by Daniel | Last Updated March 8th, 2022
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Are you a frequent flyer that travels a lot and are looking for a way to get a whole lot more value from all of the trips that you do each year?
If this sounds like you, then it’s worth considering either of the following credit cards in this review.
In this article, I’m going to review and compare the United Quest Card and the United Club Infinite Card.
Basically, I’ll look at the cost of each card, what the sign-up bonus is, benefits, and user perks and then I’ll make a decision on which card is the better choice.
Who Are These Cards Good For?
Both of these cards are directly targeted at frequent flyers that tend to use United airlines when they travel.
They are also a great way to squeeze a ton of value out of your air travel and hotel stays throughout the year.
As both cards a relatively expensive for their annual fee, it’s worth considering how many if any of the benefits that they offer will be useful to you.
APR And Other Fees
So in this next section of the review, I’m going to look at what the APR is and any other associated fees that come with these cards, and it just happens that both cards are the same.
First of all, the APR for purchases is between 16.49% and 23.49%.
When applying for a cash advance there will be an APR of 24.99%, and a fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of each transaction, and this just depends on which amount is more.
Failure to make minimum payments by the due date or any payments that are returned unpaid will result in a Penalty APR of 29.99%, and along with this, you will also be charged a penalty fee of up to $40 for each issue.
Now if you want to do a balance transfer to another card the APR is the same as the Purchases APR which is between 16.49% and 23.49%, and each transfer will incur a fee of either $5 or 5% of the total amount of each transaction, basically whichever one is more.
And it’s worth noting that these APRs will vary based on a few different factors such as your creditworthiness and what the Prime Rate is.
Annual Fee
Now let’s take a look at what the annual fee is for each of these cards and what the difference is.
So starting with the United Quest Card there is an annual fee of $250, which is not too bad considering all of the benefits that come with the card.
Next up, the United Club Infinite Card has an annual fee of $525, which is more than twice that of the Quest card, but as you will see later in this review, it does have a lot to offer when it comes to benefits and user perks.
Sign-up Bonus
Now for the next section of this review let’s have a look at what the sign-up bonus is for each card and how much each one is worth.
So with the United Quest Card, you can earn 70,000 bonus miles after spending $4,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of opening your account, and with United miles being valued at about 1.2 cents per mile, these 70,000 bonus miles are worth approximately $840, which is easily enough to cover the cost of the annual fee.
Next up, with the United Club Infinite Card, you will earn 80,000 bonus miles after spending $5,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of card ownership.
And at a valuation of 1.2 cents per mile, this sign-up bonus is worth about $960.
So, the sign-up bonus with the United Club Infinite Card is worth about $120 more than the United Quest Card, but considering the annual fee of the card is more than twice the price, is not that much of a difference.
Earning Miles
Next up, let’s take a deeper look into how each card earns miles, and where you can earn them from.
So starting with the United Quest Card the highest points earning category is 3x miles for purchases that are made with United.
After this, you will be able to earn 2x miles on a wide selection of different travel-related spending that includes airfares, trains, cruise lines, hotels, car rentals, and ride-share services just to name a few.
Along with this, you can also earn 2x miles on dining and select streaming services.
And then all other purchases will receive 1 mile per dollar spent.
Next up, with the United Club Infinite Card, the highest miles earning category is 4x miles for purchases made from United, which include airfares, inflight food and beverages, and WiFi.
Then from here, you can earn 2x miles for all of the same travel-related purchases as the Quest card as well as dining.
And then every other purchase will receive 1 mile per dollar spent.
Benefits and User Perks
Now for this section of the review, I’m going to go over all of the different benefits and perks that are available with each card.
And this is where the United Club Infinite Card excels in terms of value.
So starting with the United Quest Card one of the more valuable benefits that comes with this card is a $125 Annual United Purchase Credit.
And you will receive this as statement credits as reimbursement for United purchases that are made to the card, and this is available each account anniversary.
There is also the ability to earn two 5,000 mile Anniversary Award Flight Credits.
And how this works is quite simple, if you take a United flight two times in a given year, the following year you will be credited with 10,000 miles, which are worth about $120.
Another useful benefit that is quite common with most decent travel credit cards is a $100 credit that can be used towards TSA Precheck or Global Entry.
When you travel on a United flight, you and one travel companion will receive both your first and second checked bags free of charge.
For the first bag, you are covered for up to $35 for each person, and for the second bag you are each covered for up to $45, so a total of $80 per person per return trip.
You and any companions that are traveling on a United flight will get Priority Boarding, which is a nice benefit to have as you won’t be left just standing around waiting forever to board the plane.
Also, for any purchased food, beverages, or WiFi on a United flight, you will receive 25% back as a statement credit.
And if you stay at one of over 1,000 properties that are part of the Luxury Hotel & Resort Collection, you will receive up to $100 in hotel credits, daily breakfast for two people, a room upgrade if they have space, and early check-in and late check-out.
So now let’s add up how much all of these benefits are worth.
