United MileagePlus 2027: Status Is Now All About Spending

United recently announced that from January 1, 2027, Premier qualifying flights (PQF) no longer count toward status. You’ll qualify only with Premier qualifying points (PQP), and Premier 1K goes up from 28,000 to 32,000 PQP.

We’ve already written about how loyalty programs are moving to dynamic pricing and want a steady income they can predict, mostly from credit cards. As a result, status is now more tied to spending than ever. You can see this at SAS EuroBonus too, and we wrote a guide to getting EuroBonus status from spending.

The rules for 2026 don’t change. If you reach status this year, it’s valid until January 31, 2028.

The New Thresholds

You still need at least four flights on United or United Express. Members who fly often on cheap fares lose the most. A 1K who qualified with 60 flights and 22,000 PQP now needs 10,000 PQP more, which is about $10,000 more in fares.

Starter PQP Only With a United Card

Until now, every Premier member got some PQP at the start of the year. In 2027, you only get it if you’re the primary holder of a United card opened by December 31, 2026. The amounts are 300 PQP for Silver, 600 for Gold, 900 for Platinum, and 1,600 for 1K, based on your status on February 1, 2027.

Card spending also earns PQP. The yearly cap is 1,000 PQP on the Explorer, 18,000 on the Quest, and now 32,000 on the Club card. On the Club card, that’s $480,000 in spending to reach 1K, so for most people the card only adds to their flights.

Award Flights Still Earn PQP

United gives 1 PQP for every 100 MileagePlus miles you redeem on United or United Express flights. A 100,000-mile award earns 1,000 PQP. Partner flights don’t earn PQP, and neither do United flights booked with another program’s points.

So when the price is close, booking a United flight with MileagePlus miles also helps your status. Search United awards in AwardFares to compare the price with other Star Alliance programs, and set a Live Alert if the price is too high.

PlusPoints Upgrades Go Dynamic

For travel from February 1, 2027, the PlusPoints chart goes away and the price will change with demand. Today, Economy to Polaris costs 40 or 80 PlusPoints, depending on the fare. If you have a trip before February, it’s a good idea to request your upgrade at the current price.

With the current chart, if you upgrade more than one flight on a trip, United only charges the highest price.

By the way, if you exchanged PlusPoints for 2027 PQF, United will refund them.

Status Match Ends October 22

United’s status match for Delta and American elites was extended to October 22. Spend $1,500 (Silver), $3,000 (Gold), $4,500 (Platinum), or $7,000 (1K) on United within 90 days, take one United flight, and you keep the status until January 31, 2028. For 1K, that’s a lot less than 32,000 PQP.

Even after this offer ends, a status match or a status challenge can be a faster way to get United status than earning 32,000 PQP, especially if you already have status with another airline. United has run these offers before, like its 2025 status match challenge. Our status match guide lists the current offers.

Other United News

The United App in Japanese

The United app is now in Japanese, with prices in yen. United also starts Chicago to Tokyo Narita on October 24, and Los Angeles to Osaka and San Francisco to Okinawa on March 27, 2027.

Meal Preorder on Shorter Flights

You can now preorder food in Economy on flights over 900 miles in North America and the Caribbean, down from 1,190 miles.

Starlink Tracker

Starlink is now on more than 635 United aircraft, almost half of United’s daily flights. You can check your flight with the new Starlink tracker, up to three days before departure.

Create a free AwardFares account to search MileagePlus awards, or get Gold or Diamond for live searches and Live Alerts.