Global Entry vs TSA PreCheck 2026 — Cost, Renewal and Kids
Two trusted traveler programs, two different problems solved — here is which one to buy, what each costs, and how they treat your family
Last updated: October 9, 2026. Frequent travelers compare Global Entry and TSA PreCheck as if they were competing products, but they are not rivals so much as a fast lane and a bridge. TSA PreCheck gets you through security screening faster inside the United States. Global Entry gets you back into the country faster when you return from abroad, and it happens to include TSA PreCheck for eligible members. That single fact — one program contains the other — settles the decision for a lot of people, but the costs, the interviews, the renewal rules, and the way each program treats children are where the real differences live. This guide lays them side by side: what each program does, what you actually pay in 2026, how to apply and interview, whether Global Entry truly includes PreCheck, which benefit helps on an international versus a domestic trip, how renewal works, and what happens when you travel with kids. If your next step is a U.S. passport or a visa application, see our US passport renewal guide and visa eligibility checker.
The Core Differences
The cleanest way to hold the two programs in your head is to attach each one to a specific part of a journey. TSA PreCheck lives at the security checkpoint on the way to your gate, and it only applies to screening inside the United States. Global Entry lives at the customs and immigration hall when you arrive back in the United States from another country. They are run by different agencies — TSA PreCheck by the Transportation Security Administration, Global Entry by U.S. Customs and Border Protection — and they draw on different authorities.
| Feature | Global Entry | TSA PreCheck |
|---|---|---|
| What it speeds up | Entry into the U.S. from abroad (customs and immigration) | Airport security screening within the U.S. |
| Run by | U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) | Transportation Security Administration (TSA) |
| Cost | $120 one-time, non-refundable | $85 or less, set by the enrollment provider |
| Validity | 5 years | 5 years |
| Interview | Yes, at a Global Entry Enrollment Center | In-person enrollment (fingerprints and photo) |
| Includes the other | Eligible members get TSA PreCheck | No — does not give customs/immigration benefits |
| Who can apply | U.S. citizens and LPRs, plus citizens of certain partner countries | U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, and lawful permanent residents |
Two eligibility points are easy to miss. First, TSA PreCheck's application program is only open to U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, and lawful permanent residents. Global Entry goes wider: it accepts U.S. citizens and LPRs plus citizens of a list of partner countries, which includes Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Bahrain, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, India, Japan, Jordan, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, Panama, Singapore, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Kingdom. Second, each program has its own disqualifiers. Global Entry applicants may be refused for criminal convictions, pending charges, customs or immigration violations, or if they cannot satisfy CBP of their low-risk status. TSA PreCheck applicants can be denied for incomplete or false information, certain federal security regulation violations, or disqualifying criminal offenses.
Costs: What You Actually Pay
The headline numbers are simple, but the details are where people get surprised.
Global Entry — $120. CBP states that a $120 one-time fee is required with your Global Entry application and must be paid at the time of application through the Trusted Traveler Programs system, by credit card or electronic bank transfer. The fee is non-refundable, even if your application is denied. That $120 buys a five-year membership. Because Global Entry includes TSA PreCheck eligibility, the $120 also covers the security-lane benefit that TSA PreCheck members pay for — which is the economic core of the "Global Entry is a bargain" argument.
TSA PreCheck — $85 or less. TSA advertises five years of benefits for $85 or less, because the three authorized enrollment providers set their own prices. As of 2026, enrollment is about $79.75 through IDEMIA, $85.00 through Telos, and $84.95 through CLEAR. Renewal prices also vary by provider. Importantly, TSA notes that you are not charged the application fee until you complete your application in person, and that once the in-person process is complete and payment is taken, there are no refunds. You can switch enrollment providers before completing enrollment, but not after.
Hidden savings and costs. Many credit cards and loyalty programs reimburse the TSA PreCheck or Global Entry application fee, so check your card benefits before paying out of pocket. The opposite trap is paying a third party that is not an authorized provider. TSA warns that CLEAR, IDEMIA, and Telos are the only authorized enrollment providers for TSA PreCheck, and that TSA will not reimburse applicants who attempt to renew through a fraudulent website. For Global Entry, the only place to apply and pay is the official TTP system.
How to Apply and Interview
Both programs follow the same broad rhythm — apply online, then finish in person — but the in-person steps differ in intensity.
Global Entry. CBP walks applicants through four steps. First, regardless of your age, you create a Trusted Traveler Programs (TTP) account. Second, you log in and complete the application, paying the $120 non-refundable fee with each completed application. Third, after CBP reviews the application and conditionally approves you, your TTP account instructs you to schedule an interview at a Global Entry Enrollment Center, and each applicant must schedule a separate interview. Fourth, you complete the process by bringing your valid passport and one other form of identification, such as a driver's license, to the interview; lawful permanent residents must present their machine-readable permanent resident card. CBP notes that about 80% of applications are approved within two weeks, while some applications can take up to 12 months or longer.
TSA PreCheck. The flow is lighter. You find an enrollment location, submit the initial application online in as little as five minutes, then make an appointment or walk in to have your documents checked, fingerprints and a photo taken, and payment collected in about ten minutes. After approval, you receive a Known Traveler Number (KTN) that you enter into airline reservations and travel profiles so the TSA PreCheck indicator appears on your boarding pass. Without that indicator, you cannot use the PreCheck lane.
