Last edit by: WineCountryUA
Partner ticket PQP calculator
Beginning in 2020, if you fly a partner airline (not UA metal) and your ticket is on the stock of another airline (not 016 ticket), you will earn PQP as a fraction of the distance flown. That fraction is determined by your fare class, and can be found in the tables below.
Other Partner Airlines (not Star Alliance)
Warning: It is strongly recommended that you consult the United earnings page for your airline and confirm the earning rate here, as they have been to known to change without notice and apply retroactively to tickets purchased before the change.
GREEN background is a "preferred" partner.
Updated PQP calculator with new per-segment earning cap
More Information on earning PQP and PQF
Archive: Earning Status (PQP) on non-016 Tickets and Partner Metal {Archive}
Partner Earning
Beginning in 2020, if you fly a partner airline (not UA metal) and your ticket is on the stock of another airline (not 016 ticket), you will earn PQP as a fraction of the distance flown. That fraction is determined by your fare class, and can be found in the tables below.
The way to derive this fraction is to go to the United earnings page for your airline and determine the RDM (not PQM) earning rate for your fare class. Then divide this number by 5 for "preferred partners" and 6 otherwise.
If the fare class of a non-016 *A partner flight allows RDM earnings (and therefore PQDs), the flight also earns Premier Qualifying Flight (PQF) credit.
Preferred Partner Airlines: AC AD AV CA CM EN EW LH LX NH NZ OS SN VA WK
Other Partner Airlines (status earning): A3 AI BR ET HO LO MS OA OU OZ SA SK SQ TG TK TP ZH
Other Partner Airlines (NO Premier credit): 3M 4B 9K EI HA UK VW
Note that for the third category you will earn RDM but no PQP, regardless of ticket stock (this is no change from before when you would not earn PQM).
For flights on or after July 1, 2020, the maximum Premier qualifying points that can be earned per flight {segment} on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines are as follows:
MileagePlus members who purchased tickets on eligible partners prior to these new rules may submit receipts showing tickets were issued prior to April 29, 2020, to [email protected] with the subject line "OA PQP Review" to be considered for PQP earning under the prior rules. Receipts should not be submitted until after travel is completed for flights on or after July 1, 2020.
UA Capping PQP Earn with Partners (update -- per flight segment)
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I fly a United-operated segment on a non-United ticket? You will earn PQP equal to the portion of the fare assignable to that segment. This information is transmitted from the ticketing carrier to United, and will be a somewhat arbitrary number between 0 and the full value of the fare component which includes that segment**. (This is the same as earning PQD on such a segment today.)
**Many reports of this not working even this well, and the potential number being outside this range.
What about codeshare segments? As before, codeshares do not matter. Only the operating carrier (metal) of each segment and the stock of the ticket determine your earnings.
How do I get a non-016 ticket? Any ticket purchased directly from another airline will be a partner-issued ticket, even if it has United segments. (Any ticket purchased from United will be an 016 ticket, even if it has no United segments.) Tickets purchased from an agency will usually have a stock of the marketing carrier of the most significant segment ("first long segment" usually).
What's the trick here? Because PQP are earned as a fraction of the distance flown, flying long distances on low-priced fares can earn more PQP than dollars spent. For any given journey, you should consider where you are earning a favorable ratio of PQP to dollars of at least 1.0 when ticketing this way, and consider ticketing with United if you are not.
What about BULK fares? Bulk fares will also earn PQP by distance, as noted in the table below. This is the only way to earn by distance on United metal.
Earnings Tables
Last updated in the image on 17-Nov-23.
To use: Determine the flight miles of your trip, then multiply by the applicable percentage based on the fare class of the ticket. That is your PQP for that segment. Example: 1000 mile flight on Air Canada booked in W fare code: PQP = 1000*.15=150).
Note that values >= 20% are rounded to the nearest 1%, and smaller values are rounded to the nearest 0.1%. If precise calculations are needed, you should always use the original source material (United website).
Star Alliance Airlines
Warning: It is strongly recommended that you consult the United earnings page for your airline and confirm the earning rate here, as they have been to known to change without notice and apply retroactively to tickets purchased before the change.
Note: There are special rules for AC branded Economy fares on 014 tickets.
GREEN background is a "preferred" partner.
