FirstClassFlyer

Bottom line: Pay cash for the EasyUp fare, forget miles and playing elite upgrade roulette—it’s a new upgrade mindset for many United loyalists.

For the last few years Delta has been offering some of the lowest domestic First Class fares, and last July it introduced a flat-fee upgrade surcharge based on flight distance.

Now, without fanfare, United has come out with its own fares with a flat-fee upgrade. You can spot them by the letters “UPDI” in the fare basis code. Most every economy fare we looked at, except N and G fares, offered the upgrade option. The cost is based on flight miles, demand, and at times, whether a flight is non-stop or not. Surcharges start as low as $50 one-way for up to 300 miles and go up to about $299 for 2,000 miles.

Fares with Upgrade Surcharge

The table to the left shows fares that offer a flat fee to upgrade at time of booking.

Three Examples of United’s New Upgrade Scheme

Denver-Newark/New York: United averages seven flights daily each way at 8 hours and 3,252 flight miles round-trip. The lowest First Class fare is just $494 round-trip (fare-basis code KEG14AKS/UPDI). The lowest economy fare on this route that allows the upgrade costs $296 (booking code K), with the flat fee amounting to $99 each way—or $25 per flight-hour to upgrade.

Los Angeles-Chicago: United averages 10 flights daily each way at 8.5 hours and 3,490 flight miles round-trip. The lowest First Class fare is $708 round-trip (fare-basis code KAA00ACN/UPDI). The lowest economy fare on this route that allows the upgrade costs $310 (booking code K), with the flat fee coming to $199 each way—or $46 per flight-hour to upgrade.

Los Angeles-Las Vegas: United has three to four flights daily each way at 2.5 hours and 482 flight miles round-trip. The First Class fare is $272 round-trip (fare-basis code KAA14AKS/UPDI), while the lowest upgradeable economy fare costs $172 (booking code K), with the flat fee amounting to $50 each way—or $40 per fight-hour to upgrade.

United Fares With

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Forget About Mileage Upgrade Awards & Elite Status Roulette on Many Routes

United allows mileage upgrades on every low economy fare but requires a $150 co-pay plus 40,000 miles for the upgrade round-trip. On Denver-Newark, for example, the lowest upgradeable fare is $436 ($286 booking code G for economy, plus $150 co-pay) while First Class costs only $494.

United’s Message: Keep the miles, and elite-status hope. We want the money.

Examples of United’s New Domestic EasyUp Fares

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[["Economy Fare Code","Upgrade Surcharge Built-In"],["N","No"],["G","No"],["K","Yes"],["S","Yes"],["L","Yes"],["T","Yes"],["W","Yes"],["V","Yes"],["Q","Yes"],["H","Yes"],["U","Yes"],["E","Yes"],["M","Yes"],["B","Yes"],["Y","Yes"]]

[["Route","Miles One-way","Time R\/T","Lowest First Class Fare R\/T","Fare Basis Code","Booking Code","Economy Fare R\/T","Fare Basis","Booking Code","One-way Upgrade Cost*"],["Miami - Chicago","1,192","6.5 hrs","$681","LAA14ACN\/ UPDI","P","$362","LAA14ACN","L","$159"],["Denver - Salt Lake","380","3.5 hrs","$294","KAG14AKS\/ UPDI","A","$176","KAG14AKS","K","$59"],["Chicago - New York (Newark)","725","4.5 hrs","$399","KAK14AKS\/ UPDI","A","$240","KAK14AKS","K","$79"],["Chicago - Houston","933","6 hrs","$454","KAU14AWN\/ UPDI","P","$196","KAU14AWN","K","$129"],["Los Angeles - Chicago","1,745","8.5 hrs","$708","KAA00ACN\/ UPDI","A","$310","KAA00ACN","K","$199"],["Denver - New York (Newark)","1,626","8 hrs","$494","KEG14AKS\/ UPDI","P","$296","KEG14AKS","K","$99"],["Houston - Seattle","1,883","8 hrs","$600","LEA21AQN\/ UPDI","A","$402","LEA21AQN","L","$99"],["Washington, DC - Denver","1,473","7.5 hrs","$614","KEG14AKS\/ UPDI","P","$296","KEG14AKS","K","$159"],["Washington, DC - Atlanta","541","4 hrs","$354","KFA14AKS\/ UPDI","A","$196","KFA14AKS","K","$79"],["Atlanta - Denver","1,207","7 hrs","$414","KEK14AKS\/ UPDI","A","$256","KEK14AKS","K","$79"],["Houston - Charlotte","916","5.5 hrs","$590","TAA21AFN\/ UPDI","A","$332","TAA21AFN","T","$129"],["Chicago - Dallas","799","5 hrs","$500","KAK14AKS\/ UPDI","A","$242","KAK14AKS","K","$129"],["Houston - Miami","958","5.5 hrs","$573","LAA21AKN\/ UPDI","P","$314","LAA21AKN","L","$129"],["Los Angeles - Las Vegas","241","2.5 hrs","$272","KAA14AKS\/ UPDI","P","$172","KAA14AKS","K","$50"]]