First of all, there is the $125 annual United Purchase Credit.
Then there is the award flight credit that is worth up to $120.
There is also a $100 credit for TSA Precheck or Global Entry.
Up to $80 savings if you book 2 bags on a United flight.
And a $100 hotel credit when staying at a hotel that is part of the Luxury Hotel & Resorts Collection.
So the value for these benefits is worth at least $525.
Next up, with theUnited Club Infinite Card, the most valuable benefit that you will receive is a United Club Membership that is worth up to $650 in value each year.
And this will give you and any travel companions access to more than 45 United Lounges and over 1,000 Star Alliance affiliates lounges from all over the world.
And these lounges offer a wide range of nice benefits that include complimentary food and beverages, private phone booths with speakers, and free high-speed internet.
For getting through airport security faster you will receive a $100 credit for either Global Entry or TSA Precheck, and a $70 discount on a CLEAR membership that usually costs $179.
And if you do get the CLEAR membership before June 20th, 2022, you will also be given 10,000 bonus miles that are worth about $120.
So essentially the CLEAR membership can be free, at least for the first year.
Now exclusively with this card, you will get Premier Access travel services that provide you with priority check-in, security screening, boarding, and baggage handling.
Also, a couple of other benefits that only come with this card is IHG Rewards Platinum Elite Status, which basically gives you complimentary room upgrades and up to $75 in statement credits for any hotel bookings made with the card through Dec 31st, 2022.
And then Complimentary access to Avis Presidents Club, which provides you with free car upgrades, guaranteed car availability, and expedited rental service.
As with the United Quest Card, you will also get the same United benefits that include both your first and second checked bags free, 25% back on United inflight purchases, and you will have the same access and benefits to the Luxury Hotel & Resorts Collection.
And finally, you will have access to the MileagePlus program benefits which come with some pretty nice perks.
First of all, any award bookings that you make on United Economy Saver Awards that are within the US and Canada will receive a 10% discount, basically, you will be able to book the flight with 10% fewer miles.
For every $12,000 that you spend on the card, you will earn 500 Premier Qualifying Points (PQP) that can be used towards reaching Premier Status, with Premier Silver status starting at 3,500 PQP.
And gaining premier status has quite a few decent benefits when flying with United which includes the ability to earn even more miles, complimentary access to economy plus, and even more if you gain a higher status level.
So just taking into account the first few benefits I listed for the United Club Infinite Card, there is more than $1,025 in value, which is almost twice that of the Quest card.
Insurance Related Coverage
For the next section of this review I’m going to go over all of the insurance-related coverage that comes with these cards, and generally speaking they are quite similar in terms of coverage, but the United Club Infinite Card does offer a bit more.
So first of all, both cards come with an Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver that can help to cover the cost of any damage or theft to a rental car.
Both cards also come with Extended Warranty Protection of up to 1 year.
There is Purchases Protection that covers new purchases for up to 120 days against damage or theft, with total coverage of $10,000 per claim and $50,000 per year.
Trip Delay Reimbursement of up to $500 per ticket if your travel is delayed for more than 12 hours and Baggage Delay insurance of up to $100 a day for 3 days if your baggage is delayed for more than 6 hours by a passenger carrier.
If your checked or carry-on bags are lost or damaged by the carrier, you are covered by Lost Luggage Reimbursement for up to $3,000 per passenger.
The main difference between the two cards when it comes to insurance coverage is the Trip Cancellation/Interruption Insurance.
So with the Quest Card, if your trip happens to get canceled or cut short, there is the possibility of reimbursement of up to $1,500 per person and $6,000 per trip.
Whereas, with the Club Infinite Card there is coverage of up to $10,000 per person and $20,000 per trip, which is a considerable amount more than the Quest card.
Final Thoughts
So now that I’ve gone over everything these cards have to offer, what are my thoughts about how they stack up against each other?
The first thing I’ll say is that you always need to take into consideration what you can afford to pay for a credit card and if then if you will use the benefits that card has on offer.
Both of these cards come with a considerable amount of perks that can make traveling with United a whole lot better.
They also both have a very generous sign-up bonus that can get you quite a bit of free travel if you choose to redeem the Miles for actual travel.
I think if you are a frequent traveler with United, enjoy using airport lounges when you travel, and stay at hotels quite often, then the United Club Infinite Card makes the most sense.
Even though its annual fee is relatively high, the free United Club membership basically cancels out the cost of the annual fee each year.
Also, the sign-up bonus of 80,000 bonus miles is worth around $960 which is a decent amount of value
Now, this doesn’t discount the United Quest Card, as that is still a great card with plenty of benefits, I think it would make sense to choose the Quest card if your not bothered about using Airport Lounges or doing programs like CLEAR, as both of these benefits amounts for a fair portion of the value that actually comes with the United club Infinite card.
Anyway, that pretty much wraps up my review and comparison of these cards.
Now if you are interested in a couple of other valuable Airline reward cards, why not check out my review and comparison of the Delta SkyMiles Platinum and Reserve American Express Card.