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United Airlines has announced the relaunch of its MileagePlus X app which can be used to earn miles on everyday purchases and can be a powerful tool for anyone looking to boost their MileagePlus balance.
What Is The United MileagePlus X App?
The United MileagePlus X App is a an app designed to help users maximise their MileagePlus earnings when they’re out shopping in bricks and mortar stores and, with the new update, when they’re dining too.
Essentially this is how it works:
- Download the United MileagePlus X App for free from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android)
- Link your credit cards to the app
- When shopping at a participating merchant (the app shows you who the participating merchants are) the user uses the app to buy an electronic gift card for the exact amount they’re going to spend (this is best done at the checkout desks when you know your total spend).
- Within the app the user will select what credit card to use for the transaction
- Then the app changes the selected credit card and generates a bar code which the cashier will then scan to confirm payment.
That’s it.
This may seem like a lot of effort to go to when you can simply hand over your credit card to the cashier and be finished very quickly but there are definite advantages to using the app…primarily the fact that the app often offers very good mileage earning bonuses at a number of popular retailers which you would not otherwise earn in store.
You can also use the app for online shopping too but considering there’s already a MileagePlus online shopping portal the app doesn’t really break new ground here.
What’s New In The Refresh?
United says that the app has been updated to include other programs through which users can earn bonus miles as well as being the launch platform for United Visa Rewards.
Here’s how United has detailed the new features:
- MileagePlus DiningSM: The existing MileagePlus Dining program has been integrated into the MileagePlus X app. With seamless enrollment and showcasing nearby restaurants, members’ ability to choose where to dine and earn miles is now in the palm of their hand.
- MileagePlus Shopping: The longstanding shopping program is now available through the MileagePlus X app, and offers members the ability to shop and earn miles on the go at more than 900 retailers.
- United Visa Rewards: This new program is powered by Visa Commerce Network, which allows enrolled individuals to receive valuable offers within MileagePlus X thanks to the power of the Visa payments network.
What Is United Visa Rewards?
United Visa Rewards is a new program available only to United Chase Visa holders based in the US.
All cardholders can now enrol their cards into the United Visa Rewards program through the MileagePlus X app and, from there, they can view enhanced mileage earning offers from participating merchants.
When a cardholder makes a qualifying purchase with one of the participating merchants the the app will notify them in “near real-time”….presumably a bit like American Express does with its Amex offers.
Through 31 March 2019 United is offering United Chase Visa cardholders 1,000 bonus award miles for simply enrolling their eligible credit card into the program.
Bottom Line
Any new bit of technology that allows us to earn bonus miles that we may not otherwise have earned is good news….so it’s great to see the MileagePlus X app revamped and relaunched.
I should however close with one word of caution: When using the app to make purchases you’re essentially buying a gift card with which to make your final purchase. This means that you will not have access to all the usual consumer protections that come with most credit card purchases – bear this in mind before you use the app.
More United MileagePlus X app details via this link
I love the MileagePlusX app. You can do some pretty nice stacks. For instance, when I buy a Domino’s pizza, I use my United card that gives 2x miles at restaurants, the app gives 5-10 miles per dollar plus 25% for having a United card, and there’s the Domino’s loyalty program. Added together, it’s a fairly sweet deal.
They actually updated MPX in November and I wish they rolled it back. It does NOT balance check and remove used gift cards like it use too. 3 tickets to MPX and no updates in 2 months. It is also a gluttony of marketing and the interface is slower as even though I have a preferred credit card, it keeps wanting me to select a credit card for each transaction. The prior version was much easier to use before all the cross marketing stuff was addeed.
That’s a shame.
As someone who doesn’t actively collect MilagePlus miles I’ve never really had a use for this app but it always sounded like quite a useful tool and I wished airlines like American had something similar. If, however, it’s slow, unwieldy and generally an annoyance to use then it pretty much defeats the point of the exercise….although the commenter above you disagrees 🙂
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