Every ticket issued by United Airlines has a code or number. It is also known as a "reservation confirmation number," "booking code," or "airline record location." Typically, it’s alphanumeric, meaning it contains both numbers and letters, allowing the code to be short, around six characters long. This identification enables airlines to look up your travel itinerary quickly.

What is a PNR?

Passenger Name Record or sometimes referred to as United Airlines Confirmation flight number PNR, contains personal information (PI) data. For privacy reasons, the PNR and confirmation number in conjunction allows matching the travel itinerary with the passenger’s information.

Assume you are flying on various airlines that are members of an alliance or that you have booked individual tickets. In that instance, you will be assigned a unique confirmation number for each leg(s) of your flight with the airline.

Assume you were flying from San Francisco to Bangkok on United Airlines, with a stopover in Harita, Japan, when you switched to another carrier, such as Eva Airways.

In that case, you'd get a United Flights Confirmation Number from San Francisco to Harita, then an Eva Airways Confirmation United confirmation number Number from Harita, Japan to Bangkok, Thailand.

If they can exchange personal data across systems, some alliances will merge the confirmation code across airlines to simplify lookup.

Where do I find the United Flight Confirmation Number?

If you buy a ticket via an online travel agency (OTA), you may receive a single email verifying your payment.

It would typically contain a code like a receipt number for the online travel agency to look up your itinerary in case there were any problems.

The term "eTicket" or "receipt number" should not be confused with "United Airlines confirmation number."

The agency must then either manually or automatically book the tickets with the airline.

Once the agency confirms the ticket, you will receive another email confirming the six characters’ booking, an alphanumeric value known as the confirmation number.

Only once you obtain that will you be guaranteed a seat on the plane.

If you book directly with United Airlines, they usually combine it into one email.

One email would contain both the United Airlines confirmation number and the eTicket number (receipt number). The most important number of the two when checking in the airport or requesting help would be the confirmation number printed on the ticket.

In some cases, you may not be provided with a United confirmation number. For example, if you are flying standby, you may only have an eTicket number.

You will not receive a confirmation number on your boarding pass until you check in at the check-in desk.

If you want to guarantee your seat before arriving at the airport and have not received your confirmation number, call the airline.

United Airlines confirm flight number

Now you must be thinking, “How do I find my confirmation number on United Airlines?’

As soon as you book a ticket and complete a payment, you will receive a confirmation number through email on your registered email address. You can check the email confirmation you received after booking a flight with United Airlines. You will very definitely be given a confirmation number there.

For more information, you can contact United Airlines' customer support department and speak with a representative. Because the support crew is available 24 hours a day, you can contact them at any moment.