Preferred Partner Airlines: AC AD AV CA CM EN EW LH LX NH NZ OS SN VA WK
Other Partner Airlines (status earning): A3 AI BR ET HO LO MS OA OU OZ SA SK SQ TG TK TP ZH
Other Partner Airlines (NO Premier credit): 3M 4B 9K EI HA UK VW
Note that for the third category you will earn RDM but no PQP, regardless of ticket stock (this is no change from before when you would not earn PQM).
For flights on or after July 1, 2020, the maximum Premier qualifying points that can be earned per flight {segment} on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines are as follows:
MileagePlus members who purchased tickets on eligible partners prior to these new rules may submit receipts showing tickets were issued prior to April 29, 2020, to [email protected] with the subject line "OA PQP Review" to be considered for PQP earning under the prior rules. Receipts should not be submitted until after travel is completed for flights on or after July 1, 2020.
UA Capping PQP Earn with Partners (update -- per flight segment)
Frequently Asked Questions
What if I fly a United-operated segment on a non-United ticket? You will earn PQP equal to the portion of the fare assignable to that segment. This information is transmitted from the ticketing carrier to United, and will be a somewhat arbitrary number between 0 and the full value of the fare component which includes that segment**. (This is the same as earning PQD on such a segment today.)
**Many reports of this not working even this well, and the potential number being outside this range.
What about codeshare segments? As before, codeshares do not matter. Only the operating carrier (metal) of each segment and the stock of the ticket determine your earnings.
How do I get a non-016 ticket? Any ticket purchased directly from another airline will be a partner-issued ticket, even if it has United segments. (Any ticket purchased from United will be an 016 ticket, even if it has no United segments.) Tickets purchased from an agency will usually have a stock of the marketing carrier of the most significant segment ("first long segment" usually).
What's the trick here? Because PQP are earned as a fraction of the distance flown, flying long distances on low-priced fares can earn more PQP than dollars spent. For any given journey, you should consider where you are earning a favorable ratio of PQP to dollars of at least 1.0 when ticketing this way, and consider ticketing with United if you are not.
What about BULK fares? Bulk fares will also earn PQP by distance, as noted in the table below. This is the only way to earn by distance on United metal.
Earnings Tables
Last updated in the image on 17-Nov-23.
To use: Determine the flight miles of your trip, then multiply by the applicable percentage based on the fare class of the ticket. That is your PQP for that segment. Example: 1000 mile flight on Air Canada booked in W fare code: PQP = 1000*.15=150).
Note that values >= 20% are rounded to the nearest 1%, and smaller values are rounded to the nearest 0.1%. If precise calculations are needed, you should always use the original source material (United website).
Star Alliance Airlines
Warning: It is strongly recommended that you consult the United earnings page for your airline and confirm the earning rate here, as they have been to known to change without notice and apply retroactively to tickets purchased before the change.
Note: There are special rules for AC branded Economy fares on 014 tickets.
GREEN background is a "preferred" partner.
Other Partner Airlines (not Star Alliance)
Warning: It is strongly recommended that you consult the United earnings page for your airline and confirm the earning rate here, as they have been to known to change without notice and apply retroactively to tickets purchased before the change.
GREEN background is a "preferred" partner.
Updated PQP calculator with new per-segment earning cap
I created a updated version of the PQP calculator to handle the upcoming per segment PQP earning limits. It also calculates RDM:
https://pqp.economiles.com/
https://pqp.economiles.com/
More Information on earning PQP and PQF
Earning PQP on flights ticketed and operated by a Star Alliance Partner
Members can also earn Premier qualifying points on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines. Your PQP will be equal to award miles earned divided by 5 if you’re flying on a preferred partner; for other MileagePlus partner airlines, it will be award miles earned divided by 6.
Please note award miles is your base award miles earning plus your fare class bonus award miles earning, if eligible. Premier bonus miles earned are not included within this calculation and are ineligible for Premier qualifying points accrual.
For Star Alliance airlines as well as Air Dolomiti, Azul, Eurowings, Edelweiss, and Olympic:
Preferred partner PQP: Award miles divided by 5
MileagePlus partner PQP: Award miles divided by 6
For example, if you earned 360 award miles for your flight, you’ll receive 72 PQP if you flew with a preferred partner, and 60 PQP if you flew with a MileagePlus partner.
