What United Airlines’ (UAL) New Tiered Fares Mean for Premium Travelers

United Airlines (UAL) is introducing a new tiered pricing system for its premium cabins in order to give travelers more options. The airline will now offer three choices (base, standard, and flexible) to its Polaris and Premium Plus cabins on long-haul international, transcontinental U.S., and select Hawaii flights. The idea is to let customers choose between a lower price with fewer perks or a higher price with more flexibility and benefits. Under this new structure, the base fare is the cheapest but comes with several limitations.

For example, Polaris base tickets still include one free checked bag and access to United Club lounges, but they do not include access to Polaris lounges, flight changes, upgrades, seat selection, or refunds. In contrast, standard fares include those added benefits, while flexible fares go even further by allowing full refunds if needed. This setup is meant to make it easier for customers to pick a ticket that matches their priorities, whether that’s saving money or having more flexibility.

In addition, United is making changes to how its premium cabins are presented on certain routes. On select transcontinental and Hawaii flights, the front cabin will now be branded as “United Polaris,” and passengers with standard or flexible fares will get access to Polaris lounges. The airline has also updated its website and app to include these new options, with a rollout starting this month and expanding later in the year. This move comes shortly after United increased checked-bag fees by $10 on several routes, as rising fuel costs continue to pressure the airline’s pricing strategy.

Is UAL Stock a Good Buy?

Turning to Wall Street, analysts have a Strong Buy consensus rating on UAL stock based on 18 Buys assigned in the past three months, as indicated by the graphic below. Furthermore, the average UAL price target of $134.31 per share implies 45.7% upside potential.