CLEAR® Plus: The Ultimate Guide

All information about the American Express Green Card, Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card and American Express Corporate Platinum Card® has been collected independently by 10xTravel.

Being able to skip airport queues is almost as fun as points-funded award travel. That’s why having CLEAR® Plus membership can be a real benefit for frequent travelers, enabling you to swap long queues for more time in the airport lounge.

Here’s a complete guide to CLEAR Plus membership, including how to enroll, which airports offer CLEAR kiosks and how you can get discounted CLEAR Plus membership.

What Is CLEAR Plus?

CLEAR Plus enables you to skip the TSA identity verification queue and use dedicated CLEAR Plus kiosks instead. The kiosks will verify your identity using fingerprint and iris scanning technology, rather than having a TSA agent do it. You’ll also need to scan your boarding pass. Once you’re through, a CLEAR representative will guide you to the security screening area.

Keep in mind that TSA agents have the right to perform random identity verification checks, meaning you might have to join the regular queue on occasion—if you pull the short straw.

Likewise, don’t mistake CLEAR Plus with TSA PreCheck®, which expedites the security screening process. CLEAR Plus is operated by the privately-owned biometrics company CLEAR, while TSA PreCheck is part of the Trusted Traveler Program (TTP) run by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agency.

How to Enroll in CLEAR Plus

You can enroll in CLEAR Plus at any CLEAR Plus airport kiosk. Unlike other programs, such as TSA PreCheck or Global Entry, the entire process should take just five minutes and doesn’t require an interview.

At the CLEAR Plus terminal, you’ll have your biometric data collected and will be required to enter some personal information, show your photo ID, verify your identity and pay the membership fee.

Alternatively, you can complete the registration process online and then finish your application at a CLEAR Plus kiosk for biometric data collection.

CLEAR Plus membership costs $209 per year and is valid for one calendar year. You can add adult family members and friends to your account for a fee of $125 per person. Children don’t need to enroll in CLEAR Plus, but they’ll need to be accompanied by an adult who is enrolled in the program to use the kiosks.

You’ll need to be at least 18 years old and either a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident to enroll in CLEAR Plus. Your photo ID needs to either be a U.S. passport, driver’s license, passport card, military ID, state-issued ID or permanent residency card to be accepted.

When enrolling in CLEAR Plus, you’ll have the option to bundle your CLEAR Plus membership with TSA PreCheck membership. CLEAR offers special pricing for those who enroll in both programs simultaneously.

Before enrolling in a bundle, it’s best to decide whether TSA PreCheck vs. Global Entry membership is better suited to your travel habits.

Where To Find CLEAR Plus

Currently, you can find CLEAR Plus kiosks at the following airports (and counting):

• Austin-Bergstrom (AUS)
• Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall (BWI)
• Birmingham-Shuttlesworth (BHM)
• Boise (BOI)
• Boston-Logan (BOS)
• Connecticut-Bradley (BDL)
• Buffalo-Niagara (BUF)
• Chicago-O’Hare (ORD)
• Chicago-Midway (MDW)
• Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky (CVG)
• Cleveland-Hopkins (CLE)
• Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW)
• Dallas-Love Field (DAL)
• Honolulu (HNL)
• Denver (DEN)
• Detroit-Metropolitan Wayne County (DTW)
• Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood (FLL)
• Greenville-Spartanburg (GSP)
• Atlanta-Hartsfield-Jackson (ATL)
• Houston-George Bush Intercontinental (IAH)
• Houston-Hobby (HOU)
• Kansas City (MCI)
• Maui Kahului (OGG)
• Las Vegas-Harry Reid (LAS)
• Columbus-John Glenn (CMH)
• Long Beach (LGB)
• Los Angeles (LAX)
• New Orleans-Louis Armstrong (MSY)
• Miami (MIA)
• Milwaukee-Mitchell (MKE)
• Minneapolis-Saint Paul (MSP)
• Nashville (BNA)
• New York-John F. Kennedy (JFK)
• New York-LaGuardia (LGA)
• Newark (EWR)
• San Jose-Norman Y. Mineta (SJC)
• Oakland (OAK)
• Oklahoma City-Will Rogers (OKC)
• Ontario (ONT)
• Orlando (MCO)
• Palm Beach (PBI)
• Palm Springs (PSP)
• Phoenix-Sky Harbor (PHX)
• Pittsburgh (PIT)
• Raleigh-Durham (RDU)
• Rhode Island-T.F. Green (PVD)
• Washington-Ronald Reagan (DCA)
• Sacramento (SMF)
• Salt Lake City (SLC)
• San Antonio (SAT)
• San Diego (SAN)
• San Francisco (SFO)
• San Juan-Luis Muñoz Marín (SJU)
• Seattle-Tacoma (SEA)
• St. Louis-Lambert (STL)
• Tulsa (TUL)
• Washington-Dulles (IAD)
• Westchester (HPN)

Save Money on CLEAR Plus With Personal Credit Card Statement Credits

With the right credit card in your wallet, you can enroll in CLEAR Plus and have the membership cost reimbursed as a statement credit.

