Is TSA PreCheck Worth The Money?

Aug.9.2018

Let’s face it: No one likes the TSA. Agents of the Transportation Security Administration are about as popular as meter maids, root canals, and distant relatives who send you political chain e-mails.

What they do is all for the sake of keeping passengers safe, but the process gets more obtrusive all the time. Take your jacket off, Take you shoes off — soon it’ll be Take your pants off! My father was once detained and questioned by TSA agents for over an hour. What aroused their suspicion? “You’ve been visiting Chicago too much.”

If you travel regularly, going through a TSA check is a permanent dread, just the thing to put you in a terrible mood before a flight.

But there’s a way you can avoid at least some of the hassle: the TSA PreCheck program.

What are the pros? What are the cons? How much does it cost? And is it worth the price tag? Here are the things you’ll want to know about TSA PreCheck.

What Do I Get With TSA PreCheck?

Considerably less waiting and poking around, is TSA PreCheck’s main attraction. The point of the program is to expedite airport security screenings for low-risk passengers, and it actually works quite well.

In early January, 2019, TSA reported that 91 percent of PreCheck passengers waited less than 15 minutes in the security line. Compared to the God-knows-how-long the rest of us cattle have to waste queuing up to get scrutinized, that’s a walk in the park.

PreCheck status also exempts passengers from certain inconvenient and invasive procedures. You won’t be asked to remove your shoes, belts, laptops, compliant liquids, or light jackets, for example.

Since PreCheck became available to the general public in 2013, it has spread throughout the United States. Today, it’s available at more than 200 airports, with 73 airlines participating. If you want to see which airports offer PreCheck services, click here.

Passengers pull their luggage through airport — Unsplash / chuttersnap

How Much Does TSA PreCheck Cost?

When you submit your application, you will make a non-refundable $85 payment. That will cover you for five years, but remember: If your application is not accepted (which only happens if you’re determined to be a high-risk traveler for some reason), you will not receive a refund. This is because the fee covers the administrative cost of doing your background check.

The program is available to all U.S. citizens, nationals, and permanent residents.

How Do I Get TSA PreCheck?

The first step is filling out this online application. Some of the requested information (such as Social Security Numbers) is “voluntary”, but if you’re committed to getting approved, it’s best to provide all the information you can. There’s no point spending $85 not to get PreCheck.

After the online application step, you will be required to schedule an in-person appointment at a location near you. (It’s best to arrange all this over e-mail, so make sure to provide your email address in your online application.) You will be required to bring your passport to the appointment, and they will also collect your fingerprints and send them to the FBI to run through their database.

The fingerprints are used for your background check first and foremost, but they may remain in the federal database for future use as well. If you are uncomfortable with your fingerprints being kept on file, PreCheck may not be the program for you.

Woman looks at flight schedule at airport — Pixabay / JESHOOTScom

What Don’t I Get From PreCheck?

Even though it makes passing through security much quicker and less irksome for the majority of passengers, having PreCheck status does not mean you won’t be singled out for additional screening at agents’ discretion.

As the TSA website rather ominously warns: “TSA uses unpredictable security measures, both seen and unseen, throughout the airport. All travelers will be screened, and no individual is guaranteed expedited screening.”

You should also know that PreCheck only applies to travel within the United States. If you’re flying from Phoenix to Chicago and back — no worries, you can go through the PreCheck line at both ends. If, however, you’re visiting Chile, you can use PreCheck for your departure flight, but you’ll have to wait in the regular line when you return to the country.

For this reason, it may make more sense to apply for the Global Entry program if you often travel abroad. Global Entry will give you PreCheck status, plus the same treatment when you’re re-entering the United States. And you get all that for a $100 non-refundable fee, so if you go overseas even once a year, it’s probably worth the extra $15.

If you’re traveling with grandkids 12 and under, they can come with you through the PreCheck line even if they’re not registered with the program. However, anyone 13 and older will have to go through regular old airport security, so it may be best to get everyone signed up if you’re taking a family vacation.

So Is It Worth It?

Well, if you only travel at great need, if you’re a homebody, if you rarely come into contact with the TSA, it’s probably not worth your trouble to go through the song and dance of getting PreCheck or Global Entry.

Similarly, if you don’t want to give up your fingerprints because of privacy concerns, this will be a hard pass for you.

Ready to travel and not worried about sharing your fingerprints? I’d say you owe it to yourself to spend as little time as humanly possible going through airport security. $85 or $100 is a small price to pay for that convenience.

Want to learn more about the ins and outs of airport security? Discover what SSSS means when printed on a boarding pass.