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I’ve had TSA PreCheck since I was in middle school and strongly believe it’s worth every penny of the $85 fee (or $100 with Global Entry) every 5 years (and can be free with some credit cards). It’s been the only reason I’ve made my flight on more occasions than I care to count and has alleviated some stress while packing knowing that I won’t have to take my laptop and liquids out of my bag. When CLEAR started popping up at airports about a decade ago, I didn’t understand the hype – I was paying much less for TSA PreCheck and speeding through security. Well fast forward to 2022 and I am here to tell you I still don’t think it’s worth paying full price, but Thomas and I are now CLEAR members for free thanks to travel hacking, so we will happily enjoy the benefits.

What is CLEAR?

If you’re unfamiliar with CLEAR, it’s a biometric checkpoint at scans your eyes or fingerprints to identify you at 50+ airports around the country. Unlike TSA PreCheck or Global Entry, it’s not run by the government but instead is a publicly traded corporation.

The annual fee for CLEAR is $189 + $60 per person for up to 3 additional users, which is definitely steep when compared to TSA PreCheck.

You can do the initial registration online and then finish enrolling the first time you go to a CLEAR kiosk in an airport. After you’ve enrolled in CLEAR, you simply walk up to a kiosk, it scans your eyes and your boarding pass, and you can go through security. If you’re flying Delta or United, you don’t even need the boarding pass.

It’s important to note that TSA PreCheck and CLEAR are not mutually exclusive. The goal of both programs is to help expedite your way through security, and this is best done in tandem. If you only have CLEAR but not TSA PreCheck, you still have to go through regular security, taking your shoes off, laptop out, etc. but you do get to breeze past the line. If you have both CLEAR and PreCheck, you skip the (admittedly much shorter) PreCheck line and go through security without the hassle.

Who is Eligible?

CLEAR is only available in the United States, and as such is only accessible to US citizens and permanent residents. Here’s a screenshot of their website to clarify the details succinctly:

A notable differentiator from TSA PreCheck is that children under 18 cannot be CLEAR members and can only use the CLEAR Lane at the airport when accompanied by a member. If you’re a minor traveling alone, you are stuck in either the regular or TSA PreCheck security lanes.

Stacking Offers

The Amex Platinum credit card offers a $189 annual statement credit for CLEAR. Similarly, the Amex Green card offers a $100 annual statement credit. This means that you pay for the subscription as normal and you’ll see the same amount you spent (up to $189) credited back on your statement.

Even if you don’t have an Amex card, there is no reason to pay full price for CLEAR, as they offer a discounted $119 annual membership for United or Delta members, which is free to sign up for and only takes a minute. Boom – 60 seconds just saved you $70. If you hold status or a cobranded credit card with Delta or United, the rate can be $109/year or even free. Students and the military can get discounted memberships from $60-$99. Government employees can get an unknown discount by emailing CLEAR directly.

Given the $189 statement credit on my Amex Platinum, I was able to easily cover the cost of my $119 annual fee + Thomas’s $60 annual fee with $10 to spare. (I did sign up for CLEAR before I got the United Explorer card, which is why I paid $119 instead of $109, not that it matters because Amex fully reimbursed it).

While most companies are cracking down on sharing with your friends (*cough* Netflix passwords *cough*), CLEAR actually wants you to share this program with your friends and family, so they’ve made it clear that you can add anyone on to your account as long as they’re eligible for the program.

Sign Up Links

To enroll and access the discounted rate, use one of the following links:

United members click here
Delta members click here
Students, military, or government employees click here

If you’re already a member and you want to add on additional members, you can do that by logging into your account and navigating to “Family Plan.”

Limited Time Offers

Keep an eye out for special sign up offers from CLEAR. When I signed up, there was no promotion going on, but since then I’ve seen them offer a $75 Uber gift card for enrollment. These promotions are great ways to earn free money, but make sure to always read the fine print to ensure you’re able to stack with other offers and programs through airlines or credit cards.

Bottom Line

As the travel industry rebounds post-pandemic and more and more people are signing up for TSA PreCheck, the lines are noticeably longer even in the “fast lane” than they used to be and I am enjoying being able to skip that too. I’ve never even seen a line in the CLEAR Lane. However, CLEAR wouldn’t be worth it to me if it wasn’t free or at the very least heavily discounted. Thankfully, there are lots of ways to make the program much more affordable, so I encourage you to pursue these discounts if you want to sign up for CLEAR.