Let’s check out which personal credit cards offer a CLEAR Plus statement credit as well as the other features they have on offer.

American Express Green Card

The American Express Green Card offers a $209 statement credit every year toward your CLEAR Plus membership fee.

Additionally, it offers a strong selection of bonus spending categories, making it a powerhouse for earning points on everyday spending.

For an annual fee of $150, its features include:

• 3X points on travel
• 3X points on transit
• 3X points on dining worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S.
• 1X points on all other purchases
• $209 CLEAR Plus statement credit every year
• No foreign transaction fees

The Platinum Card® From American Express

American Express Platinum Card^® offers an annual $209 statement credit to cover the cost of your CLEAR Plus membership fee.

The Platinum Card^® is the juggernaut of statement credit perks, with more than $1,500 in statement credits to be utilized—enabling you to offset its hefty $895 annual fee (see rates and fees) by more than double each year.

Here’s a full summary of the card’s bonus spending categories and cardholder perks:

• 5X points on flights purchased directly from airlines or through American Express Travel^® on up to $500,000 per calendar year (1X points thereafter)
• 5X points on prepaid hotels booked through American Express Travel^®
• Up to $200 in statement credits annually on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings through American Express Travel^® (a minimum stay of two nights is required for The Hotel Collection)
• Up to $200 in statement credits annually toward incidental fees with one qualifying airline
• Up to $200 in Uber Cash credits annually with Uber Eats and rides in the United States, issued in monthly $15 credits, with a bonus of $20 in December
• $209 annual statement credit toward CLEAR® Plus membership
• Either a $120 statement credit every four years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck application fee (when applying through a TSA official enrollment provider), in each case when charged to your eligible American Express card
• A $100 statement credit toward eligible charges with every booking of two nights or more through AmexTravel.com with The Hotel Collection (eligible charges vary by property)
• Up to $240 in statement credits annually, issued in $20 monthly credits, for eligible purchases with Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock and The Wall Street Journal
• Up to $155 in statement credits annually, issued in monthly $12.95 credits, toward a Walmart+ membership
• Up to $100 in statement credits annually, issued in biannual $50 credits, toward eligible purchases with Saks Fifth Avenue or saks.com
• Complimentary access to the American Express Global Lounge Collection
• Complimentary benefits when booking Fine Hotels + Resorts through American Express Travel^®
• Complimentary Marriott Bonvoy® Gold Elite Status
• Complimentary Hilton Honors™ Gold Status
• Complimentary Avis Preferred®, Hertz Gold Plus Rewards® and National Car Rental® Emerald Club status

Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

If you happen to be a frequent guest at Hilton properties, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card can be a great card to hold, as it offers an annual $209 statement credit toward the CLEAR Plus membership fee.

The card offers lucrative bonus spending categories in addition to valuable statement credit perks, an annual free night reward and complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond Status.

Here’s what’s included with the card:

• 14X points on direct purchases with hotels and resorts in the Hilton portfolio
• 7X points on flights booked directly with airlines or AmexTravel.com and car rentals booked directly with select car rental companies
• 7X points on dining purchases at U.S. restaurants, including takeout and delivery
• 3X points on all other purchases
• Complimentary Hilton Honors Diamond Status
• $400 annual statement credit for eligible direct purchases with participating resorts in the Hilton portfolio, given in biannual $200 increments. Eligible purchases include direct bookings made with Hilton and incidentals charged to your room and paid using your card.
• Annual free night reward. Receive a second free night reward after charging $30,000 to your card within a calendar year and an additional third free night reward after charging $60,000 to your card within a calendar year.
• $209 annual CLEAR Plus membership statement credit
• $200 annual statement credit for eligible airfare purchases made directly with an airline or through amextravel.com, given in quarterly $50 increments
• Complimentary National Car Rental® Emerald Club Executive® status
• Receive $1 in credits per dollar spent, up to $100 per property, when you use your card to book through HiltonHonorsAspireCard.com or by calling Hilton Honors at (855) 292-5757, for a minimum stay of two-nights at Waldorf Astoria® Hotels & Resorts and Conrad® Hotels & Resorts.
• No foreign transaction fees

CLEAR Plus Statement Credits for Business Owners

If you’re a business owner, you can get a statement credit for CLEAR Plus with one of these business or corporate credit cards.

