United Club Business Credit Card Review Of 2024

Though most travelers are tempted by United’s mid-tier credit cards, the United Club Business Card caters to those who want premium benefits. The standout feature of this card is unlimited access to United Club airport lounges—for cheaper than buying a membership directly—although the card doesn’t ignore other aspects of the flying experience.

Simply holding the card provides several travel benefits including priority check-in and boarding and access to additional award inventory. When paying for United travel with your card, members have access to additional perks including not one but two free checked bags on every trip, space available upgrades on award tickets plus discounts on in-flight purchases.

While that reads as an impressive list, it’s worth noting that many of the benefits overlap with those offered to elite flyers and on lower-cost cards. Additionally, all benefits apply to the primary cardholder only: Employee cards simply allow you to manage spending and earn additional miles for the primary cardholder’s MileagePlus account.

The earnings, however, are worth looking at. Every purchase earns 1.5 miles per dollar spent, or a 50% bonus compared to most airline cards (2 miles per dollar on United flights is the only bonus category and is status quo on most airline cards). For businesses that rack up a lot of expenses, that extra half mile per dollar will be significant.

Cardholders can also earn up to 1,000 Premier Qualifying Points (PQP) by spending on this card. You’ll earn 500 PQP for every $12,000 spent on the United Club Business Card in a calendar year—though it tops out at 1,000 PQP (or $24,000 spent). For some travelers, that may be enough to bump you up to the next status level though its value tops out quickly.

• Welcome bonus: 50,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months the account is open
• Earn 2 miles per dollar spent on United purchases and 1.5 miles per dollar spent on all other purchases
• First and second checked bag free for you and a companion on the same itinerary
• Receive 25% savings as a statement credit on in-flight food and beverages
• Earn 500 or 1,000 Premier Qualifying Points after spending $12,000 or $24,000 in a calendar year
• No foreign transaction fees
• Complimentary employee cards (airline benefits do not extend to authorized users)
• $450 annual fee

Earning Rewards

United has several co-branded credit cards to choose from, in addition to having a partnership through the Chase Ultimate Rewards® program, but the United Club Business Card sets itself apart by offering the highest rewards on everyday spending: You’ll earn 2 miles per dollar spent on United purchases and 1.5 miles per dollar spent on all other purchases.

In the first year of card membership, you may also qualify for a one-time welcome bonus of 50,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 on purchases in the first 3 months the account is open. The bonus is only available to cardholders who don’t already hold the card and who haven’t earned the bonus in the past 24 months.

Every month, all miles earned (including those on employee cards) are deposited into the primary cardholder’s United Airlines account. There are no additional steps to take to collect your rewards and they’ll co-mingle with other United miles you’ve earned, such as those from flying.

Redeeming Rewards

Since the miles earned through this card are treated the same as all other United miles, you’ll have access to all of United’s award options when making redemptions. United Airlines no longer publishes an award chart, but you may find some U.S. domestic award flights for as low as 5,500 miles one-way in economy. Unsurprisingly, international and premium cabin flights require significantly more miles.

Booking award flights using United miles is straightforward. Their website offers a robust reservations system, with prices prominently displayed throughout the search process. Partner airlines, primarily through Star Alliance, are also included in online search results though some complicated travel itineraries may require booking by phone.

Holding the United Club℠ Business card*—or other United credit cards—provides access to additional award inventory exclusive to cardholders. Though these flights are most commonly short economy flights, it can be a worthwhile tool when piecing together multi-segment trips. The extra inventory will be automatically included in search results as long as you’re logged in during the search and reservation process.

In addition to using miles for reward flights, members can also redeem miles for upgrades, vacation packages or even magazines and newspaper subscriptions. However, your best value will almost always be found in award tickets.

Rewards Potential

As always, the potential rewards on this card depends on your annual business spending.

To determine the rewards potential of the United Club℠ Business card*, we calculated what a sole proprietor or small business might spend overall each year and in the bonus categories. Forbes Advisor uses data from various government agencies to determine annual expenses and spending across various categories. Based on the data, we calculated the following rewards potential for a sample small business with income of $118,438 and $39,337 in expenditures for the year.

If this business spent $770 annually on United Airlines flights, it would earn 1,540 miles from the card’s airline bonus category. All other spending of $38,567 earns 1.5 miles per dollar or 57,850 miles, bringing the annual earnings to a total of 59,390 miles, not including the potential first-year welcome bonus.

