United Miles Value Calculator

United Miles Value

Based on our valuations, United miles are worth 1.3 cents each when used towards flights with United and their airline partners. This means 10,000 miles are worth $130 in flight value on average.

Here's our breakdown on United miles value:

How To Calculate The Value of United Miles

You will not know the value of your United miles until you know the cost of your flight or redemption. You can calculate the value by dividing the cash cost of your redemption by the amount of miles required.

United Miles Value = Cost of Flight or Redemption ÷ Miles Required.

Jump to our Use United Miles or Pay Cash Calculator to easily calculate the cost of any United redemption.

Redeeming United Miles For The Best Value

You will get the best value out of your United miles when you redeem them for flights with United and their partners. All other redemptions will offer significantly lower value with gift cards being the absolute worse.

United Flights

United miles will have the best value when redeemed towards flights with United Airlines and their airline partners. This will give you an average of 1.3 cents per mile meaning that 10,000 miles is worth around $130 in flight value.

Listed below are a few popular sweet spots when it comes to booking award flights with United Miles as well as some standard examples for redeeming miles for domestic and international travel.

• Fly United Polaris Business Class: If you're looking to redeem your miles directly with United, Polaris is a great option. One-way flights to Europe start at 60,000 miles. If you're trying to fly west, one-way flights to Asia starts at 70,000 United Miles.
• Fly From The U.S. To Europe On Lufthansa First Class: Lufthansa's first class sits high up on the list of top-rated first class products and you can obtain a seat for yourself starting at 110,000 Untied Miles for a one-way award flight.
• Fly From The U.S. To Europe In Economy: You can find higher-than-average value booking economy flights from the U.S. to Europe.
• United's Excursionist Perk: If you book a multi-city itinerary with three or more one-way awards, you will be eligible to receive one of those one-way awards for free as long as travel meets the rules.

Visit an extra city for free with United's Excursionist Perk. Image: Great Circle Mapper.

Cruises

United miles can be used to book cruises through the United Cruises portal which will give you a value of around 0.78 cents per mile. It's possible to get slightly higher value when booking high-end rooms such as suites.

United Club Membership

United miles can be used to pay for United Club membership which gives you access to 45+ United Club locations worldwide as well as access to visit select partner lounges around the world. Both the individual member and couple membership will give you the same value of 0.76 cents per mile.

If you're really looking for lounge access, the better route to take is the United Club℠ Infinite Card which offers complimentary United Club Membership as it's primary perk (hence Club in the card's name). The card has a high annual fee, but the fee is lower than the $650 you'll have to dish out if you were to buy membership directly from United.

Car Rentals

You can rent cars with Hertz, Dollar, and Thrifty using United miles. This will give you an average value of about 0.75 cents per mile.

The higher redemption values for car rentals will come from booking the smaller vehicles with Hertz. You'll also receive additional benefits booking with Hertz as they are partnered with United.

TSA PreCheck

If you want to get through security slightly faster, you can redeem 11,000 United miles to pay for a TSA PreCheck application. New enrollment for TSA PreCheck will cost you $78, so you're looking at about 0.7 cents per mile in value.

Hotels

Hotels can be booked using United miles via the United portal. This will give your miles an average of about 0.68 cents per mile which is pretty low when compared to airfare redemptions.

United Wi-Fi

United Miles can be used to pay for a Wi-Fi subscription that you can use towards United flights. Depending on the subscription, this will give your miles an average of 0.65 to 0.68 cents per mile.

Gift Cards

United miles can be redeemed for gift cards which starts at 3,333 United miles for a $10 denomination. This is the worst redemption option for United miles.

Merchandise and Apple

United Miles can be used to redeem electronics, housewares, jewelery, and more through the MileagePlus Awards Shop. The value of these redemptions will vary, but you can search by how many miles you're willing to spend. If you have a low amount of United Miles sitting in the dark corners of your account, awards look to start at 3,000 United Miles.

United Miles can also be used to purchase Apple products such as a Macbook, iPad, iPhone, or iWatch.

Calculator: Convert United Miles To Dollars

Use the United Miles Value Calculator to determine the cash value of United miles for flights, gift cards, car rentals, and more. With this helpful tool, you'll be able to have a better understanding of the monetary value of your United miles!

Calculator: Use United Miles or Pay Cash?

Is your United Miles redemption giving you the best bang for your buck? Use this calculator to figure out the value of a particular United Airlines redemption by inputting the cost in cash and in United Miles (plus taxes). With this calculator, you'll know if the redemption is the best option.

Finding The Best Card For United Miles

The best travel rewards card for United will be either a Chase Ultimate Rewards credit card or a co-branded United credit card.

