Who is the United Explorer Card best for?
The United Explorer Card is best for people who prefer to fly with United Airlines and do so at least a couple of times per year. One of the main benefits of the card is the 2 free United Club lounge passes per year (usually $59 per pass), so if those can be utilized they more than make up for the low annual fee of this card. However, if your travels often take you on different airlines or prefer more redemption options, you might want to consider other credit cards with more flexibility.
What we like
Two United Club℠ lounge passes
Arguably the best perk offered by the United Explorer card is its two United Club lounge passes annually. While many credit cards with airport lounge access offer unlimited access, they also come with high annual fees. And if you aren’t a huge traveler, unlimited access may not mean much. On the other hand, the two passes of the Explorer card are easily utilized. United Club passes typically cost $59 apiece, so this benefit in itself covers more than the annual fee in value. Plus, unwinding before a flight is invaluable, especially during long layovers.
2X miles on dining and hotels
One of our favorite features of the United Explorer Card is its ability to earn 2X miles on dining and hotels booked directly, in addition to United purchases. This is a fantastic benefit for those who enjoy treating themselves to a nice meal or planning weekend getaways. The ability to rack up miles quickly means that your everyday spending can translate into solid travel rewards. Plus, it’s a nice touch for those who want to feel like they’re being rewarded for not just flying but also for enjoying life’s little pleasures.
Welcome bonus
New United Explorer cardholders can earn a welcome bonus of 50,000 miles after spending $3,000 in the first 3 months after opening their account. United miles are worth around 1.2 cents apiece, so this offer is worth approximately $600. The spending requirement to earn this bonus is pretty achievable compared to some other travel credit cards and the pile of miles can give you a significant boost on your reward-earning endeavors.
United perks
As a United-branded card, the United Explorer comes loaded with perks tailored to this airline, including free checked bags, priority boarding, 25% off in-flight purchases, and more. These are the United benefits you can access with this card:
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Free checked bags: Checking bags can be expensive. Your first bag is free on United flights booked with the United Explorer Card, saving you up to $160 on round-trip flights for you and a companion. Not having to worry about baggage fees means you can focus on enjoying your trip rather than fretting over extra costs.
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Two United Club lounge passes: We already mentioned this one above, but it’s a United perk so we had to add it again. Every year you maintain your United Explorer Card membership, you’ll get two complimentary United Club airport lounge passes.
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Priority boarding: With your Explorer Card, you can board United flights before general boarding begins. Once you’re at the airport, listen for the gate agent to announce your boarding group.
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25% off in-flight purchases: If you ever want to splurge on a fancy snack or drink while in-flight but can’t seem to justify the exorbitant costs, the United Explorer Card may help. This card gives you 25% back (via statement credit) on all in-flight and United Club purchases.
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Free upgrades for MileagePlus Premier: If you reach MileagePlus Premier status, you’ll qualify for free upgrades to Economy Plus.
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Earn Premier Qualifying Points (PQP): While most people can only earn PQPs on United flights, you can earn them on all purchases with your United Card— Earn 25 PQPs for every $500 spent on your United Explorer card, up to 1,000 PQPs per calendar year. This can help give you that boost you need to achieve elite status.
Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® Credit
Let’s face it: airport security can be a hassle. The United Explorer Card can alleviate some of that stress by providing up to a $100 application fee credit for Global Entry, NEXUS, or TSA PreCheck®. This benefit allows you to breeze through security, making the travel process smoother and more enjoyable. Saving even a little bit of time can be a huge deal, especially during busy travel seasons.
Travel insurance
While United Explorer’s travel insurance benefits aren’t as comprehensive as cards like the Chase Sapphire Reserve®, it has some pretty solid perks, including:
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Primary car rental coverage. As a cardholder, you’re entitled to complimentary primary car rental coverage when you use your United Explorer Card to cover the entire cost of the rental.
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Trip cancellation/interruption. Trip cancellation insurance reimburses you for your prepaid, nonrefundable expenses if you have to cancel a trip before it begins. Limited to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip in benefits.
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Trip delay insurance. If you’re delayed for over 12 hours while traveling via common carrier, you may be eligible for reimbursement of up to $500 worth of expenses related to the delay.
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Baggage delay insurance. If you’re traveling via common carrier, you’re entitled to up to $100 per day (three days max) for baggage delays lasting 6 hours or more. Baggage delay insurance reimburses you for essential purchases like clothing and toiletries.
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Travel accident insurance. The United Explorer Card comes with $500,000 in accidental death and dismemberment coverage. To access this coverage, you must use your card to pay for your common carrier transportation.
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Lost luggage insurance. If a carrier loses or damages your luggage, you’re entitled to up to $3,000. This benefit also applies to your immediate family members.
What we don’t like
Only two airport lounge passes
While the two free United Club passes are one of the primary draws of the United℠ Explorer Card, two passes may not be enough if you fly a lot. United Club passes typically cost $59 each, so it could get pricey quickly if you run out of passes and want to chill at the United Club during your layover.
