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19 Best Ways To Earn Lots of Delta SkyMiles [2024]

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Table of Contents

Enroll in delta skymiles, earn skymiles with credit cards (recommended), earning skymiles for traveling, earning skymiles by shopping and dining, special ways to earn skymiles, final thoughts.

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In addition to being one of the largest airlines in the U.S., Delta Air Lines operates its largest hub at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) — the busiest airport in the world.

SkyMiles, the Delta Air Lines loyalty program, is a dollar-based program. Unlike mileage-based redemption programs where miles are earned based on distance or segments traveled, under this program, bonus SkyMiles are earned based on the dollar amount spent.

In this post, you’ll learn which credit cards earn Delta SkyMiles as well as specific strategies you can implement to maximize the number of SkyMiles you earn for each purchase (whether or not you use a Delta SkyMiles credit card).

You don’t need an affiliated credit card to begin earning SkyMiles; just sign up online for a Delta SkyMiles account. When you sign up for a membership, they assign you a unique Delta SkyMiles account number that you use to earn SkyMiles in a variety of ways.

Miles are earned by making purchases and can be redeemed for awards. As a member, you’ll begin earning 5 bonus SkyMiles for every $1 you spend on flights (you will earn more if you use a Delta SkyMiles credit card).

Before 2024, in addition to redeemable SkyMiles, there used to be Medallion Qualifying Miles which were used to qualify you for elite status. However, starting in 2024, achieving elite status (Silver Medallion, Gold Medallion, Platinum Medallion, Diamond Medallion) is now solely dependent on earning Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQDs).

1. Delta Air Lines Credit Cards

American Express offers various personal and business Delta credit cards . Most of the cards offer a welcome bonus offer once you meet a spending requirement. Because there are several options, you should choose the card that works best for your situation.

It’s important to evaluate your spending habits before making a decision.

This card provides bonus SkyMiles on all purchases, along with a free checked bag, priority boarding, and discounted award flights.

Apply With Confidence

Know if you're approved with  no credit score impact.

If you're approved and accept this Card, your credit score may be impacted.

Frequent Delta flyers will love the Delta SkyMiles ® Gold American Express Card . The card offers great benefits that will help save you money, effectively mimics low-level elite status with Delta SkyMiles, and helps you earn miles even faster, all for a low annual fee. Let’s dive into the benefits to see if the Delta Gold card is a good fit for your needs.

• $100 Delta Stays Credit: You can earn up to $100 back annually on eligible prepaid Delta Stays bookings on delta.com .
• Receive a $200 Delta Flight Credit to use toward future travel after you spend $10,000 in purchases in a year.
• Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
• Moderate annual fee
• Earn rate for Delta flights is relatively low compared to other travel cards
• Earn 40,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $2,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Enjoy a $0 introductory Annual Fee for the first year, then $150.
• Delta SkyMiles ® Gold American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
• $200 Delta Flight Credit: After you spend $10,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can receive a $200 Delta Flight Credit to use toward future travel.
• Earn 2X Miles on Delta purchases, at U.S. Supermarkets and at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
• You can check your first bag free on Delta flights, saving up to $70 on a round-trip Delta flight per person. For a family of four that’s a potential savings of up to $280 per round-trip flight.
• Receive Zone 5 Priority Boarding on Delta flights; board early, stow your carry-on bag and settle in sooner.
• $100 Delta Stays Credit: Get up to $100 back per year as a statement credit after using your Delta SkyMiles ® Gold American Express Card to book prepaid hotels or vacation rentals through Delta Stays on delta.com.
• Take up to $50 off the cost of your flight for every 5,000 miles you redeem with Pay with Miles when you book on delta.com.
• Receive a 20% savings in the form of a statement credit on eligible Delta in-flight purchases after using your Card.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees.
• With Send & Split ® , you can send money and split your Card purchases with any other Venmo or PayPal user, directly from the Amex App. Enroll today.
• Terms Apply.
• APR: 20.99%-29.99% Variable
• Foreign Transaction Fees:  None

Delta SkyMiles Frequent Flyer Program

Frequent Delta travelers will enjoy this card's bonus categories, benefits, and ability to reach higher levels of elite status.

The Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card can be a great option for those seeking additional ways to obtain a higher level of status — or to maintain their current status — with the airline.

A key feature of this card is the ability to earn bonus Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQDs) that are essential for earning Delta status. This could help you get closer to earning a handful of valuable benefits with the airline.

• 3x SkyMiles per $1 spent on Delta purchases
• 3x SkyMiles per $1 spent on purchases made directly with hotels
• 2x SkyMiles per $1 spent at restaurants (including takeout and delivery) and U.S. supermarkets
• $350 annual fee ( rates & fees )
• Does not earn transferable rewards
• Earn 50,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Receive a Companion Certificate on Main Cabin domestic, Caribbean, or Central American roundtrip flights each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Ticket requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights and no more than $250 for roundtrip international flights (both for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
• Receive $2,500 Medallion ® Qualification Dollars each Medallion Qualification Year and get closer to Status with MQD Headstart.
• Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
• Earn $1 Medallion ® Qualification Dollar for each $20 of purchases made on your Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card in a calendar year and get a boost toward achieving Medallion Status for next Medallion Year.
• Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.
• Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide including takeout and delivery in the U.S., and at U.S. supermarkets.
• Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
• $120 Resy Credit: When you use your enrolled Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $10 each month in statement credits.
• $120 Rideshare Credit: earn up to $10 in statement credits each month after using your Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card on U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
• Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights.
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 years for a TSA PreCheck ® (through a TSA official enrollment provider) application fee, when charged to your Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
• Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card Members with an eligible ticket will be added to the Complimentary Upgrade list, after Delta SkyMiles Medallion Members and Reserve Card Members.
• $350 Annual Fee.

Delta Air Lines SkyMiles

Delta loyalists will love the fast track to Delta elite status, lounge access, baggage benefits, and upgrade priority with the Delta Reserve card.

The Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card is a stellar option for frequent travelers who always fly with Delta thanks to its MQD Headstart towards status boost, lounge access, annual companion certificate, and many other great benefits.

Here is a full look at everything the Delta Reserve card can offer to you to help you decide whether the card deserves a place in your wallet.

• 3x SkyMiles per $1 on Delta purchases
• 1x SkyMile per $1 on all other eligible purchases
• Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights.
• $650 annual fee ( rates & fees )
• No bonus categories other than Delta purchases
• Earn 60,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $5,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Enjoy complimentary access to the Delta Sky Club. 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 starting on 2/1/25, the total eligible purchases on the Card must equal $75,000 or more between 1/1/24 and 12/31/24, and each calendar year thereafter. Once all 15 Visits have been used, Eligible Card Members may purchase additional Delta Sky Club Visits at a per-Visit rate of $50 per person using the Card.
• Receive four Delta Sky Club ® One-Time Guest Passes each year when you fly Delta so you can share the experience with family and friends.
• Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion ® Lounge when you book a Delta flight with your Reserve Card.
• Earn $1 Medallion ® Qualification Dollar for each $10 of purchases made on your Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card in a calendar year and get a boost toward achieving elevated Medallion Status for next Medallion Year.
• Receive a Companion Certificate on First Class, Delta Comfort+ ® , or Main Cabin domestic, Caribbean, or Central American roundtrip flights each year after renewal of your Card. The Companion Ticket requires payment of government-imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights and no more than $250 for roundtrip international flights (both for itineraries with up to four flight segments). Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.
• $240 Resy Credit: When you use your Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card for eligible purchases with U.S. Resy restaurants, you can earn up to $20 each month in statement credits. Enrollment required.
• $120 Rideshare Credit: Earn up to $10 back in statement credits each month after you use your Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card to pay for U.S. rideshare purchases with select providers. Enrollment required.
• Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card Members get 15% off when using miles to book Award Travel on Delta flights through delta.com and the Fly Delta app. Discount not applicable to partner-operated flights or to taxes and fees.
• With your Card receive upgrade priority over other Medallion Members within the same Medallion level and fare class.
• Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card Members with an eligible ticket will be added to the Complimentary Upgrade list, after Delta SkyMiles Medallion Members.
• Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.
• $650 Annual Fee.

Delta SkyMiles Airline Loyalty Program

Hot Tip:  This article is focused on earning bonus frequent flyer SkyMiles, but some of these credit cards also offer benefits like access to Delta Sky Club . Effective February 1, 2025, Reserve card members will receive 15 visits per year to the Delta Sky Club; to earn an unlimited number of visits each year starting on February 1, 2025, the total eligible purchases on the card must equal $75,000 or more between January 1 and December 31, 2024, and each calendar year thereafter.

2. American Express Membership Rewards Credit Cards

Delta Air Lines is an American Express Membership Rewards transfer partner . This means that you can rack up points by making purchases with American Express cards that earn Membership Rewards .

Transferring your points is done at a 1:1 ratio. Go ahead and purchase flights for 3x SkyMiles (instead of 2x) with a card such as the American Express ® Gold Card and transfer them over later to your Delta SkyMiles account.

Recommended American Express Cards (Personal)

The Amex Platinum reigns supreme for luxury travel, offering the best airport lounge access plus generous statement credits, and complimentary elite status.