PQP Calculator with option to apply max PQP per flight:
https://pqp.economiles.com/
For flights on or after July 1, 2020, the maximum Premier qualifying points that can be earned per flight on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines are as follows:
MileagePlus members who purchased tickets on eligible partners prior to these new rules may submit receipts showing tickets were issued prior to April 29, 2020, to [email protected] with the subject line "OA PQP Review" to be considered for PQP earning under the prior rules. Receipts should not be submitted until after travel is completed for flights on or after July 1, 2020.
For more information on PQP accrual for a specific airline, visit our airline partner pages.
Members can also earn Premier qualifying points on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines. Your PQP will be equal to award miles earned divided by 5 if you’re flying on a preferred partner; for other MileagePlus partner airlines, it will be award miles earned divided by 6.
Please note award miles is your base award miles earning plus your fare class bonus award miles earning, if eligible. Premier bonus miles earned are not included within this calculation and are ineligible for Premier qualifying points accrual.
For Star Alliance airlines as well as Air Dolomiti, Azul, Eurowings, Edelweiss, and Olympic:
Preferred partner PQP: Award miles divided by 5
MileagePlus partner PQP: Award miles divided by 6
For example, if you earned 360 award miles for your flight, you’ll receive 72 PQP if you flew with a preferred partner, and 60 PQP if you flew with a MileagePlus partner.
PQP Calculator with option to apply max PQP per flight:
https://pqp.economiles.com/
For flights on or after July 1, 2020, the maximum Premier qualifying points that can be earned per flight on tickets issued and operated by Star Alliance partners and select MileagePlus partner airlines are as follows:
MileagePlus members who purchased tickets on eligible partners prior to these new rules may submit receipts showing tickets were issued prior to April 29, 2020, to [email protected] with the subject line "OA PQP Review" to be considered for PQP earning under the prior rules. Receipts should not be submitted until after travel is completed for flights on or after July 1, 2020.
For more information on PQP accrual for a specific airline, visit our airline partner pages.
Archive: Earning Status (PQP) on non-016 Tickets and Partner Metal {Archive}
Earning Status (PQP) on non-016 Tickets and Partner Metal
#151
Join Date: Dec 2022
Programs: UA1K
Posts: 460
#152
Join Date: May 2018
Location: Latin America and USA
Programs: UA 1K, Marriott Gold
Posts: 456
#153
Join Date: May 2006
Location: PMD
Programs: UA*G, NW, AA-G. WR-P, HH-G, IHG-S, ALL. TT-GE.
Posts: 2,907
I used ITA Matrix to force higher fares (O, 75%). It's $200 more for 500 more PQP. But how to I buy that fare? Copaair.com is only selling those 25% and 50% fares.
#154
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 31,966
#155
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: San Francisco & London
Programs: UA1k, Oneworld Sapphire, Hyatt Globalist, IHG DiamondAmb, Hilton Diamond, Marriott LTP,
Posts: 1,782
How many PQP would I expect to earn on a a flight from SFO to DXB via Frankfurt return. The fare will cost approx $5000
#156
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 31,966
#157
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2017
Programs: AS 75K, DL Silver, UA Platinum, Hilton Gold, Hyatt Discoverist, Marriott Platinum + LT Gold
Posts: 10,456
Note partner PQP may be limited/maxed out depending on your fare bucket and segment distance.
#158
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: So Cal
Programs: UA Gold/0.744MM, WN AL, Hyatt Diamond, MR Scum, Hertz PC, National Exec, Avis PC
Posts: 5,560
Got kind of an odd one that maybe the wizards can help me figure out. Customer is booking my ticket. It's not ticketed yet, but I've seen a pending PNR, so I'm wondering how it will ticket (what stock) and how my earnings will work out.
What I've seen
Outbound A-B-C, flights operated by BA, AA flight numbers
Return C-D-E, flights operated by LH, UA flight numbers
Obviously the outbound earns nothing on UA, but I have no idea what kind of ticket stock the return will be on. Might it come out on AA ticket stock? Would I earn anything with that since it isn't on a *A ticket stock (even though it is on *A metal with UA flight numbers). Or might it get ticketed on two different tickets (one on AA stock, one on UA stock which seems like the best possible outcome given that it is an expensive J ticket)?
