Upgrades cleared at T96 for TPA-EWR-TPA

Has anyone cleared any upgrades from EWR to JWA? Maybe even to SAN? 1K Premier Here, who generally travels business on non-cpu flights. Finally have a chance to get a real freaking upgrade, and want a few pointers on how to get one.

Maybe I should try a mid-week flight, like a Tuesday? Early Morning, or Late?

I'm supposed to fly back to SMF after driving my mother-in-law north. But she keeps changing her mind as to when she wants to leave. So, I've had to keep canceling and rebooking. I think I've cleared SMF-LAX two or three times via CPU since the end of April! 😁

its now called SNA

EWR-SNA is a heavy elite route and its ONLY on 737-700 (12J seats), so CPU is less likely to happen, but EWR-SAN is easier, mostly on 739 or Max9 (20 J seats).

I have heard it's a heavy elite route, which is why I'm asking here for tips. I want to actually get upgraded for once. The plane types are extremely helpful to know, by the way.

I may just fly into San Diego and enjoy the hour's drive into Orange County. My United booking site, is now set to advanced mode, and I can see all the codes. Is there anything I should look for in particular? Once again, do you think I should try, maybe a Tuesday flight, instead of a Friday one?

If you're planning to use PlusPoints, look for PZ space >= n, where n is the number of travelers, and those upgrades would clear immediately. If you're hoping for a complimentary upgrade, your chances on either of those two routes are low because there will be a lot of 1Ks who will use their PlusPoints for a ~2400 mile flight.

In either case, yes, Tuesday is more likely than Friday, and SAN is more likely than SNA, but neither is anything approaching a guarantee.

I'm not sure this holds true any longer, in the new "what even is a work week anyway" era. Or if Tuesday is better than Friday, it is only marginally so. Saturday morning might be best now.

If you're not finding PZ on whichever route / day, look for most P as indicator of best waitlist chance.

I would stick with 1st flight of the day (6 am ish) for higher chance of upgrade.

Thanks to all who chimed in. I'm actually going to try a flight from early morning EWR-IAD-SAN, which god-willing I'll have a good chance on at least one segment. I don't even mind the brief layover, and who knows what will happen. I've never been to IAD Airport, so, it's a chance to explore.

So far... (one month out) F Class is mostly empty on both flights, and there's a lot of room in Premium Economy. I can only hope it stays that way *fingers crossed*.

I've actually been trying to figure this out myself since I have near unlimited schedule flexibility. I've cleared (or come very close to clearing) westbound TCONs on Saturday nights, but I've been contemplating switching to Saturday morning/afternoon if it would meaningfully improve my upgrade odds.

Similarly, eastbound redeyes Friday/Saturday seem crazy jam packed. The RTO push centers mainly on Tue/Wed/Thu so I imagine Wednesdays might now be slower than Tuesdays?

​​​​​​Seat maps are not reliable. You need to review the fare bucket inventory to get a better sense. Good amount of people buy tickets without seat assignments.

I have not cleared Saturday afternoon premium tcon in weeks, even with higher fare buckets. It's still easier to clear during off season (e.g. Q1, fall)

They actually do tend to be sufficiently reliable in the forward cabin to get a sense of how many seats are available and gauging upgrade odds (to the extent that can be done). In the rear, they're not reliable, due to sales of BE fares and limited seats available for free assignment. They also tend not to be reliable on China departures, where a significant percentage of pax still tend not to choose their seats in advance.

UA2602 IAD-LAX June 5 question
 

This flight is J9 JN9 C9 D9 Z9 ZN9 P8, and 9's in all economy revenue buckets. (787-9 aircraft).
Also has 15 open seats in Polaris (yes I know seat map not indicative of availability).

We're now inside the GS and 1K CPU window, yet appears no upgrades have happened (i.e., no new J seats taken, no new E+ seats opened up).
Is a situation like this indicative of a potential plane swap being considered, and UA doesn't want to add more people in J in the event of a downgrade to a smaller J cabin?
Or is this SOP for CPU processing nowadays?

I'm currently in a PY aisle hoping to at least move to a PY window, so I've been checking the seat map frequently hoping some GS/1K/Plats get moved up. Not expecting a CPU to come through for me as just a Gold.

Unless flight is quite empty, they often don't push upgrades until closer to the flight, now in the T-30h to T-40h range. That flight is still over 72h away. If you're looking to nab an upgrade-emptied seat, start checking more frequently tomorrow afternoon or evening.

The CPU window has become largely irrelevant. Except in very rare circumstances, UA won't process domestic upgrades until just inside T-24.