When it comes to cards that offer top-notch benefits, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better card out there than The Platinum Card ® from American Express.

Make no mistake — the Amex Platinum card  is a premium card with a premium price tag. With amazing benefits like best-in-class airport lounge access , hotel elite status, and tremendous value in annual statement credits, it can easily prove to be one of the most lucrative cards in your wallet year after year.

• The best airport lounge access out of any card (by far) — enjoy access to over 1,400 worldwide lounges, including the luxurious Amex Centurion Lounges, Priority Pass lounges, Plaza Premium Lounges, and many more!
• 5x points per dollar spent on flights purchased directly with the airline or with AmexTravel.com (up to $500,000 per year)
• 5x points per dollar spent on prepaid hotels booked with AmexTravel.com
• $695 annual fee ( rates and fees )
• Airline credit does not cover airfare (only incidentals like checked bags)
• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards ® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
• Earn 5X Membership Rewards ® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards ® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
• $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts ® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card ® . The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card ® on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
• The American Express Global Lounge Collection ® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card ® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card ® .
• $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Terms Apply.
• $189 CLEAR ® Plus Credit: CLEAR ® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues.
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 year period for TSA PreCheck ® application fee for a 5-year plan only (through a TSA PreCheck ® official enrollment provider), when charged to your Platinum Card ® . Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
• Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.com on your Platinum Card ® . That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
• Unlock access to exclusive reservations and special dining experiences with Global Dining Access by Resy when you add your Platinum Card ® to your Resy profile.
• $695 annual fee.
• APR: See Pay Over Time APR

American Express Membership Rewards

Hot Tip:  Check to see if you’re eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 125k (or 150k) points with the Amex Platinum. The current public offer is 80,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

This is the best card for food lovers who dine out at restaurants (worldwide), order take-out and want big rewards at U.S. supermarkets!

The American Express ® Gold Card  is a game-changer.

With this card, you can earn 4x Membership Rewards points at restaurants and you’ll also earn 4x Membership Rewards points at U.S. supermarkets on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1x.

There isn’t another card on the market that offers a 1-2 punch like this. Of course, there are several other benefits of the Gold Card as well, including extra monthly dining rewards and more.

• 4x points per dollar at restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.
• 4x points per dollar at U.S. supermarkets, up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases; and 1x thereafter
• 3x points per dollar on flights purchased directly from airlines or at AmexTravel.com
• $250 annual fee (see rates and fees )
• No lounge access
• Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards ® points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Earn 4X Membership Rewards ® Points at Restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S., and earn 4X Membership Rewards ® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X).
• Earn 3X Membership Rewards ® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com.
• $120 Uber Cash on Gold: Add your Gold Card to your Uber account and each month automatically get $10 in Uber Cash for Uber Eats orders or Uber rides in the U.S., totaling up to $120 per year.
• $120 Dining Credit: Satisfy your cravings and earn up to $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the American Express ® Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations. Enrollment required.
• Get a $100 experience credit with a minimum two-night stay when you book The Hotel Collection through American Express Travel. Experience credit varies by property.
• Choose the color that suits your style. Gold or Rose Gold.
• Annual Fee is $250.

Hot Tip:  Check to see if you’re eligible for a welcome bonus offer of up to 90,000 points with the Amex Gold card. The current public offer is 60,000 points. (This targeted offer was independently researched and may not be available to all applicants.)

If you’re a business owner, see our list of the best Amex business credit cards .

3. Marriott Bonvoy Credit Cards

You can  earn Marriott Bonvoy points  and transfer those to Delta at a transfer rate of 3:1. You also get 5,000 bonus SkyMiles if you transfer in increments of 60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points — so 60,000 Bonvoy points can turn into 25,000 Delta SkyMiles.

Recommended Marriott Bonvoy Cards

A great option for Marriott hotel fans who want a no annual fee card and automatic Marriott Bonvoy elite status.

Casual travelers who like to frequent properties that are part of the Marriott Bonvoy collection of brands may want to consider the Marriott Bonvoy Bold ® Credit Card.

The Marriott Bold card rewards cardholders for Marriott stays and gives them a boost towards Marriott Bonvoy elite status.

• Up to 14x points per $1 on Marriott purchases
• 2x points at grocery stores, rideshare, select food delivery, select streaming, and internet, cable, and phone services
• 5 Elite Night Credits each year
• Lower point earn rate than other Marriott Bonvoy cards
• Marriott Bonvoy Silver Elite status is the lowest status tier
• Earn 60,000 Bonus Points plus 1 Free Night Award after you spend $2,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. Free Night valued at 50,000 points. Certain hotels have resort fees.
• Pay no annual fee with the Marriott Bonvoy Bold ® Credit Card from Chase ® !
• Earn up to 14X total points per $1 spent at thousands of hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy ® with the Marriott Bonvoy Bold ® Card.
• New! Earn 2X points for every $1 spent at grocery stores, rideshare, select food delivery, select streaming, and internet, cable, and phone services.
• 1X point for every $1 spent on all other purchases.
• New! Travel now, pay later – Break up purchases into equal monthly payments with no interest plus no plan fees on qualifying travel purchases. Terms apply.
• Member FDIC
• APR: 21.49%–28.49% Variable

Marriott Bonvoy

Marriott loyalists will love this card's annual Free Night Award, automatic elite status, and up to 17x points per $1 on Marriott hotel stays.

If you’re a frequent traveler and a Marriott loyalist, there’s a lot to love about the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless ® Credit Card . The card comes packed with several great benefits like a free hotel night once a year, automatic Silver Elite status (with a fast-track to Gold Elite status), and multiple options for redeeming points.

• Earn big when you use your card at thousands of participating Marriott Bonvoy hotels
• Earn big at grocery stores, gas stations, and dining
• Automatic Silver Elite Status
• $95 annual fee
• Marriott Silver Elite Status is the lowest status tier
• Earn 3 Free Night Awards (each night valued up to 50,000 points) after qualifying purchases.
• Earn 3X points per $1 on the first $6,000 spent in combined purchases each year on grocery stores, gas stations, and dining.
• Earn 1 Elite Night Credit towards Elite Status for every $5,000 you spend.
• 1 Free Night Award (valued up to 35,000 points) every year after account anniversary.
• Earn up to 17X total points per $1 spent at thousands of hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy ® with the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless ® Card.
• Receive 15 Elite Night Credits annually, automatic Silver Elite status, and path to Gold Status when you spend $35,000 on purchases each calendar year.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees. Your points don't expire as long as you make purchases on your card every 24 months.

The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy card gives you automatic Marriott elite status and helps you earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on your everyday purchases.

The Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express ® Card , the latest mid-tier offering in the Marriott Bonvoy lineup of cards, offers cardholders automatic elite status and ways to earn more Marriott Bonvoy points on each of their stays and daily purchases.

• 6x points per $1 at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy
• 4x points per $1 at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on up to $15,000 in combined purchases per calendar year, then 2X points)
• 2x points per $1 on all other purchases
• $250 annual fee ( rates and fees )
• Free Night Award certificate is not an automatic benefit
• Earn 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $5,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
• Earn 6X Marriott Bonvoy ® points for each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy.
• Earn 4X points at restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets (on up to $15,000 in combined purchases at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets per calendar year, then 2X points).
• Earn 2X points on all other eligible purchases.
• Marriott Bonvoy 1K Bonus Points Per Stay: Earn 1,000 Marriott Bonvoy ® bonus points per paid eligible stay booked directly with Marriott for properties participating in Marriott Bonvoy.
• With complimentary Marriott Bonvoy Gold Elites status, earn up to 2.5X points from Marriott Bonvoy ® on eligible hotel purchases with the 25% Bonus Points on stays benefit, available for Qualifying Rates.
• Marriott Bonvoy Bevy Free Night Award: Earn 1 Free Night Award after spending $15,000 on eligible purchases on your Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ Card in a calendar year. Award can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 50,000 Marriott Bonvoy ® points) at a hotel participating in Marriott Bonvoy ® . Certain hotels have resort fees.
• 15 Elite Night Credits: Each calendar year with your Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express Card ® you can receive 15 Elite Night Credits toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy ® Elite status. Limitations apply per Marriott Bonvoy member account. Benefit is not exclusive to Cards offered by American Express. Terms apply.
• Plan It ® is a payment option that lets you split up purchases of $100 or more into equal monthly installments with a fixed fee. Plus, you'll still earn rewards the way you usually do.
• $250 Annual Fee.

A premium card for Marriott fans who want perks like an annual statement credit and Free Night Award, plus a fast track to Marriott elite status.

The Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® Card  is a premium card designed with road warriors and Marriott Bonvoy loyalists in mind.

So is the card a worthwhile addition to your wallet?