Chase Ultimate Rewards

Chase Ultimate Rewards points can be converted into United miles at a 1:1 rate. Every 1,000 Chase points you transfer to your United MileagePlus account will give you 1,000 United miles.

If you're looking to maximize your United miles, Ultimate Rewards credit cards is the way to go. These cards offer excellent earning rates and great travel benefits.

You can also pair Ultimate Rewards credit cards with Chase's cash back credit cards to maximize the value of your points.

Here are the three credit cards that allow you to transfer points to United:

Credit Card	Highlights
Chase Sapphire Reserve® Best For High Value & Travel Benefits Learn More Card Value & Points Calculator	Intro Bonus: 60,000 Bonus Points Earn 10X points on hotels and car rentals booked through Chase Travel Earn 5X points on flights booked through Chase Travel Earn 3X points on travel worldwide and dining at restaurants Earn 1X points on all other purchases $300 statement credit for travel purchases charged to the card each anniversary year Complimentary Priority Pass Select membership Up to $100 towards a Global Entry, TSA PreCheck, or NEXUS application fee 50% boost to point value on travel booked through Chase Travel $550 annual fee
Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card Best For Flexible Travel Rewards Learn More Card Value & Points Calculator	Intro Bonus: 60,000 Bonus Points Earn 5X points on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards Earn 3X points on dining, online grocery purchases, and on select streaming services Earn 2X points on other travel purchases Earn 1X points on all other purchases 25% boost to point value on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards $50 credit every cardmember anniversary good towards hotel stays booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards 10% bonus points based on how much you spend the prior cardmember year $95 annual fee
Chase Ink Business Preferred® Best For Flexible Business Travel Rewards Learn More View Referral Offer Card Value & Points Calculator	Intro Bonus: 100,000 Bonus Points Earn 3X points on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year Earn 1X points on all other purchases 25% boost to point value on travel booked through Chase Ultimate Rewards $95 annual fee

Co-branded United Cards

United offers a large handful of co-branded credit cards through Chase. These cards generally will not earn you as many miles as using Chase Ultimate Rewards credit cards, but they will grant you access to exclusive United benefits. This includes perks such as free checked bags, statement credits, lounge access, and more.

If you fly United frequently, it can easily be worth picking up a co-branded credit card, especially if it saves you money in the long run (such as saving on checked bags for example).

Here are the credit cards that United offers:

Credit Card	Benefits
United Club℠ Infinite Card Best For United Club Access Learn More Card Value & Miles Calculator	Intro Bonus: 80,000 bonus miles Earn 4 United miles per $1 spent with United Airlines Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on dining and travel Earn 1 United mile per $1 spent on all other purchases Receive complimentary access to United Club locations and participating Star Alliance affiliated lounges around the world Receive the first and second checked bag free free of charge —a savings of up to $320 per roundtrip $525 annual fee
United Quest℠ Card Learn More Card Value & Miles Calculator	Intro Bonus: 60,000 bonus miles + 500 PQPs Earn 3X United miles on United® purchases Earn 2X United miles on dining including eligible delivery services, select streaming services, and all other travel Earn 1X United miles on all other purchases Receive $125 in statement credits annually as reimbursements towards United purchases charged to your card Automatically get 5,000 miles back in your MileagePlus account after you take a United or United Express-operated award flight booked with your miles $250 annual fee
United℠ Explorer Card Learn More Card Value & Miles Calculator	Intro Bonus: 50,000 bonus miles 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 Receive the first checked bag free for yourself and up to one companion traveling on the same reservation when you use your card to pay for the flight Every year, two United Club Passes will be deposited into your United MileagePlus account $0 the first year, then $95
United Gateway℠ Card Learn More Card Value & Miles Calculator	Intro Bonus: 20,000 bonus miles Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on United® purchases, at gas stations and on local transit and commuting Earn 1 United mile per $1 spent on all other purchases Receive a 25% discount in the form of a statement credit when you use your card to make purchases in-flight on United-operated flights $0 annual fee
United Business Card Learn More Card Value & Miles Calculator	Intro Bonus: 75,000 bonus miles Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on United purchases Earn 2 United miles per $1 spent on restaurant, gas station, office supply store, and transit/commuting purchases Receive the first checked bag free for yourself and up to one companion traveling on the same reservation when you use your card to pay for the flight Every year, two United Club Passes will be deposited into your United MileagePlus account Every year that you use your card to make seven (7) United Flight purchases totaling $100 or more, you'll receive a $100 travel credit Receive 5,000 anniversary points if you also hold a personal/consumer United credit card $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99.