United Club Lounge Access Just Got More Expensive and Limited

United Airlines is hiking the annual cost for United Club membership, despite taking away key perks from the program. The changes come amid issues with overcrowding in U.S. airport lounges.

The changes aren’t pretty: United is introducing Individual and All Access tiers to the annual membership program and charging $750 and $1,400 a year, respectively. The previous plan cost $650 a year. Travelers with the basic Individual membership will no longer have access to Star Alliance partner lounges and will not be able to bring guests — both popular perks that had been available on the previous plan.

United has also raised the annual fees for its two credit cards that come with lounge access. However, for most United travelers, it will make more sense to sign up for one of those cards than purchasing an annual membership outright.

Here’s what you need to know about the changes to the United Club membership program, effective March 24, 2025:

Select United flyers with elite status can get a discount on All Access membership. Premier Platinum members get a $100 discount, while Premier 1Ks get $200 off. There are no discounts for Individual memberships.

Existing members will retain their benefits until their membership expires.

United is also implementing some changes to how its one-time passes work, starting May 1, 2025, which will hopefully help with overcrowding. It’s not uncommon to show up at a United Club and see a giant banner turning away travelers with one-time passes.

Passengers will only be able to access a United Club using a one-time pass within three hours of their United or Star Alliance partner flight’s scheduled departure time. There will be no time limit at connecting airports. These passes will be valid only at standard United Clubs, so other locations like United Club Fly, the airline’s grab-and-go concept, will no longer be eligible.

Plus, one-time passes received as a perk of holding a United credit card will only be redeemable when the primary cardmember or authorized user is present.

This is a major blow for United flyers, with the cost of a United Club membership going up by $100 for the basic tier, despite offering fewer perks than before. If you want to retain the same perks, such as guest access and Star Alliance lounge access, you’d need to pay more than double what you used to.

United’s website says the Individual membership is best for solo travelers who travel domestically or to international airports with United Clubs. However, there are only three United Clubs abroad that are currently open: London-Heathrow, Tokyo-Narita and Mexico City airports. The United Club in Hong Kong has been temporarily closed since the pandemic.

Both cards carry an annual fee of $695, as of March 24, 2025 — an increase from $525 for the consumer version of the card and from $450 for the business version. That means it’s cheaper to get an annual United lounge membership through holding one of these credit cards than it is to buy a membership directly from United. These credit cards also offer additional perks, such as statement credits, that can help offset the cost of the annual fee.

If you have United Club access through a credit card, you still won’t be able to access Star Alliance partner lounges, but you will be able to bring one adult guest and dependents under 18. You can also earn Star Alliance lounge access and the ability to bring in two adult guests by reaching United’s Premier Gold elite status or spending $50,000 in a year on the card.

Top photo by Sally French.

Information related to the United Club℠ Business Card has been collected by NerdWallet and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer of this card.