• 6x points per $1 at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy   program
• 3x points per $1 on flights booked directly with airlines and restaurants worldwide
• Steep annual fee of $650 ( rates and fees )
• 6x points per $1 is the same earn rate offered with lower annual fee alternatives like the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express ® Card
• Earn 95,000 Marriott Bonvoy bonus points after you use your new Card to make $6,000 in purchases within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
• $300 Brilliant Dining Credit: Each calendar year, get up to $300 (up to $25 per month) in statement credits for eligible purchases made on the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® Card at restaurants worldwide.
• With Marriott Bonvoy Platinum Elite status, you can receive room upgrades, including enhanced views or suites, when available at select properties and booked with a Qualifying Rate.
• Earn 6X Marriott Bonvoy points for each dollar of eligible purchases at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy ® . 3X points at restaurants worldwide and on flights booked directly with airlines. 2X points on all other eligible purchases.
• Free Night Award: Receive 1 Free Night Award every year after your Card renewal month. Award can be used for one night (redemption level at or under 85,000 Marriott Bonvoy points) at hotels participating in Marriott Bonvoy ® . Certain hotels have resort fees.
• Each calendar year after spending $60,000 on eligible purchases on your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® Card, you will be eligible to select a Brilliant Earned Choice Award benefit. You can only earn one Earned Choice Award per calendar year. See https://www.choice-benefit.marriott.com/brilliant for Award options.
• $100 Marriott Bonvoy Property Credit: Enjoy your stay. Receive up to a $100 property credit for qualifying charges at The Ritz-Carlton ® or St. Regis ® when you book direct using a special rate for a two-night minimum stay using your Card.
• Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck ® : Receive either a statement credit every 4 years after you apply for Global Entry ($100) or a statement credit every 4.5 years after you apply for a five-year membership for TSA PreCheck ® (up to $85 through a TSA PreCheck official enrollment provider) and pay the application fee with your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® Card. If approved for Global Entry, at no additional charge, you will receive access to TSA PreCheck.
• Each calendar year with your Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® Card you can receive 25 Elite Night Credits toward the next level of Marriott Bonvoy ® Elite status. Limitations apply per Marriott Bonvoy member account. Benefit is not exclusive to Cards offered by American Express. Terms apply.
• Enroll in Priority Pass™ Select, which offers unlimited airport lounge visits to over 1,200 lounges in over 130 countries, regardless of which carrier or class you are flying. This allows you to relax before or between flights. You can enjoy snacks, drinks, and internet access in a quiet, comfortable location.
• No Foreign Transaction Fees on international purchases.
• With Cell Phone Protection, you can be reimbursed, the lesser of, your repair or replacement costs following damage, such as a cracked screen, or theft for a maximum of $800 per claim when your cell phone line is listed on a wireless bill and the prior month's wireless bill was paid by an Eligible Card Account. A $50 deductible will apply to each approved claim with a limit of 2 approved claims per 12-month period. Additional terms and conditions apply. Coverage is provided by New Hampshire Insurance Company, an AIG Company.

4. Refer a Friend to a Credit Card

American Express offers bonuses for referring others to get Delta credit cards. So you can earn SkyMiles for referring a friend who gets approved for a Delta credit card. The amount you can get for a successful referral varies, and there are also annual caps that to be aware of. For more information, check out our guide to the American Express Refer a Friend program.

5. Book Delta Flights

You earn SkyMiles based on the price of each ticket for a Delta-marketed or Delta-ticketed flight (minus government-imposed taxes and fees). A round-trip flight and a one-way both earn SkyMiles. Plus, SkyMiles members earn MQDs and SkyMiles toward future award travel when flying to over 275 destinations worldwide.

How do you know if a flight is Delta-marketed? It will have the letters “DL” in the flight number. Delta-ticketed flights have a ticket number that begins with “006.”

6. Credit Partner Flights to Delta

You also earn SkyMiles when you travel on flights marketed or operated by Delta’s SkyTeam partners . The number of SkyMiles and MQDs you earn is based on several factors, including which partner you’re flying on, the fare class, and the length of the flight. Generally speaking, longer flights, flights in premium classes, and flights with Delta’s core partners earn more miles and MQDs.

Here are a few examples to give you an idea of what you can expect

• A flight booked in Business Class (fare class J) on Aeromexico (one of Delta’s core global airline partners) earns redeemable miles equivalent to 200% of the length of the flight and MQDs of 40% of the flight’s length.
• A similar Business Class flight (fare class J, C, or D) on noncore partner China Eastern only earns 100% redeemable miles and 20% MQDs.
• A flight on SkyTeam partner Garuda Indonesia in deep discounted economy (fare class T) only earns redeemable miles of 25% of the flight’s length and MQDs of 5% of the flight’s length.

Visit Delta’s partner page for full earning details by partner.

Hot Tip: Did you know that you could earn Delta SkyMiles by flying on one of its partner airlines? For more information, check out this in-depth guide to help you know where to credit your airline miles .

7. Earn Medallion Status

The 4 elite status tiers in Delta SkyMiles (Silver Medallion, Gold Medallion, Platinum Medallion, Diamond Medallion) earn SkyMiles at a rate of 7x, 8x, 9x, and 11x per $1, respectively.

Once you reach 5,000 Medallion Qualification Dollars, you achieve Silver Medallion Status .

From that point on, you earn an additional 2x SkyMiles for Delta purchases … on top of the 5x SkyMiles you earn as a SkyMiles member and 2x SkyMiles for using your SkyMiles credit card. That’s a total of 9x SkyMiles for purchases you make through Delta with your SkyMiles credit card!

Interested in how you can fast-track your way to elite status with Delta? In addition to redeemable SkyMiles, you earn 1 MQD per dollar spent on the ticket price for a Delta-marketed flight operated by Delta or a partner airlines. The only exception is flights in Basic Economy, which do not earn SkyMiles

8. Book Delta Vacations

Take a trip with Delta Vacations (including flight and hotel reservations) and earn up to 10,000 SkyMiles toward award travel. All you have to do is provide your SkyMiles number during the booking process.

The number of SkyMiles you earn varies depending on the package, but you get extra SkyMiles for including qualified car rentals, choosing a Preferred Pick hotel, and using your Delta SkyMiles credit card from American Express.

9. Book With Hotel Partners

Stay with one of the many Delta SkyMiles hotel partners and earn extra SkyMiles for each night.

10. Transfer From Hotel Loyalty Programs

You can top up your SkyMiles balance by transferring in SkyMiles from several hotel loyalty programs. We generally do not recommend this, as it is not the best redemption value for your points.

Note that some of these hotels have their own credit cards as well. Check out our guides to Hilton Honors credit cards , IHG One Rewards credit cards , and World of Hyatt credit cards to learn more.

11. Book With Airbnb

Delta’s partnership with Airbnb allows you to earn 1 SkyMile for each $1 spent with the company.

Read our guide to earning miles and points for Airbnb stays to find out how you can benefit from this Delta Airbnb partnership.

12. Book With Car Rental, Limo, and Shuttle Partners

You can also earn SkyMiles for car rentals and other transportation services. The table below shows the participating companies and the SkyMiles offered.

Hot Tip: Make sure you’re covered without paying extra! See our guide on the best credit cards for car rental insurance .

13. Book Cruises Through Partners

Delta Cruises offers bonus SkyMiles on cruises to popular destinations like Europe, Alaska, and the Caribbean. Sail with one of the big cruise lines and earn 2 miles per $1 spent on your purchase price, excluding port charges, port expenses, taxes, and travel protection.

SkyMiles members enjoy big discounts and access to exclusive offers. One recent deal offered triple SkyMiles (up to 30,000!) on select bookings.

Hot Tip:  Interested in booking that exciting adventure but unsure what to pack? Check out our ultimate packing list for cruises !

14. Use Lyft to Earn Miles

You’re also eligible to earn SkyMiles by linking your Lyft account and taking rides!

You will earn according to the following scheme:

• 1 SkyMile per $1 spent on every U.S. ride
• 2 SkyMiles per $1 spent on airport rides

If you’re a frequent ride-share user and value SkyMiles, this is another way to boost your SkyMiles balance!

Hot Tip:  If you’re a seasoned Lyft rider, don’t miss our article on the perks and benefits for Lyft passengers !

An easy way to earn SkyMiles is through airline shopping and dining programs. Check out how below:

15. SkyMiles Shopping

Earn Delta SkyMiles while you shop hundreds of online stores with SkyMiles Shopping . You get access to millions of products in 1 spot! Look for seasonal sales, coupon code discounts, and free shipping deals.

The SkyMall Shopping site is easy to navigate. Follow these steps to get started:

• Visit SkyMilesShopping.com .
• Enter your SkyMiles membership number.
• Click on an offer, product, or store.
• Shop and earn Delta SkyMiles for your purchases.

Hot Tip: You don’t need to pay with your Delta SkyMiles credit card to make purchases through SkyMiles Shopping. If you do, however, you earn 1 SkyMile per $1 on top of your bonus SkyMiles for shopping at the store!

16. SkyMiles Dining

Earn SkyMiles for eating at restaurants when you sign up for the Delta SkyMiles Dining program. It really is one of the most passive ways to accumulate SkyMiles for an activity you’re probably already doing!

Hot Tip: Link your card to SkyMiles Dining and earn 3 to 5 SkyMiles per $1 whenever you dine at a participating restaurant. You don’t need to utilize your Delta credit card ,  but if you do, you earn 1 additional SkyMile on that meal.

