Delta Airlines: The Complete Guide To Earning and Redeeming Delta SkyMiles

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DELTA SKYMILES^® GOLD AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card has an offer for 40,000 bonus miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

Ongoing rewards are 2 miles per dollar on Delta purchases, and purchases at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets. You’ll earn 1 mile per dollar for all other eligible purchases.

Spend $10,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year and receive a $100 Delta Flight Credit.

You’ll also get Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding and your first bag checked for free on Delta flights.

Enjoy a $0 introductory Annual Fee for the first year, then $99. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.

Card Review

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DELTA SKYMILES PLATINUM AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

The Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card has an introductory offer for 50,000 bonus miles and 5,000 MQMs after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

This card earns 3 miles per $1 on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels. It also earns 2 miles per $1 at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets. You’ll earn 1 mile per $1 on all other eligible purchases.

Upon renewal of your card each year, you will receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. The cost of government imposed taxes and fees will be no more than $75 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.

You and up to 8 travel companions get your first checked bag free on Delta flights. You’ll also receive Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding on Delta flights.

You’ll also get an application fee credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓. There are no foreign transaction fees and the annual fee is $250.

Card Review

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DELTA SKYMILES RESERVE AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

The Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card has an offer for 50,000 bonus miles and 10,000 MQMs after you spend $5,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

This card earns 3X Miles on Delta purchases and 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.

Upon the annual renewal of your Card, receive a Domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+® or Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate. *Payment of the government-imposed taxes and fees of no more than $75 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.

You and up to 8 travel companions get your first checked bag free on Delta Flights. You’ll also receive Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding on Delta flights.

This card gets a Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®.

Another great benefit is the complimentary Delta Sky Club access. You’ll also get complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge or Escape Lounge – The Centurion® Studio Partner when you book your Delta flight with your Reserve Card.

There are no foreign transaction fees and the annual fee is $550.

Card Review

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DELTA SKYMILES GOLD BUSINESS AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

The Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card is offering 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in the first 3 months.

This card earns 2 Miles on every dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta, on every dollar spent on eligible U.S. purchases for advertising in select media, on every dollar spent on eligible U.S. shipping purchases, on every eligible dollar spent at restaurants. Earn 1 Mile on every eligible dollar spent on purchases.

Benefits include priority boarding and your first checked bag on Delta Flights for free. You’ll also earn a $100 Delta Flight Credit after you spend $10,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year.

Introductory annual fee of $0 for the first year, then $99. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.

Card Review

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DELTA SKYMILES^® PLATINUM BUSINESS AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

The Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card has an offer for 60,000 bonus miles and 5,000 MQMs after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in the first 3 months.

Earn 3 Miles on every dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta and on every eligible dollar spent on purchases made directly with hotels. Earn 1.5 miles per dollar on single eligible purchases of $5,000 or more (that’s an extra half point per dollar), up to 50,000 additional miles per year.

With Status Boost®, earn 10,000 MQMs after you spend $25,000 in purchases on your new Card in a calendar year, up to two times per year getting you closer to Medallion Status.

Travel benefits include your first bag on Delta Flights checked for free and Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding. You’ll also get a 20% savings on eligible in-flight purchases.

Spend $25,000 in purchases on the Card in a calendar year and earn 10,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs); spend a total of $50,000 in eligible purchases on the Card in a calendar year and earn an additional 10,000 MQMs.

There are no foreign transaction fees and this card has a $250 annual fee. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.

Card Review

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DELTA SKYMILES^® RESERVE BUSINESS AMERICAN EXPRESS CARD

Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more.

The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card has an offer for 100,000 bonus miles after you spend $6,000 in purchases on your new Card in the first 3 months. Offer ends 11/9/22.

Our valuation puts the 100k miles at around $1120.

This card earns 3 Miles on every dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta. After you spend $150,000 on your Card in a calendar year, you earn 1.5 Miles per dollar (that’s an extra half mile per dollar) on eligible purchases the rest of the year. If your purchase qualifies for a category that has a higher mileage accelerator, only the higher accelerator will apply (ex: you would earn 3X miles on purchases made directly with Delta instead of 1.5X).

Earn 15,000 MQMs with Status Boost® after you spend $30,000 in purchases in a calendar year on your new card. You can earn this up to four times per year to help you get closer to Medallion Status.

Your first bag on Delta Flights gets checked free and you get Main Cabin 1 priority boarding.

Access to The Centurion® Lounge or Escape Lounge – The Centurion® Studio Partner is free for you when you book your Delta flight with your card. You’ll get 2 free one-time use Delta Sky Club passes for your guests annually.

Also, receive a Domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+ or Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year after you renew your card.

There are no foreign transaction fees and the annual fee is $550. See Rates & Fees, Terms Apply.

Card Review

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Earn a base rate of 5x SkyMiles on Delta flights. If you have Medallion status, you’ll earn bonus SkyMiles:

Earn SkyMiles when you use your Delta number on partner airlines. How many you’ll earn depends on airline, fare type and fare class. Airline partners include:

Earn up to 5x miles when you link any credit card to SkyMiles Dining and use it at thousands of participating restaurants, bars and clubs. Plus, earn up to 3,000 bonus SkyMiles in your first 30 days as a dining program member:

• 500 bonus miles by spending at least $30 at any participating restaurant.
• 1,000 bonus miles by spending at least $30 on your second participating restaurant visit.
• 1,500 bonus miles by spending at least $30 on your third participating restaurant visit.