You also don’t get complimentary guest passes, so if you have a traveling companion with you, you can either give them one of your two annual passes, buy a pass when you get there, or leave them to fend for themselves in the airport while you enjoy the United Club (We don’t recommend the last option if you want to stay in good graces with your traveling companion!).
Little value outside of United
Since this is a United co-branded card, this isn’t altogether surprising, but the Explorer’s value is lacking outside of United. It comes with United-centric benefits like airport lounge passes, priority boarding benefits, free checked bags, etc., and it even comes with a fee credit for NEXUS, Global Entry, or TSA PreCheck, but it ends there.
Earning miles is a bit more flexible, with solid rewards on dining and eligible hotels, but to get any real value when redeeming rewards, your options are limited. If you’re a United enthusiast through and through, this may not be an issue. However, if you prefer flexibility when redeeming your rewards, you may want to keep looking.
Annual fee
While the United Explorer Card’s annual fee of $95 after the first year isn’t as high as many cards, it’s still a fee. Before applying, make sure you can use enough of the card’s benefits to justify this cost. Even just maximizing the United Club passes can more than cover the fee, so as long as you do that every year, you’re golden.
How United℠ Explorer compares
United℠ Explorer Card vs. United Club℠ Infinite Card
The United Club℠ Infinite Card comes with luxury travel benefits, so it costs more than the United Explorer Card. You get double the miles on United purchases, along with a free United Club membership. The Club Infinite Card has an annual fee of $525, but the United Club membership is worth $650, making it worth the investment if you plan on frequenting this airport lounge.
United℠ Explorer Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card
Compared to the United Explorer Card, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card has much more to offer the seasoned traveler. It also has a $95 annual fee, but Sapphire Preferred’s benefits are more impressive. With this card, you get a $50 hotel credit, $200 in partnership benefits, 5X points on hotels and car rentals booked through Chase, 3X points on dining purchases and more. If your loyalty doesn’t lie with United specifically, a general travel card like the Sapphire Preferred may be more up your alley.
Earning and redeeming miles
Earning miles
With the United Explorer Card, you can earn:
- 2X miles on eligible United Airlines flights
- 2X miles on in-flight purchases on United flights
- 2X miles on United Club purchases
- 2X miles on hotels you book directly
- 2X miles on dining at restaurants
- 1X miles on everything else
You can also snag a generous welcome bonus: Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open.
Redeeming miles
You can use your MileagePlus miles to access a variety of travel and shopping benefits. Additionally, United cards are a part of the Chase Pay Yourself Back program, which provides even more redemption options.
There are several ways to use your balance:
- Book a United Airlines flight
- Pay for a meal at a participating airport restaurant (Houston Intercontinental and Newark Liberty only)
- Purchase a United Club membership
- Buy in-flight Wi-Fi
- Purchase a seat upgrade
- Shop via MileagePlus Merchandise Awards
- Buy a magazine or newspaper subscription
- Purchase digital gift cards
- Buy an iPhone, an iPad or another eligible Apple product
Booking United award flights is usually the most valuable use of your miles. As long as you make sure you’re getting at least 1.2 cents per mile in value, you’re getting a pretty good deal.
How much are United Miles worth?
We value United Miles at 1.2 cents apiece, meaning anything less than that is not the best use of your miles.
To see whether you’re getting a good value when redeeming your miles for flights, take the cash value of the ticket, subtract the amount of taxes they want to charge you if you’d be paying with miles, and divide that by the number of miles required for the flight.
For example, if it says a ticket costs either $160 or 18,000 miles + $16 in fees, here’s how much that would be worth:
($160 - $16) / 18,000 = .008, or 0.8 cents per mile.
That would not be a good use of your miles, since they’d be worth less than 1.2 cents apiece.
On the other hand, if that same ticket costs either $160 or 10,000 miles + $16 in fees:
($160 - $16) / 10,000 = .0144, or 1.4 cents per mile.
That would be a very good use of your miles since they’d be worth more than the 1.2-cent standard valuation.
The fine print
Fees
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Annual fee: $95 ($0 intro fee for first year)
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Balance transfer fee: $5 or 5% of the transfer amount, whichever is greater
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Cash advance fee: $10 or 5% of the transaction amount, whichever is greater
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Foreign transaction fee: $0 (no foreign transaction fees)
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Late payment: Up to $40
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Returned payment: Up to $40
Interest rates
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Regular APR: 21.49% to 28.49% variable
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Purchase intro APR: N/A
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Balance transfer intro APR: N/A
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Balance transfer APR: 21.49% to 28.49% variable
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Cash advance APR: 29.74% variable
Credit limit
The United Explorer Card has a minimum limit of $5,000, but some users have limits exceeding $20,000. Your credit limit depends on your income, credit profile and other factors.
The bottom line
Should you get the United℠ Explorer Card?
If you book several United flights each year, don’t mind having limited redemption options, and can utilize the 2 free annual United Club passes, it may be worth getting the United Explorer Card. If you fly a lot, consider looking at a higher-tier option like the United Club℠ Infinite Card. If you prefer flexible rewards, consider looking at a general travel card or a different airline card instead.