17. Shopping at Retailers

Simple ways to earn frequent flyer program SkyMiles with Delta include purchasing cookies, flowers, and other gifts:

18. Paying Utility Bills

Check out this table of all the ways you can earn SkyMiles through your electric and gas services:

Unfortunately, there are times when the SkyMiles offered aren’t as valuable as you would think once you consider all the terms. It’s always advisable to research an offer before signing up. Figure out which deals make the most sense for your financial situation before you take an offer just to earn bonus points.

19. Buy SkyMiles

Finally, you can purchase Delta SkyMiles at a rate of 3.5 cents per SkyMile. You must purchase a minimum of 2,000 SkyMiles, and there is an annual maximum of 60,000 SkyMiles. SkyMiles must be bought in increments of 2,000.

It really is incredible how many ways there are to earn miles with Delta SkyMiles!

In addition to the welcome bonus offers provided with the Delta credit cards, you have numerous shopping, dining, travel, and other special ways to earn tons of SkyMiles.

Get started on implementing the strategies we’ve discussed, and, before you know it, you will have seemingly endless SkyMiles at your disposal. These will be useful when you want to redeem SkyMiles for a vacation!

The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Bold ® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer. The information regarding the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless ® Credit Card was independently collected by Upgraded Points and not provided nor reviewed by the issuer.

For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles ® Gold American Express Card, click here . For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card, click here . For rates and fees of Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card, click here . For rates and fees of the American Express ® Gold Card, click  here . For rates and fees of The Platinum Card ® from American Express, click here . For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Bevy™ American Express ® Card, click here . For rates and fees of the Marriott Bonvoy Brilliant ® American Express ® card, click here .

Frequently Asked Questions

What are skymiles.

The Delta Air Lines loyalty program is called SkyMiles . Members earn miles and a variety of benefits for traveling with Delta, depending on their level of status. Miles can be redeemed for awards flights.

What are the benefits of enrolling in Delta SkyMiles?

Members receive benefits such as bonus miles, free checked bags, priority boarding, and more, depending on membership status. Once enough miles accrue, you can redeem them for travel or other options.

What are the Delta SkyMiles membership tiers?

Delta SkyMiles has 4 membership tiers: Silver Medallion, Gold Medallion, Platinum Medallion, and Diamond Medallion. You must meet a specific dollar threshold each year to advance to the next level.

Where can I sign up for Delta SkyMiles?

Enroll in SkyMiles on the Delta SkyMiles website .

Where can I sign in to my Delta SkyMiles account?

You can sign in to your Delta SkyMiles account at delta.com .

Does Delta SkyMiles have airline partners?

As a member of SkyTeam , Delta partners with airlines such as Air France, Czech Airlines, and KLM. Other Delta partners include Hawaiian Airlines and WestJet .

How many Delta SkyMiles are needed for a free flight?

You can redeem Delta SkyMiles for free flights on Delta or any of its partner airlines. You can also transfer points to and from SkyMiles partners, including hotels. Since Delta no longer publishes an award chart, the number of miles needed for a flight can vary. Check out the SkyMiles deals page for great discounts on award flights!

When do Delta SkyMiles expire?

Delta miles do not expire. However, your account can be terminated for fraudulent or other unfavorable activities.

How do I redeem Delta SkyMiles?

• Visit Delta.com or the Delta app and log in to your SkyMiles account.
• Select Book a Flight .
• Under the Show Price In  section, select miles .
• Enter your flight preferences and select Find Flights .
• Choose the flight you want to book, complete the purchase, and you’re all set!

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About Dan Miller

Realizing that it wasn’t all first class flights and 5-star hotels, Dan started the  Points With a Crew  blog in 2014, with the aim of helping families (especially large families) to use miles, points and credit card rewards to take that trip that they might have thought they couldn’t afford. He has spent over 10 years covering developments in the travel rewards credit card space. His expertise extends to all things personal finance, including student loans, budgeting and real estate, and his work has been featured in sites all over the Internet, including NerdWallet, Forbes, Business Insider, Rocket Mortgage, CreditCards.com, Bankrate, Turbotax, Credit Karma and Intuit Mint.

Discover the exact steps we use to get into  1,400+ airport lounges worldwide, for free   (even if you’re flying economy!) .

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The Unofficial Delta SkyMiles Award Chart for Flights from the U.S.

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The Delta SkyMiles loyalty program can be frustrating at times. The absence of a defined award chart, sometimes astronomical award pricing, and all too frequent devaluations are cringe-worthy — such as the massive change to the program announced in September . Knowing which awards present great (or even fair) value is a challenge — even for those who regularly pay attention to the program.

To alleviate some of the award price unclarity, we've tracked tens of thousands of Delta award prices since the beginning of 2023. Below, you'll find the cheapest and average prices that we've seen this year.

Here's a look into the new unofficial Delta award chart and an overview of the state of the SkyMiles program.

Why Delta Removed Its Award Charts

Airlines like Delta Air Lines have done away with award charts to move toward dynamic award pricing models. Rather than defining how many miles it costs to fly from city A to city B, most airlines now adjust the price of awards based on a ticket's demand. Without an award chart, award rates are unpredictable — as is often the case with Delta.

Generally speaking, eliminating an award chart is better for the airline than the consumer. Airlines can more effectively capture revenue by altering award prices to meet demand instead of fixing them to a chart. With sky-high demand for air travel and travelers with tons of miles to use, it's unsurprising that dynamic pricing models are becoming an industry-wide trend.

Getting outsized value out of points like SkyMiles is more challenging when pricing is dynamic instead of fixed. And that's part of the goal for airlines.

Dynamic pricing doesn't mean the end of points and miles but encourages us to help keep the airline transparent. The unofficial award chart will show the minimum number of SkyMiles required to book flights sold and operated by Delta. These saver-level awards do not show partner awards, whose pricing is more or less at parity with Delta's own flights.

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Delta SkyMiles Award Chart for Flights From the U.S.

Here's the minimum number of SkyMiles you can expect to pay for Delta award flights originating from the United States.

Finding the bare minimum award can be challenging at times. So, as a better point of reference, we've also included the average SkyMiles award price for the same destinations. Here's the average number of SkyMiles you can expect to pay for Delta award flights from the United States:

From what we've seen, the maximum SkyMiles award pricing is generally 495,000 SkyMiles each way. In some cases, this extraordinarily high rate is even charged for one-way economy awards.

Delta SkyMiles Award Price Updates

We've done our best to track Delta's award pricing updates over the years. Unfortunately, many changes may have gone unnoticed as saver-level award prices were slightly increased.

Below, you can see the significant changes we've caught when they were adjusted. Thankfully, Delta hasn't made any large-scale devaluations in quite some time, instead focusing on making gradual tweaks to partner award pricing.

• October 2016: Delta jacked up the award rates on business class awards to India by 40%
• August 2017: Delta increases prices on partner Premium cabin awards to Europe/Asia booked within 21 days of departure
• March 2018: Delta lowers the cost of partner award fares to North Asia, dropping business-class redemptions from 95K to 85K and dropping economy pricing from 40K to 35K
• April 2018: Delta lowers the cost of partner award fares to Europe, dropping business-class redemptions from 85K to 75K and dropping economy pricing from 35K to 32.5K
• April 2018: Increased Southern South America economy class prices from 30k to 35k. The date that the increase occurred is unknown.
• June 2018: Delta-operated flights to Europe increased from 70k to 82k for one-way bookings in Delta One (business class)
• March 2019: Delta-operated flights to Europe increase to 105K one-way in Delta One. The lowest partner awards remain at 75K, although most are now 86K.
• October 2020: Delta devalues partner awards to Europe and Asia without notice
• February 2021: Delta SkyMiles further devalues partner awards to Europe and Asia
• September 2023:  A previous sweet spot for business-class awards included starting in Mexico before flying to Australia or Europe for cheaper pricing, but Delta has removed this.

Best Credit Cards to Earn Delta SkyMiles

Even though they can be somewhat of a challenge to redeem for true value, Delta still makes it incredibly easy to earn SkyMiles. This is due in large part to its expansive co-branded credit card lineup.

You can earn SkyMiles via any of Delta's seven co-branded American Express cards:

• Delta SkyMiles ® Blue American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Gold American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Gold Business American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Platinum Business American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve American Express Card
• Delta SkyMiles ® Reserve Business American Express Card

Given how frustrating the Delta SkyMiles program can be, you might find more value in earning transferable points with your credit card swipes instead of SkyMiles. For example, Membership Rewards points transfer to Delta at a 1:1 ratio. You can transfer points to Delta if you find a Delta flight you want to book. Otherwise, American Express has a long list of other Amex transfer partners where you can maximize your Membership Rewards.

Cards that earn Membership Rewards include:

• The Platinum Card ® from American Express
• The Business Platinum Card ® from American Express
• American Express ® Gold Card
• American Express ® Business Gold Card

The TakeOff15 Benefit

In early 2023, Delta added a perk to its American Express co-branded credit card lineup, letting cardholders save 15% on select SkyMiles awards tickets booked through Delta. Depending on the route, this perk could provide decent value, such as on short-haul economy awards and saver business awards — should you find one.

For example, you could snag a flight between Raleigh-Durham (RDU) and Orlando (MCO) for as little as 3,800 SkyMiles plus $6 — if you were a Delta SkyMiles American Express cardholder.

