Compare the Features and Benefits of United Gateway℠ Card and
United Quest℠ Credit Card

The United Gateway card does a solid job of providing enough benefits to make you wonder if it will be sufficient, vs investing $95 or more on one of the other Chase United credit cards since this is the only one with no annual fee.

The answer will depend on you.

If you fly several times a year and check a bag each time, then you’ll come out ahead paying the $95 annual fee on the United℠ Explorer Card since you’ll get free checked bags (one for you and a companion on the same itinerary) every time you pay with your card on a domestic flight. You also won’t get priority boarding with the Gateway card.

However, if you are on “Team Carry-On Only,” then this card provides many of the same benefits, including the benefit that gives you access to expanded Saver economy coach availability just like a United Silver Premier member. However, unlike all of the other United cards, you won’t be entitled to upgrades on award tickets.

Additionally, you won’t have any opportunities to earn PQPs from spending on this card whereas all the other United cards do offer that benefit.

Lastly, you might do better with a card like the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card if you aren’t using the checked bag benefit or the expanded award availability benefit. That’s because you’ll have more opportunities to earn points from spend on the Sapphire Preferred, and while you can transfer those points right over to United, you can also take advantage of all of the other Chase Ultimate Rewards airline and hotel transfer partners.

In the end, it depends on you if this is a good card for you, or if another similar card might be better.

The United Quest Card is a fantastic option for United flyers that travel with the airline at least several times per year. There are also a number of unique perks that you don’t see on other airline credit cards. Let’s take a closer look.

First, a $125 annual United credit is easy to use since it’s applied as an automatic statement credit as you make United purchases on the card. You’ll also automatically get 5,000 United miles back into your account after you redeem United miles for an award flight — up to two times per anniversary year. Finally, this card also benefits those that overpack when they travel — the Quest card provides not one, but two free checked bags for the primary card holder and one companion traveling on the same reservation. That’s a potential luggage reimbursement savings of up to $320 per round trip.

Two of the perks, the $125 United credit and up to 10,000 mileage reimbursement, already go far in making the $250 annual fee worth it, especially since these are unique benefits that aren’t duplicated on other United credit cards.

In addition to offering a generous United Quest Card bonus, the card also includes a 25% discount on food and beverages on United operated flights and a wide array of travel and purchase protections. On the bonus category front, there’s a wide array including the ability to earn 3X miles on United Airlines purchases (after the $125 United credit is applied), 2X miles on the broad category of travel, 2X miles on dining, including eligible delivery services, and 2X miles on select streaming services.

And don’t forget the ability to earn PQPs towards elite status from spend. You’ll earn 25 Premier Qualifying Points (PQPs) for every $500 you spend on purchases – up to 6,000 PQPs per year.

More frequent United Airlines flyers may want to consider the $525-per-year United Club Infinite card, a more premium card that offers airport lounge access. Meanwhile, those United travelers who travel a bit less frequently may want to consider the $95-per-year United Explorer card.