Chase and United offer a suite of co-branded credit cards, and the no annual fee option is the United Gateway℠ Card. The card earns 5x total miles on eligible United flights, 2x miles on all other eligible United purchases, and 2x miles on other travel purchases, including spending at gas stations and local transit and commuting.
The United Gateway Card also gets you perks when you fly with United, but some of them require meeting an annual spending threshold on the card. This is my in-depth United Gateway Card review, so let’s dive into the card details, and whether I think the benefits are worth it below.
Link: Learn more about the United Gateway℠ Card
United Airlines Gateway Card summary & key details for October 2026
Before I share my full thoughts on the United Gateway Card, let me take a moment to go over the top-level details, including the card’s welcome bonus, perks, and rewards structure.
- United Gateway Card annual fee: $0
- United Gateway Card welcome offer: Earn 40,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 on purchases in the first 3 months your account is open. Plus, 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases. Learn more.
- United Gateway Card miles earning rate: 2x miles on eligible United purchases and on other travel purchases including gas stations and local transit and commuting, 1x miles on all other purchases
- United Gateway Card foreign transaction fee: None
- United Gateway Card travel benefits with United: 25% back as a statement credit on purchases of food, beverages, and Wi-Fi onboard United-operated flights and on United Club premium drinks, plus after spending $10,000 on the card in a calendar year, save 10% or more on flights booked with miles, earn an additional 3x miles per dollar spent on United, and earn two first standard checked bags on United or United Express flights
- United Gateway Card other perks: 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases, and then 19.99% - 28.49%, based on your creditworthiness, auto rental coverage, trip cancellation and interruption insurance, purchase protection, and extended warranty protection
Here’s what comes to mind for me as far as the main United Gateway Card pros and cons go:
| United Gateway Card pros | United Gateway Card cons |
|---|---|
| No annual fee | Several of the United perks require meeting an annual spending threshold |
| Solid bonus spending categories for a no annual fee card | United℠ Explorer Card has a better welcome bonus and stronger perks |
| Offers some travel and purchase protection |
United Gateway bonus, eligibility, & fees
The United Gateway Card is one of the better no annual fee airline credit cards out there, especially factoring in the welcome bonus. Let’s look at the card in more detail, including the welcome bonus, eligibility, fees, and more.
United Gateway Card welcome bonus up to 50K miles
The United Gateway Card has a limited time welcome bonus of 40,000 MileagePlus miles after spending $1,000 within the first three months. You can earn an additional 10,000 bonus miles when you add an authorized user within the first three months your account is open.
Based on my latest miles & points valuations, MileagePlus miles are worth 1.3 cents each. That means to me, 40,000 miles are worth $520, while 50,000 bonus miles are worth $650. That’s an excellent welcome offer for a no annual fee card.
United Gateway Card bonus eligibility rules
Eligibility for the United Gateway Card welcome bonus is unrelated to any other Chase or United credit card bonuses, so you are eligible even if you have other co-branded United cards. The standard Chase application rules apply, including the Chase 5/24 rule (though there are increasingly reports of this no longer being consistently enforced).
United Gateway Card no annual fee
As I’ve already mentioned, the United Gateway Card has no annual fee. This applies both to the primary cardmember and any additional cardmembers. Back in the day, there weren’t many airline credit cards without annual fees, so it’s nice to see airlines increasingly offering this kind of product.
United Gateway Card no foreign transaction fee
The United Gateway Card has no foreign transaction fees, which means you can take it on all your travels without a second thought. Not every no annual fee airline credit card waives foreign transaction fees, so I appreciate this.
United Gateway Card miles earning structure
The United Gateway Card has a pretty simple rewards structure. You’ll earn 2x United miles on a handful of bonus categories, including United purchases, and then 1x miles on everything else.
United Gateway Card 2x miles bonus categories
The United Gateway Card has a solid rewards structure for a no annual fee card, as it offers:
- 2x MileagePlus miles on United purchases
- 2x MileagePlus miles on gas station purchases
- 2x MileagePlus miles on local transit and commuting, including rideshare services, taxis, train tickets, tolls, and mass transit
You’ll see the United Gateway Card marketed as offering a total of 5x miles on eligible United flights. However, that factors in the minimum of 3x miles (or more, if you have higher MileagePlus Premier status) that you ordinarily earn for being a MileagePlus member, so you should do the math incrementally. You’re earning an additional 2x miles for paying with the Gateway Card, and that’s what matters.
United Gateway Card 1x miles on all other purchases
For all spending outside of the 2x miles bonus categories, the United Gateway Card earns 1x miles per dollar spent.
