TRAVELYour Credit Card Is Already Paying for TSA PreCheck and Clear4 min read

Clear Scans You and Walks You to the Front

Clear is a different animal. It’s biometric: fingerprints and iris scans replace your ID at the identity-check stage. A staffer confirms who you are at the kiosk, then walks you straight to the front of the ID line. If you also have PreCheck, you branch off into the expedited screening lane. If you don’t, you go through standard screening — but you’ve skipped the ID queue entirely.

Annual Clear+ membership is $209. That’s a real number. But so many discounts exist for Clear that paying the full rate is almost avoidable if you know where to look.

Global Entry Buys Two Programs for One Price

Global Entry is U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s program for international travelers coming back into the country. At over 75 airports, automated kiosks photograph you and a CBP agent waves you through in seconds. No snaking through the customs hall after a red-eye from Europe.

The underappreciated part: Global Entry membership includes TSA PreCheck. A five-year Global Entry membership costs $120. TSA PreCheck alone costs $85. For $35 more, you get both. Any traveler who takes even one international trip per year should do this math before signing up for PreCheck alone.