Credit Cards Travel Deals

55,000 United Miles and $50 From One Credit Card

a credit card with a red text
Written by Charlie

Disclaimer: I do not receive a commission for the cards mentioned in this post.

Yesterday, Chase pushed out their limited-time (September 2nd end date) offer on the United MileagePlus Explorer card – from the standard 30,000 miles to a nice 50,000 miles. Let’s break down the offer and how to maximize it.

United MileagePlus Explorer – Up To 55,000 Miles and $50

The ability to get 50,000 miles on the United card has been around on and off for a while, mostly as a targeted offer. A couple of years ago, it was possible to become targeted by simply having some miles in your United account when you signed in. 🙂

Application Link – United MileagePlus Explorer – 50,000 miles and $50 after $2,000 spent 

But, this is the strongest public offer available in a while. Not only does it give you a flat 50,000 miles after meeting the (low) spending requirement, but it also gives you an additional 5,000 miles if you add an authorized user, and it gives you a $50 statement credit on your bill! To get the 50,000 miles, you must make $2,000 in purchases in the first 90 days.

United mileageplus Explorer

There are a lot of people who do not care for United miles anymore because of how they devalued this year, but I strongly disagree with those not getting this card because of that for two main reasons:

  • If you do not want this card because of how many more miles United requires for premium cabins, why would you not want a card that just went up 66%? That exceeds some of the percentage that many of the routes were hiked in mileage! By getting this card, it automatically puts you in a better position to fly premium with United miles, if you want to.
  • Another reason that I disagree with that is because you can pick-up 55,000 miles with very little work. After counting the minimum spending in the amount, you are only 3,000 miles shy of an economy ticket to Europe. We have used our United miles for that a few times now (our recent trip to the US and back to Greece was booked in coach using 300,000 miles for our family). Why would you say “no” to a card that gives you just about a free ticket to Europe???

Card Benefits

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Getting the additional 5,000 miles

The card itself comes with a 50,000 mile bonus. To get the extra 5,000 miles, you must add an authorized user and make a purchase in the first three months. To add that user, all you need to do is to select to speak to a customer service representative when you call to activate the card. Once you speak with them, give them the name of your authorized user and you are all set! Make sure you do not add the person as joint on the card or else it could prevent them from getting the bonus!

The Offer’s Strong Points

The annual fee ($95) is waived for the first year, which is always a good thing. You get $50 back on your statement (that is a free $50 which is always good!). And the 55,000 miles you will accrue with this offer are just about enough for a one-way business class ticket to Europe aboard United or a round-trip ticket to Europe or enough for two round-trip tickets in the US. No matter how you slice it, there is a lot of value here!

United Mileageplus Explorer

An example of a fantastic itinerary that can be booked with these miles.

Another great thing about this card is that it has the same terms as most Chase cards as of late – you can get this offer as long as you have not received the bonus from the card within the last 24 months and you do not currently have the card. That means, if you have the card right now, move the credit line to another Chase card, cancel the card, and then apply for this offer.

 Also Available For the Business Version!

The business version does not offer the $50 statement credit, but it has the same 50,000 miles after spending $2,000 in 3 month! That is a great way to double up and earn 100,000 miles with two credit card applications (you can apply for a business and personal card from Chase on the same day, but may have to call the reconsideration line on one of them).

Update: Apparently, the link I had included was not taking readers to the 50,000 mile offer. Here is how to reach it yourself.

When you login into your account to apply, go to the top right corner and click Are You A Business Owner? That will bring up the page with the 50,000 mile offer. Sorry for the confusion before!

55,000 United miles

Click on “Are You A Business Owner” for the 50K offer

55,000 United miles

There you go!

 

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About the author

Charlie

Charlie has been an avid traveler and runner for many years. He has run in marathons around the world for less than it would cost to travel to the next town - all as a result of collecting and using miles and points. Over the years, he has flown hundreds of thousands of miles and collected millions of miles and points.
Now he uses this experience and knowledge to help others through Running with Miles.

10 Comments

  • The application link takes me to United account in which the offer for the statement credit does not appear when I select apply for credit card. Is this a targeted offer that I will not be able to take advantage of?

    • That is strange – I would take a screenshot of the offer with the $50 statement credit (or use mine 🙂 and go ahead and apply. Since Chase will normally match you to a better offer within 90 days, it should not be that hard to get that if the application does not offer it.

    • Sorry that was doing that! I have updated the post to show how to reach the 50K business offer. It must have something to do with you being logged in to United.

  • I always find your posts very helpful!! Thank you for your hard word!

    So, if I downgraded this card to the no fee MP Rewards 15 months ago, does that mean I am NOT holding a MPE any more and, therefor, I am qualified? I just don’t know exactly how to interpret the “current cardmember”. Just hate to waste a hard pull especially I have 6 inquires since March already.

    • Thanks for the kind words!
      Since it is a different card, you are correct that it should not preclude you from getting this offer. However, if you have some doubt about it, you could move the credit line to another card, cancel it, get this one, and downgrade this one in a year.

  • Hi Charles, thank you for the wonderful information and posts! I was wondering if you could answer a couple of questions.
    1) If I received the bonus in mid-September 2012, do I need to wait until after the exact date I received the miles to sign up for the card again?
    2) I have tried to sign up for the business card using your updated instructions, but I still only see a 30K bonus. Any advice or other strategies?

  • I have met the $ 2000 target to get 50K miles, will Chase wait 90 days to credit miles or they will be credited upon meeting the 2000 limit.

    Thanks,

    • You will get them within a week after the closing date that saw you meet the spending threshold. So, if you just met it and your closing date is the 16th, you should receive the miles no later than the 23rd.