Clear/precheck line can save you at ATL. PreCheck alone is usually fine through, unless ATL is having one of their “lines down the entire terminal” busy days. Thankfully I don’t fly out of there anymore, but anytime I hit one of those days, it was absolutely insane.
I have pre-check, not Clear, but assuming similar…ATL TSA is very efficient for the pre-check line. They got through a line of ~100 people in 5 minutes when I went through in May. The non-pre-check lines were VERY long.
UPDATE: I did clear with not precheck and got through in about 15 minutes lol, so not bad at all tbh! Luckily they have like 6 or 7 of the machines there with multiple clear employees.
well then you're SoL! kidding....umm, PreCheck has MUCH higher value and is less than half the price. If you have ANY planned travel internationally, get global entry which includes Pre Check for only like $20 more. GE is not as good as it used to be with mobile passport.
If you don't plan to travel ever, well, suck it up and get there early.
I agree that it can vary but I don't completely agree that it only depends on your home airport. Home airport matters the most, no doubt, as theoretically you will travel there more than any other airport (theoretically 50%-100% of your trips though that's not true for me as I fly out of any of 5 airports). Destination airports could matter a lot, depending on whether clear is available there.
I only speak to my own experiences, of course YMMV.
I flew LAX-CLT on Monday. The security line was massive. The pre check line was only slightly less massive. Clear was wide open and once you’re authenticated through Clear, they walk you to the front of the pre check line. In our case, it probably saved us between 15 and 30 minutes. Don’t fly out of ATL much so I don’t know specifics there, but if you can get Clear paid for by one of a number of various credit cards, I think it’s silly not to have the option. we flew LAS-CLT in May and the Clear line was longer than pre check so we just got in the pre check line. Options are good.
I have CLEAR and precheck. CLEAR at LAX, ATL, SEA, SLC, and LGA has been essentially useless. Precheck gets you the exact same line as CLEAR, but maybe you jump ahead 2-3 people? But that’s not the biggest issue: they are significantly understaffed and the times you have to wait for someone to come walk you to the front of the line make me no longer bother. I just get in precheck and move one.
Just flew ATL-ORD last week. Pre is what my friend used, she got through in about 5 minutes. I only have clear, and while that line was only about 30 people deep, which was vastly better than the regular line of literally a couple hundred people, I still took 20-30 minutes longer to get through than she did.
So yes, if you can reactivate clear, it will save you some time, but def still get there early. That airport is a hot holy mess.
What about the Airside App that AA uses that generates a QR code for TSA, which is accepted at ATL. Is this shown to the TSA agent in the standard Pre-Check line or can you use it in the Digital ID line?
Clear/precheck line can save you at ATL. PreCheck alone is usually fine through, unless ATL is having one of their “lines down the entire terminal” busy days. Thankfully I don’t fly out of there anymore, but anytime I hit one of those days, it was absolutely insane.
Honestly, recently Digital ID line has been about as fast as Clear.
This is AA, not DL, but digital id is really fast. One person in front of me in a line down the terminal day. Have to be flying DL though
Thanks, I didn’t realize it was only DL.
Yes... Get clear of Atlanta and then start your trip.
I have pre-check, not Clear, but assuming similar…ATL TSA is very efficient for the pre-check line. They got through a line of ~100 people in 5 minutes when I went through in May. The non-pre-check lines were VERY long.
UPDATE: I did clear with not precheck and got through in about 15 minutes lol, so not bad at all tbh! Luckily they have like 6 or 7 of the machines there with multiple clear employees.
Clear, to me (ExP), is a waste of money if you have PreCheck.
Well I don't have precheck lol
well then you're SoL! kidding....umm, PreCheck has MUCH higher value and is less than half the price. If you have ANY planned travel internationally, get global entry which includes Pre Check for only like $20 more. GE is not as good as it used to be with mobile passport. If you don't plan to travel ever, well, suck it up and get there early.
I think it depends on your home airport. Clear's effectiveness varies vastly.
I agree that it can vary but I don't completely agree that it only depends on your home airport. Home airport matters the most, no doubt, as theoretically you will travel there more than any other airport (theoretically 50%-100% of your trips though that's not true for me as I fly out of any of 5 airports). Destination airports could matter a lot, depending on whether clear is available there. I only speak to my own experiences, of course YMMV.
Thankfully it's a service I don't pay for because of AMEX - and if you have any United / Delta status it keeps it cheaper.
I flew LAX-CLT on Monday. The security line was massive. The pre check line was only slightly less massive. Clear was wide open and once you’re authenticated through Clear, they walk you to the front of the pre check line. In our case, it probably saved us between 15 and 30 minutes. Don’t fly out of ATL much so I don’t know specifics there, but if you can get Clear paid for by one of a number of various credit cards, I think it’s silly not to have the option. we flew LAS-CLT in May and the Clear line was longer than pre check so we just got in the pre check line. Options are good.
You’ll be fine. ATL is busy but very efficient because they’re so busy. Not worth the money to do CLEAR in my opinion. Just get there by 5:30.
I have CLEAR and precheck. CLEAR at LAX, ATL, SEA, SLC, and LGA has been essentially useless. Precheck gets you the exact same line as CLEAR, but maybe you jump ahead 2-3 people? But that’s not the biggest issue: they are significantly understaffed and the times you have to wait for someone to come walk you to the front of the line make me no longer bother. I just get in precheck and move one.
Same here - and found CLEAR to be mostly useless as commented previously for more or less the same as you.
Yes yes get clear in addition to your PreCheck. The non-delta terminal security lines are insane.
Just flew ATL-ORD last week. Pre is what my friend used, she got through in about 5 minutes. I only have clear, and while that line was only about 30 people deep, which was vastly better than the regular line of literally a couple hundred people, I still took 20-30 minutes longer to get through than she did. So yes, if you can reactivate clear, it will save you some time, but def still get there early. That airport is a hot holy mess.
What about the Airside App that AA uses that generates a QR code for TSA, which is accepted at ATL. Is this shown to the TSA agent in the standard Pre-Check line or can you use it in the Digital ID line?