United MileagePlus Buy Miles
United MileagePlusWhat is on offer
Buy 5,000 to 19,000 miles and you get an 80 percent bonus. Buy 20,000 or more and the bonus goes to its top tier. Two of the sites that track these disagree on whether the top number is 95 or 100 percent, which usually means it varies by account. Log in and see what you are shown.
The number that matters
At the top tier you are paying about 1.88 cents per mile. United miles are generally worth about 1.5. Every mile you buy costs you about 25 percent more than it will do for you. That is not a sale, that is a markup with a bonus attached.
One more thing to know
United has rules on how many miles you can purchase in a rolling 90 day period, so check your own limit before planning around a big buy. It catches people who try to stack purchases across two sales.
When it is still worth doing
Same as always. You found a specific award, the seat is open, and you are a few thousand miles short. Buying the gap beats buying the ticket. Outside of that, use the miles you already have.
Three seats you could actually book with these
Memphis to Chicago in business class, 30,000 miles plus 5 dollars 60 in taxes, nonstop. Washington Dulles to Zurich, 40,000 miles plus 5 dollars 60, nonstop. Chicago to Barcelona, 40,000 miles plus 5 dollars 60, nonstop. One person, one way. And yes, that tax number is right. United does not pass fuel surcharges on its own flights, so you pay the US departure tax and nothing else. That is the quiet reason people like this program.
The honest math
Expires: September 30, 2026. Verified September 13, 2026. Offers vary by account. Check your rolling 90 day purchase limit before you plan a large buy. Seats shown are real examples pulled from seats.aero on September 14, 2026, one person, one way, priced as shown. Award availability is set by each airline and changes daily, so treat these as proof the price exists, not a promise the seat is still there. Find the seat first, move points second.