Chase United Club Infinite Credit Card: Limited-Time 110,000 Sign-Up Bonus, Many Premium Benefits

This card has a new welcome offer: 100,000 + 10,000 UA miles. The additional 10,000 miles are for adding an authorized user. The annual fee has also increased to $695. This card has added quite a few statement-credit and mileage-related benefits; if you can use them, they can offset part of the annual fee.

• Application link

United Club Infinite Credit Card Overview

Benefit Analysis

• IHG Rewards Platinum status + $75 credit: Starting in 2022, cardholders automatically receive IHG Rewards Platinum status, and can receive up to $75 in credits at IHG hotels during 2022. You must use this card for purchases at IHG hotels.
• Metal card design: Heavy and premium-feeling; a great card to impress people.
• Product-change option: Can be product-changed to the no-annual-fee UA MileagePlus card.
• Reimbursement for the $120 Global Entry application fee once every four years.

UA Benefits

• 25% discount on UA in-flight purchases
• UA and Star Alliance lounges: Cardholders receive a United Club Membership directly (official price $650), with unlimited access to UA lounges and select Star Alliance member lounges.
• Two free checked bags: On flights operated by UA itself, you can check two bags for free, and one companion can also receive two free checked bags (must be on the same reservation). You need to purchase the ticket with this credit card, or use it to pay taxes and fees on an award ticket, to receive this benefit. See the detailed “UA free checked baggage explanation.”
• Award-booking advantage: You can see XN fare-class award availability, which greatly increases your chances of finding award seats.
• Premier Access when flying: Priority check-in lines, priority security, priority baggage handling, and more. See the “official explanation” for details.
• Includes all UA Explorer benefits except the two club passes: Rental car insurance, 25% mileage bonus through MPX, extra shopping portal bonuses, bonuses for registering for various promotions, and more. You can find details in the “UA Explorer card” and “hidden benefits of UA cards” articles.
• 10% discount on economy award tickets: Limited to UA economy Saver-level award tickets within the continental U.S. and Canada. For example, an award that previously required 20,000 miles would now require only 18,000.
• Receive 1,500 PQP directly each year to help pursue elite status.
• Earn 1 PQP for every $15 spent: up to 28,000 per year (previous cap was 15,000).
• Spend $40,000 each year to receive two global Economy Plus seat upgrades, which can be used for upgrades.
• 4 United Club passes each year and United Club All Access membership: Requires $50,000 in annual spending or UA Premier Gold status, and you also need to have added an authorized user. This All Access benefit allows another person to enter a UA Lounge for free.

Statement-Credit Benefits

• Instacart+ Membership: two $10 credits each month, for a total of $240 per year.
• $200 Renowned Hotels and Resorts hotel credit: This is similar to Amex FHR, mostly covering higher-end hotels. If you book through this program, you can enjoy benefits such as complimentary daily breakfast for two and hotel credits. Specific benefits vary by hotel. Official introduction
• $150 rideshare credit: $12 per month from January through November, and $18 in December.
• Avis or Budget rental car cash back: Up to $100 per year in United travel credits. You need to book through windowcars.united.com. For your first and second bookings each year, if you pay with this card, you can receive $50 back each time.
• $200 JSX airfare credit: Pay with this card and receive up to $200 in credits each year.

Drawbacks

• The annual fee is as high as $525, and the only easy way to recoup value is the IHG credit.
• If you do not need baggage or lounge benefits, the mid-tier United Explorer credit card is sufficient.

Using United Miles

United’s biggest strength is its extensive international route network, which makes its miles more convenient to use. United is one of the founding members of Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance, with 25 member airlines. United also has many non-alliance partners, making MileagePlus one of the most versatile currencies for booking award tickets. To emphasize this point: United miles can be used not only for award tickets on flights operated by United itself, but also for award tickets on Star Alliance partners and other partner airlines. They are therefore extremely flexible. You can redeem them for domestic U.S. flights, flights from the U.S. to China, Europe, and the Americas, and even flights from China to Japan and Europe.

• United Airlines (UA) membership and mileage guide

My Take

This card was revamped from the UA Club card. The current welcome offer waives the first-year annual fee (previously it was 100,000 miles with a $525 annual fee that was not waived). After the revamp, United purchases earn 4x points, which is a meaningful improvement for big spenders. The change to 2x points on travel and dining is also nice. Other purchases were reduced to 1x, which I personally do not think matters much. The card also added the common TSA and $100 Global Entry benefit. The annual fee increase to $525 feels acceptable, since people who hold this card are primarily doing so for unlimited UA Club access and two free checked bags. Also, tickets and award tickets purchased with this card both receive two free checked bags. This is a fantastic card for business travelers who fly United.

Of course, even if you are not a business traveler, it can still make sense to apply for this card and keep it for one year. The welcome offer is still quite good and is worth much more than the first-year annual fee. The two free checked bags on United flights can also save a lot in baggage fees. After one year, product-changing to the “no-annual-fee United card” or something like United TravelBank can both be solid options.

Application

• This card requires a credit limit above 5,000, so if your income is too low or your credit history is too short, you may not be approved.
• This is a United co-branded credit card. You can enter your UA membership number when applying; if you leave it blank, the system will automatically assign you a new one.
• This card does not conflict with other UA co-branded cards, so you can still receive the bonus when applying.

• Chase application status check link (login required). Or call: 888-338-2586
• The 5/24 rule: if you have opened more than 5 new cards in the past 2 years (including cards from other banks), you will not be approved for a new Chase card
• You can be approved for at most two Chase credit cards within any 30-day period
• If you have received the welcome bonus on this card within the past 24 months (48 months for the Sapphire family), your application will be automatically denied
• You can call the reconsideration line (800-453-9719) to expedite credit card approval or request another review of a denied application.
• Having a Chase Checking account can help with getting approved for a credit card
• More information on applying for Chase credit cards

Application Link