rewards & Cash Value
This is the total of all points, miles, and cash back earned between Loyalty & Memberships, Category Spending, and Rewards & Bonuses.
You can view the average value of the rewards based on popular redemptions and the transfer of rewards to partners (where applicable).
This is how much we value the rewards earned with the card on average based on our valuations. Cards that may offer bonus/additional value are reflected here.
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Transfers To Partners
Redemptions to do with transferring rewards to partner loyalty programs and redeeming them for high value (when applicable). These redemption values typically require knowledge of the best transfer partners.
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Cash Back, Statement Credits
Redemptions to do with turning your rewards into cash back or using it as a statement credit to offset purchases made to the card.
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Travel
Redemptions to do with using your rewards towards travel such as airfare, hotels, and car rentals (not including transfers to partners).
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Gift Cards
Redemptions to do with using your rewards towards the purchase of gift cards.
Enter how much you value a single rewards point or mile in cents or regional currency equivalent (X.XX). The value of cash back cannot be changed.
Rewards Cash Value
The average cash value of rewards earned in the Grand Total section based on the set Currency Worth.
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Monetary Bonuses
This section lists all monetary bonuses. This includes annual credits and top-tier benefits that can offer great monetary value.
If there's a perk or benefit missing that you find valuable, you can add how much you value it in the Extra Cash Value field.
Extra Cash Value
Use this field to add additional cash value to the calculations.
Extra Cash Value
Use this field to add additional cash value to the calculations.
Extra Cash Value
Use this field to add additional cash value to the calculations.
Total Cash Value
The total cash value of all listed benefits plus the cash value of rewards earned.
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Fees
With great benefits comes great annual fees. If a card has a fee that you have to pay annually (or monthly in rare cases), it will be listed here. You have the ability to change it.
If the card charges a fee for adding authorized users, it will also appear in this section.
Annual Fee
This is the fee you must pay annually to have the card.
Authorized User Fee
This is the cost to add additional users or supplemental cards to the account. Enter total amount of authorized users.
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Total Card Value
This is the total cash value of each listed card when factoring in all rewards and all fees.
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Learn More
Learn more about the card through our partners.
Our Top Credit Card Picks
We've run the calculations and checked them twice — here are the credit cards that consistently provide outstanding value to our users:
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