One useful bridge between the programs: current TSA PreCheck members may be eligible for expedited Global Entry application processing if they provide CBP their KTN when applying. That gives PreCheck holders a reason to upgrade rather than restart. If your travel also involves consular appointments, our interview wait times 2026 data and appointment waits tool help with the parallel planning.
Does Global Entry Include TSA PreCheck?
Yes — for eligible members. CBP lists TSA PreCheck eligibility directly among the benefits of Global Entry, alongside no processing lines, no paperwork, expedited entry benefits in other countries, availability at major U.S. airports, and reduced wait times. In practical terms, a Global Entry member who is a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident can use TSA PreCheck lanes on domestic and departing flights, in addition to breezing through customs and immigration on the way back into the country.
Two caveats keep this from being absolute. First, eligibility flows to members who can use PreCheck — U.S. citizens and LPRs — so a Global Entry member who is a citizen of a partner country may not receive the same PreCheck benefit. Second, the benefit is not automatic at the airport: you must add your Known Traveler Number to your airline reservation so that the PreCheck indicator prints on your boarding pass. No indicator, no lane. That is why experienced travelers save their KTN in their airline profiles once and forget about it. And remember the direction does not reverse: TSA PreCheck does not include Global Entry, so a PreCheck-only member still queues at customs and immigration on the way home.
If you already hold PreCheck and are weighing the upgrade, CBP's $120 Global Entry fee effectively adds the international benefit on top of a benefit you already value. For travelers returning from trips — say, a vacation documented through our US citizens Mexico visa resource — the customs lane is often the longest part of the journey home, which is precisely what Global Entry compresses.
International vs Domestic Benefit
The decision really comes down to which lane annoys you most. TSA's own guidance frames it neatly: consider enrolling in Global Entry if you travel internationally four or more times a year, because it speeds up your return through customs and immigration and includes PreCheck eligibility. If you take fewer than four international trips a year, TSA PreCheck is described as a great choice for domestic travelers.
Break that down into traveler profiles. A road-warrior consultant who flies domestically twice a month but abroad once a year gets most of the value from PreCheck — the security line is the daily pain point, and the $85 fee is trivial against the time saved. A family that takes two international holidays a year plus one domestic trip may still be better served by PreCheck, unless the customs hall at their home airport is notoriously slow, in which case Global Entry pays for itself in stress. And anyone who re-enters the United States often — dual-career couples, people with family abroad, business travelers to Europe or Asia — gets the clearest win from Global Entry because both lanes improve.
Because both memberships last five years, the math is about frequency, not price. Five years of PreCheck at roughly $85 is about $17 a year; five years of Global Entry at $120 is $24 a year and covers both benefits. Unless the eligibility rules exclude you or the interview is impractical to schedule, Global Entry is usually the higher-value purchase for anyone who leaves the country more than a few times in five years.
Renewal
Both programs require you to renew to keep the benefits, and both make it relatively painless if you act before expiration.
Global Entry renewal. CBP states that you become eligible to renew your membership one year prior to program expiration, and that if you submit a renewal application before your membership expires, you can continue to use benefits up to 24 months after your expiration date. You renew from your TTP account dashboard; you must declare your citizenship, and you may be offered the chance to renew other programs for which you are eligible. On interviews, CBP says an interview for renewal may not be necessary — after you submit the renewal application and fee, you check your TTP account periodically for any required actions and receive an email when your status changes. That "may not be necessary" is worth planning around: renewal can require an interview in some cases, so do not leave it to the last week.
TSA PreCheck renewal. Members may renew online up to six months before expiration, or in person at an enrollment center. The new membership period begins when the current one ends, so there is no disadvantage to renewing early. Most applicants receive approval in three to five days, though some take up to 60 days, and TSA recommends renewing at least 60 days before expiration to avoid a lapse. You keep the same KTN through renewal. If you changed your name, you may need to renew in person or update your name with the provider first, a process TSA says can take up to 45 days. Renewal cost varies by provider, and you can switch providers when you renew.
The common failure mode is simple neglect: letting a membership lapse and discovering at the airport that your boarding pass no longer shows the PreCheck indicator. Set a calendar reminder roughly 90 days before expiration and you will never join the standard line by accident.
Kids and Families
Families get very different answers from the two programs, and this is where Global Entry's design shows. For TSA PreCheck, TSA states that children generally do not need to apply unless they routinely travel alone. When traveling as a family with enrolled adults, children 17 and under are eligible for TSA PreCheck without their own Known Traveler Number. Anyone 18 or older must have their own KTN. Children traveling alone are a separate case and may need their own membership and identification. In short, PreCheck is family-friendly by default — one adult's membership can cover young children in the lane.
Global Entry is stricter, because the border lane is a border lane. CBP says there is no minimum age requirement, but if you are under 18 you must have your parent or legal guardian's consent to participate, and your guardian does not have to be a member. Regardless of age, every traveler must create a TTP account and schedule an interview; if you are under 18, a parent or legal guardian must be present at the interview. On cost, there is a genuine break: while the $120 fee applies to each applicant, the fee is waived for minors under 18 when a legal guardian is enrolled in the program or in pending status. So a family can enroll the parents, then add the children with their own accounts and interviews at no additional government fee, though each child still needs to attend an interview.
That structure rewards planning. If you are enrolling a family, do the parents first so the minor fee waiver applies, and book interviews for everyone together where the enrollment center allows it. It is also worth knowing that Global Entry's expedited entry benefits in other countries vary by arrangement, so the international benefit for children tracks the adults' itinerary. For parents juggling passports and visas at the same time, our guides index and visa trackers hub pull the related steps into one place.