Delta's award price hikes could quickly negate the benefit offered by this perk, so booking an award ticket at or around the minimum saver-level price would provide the most value.

Unfortunately, the Delta SkyMiles ® Blue American Express Card doesn't qualify for the benefit.

Delta SkyMiles Partner Award Pricing

Like award flights on its metal, Delta doesn't publish an award chart for partner airlines. The absence of partner award charts is also frustrating, given that partner awards used to be a sweet spot for SkyMiles usage — as we noted when we first drafted an unofficial Delta award chart two short years ago.

When comparing partner award prices to Delta award prices nowadays, you'll likely notice that the fares are similar — a function of dynamic pricing.

Here's an example of a one-way flight between Atlanta (ATL) and Amsterdam (AMS) later this year. For illustrative purposes, we looked at November 13, 2023 — one of the “cheapest” days of the month to fly between the two airports using SkyMiles.

Air France and Delta economy class fares are almost identical — separated by only a couple thousand SkyMiles.

These award prices are (comparatively) extremely high.

When looking at another SkyTeam loyalty program, such as Flying Blue, there's value to be found by flying Delta (or a SkyTeam partner) to Amsterdam on November 13, but not when booked with SkyMiles.

Unfortunately, booking partner flights with Delta isn't the value haven it used to be.

SkyMiles Partner Awards More on Flights Less Than 60 Days Away

Travelers should note that the price of partner awards increases closer to the departure date. For those seeking greater flexibility — and to extract greater value from their SkyMiles — booking awards more than 60 days out is critical.

For example, if you were trying to book a flight on Virgin Atlantic between Los Angeles (LAX) and London (LHR), you'll find greater value in booking for later in the year than next week. A few months apart, here's a price comparison on the same route.

For September 6, 2023:

And for December 6, 2023:

If you plan on booking a partner award flight, you'll want to ensure it's far enough out that you're paying a reasonable amount for the ticket. It could mean the difference between paying 109% more for the same award.

The Bottom Line

Maximizing Delta SkyMiles has become more difficult since the airline eliminated its award chart in 2015. Frequent program devaluations over the past few have complicated matters even more. To alleviate some of the unclarity with Delta's award pricing, we've revamped our unofficial award chart for Delta flights from the United States.

Knowing the minimum and average number of SkyMiles required to book a Delta-operated flight sets a helpful baseline as you book your next award.

Delta's consistent devaluation of the SkyMiles program is also a reminder to consider taking advantage of flexible rewards programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy. Transferable point programs take the stress out of managing expectations with a program such as Delta SkyMiles. Instead, you can move points to partner airlines to book award flights that provide the best value for your points.

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Does anyone smart know why Delta flight awards are not available to Nairobi from some cities in the U.S. like AUS or MCO? Maybe due to SkyTeam partners flying direct to Europe from those cities?

I need to up-date my address and phone number in order to use my awards.

I tried on the web but it would not allow me to change.

I’m afraid that we at AwardWallet are unable to help you. Please contact Delta representatives directly.

Can I use miles for flights from the same alliance? Have the chart for South American flights?

The “SkyMiles Partner” columns should be the minimum price for flights on SkyTeam partners.

Thanks! We earned a bunch of Delta miles a while back (flying China Airlines) as Delta had the most generous expiration policy. However, being Delta newbies, I wasn’t able to figure out what we could do with the miles we earned. Very helpful article!

I hope that the partner availability will be the same for quite a long time.

This is a great resource and the hard work is appreciated, but this chart isn’t even remotely accurate for US-Japan Award Tickets. Delta Economy awards are consistently between 100,000-150000 miles depending on the airport and Delta One is something ridiculous like 600000. This is a route I fly very often so monitor it closely. I don’t waste my time with Delta when it comes to award redemptions on that route.

It used to be fun to keep up with all these changes, but now it’s becoming an anxiety filled full-time job!

Thank you very much for this! I had no idea the default miles cost was higher for flying a partner, or that it made a difference if the first international leg was delta or a partner. I’m now wishing I’d paid closer attention to this on my last award flight :/

It makes me sad that this is a necessity of life with Delta. They have such Great service otherwise =/

This is super helpful. Many thanks for your tireless research.

Thanks for the info. Feels like getting harder to use delta mileages though.

seems like skypesos are better utilized on partner awards.

Interesting to note that the Partner awards from US to Europe and Africa require less points than Delta awards. And the amount in business class to South Africa is 320,000 points less!

Thanks for this helpful information. Great for planning purposes.

Is there a chart for AA e UA?

AA has a published award chart. Now that United is headed for dynamic pricing, we’ll have to work on making one for them.

Incredibly helpful. As someone who travels with kids, the variability in pricing is that much worse because I’m often looking for 4 tickets — so a 5-10K difference multiplied times 4 can be hard to plan for.

Hey Leslie, one quick tip: If you travel with two adults, you might try booking two separate reservation to save on miles.

For example, if you search for 2 passengers, you might find 25k for a round trip. Then if you search for 2 more, the price may be 35k for a round trip. So you could end up with 120K total. But if you just search for 4 travelers, you’ll pay 35K x 4 or 140K total.

If for some reason you can’t book the second set of tickets, you can always cancel within 24 hours.

Can you tell me the trick and routing to go SEA-MNL and SGN-SEA teh cheapest mile award in Jan-Feb 2020?

Unfortunately, the answer often just requires a bit of searching. If you can’t find something, we work with several excellent booking services that can do the heavy lifting.

thanks for the comprehensive guide!!!

This chart is fantastic and super convenient! Thank you for this post!

Thanks for this. We’ve got some Delta miles to use!

This is helpful to understand their award pricing. I sometimes struggle to find good award pricing on the website, but have also found that Delta has some really great promotions. If you can book your flight as soon as the promotion is announced, you can get some great deals!

I found this chart to be very helpful. I wish it would remain static.

Great guide though as we have seen with Delta this may change at literally any second.

This is a great planning guide for Delta miles. I hope AA doesnt follow suite.

Sorry I have become skeptical of all point schemes since the race to the bottom started…..

Difficult to know how many Delta Miles to save when the dynamic pricing is involved. Cash is so much more versatile.

There is no such thing as a “best” card to earn Skypesos. They are all crap, befitting a crappy program

weak chart to asia from US, there are better redemptions out there

(particularly for F & J)

Well it seems after reading this that the best strategy is to redeem Delta SkyMiles early and as often as possible, because they will likely be worth far less in the future. .

It is funny how most DL awards are chart based but DL does not admit it.

I wish they kept things simple like before with an award chart. They are decent airlines though.

To me it is quite interesting that Delta charges less Skypesos to travel on a partner airline than on Delta itself! But then numerous foreign carriers require you to pay to reserve a seat. Any thoughts on the Skypesos differential?

Thanks! This is helpful. I wish it wasn’t necessary.

Thanks for posting this. As mentioned, sometimes you do just need to get lucky, but it is good to know what to expect.

We should have periodic updates on the unofficial award charts.

Thanks a lot. As a cheepskate (or seeker of the best value, to be specific, finding the lowest mile redemption is exactly what I am looking for. This is useful in comparing how many miles a destination will take with other mileage plans also.

The future of miles. Gradually worth less and less…

I think the easiest way to avoid partner award pricing is to credit the miles to those partners from the get-go. I credit Delta miles to Virgin Atlantic or Korean Skypass, American Airlines to Etihad and United to Avianca or Turkish and I don’t have those issues. The only domestic airline I credit to and maintain status with is Alaska.

I used to maintain status on the other ones as well and was a Global at United but found the value of that having become too diluted.

I remember once looking for a mileage ticket with Delta from DCA to LGA and they quoted 68,000 miles. Hahahaha.

It frightens me when I think that people involved in the administration of these programs could run for public office and start devaluating the pension trust fund, our currency or treasuries the way they manage their own programs. That would be an unparalleled national disaster.

“out of touch”….yeah a bit =/

Flying to hawaii using korean miles is a nice option but can be challenging to execute at times.

The good part about SkyMiles is that they never expire. The bad part about SkyMiles is everything else, pretty much.

It seems extraordinary that Delta still won’t provide accurate details to it’s loyalty members… Very telling as to their appreciation of their loyal customers.

Great post! Looks much better that the click-bait articles from bloggers about DL “charging 135k to Europe”, like that was now the new minimum redemption threshold.

Thanks for putting this together! I live in a Delta hub, so I’ve been looking to get another Delta card and take advantage of some of these routes.

I wonder why it’s cheaper for economy to Europe on partners (25 k) instead of on Delta metal (30 k). At least according to the award chart above.

I have though exactly the same thing! A big mystery.

Delta skymiles are good, but definitely need to know how to use them. At least there is no expiration date, so i dont feel so bad leaving them dormant between redemptions!

Yes, kudos to having no expiration date. However, and it’s a big however, you’ll see from many comments here that you’re still not safe from devaluations. That’s why many of us try to earn and redeem points as soon as possible to protect ourselves as best we can.

I’ve a lot of Delta miles ad I think i’s time to burn them. 10 years ago I was much happier with rewards programs

This is nice information, it helped me in analyzing

very handy stuff. Can we see a similar chart for domestic/Delta, and maybe UAL?