What I've seen
Outbound A-B-C, flights operated by BA, AA flight numbers
Return C-D-E, flights operated by LH, UA flight numbers
Obviously the outbound earns nothing on UA, but I have no idea what kind of ticket stock the return will be on. Might it come out on AA ticket stock? Would I earn anything with that since it isn't on a *A ticket stock (even though it is on *A metal with UA flight numbers). Or might it get ticketed on two different tickets (one on AA stock, one on UA stock which seems like the best possible outcome given that it is an expensive J ticket)?
#159
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 31,966
Got kind of an odd one that maybe the wizards can help me figure out. Customer is booking my ticket. It's not ticketed yet, but I've seen a pending PNR, so I'm wondering how it will ticket (what stock) and how my earnings will work out.
What I've seen
Outbound A-B-C, flights operated by BA, AA flight numbers
Return C-D-E, flights operated by LH, UA flight numbers
Obviously the outbound earns nothing on UA, but I have no idea what kind of ticket stock the return will be on. Might it come out on AA ticket stock? Would I earn anything with that since it isn't on a *A ticket stock (even though it is on *A metal with UA flight numbers). Or might it get ticketed on two different tickets (one on AA stock, one on UA stock which seems like the best possible outcome given that it is an expensive J ticket)?
What I've seen
Outbound A-B-C, flights operated by BA, AA flight numbers
Return C-D-E, flights operated by LH, UA flight numbers
Obviously the outbound earns nothing on UA, but I have no idea what kind of ticket stock the return will be on. Might it come out on AA ticket stock? Would I earn anything with that since it isn't on a *A ticket stock (even though it is on *A metal with UA flight numbers). Or might it get ticketed on two different tickets (one on AA stock, one on UA stock which seems like the best possible outcome given that it is an expensive J ticket)?
#160
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: San Francisco & London
Programs: UA1k, Oneworld Sapphire, Hyatt Globalist, IHG DiamondAmb, Hilton Diamond, Marriott LTP,
Posts: 1,782
LH Both legs in Z class, also I see that preferred partner PQP is capped at 1500, is that capped per segment / one-way or roundtrip?
Trying to work out what a LH / Swiss fare from SFO to DXB gets in Z in terms of PQP.
Last edited by navatwal; Aug 26, 2023 at 6:00 pm
#161
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: SFO/SJC
Programs: UA Silver, Marriott Gold, Hilton Gold
Posts: 14,878
we did SQ SFO-HKG-SIN, and SIN-ICN-SFO, circa 5 years ago, and yes, you get the direct mileage when booked on the same flight (and also, IIRC, get a single BP which you use to re-board at the intermediate stop). Also they way it happens on UA metal (though there was a time when that wasn’t the case).
#162
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: NYC
Programs: UA-1K MM, AA-Gold, DL-Silver, AS-MVP
Posts: 2,508
It's capped per segment. SFO-FRA-DXB in Z on a LH ticket will get you 2,404 PQP one-way, or 4,808 PQP round-trip.
#163
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: So Cal
Programs: UA Gold/0.744MM, WN AL, Hyatt Diamond, MR Scum, Hertz PC, National Exec, Avis PC
Posts: 5,560
You will earn on the return. Ticket stock doesn't matter other than: might be 2 different tickets and the return being on an LH 220 or UA 016 will be different (for the LH segment), of course flights operated by UA earn based on the ticket price no matter the ticket stock. So really the question is just for the LH segment
#164
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 21,354
Thanks - both return segments are LH, but with UA flight numbers due to Fly America. I'm guessing that means it will be on 016 ticket stock (it would seem odd to end up with LH flights on LH stock with UA flight numbers). Definitely no way it ends up on American (001) stock even though that's the first long haul?
#165
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: BOS/EAP
Programs: UA 1K, MR LTT, HH Dia, Amex Plat
Posts: 31,966
Thanks - both return segments are LH, but with UA flight numbers due to Fly America. I'm guessing that means it will be on 016 ticket stock (it would seem odd to end up with LH flights on LH stock with UA flight numbers). Definitely no way it ends up on American (001) stock even though that's the first long haul?