How to transfer your Chase points to United Airlines, and 3 of the best award flights you can book

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If you have lots of Chase points, you could book a flight in United's Polaris business class.

• If you have Ultimate Rewards points from the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or another premium Chase card, you can transfer them to United to book flights.
• It's easy to request a transfer, and miles should appear in your United account instantly.
• You can use United MileagePlus miles to book flights to Europe starting at 30,000 miles one-way, or book short-haul flights for just 10,000 miles.
• Keep reading for the steps to transfer Chase points to United.
• Read more personal finance coverage.

Chase Ultimate Rewards points are one of the most valuable rewards currencies because you can transfer them at a 1:1 ratio to 13 different airline and hotel partners, including United Airlines.

If you want to use your credit card points to book a flight, transferring them to United is a great option. Not only can you use Chase points to book flights on United, but you can also transfer them to United to book award flights with its 27 airline partners in the Star Alliance, from Lufthansa to Singapore Airlines, to travel to 195 countries. So no matter where you want to travel, the United MileagePlus program can probably get you there.

Here's how to transfer your Chase points to United, along with some of the best ways to use them to book award flights.

Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which will far outweigh the value of any points or miles. It's important to practice financial discipline when using credit cards by paying your balances in full each month, making payments on time, and only spending what you can afford to pay back.

How to transfer Chase Ultimate Rewards points to United

Transferring Ultimate Rewards points to United's MileagePlus program is fast and easy. Here's what you need to do.

1. Log in to the Chase Ultimate Rewards website. If you have multiple Chase cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points, you'll be prompted to select which account you want to access.

2. Click "Earn/Use" in the upper left, then select "Transfer to Travel Partners" from the options that appear underneath.

3. Chase will give you a list of transfer partners. Scroll down to United MileagePlus and click "Transfer Points."

4. Select the person whose account you want to transfer points to and enter their United MileagePlus account number. You can only transfer points to your own accounts and those of one authorized user in the same household.

5. Review the number of points to be transferred and the terms and conditions, then click "Confirm and Submit."

6. You're all set! Chase will send you two emails - one confirming that the points transfer request has been received, and a second confirming that the points have arrived in your United MileagePlus account. Since transfers to United are normally instant, both emails should arrive at the same time.

7. Check your United MileagePlus account to see your newly updated account balance. (If you're already logged in to the United website but don't see the updated balance, log out and log back in.) Then book your award ticket!

How to use United miles

Here's just a few of the countless ways to use MileagePlus miles to explore the world.

Fly to Europe from 30,000 miles in economy or 60,000 miles in business class

30,000 United miles will get you a one-way flight from anywhere in the continental US to anywhere in Europe on United or one of its partners like Lufthansa, Swiss, or Aer Lingus. Note that 30,000 is the lowest "saver" level of award pricing - if you're traveling during a peak time, United may require more miles.

You could also travel in style by spending 60,000 miles (at the saver level) for a lie-flat seat in Polaris business class (You'll need to pay an extra 10,000 miles to fly in business on one of United's partners.)

Use the United Excursionist Perk to visit two cities for the price of one.

A key benefit of using United miles to travel abroad is that you're automatically entitled to a free one-way flight between two cities in the region you're traveling to thanks to the United Excursionist perk. That means that if you book a trip from the US to Rome, for example, you can also add a few days in Paris without spending any extra miles. Or book a flight to Tokyo and add a stop in Osaka. This benefit is a great way to stretch your miles further while exploring a new city.

Book short flights for 10,000 miles each (or less!)

It can be incredibly frustrating when you need to travel a few hundred miles and find that, despite the short distance, buying a plane ticket would cost hundreds of dollars. United MileagePlus can provide a great way to avoid those high prices, since United and Air Canada flights under 700 miles in distance cost just 10,000 MileagePlus miles (a 2,500-mile discount from the usual domestic award price).

If you're traveling outside North America, you can get even better deals: one-way flights under 800 miles in a single region (like Frankfurt to Paris) cost just 8,000 MileagePlus miles, and if you're visiting Japan you can book domestic flights on Star Alliance partner ANA for as little as 5,000 miles one way!

Pro tip: If you have a United co-branded credit card like the United Explorer Card or the United Explorer Business Card, you get expanded access to the cheapest levels of award space on United and United Express.

How to earn Chase points

There are three Chase credit cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points. You'll need one of these cards if you want to transfer Chase points to United:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee) - Earn 60,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve ($450 annual fee and premium benefits) - Earn 50,000 points after you spend $4,000 in the first three months.
• Ink Business Preferred Credit Card ($95 annual fee) - Earn 80,000 points after you spend $5,000 in the first three months.

Chase also offers four no-annual-fee credit cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points: the Chase Freedom, Chase Freedom Unlimited, Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card, and Ink Business Cash Credit Card.

However, they can't transfer miles to United or other partners directly - you'll have to move points from one of these cards to a card that can transfer points to United before making the transfer.

Click here to learn more about the Chase Sapphire Preferred.

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Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

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