Great suggestion. We’ll put something in the queue 🙂

skypesos at work. With AA and United copying delta with “dynamic” pricing, i guess its only a matter of time before their award charts tries to beat this one

seriously skypesos, the legacy big 3 are racing to have the most worthless miles

Thank you. This will be very handy.

This is very helpful on understanding the current reality of Delta Skymiles. In November I am flying from Boston to London on Delta in Delta One. I used Flying Blue miles.

The reality is grim 🙁

I’m currently waiting for a Delta flight right now. The article is a great reminder that I need to find a good redemption to enjoy my Delta points before they devalue again.

Thanks for the effort with this!

This is great – even unofficially, this is a really helpful planning resource.

There should be more of these charts.

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American Express Transfer Partners: A Comprehensive Guide for 2024

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• American Express Membership Rewards points are some the most valuable card rewards you can earn. 
• You can get maximum value from Amex points by transferring them to airline and hotel partners.
• Strategic airline partners like Delta and Air Canada can help you score first-class award flights. 
• Read Business Insider's guide to the best travel rewards credit cards .

Introduction to Amex transfer partners

When it comes to transferable credit card rewards points , you might automatically think of Chase Ultimate Rewards ® or Capital One miles . But the American Express Membership Rewards program was one of the first points currencies that allowed folks with associated credit cards to convert their hard-earned rewards into miles and points with various airline and hotel partners.

History and overview of the Amex Membership Rewards program

The Amex Membership Rewards program debuted way back in 1991 with just seven U.S. airline partners. Today, Membership Rewards works with 17 frequent flyer programs and three hotel loyalty programs. Those numbers are impressive in and of themselves – consider, Chase has just 14 partners total, and Citi ThankYou Rewards has 16.

What sets Amex apart even more, however, is the excellent quality of its partners, and the myriad redemption opportunities they represent. There are many benefits of transferring points to these airline and hotel partners, which we'll explore in more detail below. 

In this comprehensive guide, we'll show you how to transfer American Express points for travel, and teach you our best tips for maximizing value for Amex Membership Rewards transfers. We'll also walk you through Amex points transfer ratios and policies, point out the best Amex airline transfer partners, and walk you through transferring Amex points to hotel loyalty programs. 

The best cards for earning American Express Membership Rewards

Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (on up to $500,000 per calendar year) and on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel. Earn 1X Points on other purchases.

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Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points

Good to Excellent

• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Long list of travel benefits, including airport lounge access and complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott (enrollment required)
• Check mark icon A check mark. It indicates a confirmation of your intended interaction. Annual statement credits with Saks and Uber
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Bonus categories leave something to be desired
• con icon Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. One of the highest annual fees among premium travel cards

If you want as many premium travel perks as possible, The Platinum Card® from American Express could be the right card for you. The annual fee is high, but you get a long list of benefits such as airport lounge access, travel statement credits, complimentary hotel elite status, and more.

• Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Apply and select your preferred metal Card design: classic Platinum, Platinum x Kehinde Wiley, or Platinum x Julie Mehretu.
• Earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel up to $500,000 on these purchases per calendar year and earn 5X Membership Rewards® Points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
• $200 Hotel Credit: Get up to $200 back in statement credits each year on prepaid Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection bookings with American Express Travel when you pay with your Platinum Card®. The Hotel Collection requires a minimum two-night stay.
• $240 Digital Entertainment Credit: Get up to $20 back in statement credits each month on eligible purchases made with your Platinum Card® on one or more of the following: Disney+, a Disney Bundle, ESPN+, Hulu, The New York Times, Peacock, and The Wall Street Journal. Enrollment required.
• The American Express Global Lounge Collection® can provide an escape at the airport. With complimentary access to more than 1,400 airport lounges across 140 countries and counting, you have more airport lounge options than any other credit card issuer on the market. As of 03/2023.
• $155 Walmart+ Credit: Save on eligible delivery fees, shipping, and more with a Walmart+ membership. Use your Platinum Card® to pay for a monthly Walmart+ membership and get up to $12.95 plus applicable taxes back on one membership (excluding Plus Ups) each month.
• $200 Airline Fee Credit: Select one qualifying airline and then receive up to $200 in statement credits per calendar year when incidental fees are charged by the airline to your Platinum Card®.
• $200 Uber Cash: Enjoy Uber VIP status and up to $200 in Uber savings on rides or eats orders in the US annually. Uber Cash and Uber VIP status is available to Basic Card Member only. Terms Apply.
• $189 CLEAR® Plus Credit: CLEAR® Plus helps to get you to your gate faster at 50+ airports nationwide and get up to $189 back per calendar year on your Membership (subject to auto-renewal) when you use your Card. CLEARLanes are available at 100+ airports, stadiums, and entertainment venues.
• Receive either a $100 statement credit every 4 years for a Global Entry application fee or a statement credit up to $85 every 4.5 year period for TSA PreCheck® application fee for a 5-year plan only (through a TSA PreCheck® official enrollment provider), when charged to your Platinum Card®. Card Members approved for Global Entry will also receive access to TSA PreCheck at no additional cost.
• Shop Saks with Platinum: Get up to $100 in statement credits annually for purchases in Saks Fifth Avenue stores or at saks.com on your Platinum Card®. That's up to $50 in statement credits semi-annually. Enrollment required.
• Unlock access to exclusive reservations and special dining experiences with Global Dining Access by Resy when you add your Platinum Card® to your Resy profile.
• $695 annual fee.
• Terms Apply.

Before you can redeem Amex points, you've actually got to earn them. Only a handful of Amex cards – both business and personal – rack up Membership Rewards points. Other Amex rewards cards earn either cash back, hotel points with programs including Hilton Honors and Marriott Bonvoy , or airline miles with programs such as Delta SkyMiles .

The following personal American Express cards earn Membership Rewards points: 

And the following business cards earn Amex Membership Rewards points:

List of airline and hotel transfer partners

Now for a quick rundown of the current lineup of Amex Membership Rewards transfer partners.

You can transfer your Amex points to the airline and hotel partners listed below. Points transfer to many of these instantaneously, though some transactions might take a few business days to process.

Most transfer ratios are 1 Membership Rewards point to 1 airline mile or hotel point, but those that vary have been noted.

How to transfer Membership Rewards points

Once you start looking into booking awards using partner miles or points, your next step will be to actually transfer your Amex points to a partner program.

Step-by-step guide

First, log in to your Amex account online. Click on the "Rewards" tab, and you should see your points balance and various options including one with an arrow that says, "Transfer Points." You will be redirected to a page that lists the various partner programs and the current conversion ratios.

Before you can initiate a transfer, you must link your Membership Rewards account to your various frequent flyer and hotel accounts. Doing so is as simple as clicking on the partner you want to use, then entering your credit card's security code and four-digit ID as well as your account number with the partner. Once you link accounts, you should be able to transfer whenever you like.

One thing to keep in mind: American Express also periodically offers transfer bonuses that tend to range from 20% to 40% to various partners. It's worth checking on available transfer bonuses from time to time, or taking advantage of ones you come across in order to get even more value from your points.

Strategic use of the best Amex Membership Rewards transfer partners

Before you get too overwhelmed with the number of transfer partners and all the points possibilities, here are the nine that deserve the most attention, with some examples of what makes them such fantastic options.

Transfer ratios and minimums

Just a quick note on some of the numbers, airlines, flight cabins, and routes cited here: These are accurate as of the time of publication, but are subject to any fleet and network changes individual airlines make, as well as government-imposed travel restrictions.

Air Canada Aeroplan

Air Canada Aeroplan has had a few ups and downs in recent years, including being spun off then reacquired by Air Canada. In late 2020, the airline introduced several major changes, but its award charts have not changed much, so its points have largely retained their value. Thus, Aeroplan remains one of the best frequent flyer programs for those who want to redeem their Amex points for flights on Star Alliance carriers such as United, Lufthansa, SWISS, and EVA Air.

Aeroplan's new award formula includes 10 distance-based charts for travel within and between four regions: North America, Atlantic, Pacific, South America.

Yes, it's a bit convoluted. In general, though, economy flight redemptions are a solid bet, and you should keep your eye out for specific premium award opportunities – especially in light of the fact that Aeroplan has eliminated fuel surcharges that used to range into the thousands of dollars.

Here are three possibilities based on both the distances of specific routes and the partner airlines you can fly:

• You only need 55,000 points each way for business class on ANA from either Vancouver or Seattle to Tokyo Haneda. For comparison, United would charge you 88,000 MileagePlus miles.
• Likewise, business class on Lufthansa or SWISS between Europe and several airports in the eastern US should cost just 60,000 Aeroplan points but would require 77,000 United miles.
• Finally, thanks to that same distance-based formula, you can book coach tickets between the West Coast of the US and Canada and Hawaii starting at 12,500 points each way versus 22,500 United miles – that's nearly twice as many miles!

Air France-KLM Flying Blue

Flying Blue is the mileage program of numerous airlines including not only Air France and KLM, but also carriers like Kenya Airways and TAROM. Members can also redeem their miles for flights on SkyTeam partners like Delta, Aeromexico, and Korean Air, among other partners.

Though Flying Blue levies hundreds of dollars in fuel surcharges for flights to and from Europe, there are still a couple of reasons to recommend the program.

