United Airlines Partners: Moving to Other Programs

As a United MileagePlus member, every time you fly you have the opportunity to earn miles with 25 different airlines as part of the Star Alliance. For even more opportunities to earn miles, United is partnering with 14 other MileagePlus partner airlines such as Hawaiian Airlines, Cape Air and Eurowings.

If you want to earn free flights, upgrades and more, it’s smart to figure out how best to use your United MileagePlus miles to your advantage. This guide contains information about all of the United Airlines partners you need to know about and how to get the most out of them every time you book flights with cash or miles.

United Airlines partner airline

Here is the full list of United Airlines partners, including 25 Star Alliance members.

Airline	Partner type
Aegean Airlines	star union
Air Canada	star union
Air China	star union
Air India	star union
Air New Zealand	star union
ANA	star union
Asiana Airlines	star union
Austrian	star union
Avianca	star union
Brussels Airlines	star union
Copa Airlines	star union
Croatia Airlines	star union
Egypt Air	star union
Ethiopian Airlines	star union
Eva Air	star union
LOT Polish Airlines	star union
Lufthansa	star union
Scandinavian Airlines (CAC)	star union
Shenzhen Airlines	star union
Singapore Airlines	star union
South African Airlines	star union
Swiss International Airlines (SAS)	star union
TAP Air Portugal	star union
Thai Airways	star union
Turkish Airlines	star union
Aer Lingus	Other partner
Aeromar	Other partner
Air Dolomite	Other partner
Airlink	Other partner
Azul	Other partner
Boutique Air	Other partner
Cape Air	Other partner
Edelweiss Air	Other partner
Eurowings	Other partner
Eurowings Discover	Other partner
Hawaiian Airlines	Other partner
Olympic Air	Other partner
Silver Airways	Other partner
Vistara	Other partner

Please also note that United MileagePlus Premier members automatically earn Star Alliance Gold or Silver status based on their United Elite status. This means that when you travel with Star Alliance partner airlines, you can enjoy the recognition of your elite status as well as the benefits of travel.

United MileagePlus members also earn Premier Qualifying Miles (PQM) and Premier Qualifying Points (PQP) when they fly with partner airlines to various destinations around the world. Finally, Star Alliance Gold members have access to one of the largest lounge networks in the world.

In addition to redeeming United MileagePlus miles on flights, you can earn miles on paid flights with partner airlines. However, it is important to note that you can only earn miles with one airline at a time. If you would like all of your miles to be assigned to your United MileagePlus account, you will need to enter your United loyalty number at the time of booking.

Here is how the benefits of Star Alliance elite status are distributed:

Benefit	Silver	Gold
Priority booking waiting list	Yes	Yes
Priority waiting at the airport	Yes	Yes
Priority check-in at the airport		Yes
Extra baggage		Yes
Gold Track (security and immigration priority)		Yes
Airport Lounge Access		Yes
Priority boarding		Yes

Using a Credit Card to Earn United Miles

United Airlines offers many different ways to earn miles. However, one of the best and easiest ways to get free flights with United Airline and its partners is to use a co-branded credit card.

United Club℠ Infinite Map is a premium airline credit card that gives you access to the United Club, free first and second checked baggage, and up to $100 to apply for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck. In terms of rewards, you’ll earn 4x miles on purchases at United, 2x on meals (including applicable shipping services) and travel, and then 1x on everything else. Note. There is an annual fee of $525.

If you are looking for another way to earn United Miles and prefer to pay a lower annual fee, you can also check out United℠ Explorer Map. This card gives you up to 70,000 bonus miles – 60,000 if you spend $3,000 over three months, and then another 10,000 miles if you spend $6,000 over six months. You also earn 2x miles on hotels, restaurants and United direct purchases, plus 1 miles on other purchases.

Cardholder benefits include two one-time United Club tickets, up to $100 credit towards Global Entry or TSA PreCheck applications, priority boarding and more. This card also waives the $95 annual fee for the first year.

Also be aware that United MileagePlus is a partner of Chase Ultimate Rewards, which means you can transfer points from cards like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card and Chase Sapphire Reserve to this frequent flyer program. All transfers start at 1,000 points, but at a 1:1 conversion rate, you earn 1,000 miles for every 1,000 points you transfer.

To initiate the conversion of points to miles, all you need to do is log into your Chase credit card account and go to the Chase Ultimate Rewards portal. From there, you can click “Transfer to Travel Partners”.

You will then be redirected to a page where you can select United MileagePlus and transfer your Chase points in increments of 1000.

Earn miles through United partners

While you can earn miles by flying with United Airlines and its partners, there are many other ways to earn miles. The number of miles you earn at hotels, car rental companies and other partner companies will depend on the promotion available and may change throughout the year.

Here is a list of some of United’s most popular partners and the number of miles you can earn. A complete list of all United partners can be found on the United MileagePlus website.

United Airlines Hotels & Vacation Rental Partners

Partner	Income level
United Hotels	2 miles per dollar spent
Missile miles	1000-10000 miles per night
GlassesHound	Up to 10,000 miles per night
Courtyard by Marriott	1 mile for every dollar spent
Days Inn Wyndham	1-2 miles per dollar spent
Fairfield Inn Marriott	1 mile for every dollar spent
Grand Hyatt	500 miles per stay
Holiday Inn Express	2 miles per dollar spent
Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts	2 miles per dollar spent
Hyatt hotels and resorts	500 miles per stay
Intercontinental hotels and resorts	2 miles per dollar spent
JW Marriott Hotels and Resorts	2 miles per dollar spent
Marriott Hotels & Resorts	2 miles per dollar spent
Qualitative	250 miles per stay
radisson	Convert points to miles
Ramada by Wyndham	1-2 miles per dollar spent
The Ritz-Carlton	2 miles per dollar spent
Sheraton Hotels & Resorts	2 miles per dollar spent
Super 8 by Wyndham	1-2 miles per dollar spent
Vrbo	3 miles per dollar spent
Wyndham	1-2 miles per dollar spent

United Transport Partners

Partner	Income level
United Cruises	Varies
Avis and budget	Up to 1250 miles per rental

bottom line

While United MileagePlus is valuable in its own right, its reliable partner selection makes earning and redeeming miles an even more rewarding proposition. In addition, the fact that your elite status is transferred to partner airlines can also make air travel much more comfortable and rewarding.

Before you book a flight with United Airlines, find out if you can get a better buyback rate by flying with a partner airline. Depending on where you’re flying, you may spend fewer United Miles flying with a partner while enjoying the same elite status benefits.

Also, make sure you take the opportunity to earn points with United MileagePlus at hotels, transportation and business partners. Depending on which United Airlines card you choose, you can earn more points on your normal spending. Because you can earn tens of thousands of miles by booking cruises, hotels, and car rentals, or by using a United partner, it’s always worth checking out when shopping online.

Holly Johnson is a financial expert and award-winning writer who is obsessed with frugality, budgeting, and travel. In addition to being the editor of The Simple Dollar, Johnson owns Club Thrifty and co-authored Zero Your Debt: Get Your Income Back and Build the Life You Love.