The Business Platinum Card® From American Express

For small business owners, The Business Platinum Card® from American Express enables you to have your annual CLEAR Plus membership fee reimbursed as a statement credit.

The Amex Business Platinum includes more than $800 worth of solid business-related statement credit perks as well as lucrative bonus spending categories. That makes offsetting its $895 annual fee (see rates and fees) a breeze.

Here’s some of what the card has to offer:

• 5X points on prepaid flights and hotels booked through American Express Travel^®
• 1.5X points on purchases in key business categories and purchases equal to or greater than $5,000 (on up to $2 million per year; 1X points thereafter). Key business categories include: U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers, U.S. electronic goods retailers, software and cloud system providers and U.S. shipping providers.
• $200 annual statement credit toward airline incidental fees with one nominated eligible airline of your choice
• $360 annual statement credit, issued in quarterly $90 credits, for purchases with Indeed
• $120 annual statement credit toward purchases with U.S. wireless telephone service providers
• Complimentary access to The American Express Global Lounge Collection
• Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status
• Hilton Honors Gold status
• No foreign transaction fees
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every four years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck application fee (when applying through a TSA official enrollment provider), in each case when charged to your eligible American Express card

American Express Corporate Platinum Card®

If your business has high annual spending and you’re looking for a card to support that, the Amex Corporate Platinum Card can do the job.

In addition to its wide array of benefits, it includes an annual $209 statement credit toward CLEAR Plus membership. While the card comes with an annual fee of $550, big spenders and medium to large sized business owners shouldn’t have a problem offsetting the annual fee through perk maximization.

Here’s a full breakdown of what the card has to offer:

• 1X points on all purchases
• 5% Uber Cash on Uber Rides and Eats orders*
• $209 CLEAR Plus statement credit every year
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every four years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck application fee (when applying through a TSA official enrollment provider), in each case when charged to your eligible American Express card.
• Complimentary access to The American Express Global Lounge Collection
• $200 annual statement credit toward airline incidental fees with one nominated eligible airline of your choice
• Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elite status
• Hilton Honors Gold status

Save Money on CLEAR Plus With Airline Loyalty Program Discounts

While credit cards offer the biggest savings potential on CLEAR Plus membership, they’re not your only option.

Depending on your status with Alaska Mileage Plan, Delta SkyMiles and United MileagePlus, you can receive discounted or even free CLEAR Plus membership.

Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan

General Alaska Airlines Mileage Plan members receive a $10 discount on CLEAR Plus membership, reducing the annual fee to $189.

Those with MVP, MVP Gold, MVP Gold 75K or MVP Gold 100K status receive a $10 discount on CLEAR Plus membership in addition to 1,500 bonus miles for new enrollments or 1,250 miles for renewals.

Delta SkyMiles

General Delta SkyMiles members are eligible for a $10 discount on their CLEAR Plus membership.

Platinum, Gold, Silver or Medallion members, as well as those who hold eligible Delta SkyMiles American Express cards, can receive a $40 discount on their CLEAR Plus membership.

Delta Diamond Medallion members receive the biggest benefit, having their CLEAR Plus membership fee reduced to $0.

United Airlines MileagePlus

Basic United MileagePlus members are eligible for a $10 discount on their CLEAR Plus membership.

Premier Silver®, Premier Gold®, Premier Platinum® and eligible United credit card holders can receive a $40 discount on their CLEAR Plus membership.

Premier 1K® members get $70 off their CLEAR Plus membership.

And Global Services® members get a free CLEAR Plus membership.

Final Thoughts

There’s no reason you should pay the full price for CLEAR Plus membership. With a host of credit cards offering statement credits toward the full cost of CLEAR Plus as well as airline loyalty programs offering discounts, no one should have to pay the full $209 annual fee.

So if you’re ready to swap the TSA identity verification queues for biometric identity verification, enroll in CLEAR Plus and take advantage of one of the many possible discounts available.

* To receive this benefit you must have downloaded the latest version of the Uber App and your eligible American Express Corporate Platinum Card® must be a method of payment on your Uber account. The Amex Benefit may only be used in the United States.