First, it offers monthly rotating "Promo Rewards" with discounts of 20% to 50% off award pricing between certain cities and regions. In real terms, that means rewards for under 11,000 miles each way between North America and Europe in economy, or 28,750 miles in business class — if you can find them. Those numbers are hard to beat.

But even on a regular basis, Flying Blue members seem to have a lot more access to premium awards on both Air France and KLM than they would with other programs, such as Delta SkyMiles.

ANA Mileage Club

Getting back to Star Alliance for a moment, you can find some phenomenal possibilities by transferring your miles to All Nippon Airways' underrated frequent flyer program.

Without getting too bogged down in the details, Mileage Club does have a few important restrictions. Awards must be booked round-trip, though there's some flexibility thanks to open-jaw and stopover allowances. But the real beauty of the program is just how few miles you need even for the most premium experiences in the skies.

For example, you would need just 88,000 miles round-trip to fly business class on airlines like SAS and TAP Portugal between North America and Europe. Want to bump it up to first class on an airline like Lufthansa? That'll cost you 165,000 miles round-trip. Sure, that's still a lot of miles, but it's a far cry from the 242,000 miles United would charge you.

You could fly from North America to most of Asia for 85,000 to 95,000 miles round-trip in business class on Star Alliance carriers like Asiana or EVA, or 150,000 to 180,000 in first class. Yes, that's a lot of miles, but is still around half what other airlines' frequent flyer programs would charge.

Interested in taking either United's new services between Newark and either Cape Town or Johannesburg? You would need just 104,000 miles round-trip in business class with ANA, versus 176,000 United miles, or 170,000 Aeroplan miles.

British Airways Executive Club

Thanks to a distance-based award formula that can result in exorbitant pricing for long-haul flights in premium cabins, some folks might shy away from transferring Amex points to British Airways . However, Executive Club has offered some of the most frequent transfer bonuses of any Amex partner, and is still an excellent choice for certain short-haul awards (flights that are about three hours or less).

Flying from the West Coast of the US to Hawaii will only cost you 13,000 Avios each way in economy on either American Airlines or Alaska Airlines, versus 15,000 to 22,500 using either of those carriers' miles. Likewise, using Avios to book shorter flights within Asia on Cathay Pacific, within Australia on Qantas, or from Miami or Dallas to the Caribbean on American Airlines can be a good way to save money on routes that can be expensive to book using cash.

You can also get from Los Angeles or San Francisco to Tokyo for just 27,750 miles each way in economy on JAL, or from Boston to Dublin on Aer Lingus for just 13,000 miles each way at off-peak times. Keep in mind that you can transfer Avios between British Airways Executive Club, Aer Lingus AerClub, and Iberia Plus for even more options, including some with lower surcharges on flights to and from Europe.

Cathay Pacific Asia Miles

While this Hong Kong-based airline's award chart won't be for everyone, if you're positively raking in the Amex points thanks to bonuses and spending, you might want to splurge with a few redemptions.

Like American Airlines AAdvantage , Asia Miles will charge you 70,000 miles each way in business class or 110,000 miles in first between the West Coast of the US (and Canada) and Hong Kong. The reason you might want to use Asia Miles instead of AAdvantage (or Alaska Mileage Plan miles, for that matter), is that it's easier to come by award space using the airline's own frequent flyer program rather than a partner, and unlike American and Alaska, you can transfer points from Amex as well as other card programs.

Another great premium possibility is to use 75,000 Asia Miles each way for Qatar Airways' outstanding business class between its hub at Doha and certain destinations within the US, including Boston, Chicago, New York-JFK, and Philadelphia.

Delta SkyMiles

Although Delta has made drastic changes to its award program over the past decade, it's still one of Amex's standout transfer partners for a number of reasons. First, it's the largest US carrier on the list, it's part of SkyTeam, and it also boasts non-alliance partners like Virgin Atlantic, so you can use Delta SkyMiles in a variety of ways.

That said, Delta has done its best lately to peg the value of SkyMiles to about 1 cent each, especially for awards on Delta itself. So use your Amex points for cheaper economy tickets that can cost as little as 5,000 miles each, or simply to top up your account with a few thousand miles here and there for specific tickets you are certain you will need to book in the near future (especially if that bumps you up from economy to business class).

Etihad Guest

Due to a clunky online interface and the fact that you have to call customer service to book awards on partner airlines, you might want to avoid Etihad Guest in general, unless you can pinpoint a few specific awards.

However, the carrier has a lot of interesting airline partners, including American Airlines, Air New Zealand, ANA, Korean Air, and Royal Air Maroc, among others. The airline also offers occasional award sales, bringing the price of some tickets down even further.

In general, though, here are two great awards you could consider transferring Amex points for:

• First, you can snag a one-way, one-segment business-class ticket on Royal Air Maroc, including between the US and Morocco, for just 44,000 miles.
• Second, Etihad makes first-class award space much more easily available to its own mileage program members than those of partners, including American Airlines AAdvantage. So if you want a shot at one of Etihad's fabulous first-class suites between Abu Dhabi and either the US or Europe, you'll probably want to start hoarding Amex points for a transfer to Etihad Guest.

Singapore Airlines KrisFlyer

Singapore Airlines partners with several of the other major transferable points programs, including Chase Ultimate Rewards,   Citi ThankYou Rewards , and Capital One , so before you transfer Amex points, consider what other options you have. That said, there are a few redemption sweet spots to be aware of.

Economy awards between North America and Hawaii on either United or Air Canada are priced at a reasonable 19,500 miles each way, while flying business class within North America on either of those carriers is 26,000 miles each way.

But the real reason you might want to transfer Amex points to KrisFlyer is to redeem them for business- or first-class flights on Singapore Airlines itself, since the airline is very stingy with releasing award space to partners.

Sure, flights cost a lot of miles – flying business class on the world's current longest flight from Newark to Singapore will set you back 111,500 miles each way, or first class from New York-JFK to Frankfurt will require 97,000 miles — but spending some time in the lap of luxury could well be worth it.

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club

Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points are useful for partner award flights, some of which you can book for fewer points compared to other programs. The program will soon become more useful, as Virgin Atlantic will join the SkyTeam alliance in 2023 .

Among the best examples are using just 50,000 miles to fly Delta One Suites between the US and Europe (except the UK), or 60,000 miles between the US and Asia – a bargain considering you'd need at least 85,000 Delta SkyMiles for either option. You might also want to use 90,000 to 95,000 of them to fly ANA's gorgeous new business-class suites round-trip between the US or Europe and Japan, or 110,000 to 120,000 miles to fly first class.

Other options

Now that we've gotten the best partners out of the way, here are the details on the rest and why might or might not want to transfer your hard-earned Amex points to them.

Aer Lingus AerClub: In reality, Aer Lingus AerClub is linked to British Airways Executive Club, so it's relatively easy to transfer your Avios between accounts, but why add another layer of complexity to your rewards strategy? Aeromexico Club Premier: Although the transfer ratio to Aeromexico might seem favorable, and there are sometimes transfer bonuses, the Club Premier award chart lacks any truly great redemption opportunities. Avianca LifeMiles: While this program offers some fabulous award opportunities on Avianca's Star Alliance partners, its booking engine is not the most reliable, and its customer service reps can be hard to reach.  Emirates Skywards: Emirates reduced the sky-high fuel surcharges it once tacked onto its award tickets, but mileage prices are still astronomical, especially for sought-after seats in first and business class. Hawaiian Airlines HawaiianMiles: While this program can come in handy specifically for tickets within Hawaii and between the islands and the US mainland, you might be better off simply getting one of Hawaiian Airlines' co-branded credit cards to enjoy extra earnings and perks. Iberia Plus: Another partner linked to British Airways Avios, Iberia's mileage program is a great way to save on fuel surcharges, and does have some excellent award options between the US and Europe, including certain business-class tickets that cost as few as 34,000 Avios. However, its search engine can be hard to use, and customer service is almost non-existent, so do your homework before transferring Amex points here. JetBlue TrueBlue: Folks can get a lot of value from TrueBlue points for flights on JetBlue, but the conversion ratio of 5 Amex points to 4 TrueBlue points takes it out of the running as a truly great transfer partner. Qantas Frequent Flyer: You might find some good deals redeeming Qantas miles for expensive flights on the airline's own metal within Australia and the South Pacific, but award prices for flights beyond that are jaw-droppingly high for the most part.

Choice Privileges: Booking some budget stays in the near future? Choice points could come in handy, but are unlikely to be a frequent transfer option for more aspirational travelers. Hilton Honors: Amex points convert to Hilton Honors points at a 1:2 ratio, which is great on the surface. But if you're interested in Hilton stays and perks, you should probably apply for a co-branded Hilton card instead . For instance, the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card is currently offering 175,000 Hilton Honors bonus points after you spend $6,000 in purchases on the card within your first six months of card membership (offer ends 7/31/2024), and it confers automatic top-tier Hilton Honors Diamond elite status , statement credits at Hilton Resorts and on certain eligible stays at Waldorf Astoria and Conrad properties, plus a free night reward each account year. Marriott Bonvoy: Considering the paltry 1:1 conversion ratio and Marriott's excellent stable of co-branded credit cards , you might want to avoid Amex transfers and instead apply for a product like the Marriott Bonvoy Boundless® Credit Card . It's currently offering new cardholders three Free Night Awards (each night valued up to 50,000 points) after you spend $3,000 on purchases in your first three months from your account opening, plus benefits like automatic Gold elite status, 6 points per dollar on eligible Marriott purchases, 3 points per dollar on dining, gas, and groceries (on up to $6,000 in combined purchases each year), and 2 points per dollar on other eligible purchases.