As mentioned above, the United Gateway Card has no foreign transaction fees, so this can be a great card to use abroad. There aren’t all that many no annual fee cards with decent rewards structures that also have no foreign transaction fees, so the card is pretty awesome in that sense.
United Gateway Card benefits & perks
The United Gateway Card offers several United-specific benefits, along with some more general perks like travel and purchase protection. I’ll start by looking at the airline-specific features.
United Gateway Card free checked bags with spending
As an incentive for spending, the United Gateway Card offers two standard checked bag certificates after spending $10,000 on the card in a calendar year. United ordinarily charges $45-50 for a first checked bag, so that’s a value of $90-100 right there.
Let me emphasize that this is a total of two free checked bag certificates, so you’re not getting two free checked bags on every itinerary.
It’s nice to have some incentive for spending, though it’s probably not worth spending $10,000 on the card annually just to receive that perk. Note that United’s more premium cards offer free checked bags as part of the standard card perks, with no spending required.
United Gateway Card other United perks
Generally speaking, one of the main reasons to consider picking up an airline credit card is for the perks that it offers. As you’d expect, United Airlines’ no annual fee credit card has the fewest perks of any card in the portfolio. That being said, the United Gateway Card does offer some benefits, as follows:
- 25% savings on United inflight purchases, including purchases of food, beverages, and Wi-Fi
- A discount of 10% or more on flights booked with miles after you spend $10,000 on the card in a calendar year (MileagePlus Premier members save even more)
- 8x total miles on eligible United flights, meaning 6x miles as a MileagePlus member on top of the standard 2x miles you’ll earn with the United Gateway Card after spending $10,000 on purchases on the card in a calendar year
While the award flight discount and 8x total miles are useful, you’ll need to spend a minimum of $10,000 on the United Gateway Card in a calendar year to unlock those. Unless United miles are the most valuable rewards currency to you, you’re probably better off putting that spending on another card with better bonuses on everyday spending — possibly a card that earns Chase Ultimate Rewards points, since you can transfer those to United.
United Gateway Card travel and purchase protection
I also appreciate that the United Gateway Card comes with a handful of travel and purchase coverage benefits. You’ll need to pay with the card to get coverage, and there are some exceptions to note in the card’s benefits guide, but here’s a brief overview:
- Auto collision damage waiver (rental car coverage)
- Trip cancellation and interruption insurance of up to $1,500 per covered traveler and up to $6,000 per trip
- Purchase protection of up to $500 per item for damage and theft up to 120 days from the date of purchase
- Extended warranty protection of up to one additional year
United Gateway Card intro APR offer
The United Gateway Card also comes with an introductory APR offer: 0% intro APR for 12 months from account opening on purchases, and then 19.99% - 28.49%, based on your creditworthiness
It’s specifically for purchases, not balance transfers. Some cards offer longer intro APR periods, so if this is an important benefit for you, be sure to compare some other options.
Is the United Gateway Card worth it?
For a no annual fee airline card, it doesn’t get much better than the United Gateway Card. The card offers an impressive welcome bonus, 2x miles on select purchases with no foreign transaction fees, savings on inflight purchases, and more. If you absolutely want a no annual fee United card, then this is obviously the card to go with.
The one thing I’d like to emphasize is that United has in recent times transformed its MileagePlus program to create very strong incentives to pick up a co-branded credit card. This is true on both the MileagePlus earning and redemption front.
When it comes to earning miles, you earn an additional 3x miles per dollar spent if you have select co-branded credit cards. With the United Gateway Card, you only unlock that better return on airfare spending if you spend at least $10,000 per year. So that’s one major opportunity cost to having this card in comparison to other United cards.
| MileagePlus status | MileagePlus earn rate | Cardmember earn rate |
|---|---|---|
| General member | 3x miles per dollar | 6x miles per dollar |
| Premier Silver | 5x miles per dollar | 8x miles per dollar |
| Premier Gold | 6x miles per dollar | 9x miles per dollar |
| Premier Platinum | 7x miles per dollar | 10x miles per dollar |
| Premier 1K | 9x miles per dollar | 12x miles per dollar |
Then when it comes to redeeming miles, those with elite status and/or a co-branded credit card unlock better award pricing. Once again, those with the United Gateway Card only start to unlock better award pricing after spending $10,000 in a year.
So there’s a real opportunity cost to going this route, rather than going for a United card with an annual fee. So I’d like to talk a bit more about why it could make sense to pick up another United credit card, and also compare it to the no annual fee cards offered by other airlines.
Why you should get the United Explorer Card instead
If you’re considering picking up a United Airlines credit card, I’d apply for the United℠ Explorer Card (learn more) over the United Gateway Card. Why?
