Just to be clear, UA will not remove your existing seat assignment just because you are on the waitlist—they will only change your seating assignment if you are upgraded. You are saying you do not want to be upgraded under any circumstances, and would prefer your economy seat over first?

There’s several reasons I can think of why someone might not want to be upgraded. Just wanted to confirm that’s what you meant.

no way to get yourself taken off the advance upgrade list (CPU) as a default as far as im aware. Calling in each reservation to request it is the only way I’m aware of.

When the agent referred to being able to do it at check in, that’s for the upgrade standby list - applicable if elites don’t get upgraded in advance. Typically, if you’re eligible to go on that list and are on a PNR with more theman one person, you’ll be asked at check in, as doing so will split the PNR, as only single person PNRs can be put on that list. As far as I’m aware, there’s no option for this if you’re traveling on your own, as your already on a single person PNR, and almost everyone wants that shot if it’s available.

Youre provably in the minority - not wanting to get upgraded, so the system is rrally built for the majority.

IME, this is highly dependent on various factors including route, time of day, etc. I’ve also seen seats in Y get snapped up very quickly once they are released - these days, with oversold flights, BE only getting selection at the last minute, etc, people moving into vacant seats can happen very quickly.

If you’re a 1K traveling out of SFO at key peak business travel times, yeah, even for them CPUs are going to be tough. But traveling at non-peak times, or non-peak routes, or during the holidays, etc, there are certainly times when even silvers on low fares can score a CPU. I realize the tendency is to see how hard it is, since people are much more likely to complain when they don’t get a CPU, and less likely to come back here to mention when they do. But it does happen, at all levels, but very dependent on situation.

Sure, MileagePlus is an optional program. Don’t join, or stop providing your frequent flyer number during the reservation process, and you’re extremely unlikely to get upgraded. :) And, if you’d prefer to have only the mileage earning and nothing else, you can ask for retroactive credit after the flight.

FYI: Seat assignments are never guaranteed. There’s an entire thread on the board about seat changes occurring for no obvious reason. You’re going to need to monitor your reservations no matter what you do.

definitely sounds like a request for a really low minority, but really, who am I to judge?

if you don’t want any of your premier benefits, probably the best way is simply to leave your MP # off your booking entirely. If you do indeed want the miles to redeem for whatever later, you can always leave your MP # off, and then request retro credit for your flight afterwards. While this would also have to be done manually for each itin, you can at least do this online so t doesn’t require a phone call.

But there is is a lot of conveniences you could lose. For example, by not using your account, you’d have to manually enter your personal info. each time you book a trip (though come to think of it - you might be able to book through your account with saved info and be able to not select a mileage program at that part - presumably this can be done - I’ve just never tried). You’ll also probably lose some other perks you really do want, like higher priority for rebooking/standby in IRROPS, etc.

Consider crediting to another *A program instead, then. If you travel enough to get to *G, you’d get many of these benefits, plus United Club access for all departures. *G are not eligible for complimentary upgrades, so your chance of getting upgraded is low (it’d only happen if economy were oversold and all eligible UA passengers had already been upgraded).

ok this is even more bizarre than your first question. Why? You lose a number of useful benefits including better IRROPS handling.

not rcommended on popular route with full flights as you risk not getting a seat assignment or getting bumped if overbooked.