Benefits of Delta Air Lines Credit Cards
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Delta Air Lines offers four credit cards for consumers, with annual fees ranging from $0 to $650. Issued by American Express, the cards come with a host of benefits worth considering if you’re a frequent — or even infrequent — Delta customer. They range from core features you would expect on any airline card to “nice-to-have” perks and protections. And the higher the annual fee, the more benefits you'll get.
The four cards:
Frequent-flyer miles
1. Spending rewards
All four cards earn miles in Delta's frequent-flyer program, known as Delta SkyMiles. Here's a comparison chart:
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card (Annual fee: $0.) |
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Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card (Annual fee: $0 intro for the first year, then $150.) |
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Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card (Annual fee: $350.) |
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Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (Annual fee: $650.) |
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*Effective 2/1/25, Reserve Card Members will receive 15 Visits per year to the Delta Sky Club. To earn an unlimited number of visits each year, the total eligible purchases on the card must equal $75,000 or more the previous year. To earn unlimited visits in 2025, you’ll need to spend this amount between 1/1/24 and 12/31/24.
2. New-cardholder bonuses
Each card gives new cardholders the opportunity to earn a bonus by meeting a spending requirement in the first few months. In general, the higher the fee, the bigger the bonus:
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card: Earn 10,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months. Terms Apply.
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card: Earn 50,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $2,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Earn 60,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Earn 70,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $5,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Terms Apply.
NerdWallet values Delta miles at 1.2 cents each. This is a baseline value, drawn from real-world data on hundreds of economy routes, not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 1.2 cents or more in value from your Delta miles.
Airport perks
Free checked bags, early boarding privileges, access to Delta's airport lounges and TSA PreCheck or Global Entry can make your trip a lot more pleasant. The benefits you receive will vary depending on which Delta card you hold.
3. Free checked bags
Annual-fee cards: The first checked bag is free for you and up to eight other people traveling on your reservation also get a free bag. (Terms apply.) This can be a big money-saver, since a single checked bag would otherwise cost $70 round trip.
No-annual-fee card: No free checked bags.
» Learn more: The guide to Delta’s ‘Bags on Time’ guarantee
4. Early boarding
Annual-fee cards: You'll get to board the plane early — before general boarding begins — to get settled and claim space in the overhead bins for your carry-on, a perk many travelers prize.
No-annual-fee card: No early boarding privileges.
5. Lounge access
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Through Jan. 31, 2025, cardholders will receive complimentary access to the Delta SkyClub when flying on Delta-operated flights, or for $50 if traveling on a partner airline. Up to two guests may enter for a fee of $50 per person. These benefits are not included on basic economy tickets, which receive no SkyClub benefit. Effective Feb. 1, 2025, cardholders will receive 15 visits per year to the Delta SkyClub, or unlimited visits if you spend $75,000 on the card in a calendar year. After 15 visits, cardholders may purchase Delta SkyClub access for $50 per person, per visit, and will also receive four one-time guest passes each calendar year.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card, Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: No SkyClub access.
6. TSA PreCheck or Global Entry
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Receive one statement credit every four years to cover the application fee for Global Entry, and every four and a half years for TSA Pre Check.
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card: No TSA PreCheck or Global Entry benefit.
Deals in the air
7. In-flight savings
All Delta cards offer the same 20% statement credit for such in-flight purchases as food and alcoholic beverages on Delta-operated flights. In-flight wireless Internet access is excluded. Terms apply.
Progress toward elite status
8. MQD
"Medallion Qualifying Dollars", or MQDs, are dollars spent on Delta flights, partners and on a Delta credit card, and are required in order to earn elite status.
The two priciest Delta cards allow cardholders to earn some MQDs automatically. Both cards offer an MQD head start of $2,500 MQD's each qualification year. Plus, spending on the cards earns the following MQD boosts:
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Earn 1 MQD for every $20 in purchases made on the card in a calendar year.
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Earn 1 MQD for every $10 in purchases made on the card in a calendar year.
Effective 1/1/24, Status Boost will no longer be available, and there will be a new way to earn toward Medallion Status with the Card. Learn more at delta.com/skymilesprogramchanges.
Travel perks and protections
9. No foreign transaction fees
Many credit cards charge a fee on purchases outside the U.S. These four Delta cards don't.
10. Insurance and assistance
Because these are airline cards, their travel-protection benefits are notable. Most come from the American Express network, instead of being exclusive to these cards. They include:
Baggage insurance.
Car rental loss and damage insurance.
Travel accident insurance.
Roadside assistance.
Global assist hotline.
More about these cards
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card: Complete card details | NerdWallet review
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card: Complete card details | NerdWallet review
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Complete card details | NerdWallet review
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Complete card details | NerdWallet review
To view rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card, see this page. To view rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card, see this page. To view rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card, see this page. To view rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, see this page.
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