United Airlines is taking its upgrade list transparency to the next level. Is this just a customer friendly change in line with United’s big tech focus, or what’s the carrier’s motivation for such a move?
United app now shows upgrade list one month out
The “big three” US carriers all publish their upgrade lists in the hours (or even couple of days) leading up to a flight, whether you’re hoping for an upgrade with miles, or are an elite member eligible for a complimentary upgrade. However, further out than that, it has historically been a guessing game as to how far down the upgrade list you’ll be.
As flagged by Zach Griff, United has recently introduced a new feature through its mobile app in beta, and it’ll roll out on a more widespread basis in the coming weeks. With this, starting 30 days before departure, those who are waitlisted for an upgrade will be able to see their place on the upgrade waitlist.
To see this, you’ll need to visit the portion of the app with your trips, and you’ll need to go to the section for managing reservations. If you’re eligible for this feature, you’ll see the “upgrade waitlist” button on that page, underneath the seat assignment section.
Unlike the upgrade list within two days of departure, travelers won’t be able to see the exact list with abbreviated names, but instead, they’ll see what number position they are on the list, and roughly how many seats are remaining (if there are nine or more seats available, it’ll simply show “9 or more,” rather than a specific number).
This feature is available across routes and across upgrade types, whether waitlisted for a complimentary upgrade elite, or using MileagePlus miles or PlusPoints for an upgrade.
This is customer friendly and will maximize revenue
United claims that this new upgrade waitlist feature is designed based on customer feedback, as a way to be more transparent. I think that’s fantastic, and this is unarguably a positive change for customers.
Previously, savvy travelers would find other ways to try to determine their odds of an upgrade, none of which were 100% accurate. We’re talking things like seeing how many premium seats are still for sale, how many extra legroom economy seats are occupied (people you’re potentially competing with for upgrades), etc.
Now, while I think this is absolutely a positive change, I can’t help but wonder if people incorrectly interpreting the results may lead to increased disappointment. It goes without saying that peoples’ position on the upgrade list will largely decrease as the departure date approaches, and more people book.
Especially in business markets, it’s common for a large percentage of bookings to be within 30 days of departure. That should be pretty obvious, but I can already hear people saying “I don’t understand, I was number one on the list, and now I’m number nine, what happened?”
I suppose at least the implementation of this is more logical than American’s upgrade list, where it only displays customers who have already checked in for a flight. I can’t count how many times I’ve overheard customers complaining to a gate agent or Admirals Club agent about how their place on the upgrade waitlist decreased.
While I do think this improved upgrade waitlist is in line with United’s strategy of offering great tech, I suspect there’s also an ulterior motive. As we know, airlines also try to constantly monetize upgrades, by selling discounted upgrades as the departure date approaches.
When it becomes apparent to customers that their upgrade won’t clear, I have to imagine the goal is that people will increasingly buy upgrades, realizing it’s their only way to get into a premium cabin.
Bottom line
United is rolling out a new feature through its mobile app, whereby upgrade waitlists will be published 30 days in advance. This is a level of transparency with upgrade waitlists that we haven’t seen before from a US airline, so I commend United for that.
I suspect an additional motive here is to increasingly monetize upgrades, and make people realize sooner that their upgrade is unlikely to clear.
What do you make of United publishing upgrade lists 30 days before departure?
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