Originally Posted by
chrisl137
It's just a flat threshold. If you spend $25K on UA-branded cards, you get a waiver on the PQD requirement. If you spend $24,000 you still have to meet the $3K PQD requirement. An economy plus subscription does count toward PQD, though most other non-airfare spending on UA doesn't.
So anything less than $25k means this perk is useless on the UA-branded cards. Is there a specific percentage of the E+ subscription that gets counted towards the PQD or is it the full amount that you paid?
Originally Posted by
chrisl137
It also gets you RDM with various multipliers, so you will want to balance that with your other cards, and gets you reimbursement for pre-check or global entry once every 5 years (so that's basically your annual fee back every 5 years). You can get most of the silver benefits with the explorer card and an E+ subscription (total spend about $600 if you get the domestic 1 person E+ sub), and it's even slightly better because you get E+ at booking. The one thing you get from silver or above that you can't get without the BIS miles is the phone support when things go wrong. I didn't realize how valuable that was until I tried calling support (in a non-irrops situation) once after I had dropped from silver to general member. Hours trying to get anything done, while as a silver I've generally gotten what I needed in a few minutes.
Understood, with the $1/2m or $1/1m gains, it does sound reasonable to use frequently. I currently hold an Amex Platinum card, so I feel like the `Pre-TSA/Global Entry, ticket purchases, 25% off United inflight purchase` perks for UA cards are not very meaningful (Already have Global Entry, x5 points for tickets through website or Amex portal, and $200 UA credit). The E+ subscription does sound very appealing for $499+($ for options) and $95 for annual fee. However is there a difference between the Premier Silver and E+ subscription in terms of global/domestic E+ upgrades, or are both for domestic? Premier Silver hotline for emergencies does sound amazing as well.
What is the difference in spending if I want to pursue a `Premier Silver status` vs `E+ subscription + United Explorer card`? I am going to pursue the United Explorer card regardless of either choice, but what would be more beneficial?
Originally Posted by
david_oz
Perhaps it would be useful to post what your travel patterns are, not just for next year but in general. For example, where are you based, and where does most of your travel take you to? This will help everyone here give you a better answer.
Hi David, thanks for the reply. Let me post my general travel patterns.
I live in New York City, primarily flying through EWR.
1-2 International Trips a year (to Asia - Japan mostly), 3-4 Domestic trips a year (SF, LA, DC). Domestic trip number varies as I work remotely most of the time and I sometimes enjoy working in places outside of the city/state.
Originally Posted by
david_oz
My first thought was that perhaps you might be better off pursuing status on one of the foreign airlines you’re traveling. UA status (particularly silver) typically has limited benefits on other airlines. You’re also at a disadvantage earning UA status due to a lack of PQMs on those carriers depending on how you book your ticket.
As I travel to Asia mostly, I see decent tickets from EVA Air/ANA (Star Alliance member airlines) so I do get PQMs from those since I put my MP Membership on the booking. I only have issues with the PQDs since they're not under UA flight codes. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Originally Posted by
david_oz
I agree that spending $2,100 to get to silver before the end of this year is not well advised. You’d be better off paying for checked bags and economy plus until you get to silver through your regular travels.
Yes, that is definitely something that will not happen as I do not usually book at trips in December at all. The last trip I usually take is in November (This year was ERW-SFO). However, I am planning on the best way to get a good workflow for next year.