The Guide to United Premier 1K Status

United Premier 1K status is the highest publicly published elite status available to members of United Airlines MileagePlus frequent flyer program, and it comes with a plethora of perks for those who fly United often.

Earning it is neither cheap nor easy — expect to spend about an estimated $34,000 in a calendar year just for the privilege. But once you have, the benefits are among the best of any airline elite status program.

Let’s take a look at the perks available to United 1K members, how to become a 1K member and how much this elite status is worth.

United’s Premier 1K benefits include some incredible perks. These include:

• Priority check-in. Premier 1K members have access to a separate check-in line than standard guests, even when flying in economy.

• Increased earnings. Premier 1Ks get 11 miles per dollar spent on flights.

• PlusPoints. There are 320 PlusPoints per year valid toward flight upgrades.

• Free drink and snack. When flying in economy, 1Ks get one free drink and snack per flight.

• Priority security screening. Available in certain airports, those with 1K can skip the regular security line and instead head to a dedicated line.

• Preboarding. You’ll board before everyone else with preboarding access.

• Complimentary checked bags. No matter your fare class, with 1K you’ll be able to check up to three 70-pound bags free of charge.

• United Club annual membership discount. Premier 1Ks get a $100 discount on United Club membership.

• Confirmed flight changes. Free of charge within the same fare class starting at 24 hours prior to departure.

• Clear membership. Complimentary Clear membership, which helps you speed through security.

• Access to most sold-out flights. Access to Y or B fares when booked at least 1.5 hours prior to departure.

• Complimentary upgrades. Premier 1K member upgrades start clearing up to 96 hours in advance of the flight.

• Complimentary Economy Plus seats. Available at booking and for up to eight companions.

• Instant upgrades to a premium cabin. This benefit is available to 1K customers on Y, B or M fares.

• Waived fees. Premier 1K members get waived fees on phone bookings.

• Marriott elite status. Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold elite status.

• Avis elite status. Complimentary Avis President’s Club elite status.

• Star Alliance status. As a 1K, you’ll have Star Alliance Gold status.

» Learn more: Guide to United Airlines premier elite status

The steps to becoming a United Premier 1K member are a bit confusing and dictated by a series of alphabet soups. Rather than meeting a certain mileage requirement to earn elite status — as is the case with many other airline elite status programs — you’ll earn Premier Qualifying Points, or PQP, and Premier Qualifying Flights, or PQF, whenever you fly United or a partner airline.

But, these PQP and PQF aren't necessarily based on miles flown. Here's how they work and how to earn them.

Earning PQP and PQF

Premier Qualifying Points are earned on a variety of spend that you make with United. This includes:

• Flights operated by United.

• Flights operated by a Star Alliance partner airline and connecting United partners.

• Flights operated by Air Dolomiti, Azul, Edelweiss, Eurowings and Olympic Air.

• Economy Plus purchases.

• United award flights booked with MileagePlus miles.

• MileagePlus Upgrade Award co-pays.

• Most preferred seating purchases.

• Paid upgrades on flights operated by United and United Express.

Premier Qualifying Flights are much simpler. These are the number of flight segments that you’ve flown on United and partner airlines, excluding basic economy tickets. You’ll need to have flown a minimum of four segments with United to qualify for status.

You can earn United Premier 1K status with a mix of PQP and PQF. To qualify using both metrics, you’ll need 22,000 PQP and 60 PQF to earn status.

Earning PQP with a United credit card

Those who hold a qualifying co-branded United credit card can earn PQP based on their spending. Eligible holders of United MileagePlus cards from Chase earn 1 PQP per $20 spent or 1 PQP per $15 spent, depending on which card you have. Some limits apply. See our guide to United premier elite status for details. Among United credit card options:

Earning PQP only

You can bypass the PQF and PQP combination strategy by simply earning enough PQP.

If you tend to fly fewer but more expensive flights, you can earn United Premier 1K status by earning 28,000 PQP in a calendar year.

» Learn more: The complete guide to United MileagePlus program

Take advantage of United promotions

United will occasionally offer targeted promotions, allowing you to earn additional bonus miles. You’ll always want to check and see if you’ve been targeted for a promotion.

» Learn more: The beginner’s guide to airline elite status

Achieving million miler status

Once you’ve flown a million miles with United, you’ll earn permanent elite status.

• At a million miles, you’ll get Premier Gold for life.

• At two million miles, you’ll receive Premier Platinum status for life.

• At three million miles, you’ll get Premier 1K for life.

• At four million miles, you’ll receive lifetime Global Services elite status.

Status match

Although United doesn’t typically accommodate direct status matches, they’re pretty good about offering status match challenges. In these cases, you’ll provide United with evidence of your existing elite status on another airline.

In return, they’ll grant you elite status after earning a truncated amount of PQP/PQF within a 120-day period.

» Learn more about applying for a United status match.

How long does United 1K status last?

United Premier 1K status can be earned at any point in the year. Once you’ve earned it, the status is valid for the remainder of the year, as well as the entirety of the following year.

This means that if you earned the status in January, you’d have 1K status for nearly two years.

If you’re a frequent United flyer, becoming a Premier 1K member may be a good idea for you. Although it’s costly, the benefits you’ll receive are expansive, including complimentary upgrades, free United checked baggage, Marriott elite status and more.

For folks who are airline agnostic but demand the best of the best, the United MileagePlus program very well could be it.

Photo courtesy of United Airlines.