Why Now's a Great Time To Apply For a United Credit Card

2020 has obviously been a terrible time for redeeming travel rewards miles, but it continues to be a great year for earning and stockpiling them for future trips. If you plan on flying United once you're back in the air, these two new limited time offers will get you closer to your next vacation while unlocking a number of great perks.

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The Cards

These new offers apply to two United cards: The United Explorer card (which we reviewed here), and the United Club Infinite card (which we reviewed here). You can check out our full reviews for more info, but just to refresh your memory, here are the basics of each card.

United Explorer Card

$95 annual fee (waived in the first year).
Earn 2 United miles for every dollar you spend on United purchases, at restaurants, and on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel, plus 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases.
Board with Group 2 and carry on a bag for free, even if you booked Basic Economy.
Free checked bag for you and one companion on the same reservation.
Two one-time passes to any United Club airport lounge per year.
Primary rental car insurance.
Access to XN fare class on United.com (more details here).
Up to a $100 credit every four years for TSA Precheck or Global Entry.

United Club Infinite Card

$525 annual fee.
Earn 4 United miles for every dollar you spend on United purchases, 2 miles at restaurants, and on hotel accommodations when purchased directly with the hotel, plus 1 mile per dollar on all other purchases.
Premier access travel services at the airport, including priority check-in, security screening (where available), boarding and baggage handling.
First two checked bags are free for you and a companion on the same reservation.
United Club membership (which normally costs $625 per year by itself), allowing you to and either two adult guests or one adult guest and all of your children up to 21 into any United Club in the world.
Primary rental car insurance.
Access to XN fare class on United.com (more details here).
Up to a $100 credit every four years for TSA Precheck or Global Entry.

Up To 100,000 Bonus Miles

From now until the end of September, new applicants to the United Explorer card will get 60,000 United miles after spending $3,000 in the first three months. That's up from the typical 40,000 miles after spending $2,000, and is worth about $780 according to The Points Guy's latest valuations. Considering that the annual fee is waived in the first year, that's an incredible amount of value, and matches the best offer we've seen on the card.

The United Club Infinite card has also brought back the offer it ran when it was first released earlier this year; 100,000 miles after spending $5,000 in the first three months. Previously, the card was waiving its $525 annual fee for the first year, but offering no welcome bonus at all. Considering that those 100,000 miles are worth about $1,300 in travel, we think this is the better offer.

Earn More Miles, Too

New and existing cardholders can also take advantage of a limited time offer to earn more miles on essential purchases.

From now until the end of September, United Explorer cardholders will get 5 miles per dollar spent at grocery stores and gas stations, while United Club Infinite cardholders will get 7 miles per dollar on the same categories. The latter offer, in particular, is one of the best we've seen to-date on grocery spending.

Just note that in both cases, the bonus miles are limited to your first $1,500 in combined purchases.

Worth It?

If you were flying United before the pandemic, and plan to again whenever you resume traveling, it's absolutely worth applying for one of these cards. We consider the United Explorer card to be one of the best entry-level airline credit cards, and that's especially true when you can get it with an elevated welcome offer. Those bonus miles will go a long way when you're planning your post-COVID getaway.

Editorial Disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airlines or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.