- The United Explorer Card offers a much bigger welcome bonus, which gets you significantly more value upfront
- The United Explorer Card has a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150
- If you decide after a year that you don’t want the United Explorer Card, you should be able to downgrade it to the no annual fee United Gateway Card
- The United Explorer Card offers all kinds of valuable incremental perks, like two United Club passes annually, a free first checked bag, priority boarding, rideshare credits, improved mileage earning, and much more
There’s simply no reason not to give the United Explorer Card at least a try.
All of the “big three” carriers in the United States have no annual fee cards, so how does the United Gateway Card compare to the credit cards issued by American AAdvantage and Delta SkyMiles?
United Gateway vs. American AAdvantage MileUp card comparison
The American Airlines AAdvantage® MileUp® (learn more) offers:
- 15,000 American AAdvantage miles plus a $100 statement credit after spending $500 within the first three months
- 2x AAdvantage miles for American Airlines and grocery store purchases
- 1x Loyalty Points per dollar spent, so spending counts toward status
- 25% savings on inflight American Airlines purchases
- The card does have foreign transaction fees
The United Gateway Card comes out ahead for having a higher welcome bonus (though the minimum spending requirement is higher too) and for waiving foreign transaction fees. But if you’re a loyal American Airlines flyer, you may appreciate how spending on the American MileUp Card counts toward status, while spending on the United Gateway Card doesn’t.
United Gateway vs. Delta SkyMiles Blue Amex Card comparison
The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card (learn more) (Rates & Fees) offers:
- 10,000 Delta SkyMiles after spending $1,000 within the first six months
- 2x SkyMiles for Delta and restaurant purchases
- 20% savings on inflight Delta Air Lines purchases in the form of a statement credit
- The card doesn’t have foreign transaction fees (Rates & Fees)
As you can see, there are pros and cons to each product, though I’d say that the United Gateway Card might just be the most lucrative of the bunch. The card offers the best welcome bonus, the best spending bonuses (all with no foreign transaction fees), 25% savings on inflight purchases, and good purchase and travel protection. So for a no annual fee airline card, it doesn’t get much better than that, if you ask me.
United Gateway Card FAQs
Bottom line
The United Gateway Card is United Airlines’ no annual fee personal credit card. The card has no foreign transaction fees and offers 2x miles in select bonus categories. On top of that, the card offers 25% savings on inflight purchases, as well as useful purchase and travel protection. If you want a no annual fee airline credit card, this is as good as it gets.
I think the better strategy is to pick up the United Explorer Card. If you decide after a year that you don’t want the card, you can always downgrade it.
What do you make of the United Gateway Card?
The following links will direct you to the rates and fees for mentioned American Express Cards. These include: Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card (Rates & Fees).
You now lose access to cardmember award redemption pricing unless you spend 10k a year. That was previously the reason to have this card.
@ Peter -- I'm curious, I don't see that in the marketing bullets or terms, regarding getting this for $10K of spending. Is there something I'm missing?
From the email-
Other card changes
Beginning August 1, 2025, Cardmember pricing on award travel redemption will only be available after spending $10,000 in purchases each calendar year.
If you have not yet met the $10,000 spend goal in 2025, your 2024 spend could also earn the benefit for 2025. Once you reach the yearly spend goal, you will receive the benefit for both the current year and the following year.
Does a Premier Silver member get the same mileage ticket discount as a United Explorers card member ?
Peter is right, this was emailed out with the recent changes. The card is gaining the checked bags for $10k spend, but is now restricted to only getting the card award flight availability after spending $10k as well. This change will take place starting in August.
Ben,
With all of the changes to the Chase/UA collections of cards - including many that are undesirable (increased annual fee) and questionable (junk coupons and credits) - what are your thoughts on the 5/24 rules and cycling of cards to get SUB and most collective bang-for-buck approach over several years?
thanks
Ben I’ve heard that a United 1k member was denied entry to United Club for a flight to Canada with the agent saying “your flying domestic, the 51st state”. Curious to see how the company is going to respond to this complaint…
I have this card but I'm dumping it. I had it for several years because there was no fees but I could claim ual member rates on award redemption. But now they won't offer that perk unless you spend $10k. Ditto with checked bags. I used to get 1 free check bag but now I get certificates of I spend $10k. So that makes this date completely pointless. Which is fine since that frees up one chase card slot for me.
Agree that you should apply for a bigger-bonus, annual-fee card first, and then downgrade to this one.
Or if, like me, you are a United fan and already have this card, keep it as a cameo - but don't place any spend on this beyond having it as your "credit card on file" for United in-flight purchases.
Just got a notice that effective 7/27/25, the annual fee for this card is $695. WTF! This is a card with essentially no benefits, so who in their right mind would pay $700 a year for it? I'll be cancelling mine.