Update #2: It looks like this one will be honored for those who got in before the payouts changed. See this post for more information.
Update: It appears that they killed the payout at Staples & Macy’s quickly this morning. It showed 10x this AM when I took the screen shot below, but I’m now seeing 3x as a MileagePlus credit card holder at Stapes (those without a Mileage Plus credit card would only be seeing 2x) and 6x at Macy’s. Hopefully it gets honored properly for those who placed orders before the payout changed.
Glancing at this morning’s Frequent Miler Portal Alerts, we can see some great increased payouts — including 10 miles per dollar at Staples through the United MileagePlus shopping portal. Other increased payouts include 15 miles per dollar at Under Armour and Shoes.com, 12 miles per dollar at Levi’s, 10 miles per dollar at Macy’s, and many more increased rates.
There’s no doubt the star of the show here is Staples at 10x. According to the 15-month Best Rate History at CashBackMonitor, this is the best rate there has been at Staples.com in that time period.
If you’re able to pair this payout with a card that earns 5x/5% at office supply stores (See: Best Category Bonuses), it would make for an excellent combined return on purchases from Staples today. Furthermore, don’t forget that United has a holiday bonus promotion going on through the shopping portal right now. You’ll earn bonus miles depending on how much you spend — further increasing the payout (if you haven’t already hit the spend thresholds). If you haven’t yet made any purchases through this promotion, you can essentially stack another 3x if you line your purchases up perfectly with the tiers.
There are quite a few other stores also offering good payouts through United today. Some of them have other stacking deals that could make them worth a look as well. For example, there is currently an Amex Offer for $25 back on $125 at Levi’s. I have no idea what their prices are like comparatively, but between that offer and 12 miles per dollar, it could work out well if their prices are comparable to stores.
Bottom line
If you’re getting your holiday shopping started early, you can earn a bundle of miles doing so today. As always, check CashBackMonitor.com to make sure you’re getting the best possible payout on your purchases and see this morning’s Portal Alerts for more notable increases.
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[…] morning, we published a post about big increased payouts at some popular retailers through the United MileagePlus shopping portal. The star of the show was Staples offering 10 […]
Staples is 8X at Chase UR (ink).
Back down to 2 miles per dollar as of 1:10 PM Eastern time.
I’ve updated the post. It appears that they killed the 10x payouts at both Staples and Macy’s (Staples down to 3x for Mileage Plus card holders or 2x without the CC, Macy’s is down to 6x/4x I believe. I don’t recall ever seeing a payout drop so quickly before — hopefully it gets honored properly for those who placed orders before the change.
Only showing 3x.
Only seeing 3!
Weird. I saw it at 10X this morning, placed an order and now only seeing it at 2x
I am only seeing Staples at 2x on United at this time…anyone else?
I went from 2 to 3x
Do gift cards on staples pay out in the portals
Not usually. Check the Laboratory link at the top of the page (in the toolbar below the Frequent Miler logo) to check for results.
From the t&c on the United Site:
Not eligible on taxes, shipping, handling, credit card fees, returns or third-party gift cards sold by Staples.com. Not eligible on purchases made with coupon or discount codes that are not found on this site. Not eligible on gift cards, gift certificates or any other similar cash equivalents.
That’s correct — gift cards are excluded in the terms. I think Clint was asking if they pay out despite what the terms state.