When was your last use of the Global Entry / PreCheck credit? Depending on the timing, it might be worth waiting.

Thanks for the suggestion...
My GE doesn't expire until 2027, I can renew in 2026. My last GE Payment was right when I opened the card in 2021. So it looks like I would need to pay the $150 to save $100, making the effective annual fee $50.

It's now $120 for GE, but calculus is still under water.

Datapoint:
- Rented for 3 days through UA. Price was about $10 total higher than direct (airport rental IAD)
- Provider - Budget, made sure the Budget BCD B2049000 code was applied; card used Quest
- Received 500 miles 2 days after rental completion (also received 500 miles bonus - ongoing promotion till 9/30). 1K bonus of 750 expected to post separately later
- Received email about TB $40 cash 3 days after rental completion. Email said it may take 6-8 weeks to post to MP account
- TB posted to MP account same day after 2-3 hours of receiving email

Data points for those who care about such things:

• Aug 5 - 5th ticket purchased on UA Biz card
• Aug 8 - email confirming I earned $125 credit
• Aug 9 - $125 credit posts in travel bank Account

I typically prefer to purchase with my JPM card but that was easier than I expected. So I�ve now easily covered the AF. I guess I will keep the card for another year though mainly for the club passes (which are now limited to family trips - sigh)😔

Curious, hope you don’t mind my asking. To me UA Biz is a card to be sock drawered after charging the minimum to receive the SUB. To me seems NOT be desirable for charges (beyond the SUB minimum). To me even the 5 minimum $100 charges to get the $125 credit is debatable. To me seems that several other cards would return greater value for all charges, UA or otherwise, than UA Biz.

I understand that many cards can be appropriate in various situations.

What do you see as the advantages of spend on this card?

Thank you.

(FWIW, I’ve had 6 total UA Biz cards, 2 many years ago, 2 personal and 2 Club since COVID. IIRC I never charged much on any of them after the SUB, maybe a few $ of gas once just to show activity, never enough UA charges to get any UA credits. Maybe in 2006 and 2008 I actually used the cards, hard to remember that far back).

To be honest, most credit cards are really for the SUB and to help increase the number of trips you'll get/attain status with a loyalty program. After a while you don't end up needing status/travel as much, these CCs all become sock drawered but people still pay the annual fee because they're afraid to cancel them as it'll hit their credit score. CCs and their partners all know this and profit a lot of money off this scheme.

And to enhance the style and “luxury” of trips one would take regardless of all other factors.

Agreed, my mantra has long been “it’s all about the SUB(s)”. For many individuals, without multiple players and/or high biz spend, it’s likely that the (vast) majority of all CC miles and points can be from SUBs rather than spend. While I certainly sock drawer my share of cards I understand that too many sock drawered cards probably isn’t a good look. I personally have to go through some mild contortions to regularly put charges on those cards I’d like the issuer(s) to think I did NOT get just for the SUB .

or they forget to cancel or they convince themselves it's worthwhile to keep the card open for some unknown reason.

My question 2-3 posts up is directed to a long time active member here whose comments I’ve read and learned from frequently and I believe him/her to be a savvy FF miles and points nutjob (just like me), doesn’t strike me as the type to keep a card open just “because”, probably has a legitimate rationale for using the card.

For UA elites it is not even a sock drawer card but rather a cancel-before-another-AF card. As noted above it provides almost nothing I find particularly valuable except for the UC passes, which are now less useful as I can't gift them to family members on solo trips. It will certainly go in the sock drawer now that I've exhausted the coupons (except for the monthly uber reloads).

That said I think you overvalue the hit on the 5x$100 charges - what am I giving up? 500 Chase UR valued at .02-.03 ? It's more the hassle factor of the coupon book and using it for inexpensive tix (though they are not hard to find on UA).

For the personal UA Chase credit cards one can do a product change to the no-annual-fee Gateway card, and preserve one's credit history indefinitely with the occasional gasoline purchase.

Agree, that’s why I wrote “debatable”. I’m spoiled in that regard because I rarely spend $$$ for airfare since achieving my 2nd lifetime status (AA BankDirect miles 12-14 years ago, UA BIS 6-7 years ago), also the reason why for my past 2 UA Biz cards the 5 purchases for the UA credit wasn’t even a blip on the radar for me.

(FWIW, with LGA as my primary airport and JFK secondary, it’s easy to be a free agent. Only time I spend $$$ on an airline ticket is to top off a UA TB purchase. Otherwise it’s AmEx MR for UA, AA miles for AA (most travel), and occasional MR or UA or DL or BA or AL miles. A strong argument in favor of “earn and spend judiciously and save” vice “earn and burn”.)

Great minds think alike. Same for my UA Club card, for which “it’s all about the SUB” and UA Lounge access, sock drawered except for 1 Lyft or Uber ride each month just to get the credit (and show activity). Fortunately nowadays (with digital wallets and CCs in profiles) it can actually be in the sock drawer for 11 months and still be used occasionally, compared to the “(? not) good ole days” when the physical card was invariably required.

Lost me, what’s the difference? To me, once the SUB has posted, “cancel-before-another-AF” is the reason for the sock drawer. To me “sock drawer” and “cancel-before-another-AF” are synonymous, with the long version being: “sock drawer for 10-11 months until the AF is billed and decision regarding possible retention offer or cancellation regardless of retention offer”.

For the UA Biz �5 $100 flights to get $125 TB�, usually when I buy travel for family it posts as 4 charges. Would that count as 4 of 5? Even though it�s just one trip with one PNR?

If it counts then that would be an easy maneuver.

The entirety of the UA Biz card screams �meh� however, once SUB is consumed.

I have the personal Quest and Gateway cards, not a UA business card. Whenever I purchase for myself, spouse, and adult son on a single PNR, it shows up as one charge, not three.

To achieve your goal, I suspect you would have to put your family on four different PNRs. Instead of "manufactured spend", this would be "manufactured transactions".

They are not synonymous in my closet LOL

• Sock drawer cards are ones that I keep indefinitely but do not use. Some are legacy no-AF cards that I keep simply because there is no downside and large limits boost my score (e.g. CNB Crystal, USB Cash, Crap1, Amtrak). Some are low AF cards that I keep simply for the perks (e.g. BofA Alaska $99 certs, Hyatt Cat4 certs, DL Biz Gold) but would NEVER use for everyday non-bonus spend and hence they stay in the drawer.

• These are quite different than SUB-only cards which I typically cancel after a year or two and yes, are set aside after the initial SUB spend is met.. SUB-only cards usually have moderate or high AFs and offer perks that I do not personally value. For 2025 the following cards are/were on the chopping block: all Chase Southwest cards, Barclays Jetblue, Synchrony Hawaiian. Cards on the fence (offer some value but maybe not worth coupon book nonsense) include Amex Bonvoy Brilliant, Amex Gold, Amex Plat (esp. AUs), and yes, the Chase UA Biz card.

I realize everyone's situation is different, but I get decent value out of the UA Biz card:

• Five $100 "flights" for $125 TB? Just buy $100 TravelBank 5 times (yes, it works).
• UC club passes? Sometimes I have more than 2 guests (I have the Club card too). Also, I added my immediate family as authorized users. Now they can use the passes on their own.
• 5,000 miles for also holding any United personal card.
• Buy $20 Uber cash in the Uber app each month for the $8 credit ($12 in December), then use the Uber cash on Uber OR Uber Eats.