To qualify, you must complete an online review of each restaurant within 30 days of your visit.

To maximize your earning potential, read our complete guide to dining programs.

Earn SkyMiles at hundreds of online merchants when you shop through SkyMiles Shopping. Participating brands include: Brooks Brothers, Cost Plus World Market, Kohl’s, Microsoft, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, Samsung and Staples.

To maximize your earning potential, read our complete guide to online shopping portals.

Earn SkyMiles when you spend with Delta’s many travel partners all over the world, including:

*The above information has been independently collected by MoneysMyLife and subject to change. For updated information, click here for our source on hotel and airbnb and here for car partners.

Earn SkyMiles when you spend with Delta’s many merchant partners, including:

For updated information, click here for our source.

Transfer points from partner loyalty programs and convert them into SkyMiles.

Credit card partners include:

Hotel and car rental partners include:

Other program partners include:

*Click here for a full updated list.

Delta lets you purchase SkyMiles at $0.035 apiece. We value each mile at an average of $0.012, so you’d be paying more than twice their worth.

Use your SkyMiles for flights with Delta and its partners to over 1,000 destinations worldwide. This is the best redemption option for your Delta miles.

Delta Flights. Like most frequent flyer programs nowadays, Delta does not publish an award chart. You’ll need to enter your flight information to see what the award trip would cost in miles. Award pricing depends on route, demand and cash price of the ticket. There are no blackout dates.

We’ve seen domestic coach award travel
for 25,000 SkyMiles roundtrip.

Airline Partners

You can also book award travel with Air Europa, Air Tahiti Nui, Czech Airlines, Garuda Indonesia and Kenya Airways, but you’ll need to contact Delta Reservations to do so.

Miles + Cash. If you don’t have enough SkyMiles for an award flight, you can pay with a combination of miles and cash (select flights only).

Pay With Miles. Exclusively for select Delta SkyMiles credit card members, Pay with Miles lets you use your miles at a rate of $0.01 each to book paid Delta and Delta Connection flights. Redeem in increments of 5,000 miles.

Seat Upgrades. Use Delta miles to upgrade to a higher class of travel. Both paid and award travel qualify.

Delta Private Jets. Redemption starts at 2.5 million miles for a $25,000 Jet Card. There’s enough room to take four passengers on a seamless, effortless and luxurious trip.

*Click here for more information.

Use your SkyMiles for vacation packages inspired by hundreds of destinations, thousands of accommodations and endless activities. With the Miles to Go program, you can redeem Delta miles when you book flights, hotel stays, rental cars and activities as part of your vacation package.

Use your SkyMiles for a Delta Sky Club membership:

As you enjoy your time in a Delta Sky Club, you can use your miles to treat yourself to a premium beverage, like an Old Fashioned or a Gin Fizz.

*For updated information, click here for our source.

Use your SkyMiles for various products and services through Delta Reservations, including:

Bid on exclusive events and access, like going backstage, walking the red carpet and stepping on the field of your favorite team. Check out the SkyMiles Experiences page to see what’s up for auction.

SkyMiles Marketplace. Exclusively for Medallion members and Delta SkyMiles credit cardholders, redeem your miles for a wide variety of merchandise, hotel stays, car rentals, gift cards and more.

SkyMiles JTB Japan Package Tour Voucher. Select members living in Japan can use up to 30,000 SkyMiles each calendar year for this program.

Magazines. Use your SkyMiles to subscribe to your favorite magazines, including Entertainment Weekly, Sports Illustrated, Vogue and more.

*Click here for more information.

Gift Miles. You can send the gift of miles in increments of 2,000 to up to four recipients at a time. Transaction fees do apply.

Transfer Miles. You can transfer miles in increments of 1,000 to up to four recipients at at time. Transaction fees do apply.

Donate Miles. Use your SkyMiles to change lives. Choose from a variety of charitable organizations around the world.

*Click here for more information.

Domestic Travel. You can get $0.012 for each of your SkyMiles when you redeem for domestic economy fare. That value goes up to $0.013 per mile when you book domestic business class tickets.

Business Class on International Flights. You’ll get an average of $0.024 each SkyMile for business class tickets on international flights. That number drops to $0.08 each if you book economy fare.

Seems counterintuitive, but adding segments to your trip can lower your award ticket price. That’s because flying in and out of Delta’s hubs will cost you a lot more, the result of the airline taking advantage of little or no competition at its prime airports.

If you live somewhere with multiple airports, be sure to compare all your options. Consider using your SkyMiles on routes that are also operated by Delta’s competition.

Use Delta’s five-week search function to look at prices for five weeks worth of flights. By scrolling though, you’ll get a better sense of what the “normal” price is for your itinerary and avoid overpaying for a flight.

Delta offers frequent award sales and promotions. Past deals include:

• 10,000 SkyMiles for domestic flights, one way.
• 32,000 SkyMiles for flights to Europe, roundtrip.
• Promotions to China and Japan.

These sales are updated every Thursday. Check out the SkyMiles Deals page for more details.