United Economy

We know that tailoring your flight experience is important to getting the most out of your travel, so we offer our United Economy customers access to a wide range of inflight services and amenities.

Food and beverages

 
Featuring a variety of food and drink selections based on the route and duration of your flight. United Economy dining options and inflight beverage selections range from packaged snacks and snackboxes to wine and multi-course meals.
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Flights within North America, the Caribbean and most of Latin America

 


On flights within North America, the Caribbean and most of Latin America, customers traveling in United Economy can enjoy:

  • Complimentary soft drinks, juices, tea and freshly brewed illy coffee
  • Complimentary snacks, including a choice of cookies, pretzels or snack mix
  • Snacks and snackboxes from our Choice Menu Snack shop, available for purchase on select flights
  • Freshly prepared meals from our Choice Menu Bistro on board offerings, available for purchase on select flights
  • Beer, wine and spirits available for purchase on all flights

Flights to or from Asia, Europe, the Middle East, the South Pacific and select destinations in Latin America

 


On international flights, customers traveling in United Economy can enjoy:

  • Complimentary house beer and wines, soft drinks, juices, tea and freshly brewed illy coffee
  • Complimentary meal service, featuring a three-course meal with salad, artisan bread, a main course and a premium dessert
  • A complimentary mid-flight snack, which includes a sandwich and candy, on flights longer than 12 hours
  • Spirits and liqueurs available for purchase

Entertainment

United Economy customers can enjoy various types of inflight entertainment on most flights, with availability depending on the aircraft. To determine which inflight entertainment options are available on your upcoming flight, check the Inflight Amenities tab on the Flight Status page or in the United app within 24 hours of departure.

 


United Private Screening℠

United Private Screening entertainment includes our mainscreen, seatback on-demand and personal device entertainment services. Enjoy an extensive library of movies, TV shows – with full seasons of popular programs – and exclusive programming from exciting entertainment partners. Be captivated by films, documentaries and shorts selected by the Tribeca Film Festival, or enjoy complete seasons and entire series of hit HBO shows. You can also find your favorite sounds with Vevo's curated music video playlists and music-related programming.

This service is sponsored by the MileagePlus Explorer Card.



DIRECTV®

With over 100 channels of live television and a selection of new Hollywood movies, DIRECTV makes it easy to stay entertained for your entire flight. This service is available free of charge on select Boeing 737 aircraft.

Audio entertainment

Enjoy audio entertainment on aircraft equipped with inflight entertainment, with options including pop stations, relaxation mixes, our "from the flight deck" feature and more.

United Wi-Fi℠

We know that it's important to stay connected while you travel. If you want to check email, surf the web or catch up on social media, United Wi-Fi is available for purchase on most aircraft.

Hemispheres inflight magazine

A copy of our Hemispheres inflight magazine is available at every seat, and covers a variety of topics including sports, food and drink, culture and style, and also includes monthly features on travel and the voices behind United.

United Economy seating and ticketing options

While standard Economy fares provide a variety of features for personalizing your travel, we offer some additional seating and fare options for customers who are looking for extra comfort or are more price-sensitive.

 


Economy Plus® seating

Stretch out in Economy Plus with more space to work or relax. Economy Plus seats feature up to 6 inches (15 cm) of extra legroom and are located near the front of the United Economy cabin, helping to get you on your way when you reach your destination. Economy Plus seating is available on all United flights and most United Express® flights. Customers who have selected Basic Economy will not, however, be able to purchase Economy Plus seating.

Learn more about Economy Plus.

 



Preferred seating

Choose a spot that’s closer to the front of the aircraft by purchasing preferred seating. Located in the first few rows behind Economy Plus, preferred seating allows you to receive earlier service on board and get on your way faster once your plane pulls up to the gate. Plus, MileagePlus Premier® members can select preferred seating at no additional cost and all other MileagePlus members will earn Premier qualifying points on preferred seating purchases. Customers who have purchased Basic Economy tickets are eligible to purchase preferred seating.

Learn more about preferred seating.

 

Basic Economy fares

Basic Economy, a new Economy fare option created for customers who may be more price-sensitive, is available on select routes in addition to standard Economy. While Basic Economy provides the same level of inflight service as standard Economy, this lower-priced option has some important restrictions on seating, carry-on baggage, MileagePlus member benefits – including Premier member benefits – and other aspects of your travel.

Learn more about Basic Economy.