United ditches flight segments, raises bar for 1K in Premier status shakeup

United Airlines is making a big change to how its frequent flyers earn elite status.

Beginning in 2027, the carrier will stop counting the number of flights its MileagePlus members take when awarding status.

Instead, United flyers hoping to become “Premier” will have to focus solely on accumulating Premier Qualifying Points, or “PQPs.”

That means the path to status on United involves spending as much money as possible — both on flights and on the airline’s suite of cobranded credit cards.

That’s not the only change United announced.

On top of shifting how MileagePlus members earn status, the Chicago-based carrier announced it’s raising the requirements to reach 1K.

Beginning in 2027, members will need an additional 4,000 PQPs (for a total of 32,000) to make top-tier status compared to the current requirements.

United revealed those changes in a memo to loyalty members on Tuesday.

All told, it’s the second significant shake-up to the airline’s loyalty program in 2026 — and the biggest structural shift in how it awards elite status in years.

Here’s what to know and what it means for flying United in 2027.

Doubling down on PQPs, phasing out PQFs

Heading into 2027, United will ditch Premier Qualifying Flights, or “PQFs,” as a metric for awarding elite status.

How Premier qualification stands today

Currently, MileagePlus members have two ways they can earn status:

• PQPs only:Earn enough PQPs via spending on flights and United’s credit cards
• PQFs+PQFs:Log enough flights, combined with a lower number of PQPs

How it will look in 2027

That second option is set to go away in 2027.

Going forward, PQPs will be the only metric United uses to award Premier status.

That means it’s your spending on flights and on your United card — if you have one — that will make the difference between qualifying, or not, in the new year.

In an interview with TPG, United’s recently appointed loyalty chief said the changes were meant to simplify the program.

“We thought it made more sense for them to have one consistent metric … that they could focus on across the board between their flight activity, their engagement in the airline,” Jarad Fisher, United’s president of MileagePlus, said.

How many PQPs will you need to reach Premier status?

If you earn status purely off of PQPs, then the number of points you’ll need for Silver, Gold and Platinum status won’t change in 2027.

However, reaching 1K will get harder no matter how you look at it.

Here’s how the status requirements shake out. (If you’re reading this on mobile, scroll right to see how the new requirements compare to the old ones.)

These changes will apply to MileagePlus members in the new year as they aim for 2028 status.

4 United flights are still required

While United is ditching PQFs as a status metric, MileagePlus members will still need to take at least four United flights in a year to be Premier-eligible.

That’s a baseline requirement that isn’t changing.

Flights on United Express regional jets count toward that four-flight requirement, but flights on United’s partners do not.

5% head start in 2027

Certain MileagePlus members will get a head start on status in 2027.

If you have an eligible United credit card, the airline will deposit the equivalent of 5% of PQPs required for your current status level into your account as the new status year begins.

• Members who enter 2027 with Premier Silver status will get 300 PQPs.
• Gold members will get 600 PQPs.
• Platinum members will get 900 PQPs.
• 1K members will get 1,600 PQPs.

MileagePlus members who open an eligible United credit card by Dec. 31 will also receive the deposit for next year.

Who will this change affect most?

Depending on how you typically earn status, these changes might be quite significant — or not so much.

If you’ve historically achieved Premier status by just racking up PQPs, not much changes for you in 2027 (unless you’re aiming for top-tier 1K, which is getting harder to reach).

According to Fisher, PQPs are how a majority of United members earn status today.

“It’s basically doubling down on the way most people were earning status,” he said.

The travelers most affected by this change are United flyers who typically log a ton of segments in the year. Those members have historically been able to reach status by combining all those PQFs with a fewer number of PQPs.

If you fall into that category, you’ll likely have to spend more to hit the same status in 2027.

“For those folks, obviously, getting a United card will be a way for them to actually bridge that gap,” Fisher said.

No more ‘segment runs’

Also, there’s likely no need to criss-cross the country on an end-of-year “segment run” to hit enough PQFs. Logging flight segments will no longer be a key Premier status metric.

“As thought about making these changes, we just didn’t feel great about that anymore — that was an old relic,” Fisher said. “And so we just thought it was time to retire that metric.”

1K gets harder to reach

As for 1K status, that will require more spending across the board to hit United’s top published elite tier in the new year.

1K requirements jump from 28,000 PQPs to 32,000. That’s an increase of about 14%.

If you previously reached 1K through a combination of flight segments and spending, you’ll need roughly 45% more PQPs than you did previously.

How to earn PQPs

United’s MileagePlus members earn 1 PQP per $1 spent with the airline on flights.

Meanwhile, a handful of United credit cards can also earn PQPs on everyday purchases:

• United℠ Explorer Card (see rates and fees)($0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $150 annual fee) earns 1 PQP per $20 spent, up to a maximum of 1,000 PQPs annually
• United Quest℠ Card (see rates and fees) ($350 annual fee) earns 1 PQP per $20 spent, up to a maximum of 18,000 PQPs annually.
• United Club℠ Card (see rates and fees)($695 annual fee) earn 1 PQP per $15 spent, up to a maximum of 32,000 PQPs annually.

United flyers can also earn PQPs on certain upgrades and other “extras” purchased after booking. And, certain partner flights are eligible for PQP-earning, though at a reduced rate compared to flights on United’s own planes.

Bottom line

United’s changes to earning Premier status come months after the carrier rolled out a larger shift to its MileagePlus program, overhauling how cardholders and noncardholders earn and redeem miles.

United is far from the only airline to pivot how it awards status to its loyalty members. Top rivals American Airlines and Delta Air Lines have focused exclusively on dollars spent — on air travel and on credit cards — for years.

• United MileagePlus: Your guide to earning, redeeming, status and more
• The best credit cards for United Airlines flyers
• United’s big MileagePlus changes are in effect: What to know
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• Sneak peak: On board United’s posh new Airbus A321XLR
• United adds 10 new international destinations in massive 13-route global expansion

Editorial disclaimer: Opinions expressed here are the author’s alone, not those of any bank, credit card issuer, airline or hotel chain, and have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by any of these entities.

Source: thepointsguy.com