• United Club membership. Receive complimentary United Club access for the primary cardholder and eligible companions traveling on the same itinerary.
• Complimentary Premier upgrades. The primary cardmember is eligible for complimentary upgrades when traveling on United award tickets.
• Free checked bags. The primary cardholder and one companion traveling on the same reservation each receive their first and second standard checked bags free.
• Premier Access. Receive preferential treatment for the primary cardmember including priority check-in, security screening (where available), boarding and baggage handling privileges.
• Food and beverage discounts. Pay for in-flight food or drinks with your United Club Business card and receive a 25% discount as a statement credit.
• Premier qualifying points. Earn status faster by receiving up to 1,000 PQP toward your annual qualification.
• Avis President’s Club membership. The primary cardholder is eligible to join Avis President’s Club for complimentary upgrades, expedited service and other rental car benefits.
• Access to Chase Luxury Hotels & Resorts. Receive upgrades and benefits when booking hotels through the Chase Luxury Hotels & Resorts program.
• Travel and purchase protection. Benefits including trip cancellation insurance and trip delay reimbursement, primary rental car collision damage waiver and return protection are included.
• Complimentary employee cards. Add employee cards at no extra cost to earn additional miles in the primary cardmember’s account.

Interest Rates

• Regular APR: 21.99% – 28.99% variable
• Purchase intro APR: N/A
• Balance transfer intro APR: N/A

Fees

• Annual fee: $450
• Balance transfer fee: Either $5 or 5% of the amount of each transfer, whichever is greater.
• Foreign purchase transaction fee: None

United Club℠ Business card* vs. United℠ Business Card

The United℠ Business Card with its $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $99 will save you quite a bit of cash on the annual fee and is the most obvious competitor to the United Club℠ Business card*. Several annual benefits are identical, including the ability to earn 2 miles per dollar on United purchases, PQPs when hitting spending thresholds and premium travel access like priority boarding.

However, you do lose out on several benefits like United Club access if you choose the United℠ Business Card.

There isn’t necessarily a clear-cut winner when it comes to earning miles between the two cards. The United Club℠ Business card* earns 1.5 miles on all non-United purchases, which may seem advantageous compared to only 1 mile per dollar on the United℠ Business Card. However, the United℠ Business Card offers double miles at gas stations, dining, office supply stores and local transit which might be better for some cardholders.

United Club℠ Business card* vs. Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

If you’re not loyal to a single airline, some small businesses might prefer the Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card. That’s because this card earns Ultimate Rewards® points which are not only useful for travel but also transferable to your choice of more than a dozen participating airline and hotel partners (including United) rather than locking you into a specific program.

The Ink Business Preferred earns 3 points per dollar on the first $150,000 spent on travel and select business categories each account anniversary year and 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. That requires cardholders to pay attention and compare the various bonus categories compared to the simplicity of the United Club card.

Cardholders may also earn more points thanks to the larger welcome bonus of 100,000 points after spending $8,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. If you transfer these to United, you’ll be a little bit closer to your preferred redemption(s).

The biggest downside to the Ink Business Preferred is that it doesn’t come with any airline benefits. You won’t get perks like free checked bags, flight upgrades or lounge access, though you may have the budget to buy those directly since the card’s annual fee of $95 is much lower than the United Club℠ Business card*.

United Club℠ Business card* vs. The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Small businesses that don’t spend enough to earn premier qualifying points might prefer a different card. The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (Terms apply. See rates & fees) earns a straightforward 2 Membership Rewards points per dollar on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners up to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, then 1 point per dollar on all other purchases. That’s the same simplicity you’ll find on the United Club℠ Business card*, but at a higher return rate (and with no annual fee).

Membership Rewards Points can be redeemed for cash taken as a statement credit or transferred to any American Express travel partner through the Membership Rewards program. United Airlines, notably, is not one of the participating airlines though some Star Alliance members are, which makes it possible to redeem points for United flights in a roundabout way.

This card doesn’t focus on travel, though, which might be a dealbreaker for some customers. You won’t receive any airline benefits or general travel perks. Instead, you’ll qualify for lucrative Amex Offers for statement credits with promotional merchants. The card also offers 15,000 Membership Rewards points after spending $3,000 in purchases in the first 3 months of account opening, though in subsequent years of card membership you may find either card equally rewarding.

Overall, the United Club℠ Business card* will likely only appeal to a small group of travelers. United’s most loyal customers probably already have access to the travel benefits through their elite status and those who only fly a handful of times per year will probably be just as well off with a less expensive card.

Though you can split hairs looking at some of the included benefits when comparing cards, it’s mostly the airport lounge access that sets this card apart. It’s the only business card with United Club access specifically (compared to the more ubiquitous Priority Pass) and if that’s your goal, it’s a fine way to get there.

To view rates and fees for The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express please visit this page.

Forbes Advisor considers a variety of criteria when assigning credit cards a rating. Cards are graded based on numerous factors including:

• Annual fees
• Welcome bonus offers
• Ongoing earning rates
• Value of individual points of miles
• Included travel or merchant credits
• Additional cardholder benefits

Card features we expect cardholders to use the most often are weighted more heavily in our ratings. Altogether, the factors came together to provide a star rating for each individual card.

Read more: How Forbes Advisor Rates Credit Cards