What to know about transferring Amex points to partners

American Express Membership Rewards points are among the most valuable and versatile travel rewards out there. That's thanks not only to the sheer number of airline and hotel loyalty programs cardholders can transfer their points to, but also to the variety of excellent redemption opportunities available.

The key to optimizing Membership Rewards points is to pick a credit card that will earn the most of them on the things you tend to purchase most frequently. And then, on the other side of the travel rewards equation, you will want to focus on just a few of the transfer partners with the best redemption opportunities for your needs and goals.

Once you pinpoint the right card and the right partners, you should be able to make strategic transfers and enjoy excellent award flights and hotel stays.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, please click here.

Editorial Note: Any opinions, analyses, reviews, or recommendations expressed in this article are the author’s alone, and have not been reviewed, approved, or otherwise endorsed by any card issuer. Read our editorial standards .

Please note: While the offers mentioned above are accurate at the time of publication, they're subject to change at any time and may have changed, or may no longer be available.

**Enrollment required.

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How to use Pay with Points

Use Membership Rewards ® points for all or part of your flight, prepaid hotel, prepaid car rental, vacation packages (flight and prepaid hotel), or prepaid cruise when you book through American Express Travel ® .*

Just follow these easy steps

Log in to AmexTravel.com to access Membership Rewards points and begin by searching for a trip as usual.

Apply Points

At checkout, select either "Use Only Points" or "Use Points + Card" then apply points to your booking.

Once booked, your Card will be charged the full dollar amount. A corresponding credit for the value of points used will be applied to your account in a separate transaction within 48 hours .

See where points can take you

More about American Express Membership Rewards   points

When you use Pay with Points, the full dollar amount will be charged to your American Express ® Card and a corresponding credit for the value of points used will be applied to your account in a separate transaction within 48 hours.

To use Pay with Points, you must use a Membership Rewards ® program enrolled Card for payment. Plan It ® cannot be combined with Pay with Points.

If you cancel your booking, you will receive a statement credit on your Card account. To have the Membership Rewards points returned to your account, you can contact us at 1-800-AXP-EARN (297-3276).

Delta Skymiles ®  cannot be redeemed at AmexTravel.com.

How to earn points

When you use your eligible American Express Card to make purchases, you'll earn Membership Rewards points for every dollar you spend on qualifying purchases.

Why book with American Express Travel?

Use Pay with Points for your next Hotel Stay

Have a question?

What are membership rewards points worth.

You can use the  Points Value Calculator  to see what Membership Rewards points are worth and how you can use them.

Can I combine points and my Card to pay?

Yes, at checkout, select "Use Points + American Express Card" then apply points to your booking. You still need a minimum of 5,000 points to apply points.

Why was my American Express Card charged for my trip when I selected the Pay with Points option?

When you use Pay with Points, the full dollar amount will be charged to your American Express Card and a corresponding credit for the value of points used will be applied to your account in a separate transaction within 48 hours.

Can I cancel a trip that I booked using Membership Rewards points?

Yes. If you cancel your booking, you will receive a statement credit on your Card account. To have the Membership Rewards points returned to your account, you can contact us at 1-800-AXP-EARN (297-3276).

Can I use Pay with Points for a car rental?

Yes, you can use Pay with Points for prepaid car rentals. For reservations that require payment at time of pick-up, payment is handled directly with the vendor.

Can I use Pay with Points for a hotel reservation?

Yes, you can use Pay with Points for prepaid hotel reservations. For hotel reservations that require payment at time of check-out, payment is handled directly with the property.

Can I transfer Membership Rewards points to a Frequent Flyer program?

Yes, you can transfer Membership Rewards points to participating partners in three steps:

• Link your account
• Select amount to transfer
• Redeem with selected provider

Frequent traveler program airlines determine how many points, miles or other units are required to get rewards in their frequent traveler programs. This applies to select airlines, and value of points varies by airline, flight, class of ticket (ie: upgrades), and date of travel. Additional domestic or international airline fees may apply.

Transfer Points to Partners

Note: For point transfers to airlines, we recommend making the reservations first and verifying any blackout dates that may apply.

Can I transfer Frequent Flyer miles to Membership Rewards points?

No, you cannot transfer Frequent Flyer miles to Membership Rewards points, however you can transfer your Membership Rewards points to a Frequent Flyer program. 

Can I transfer points to a Hotel Frequent Guest Program?

Note: Frequent guest program properties determine how many points, or other units are required to get rewards in their frequent guest programs for hotel stays. This applies to select properties, and value of points can vary depending on hotel room type.

Will I earn Frequent Guest Points with my hotel if I use points for my booking?

It depends on the type of booking you choose on your reservation type. Visit My Trips to determine if your hotel booking type is eligible to earn points. 

Will I earn Membership Rewards points if I use points for my booking?

Any portion of a charge that you elect to cover through redemption of Membership Rewards points is not eligible to earn points. If you checkout using a combination of points and your Card, you will earn points on the portion paid for with your Card.

Need Assistance? Give us a call. Our travel counselors are here to help. 

Call the number on the back of your Card.

*Terms & Conditions

Membership Rewards® Pay with Points

To use Pay with Points, you must charge your eligible purchase through American Express Travel to a Membership Rewards® program-enrolled American Express® Card. Eligible purchases through American Express Travel exclude non-prepaid car rentals and non-prepaid hotels. Points will be debited from your Membership Rewards account, and credit for corresponding dollar amount will be issued to the American Express Card account used. If points redeemed do not cover entire amount, the balance of purchase price will remain on the American Express Card account. Minimum redemption 5,000 points.

See membershiprewards.com/terms for the Membership Rewards program terms and conditions.

If a charge for a purchase is included in a Pay Over Time balance on your Linked Account the statement credit associated with that charge may not be applied to that Pay Over Time balance. Instead the statement credit may be applied to your Pay in Full balance. If you believe this has occurred, please contact us by calling the number on the back of your Card. Corporate Card Members are not eligible for Pay Over Time.

Membership Rewards® Program

Terms and Conditions for the Membership Rewards® program apply. Visit membershiprewards.com/terms for more information. Participating partners and available rewards are subject to change without notice.

The value of Membership Rewards points varies according to how you choose to use them. To learn more, go to www.membershiprewards.com/pointsinfo.

Seller of Travel

American Express Travel Related Services Company, Inc. is acting solely as a sales agent for travel suppliers and is not responsible for the actions or inactions of such suppliers. Certain suppliers pay us commission and other incentives for reaching sales targets or other goals and may provide incentives to our Travel Consultants. For more information visit www.americanexpress.com/travelterms.

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Flight cancellations soar past 5,000 as woes spill into Saturday; Delta and United hardest hit

F light cancellations continue to climb this weekend in the wake of Friday's IT outage that wreaked havoc globally — affecting everything from air travel to banking and critical infrastructure.

Though airlines successfully got planes back in the air Friday following early-morning operational pauses by several carriers, residual disruptions have made Saturday another messy day at airports.

By Saturday evening, airlines had canceled more than 1,800 flights in the U.S., according to data from flight-tracking site FlightAware. More than 7,000 flights in the U.S. have been delayed Saturday.

That comes just a day after airlines canceled an additional 3,400 flights — and delayed a staggering 12,895 more — on Friday. All told, more than 5,000 flights have been canceled in the U.S. and another 20,000-plus delayed since the IT outage first began affecting flights.

Hundreds of additional cancellations are already planned for Sunday.

Want more aviation news? Sign up for TPG's free biweekly Aviation newsletter .

Which airlines are affected?

Among U.S. carriers, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines appear to be experiencing the worst residual operational effects this weekend, with hundreds of cancellations between the two carriers.

Delta Air Lines

More than 1,000 Delta flights have been canceled as of Saturday evening, per FlightAware — nearly a third of its operation. More than 40% of Delta's flights were delayed Saturday.

In a social media post, the Atlanta-based carrier noted the disruptions affected both its mainline and regional Delta Connection operation.

"Additional cancellations are expected as some of Delta's technology continues to recover from Friday morning's vendor-caused issue," the Atlanta-based carrier said in a statement earlier Saturday.

Delta has also paused all unaccompanied minor flying until Sunday, affecting all children under the age of 18 planning to fly solo.

The carrier has canceled more than 100 planned flights for Sunday.

United Airlines

For its part, United said late Friday that most of its systems had recovered from the tech outage, but warned its operation "may continue to experience some disruption."

As of Saturday evening, United had canceled more than 430 flights, about 14% of its operation, per FlightAware.

Sunday is also looking a bit dicey for United, with FlightAware already showing 197 cancellations for the Chicago-based carrier.

United, like Delta and other U.S. airlines, has issued a travel advisory that allows even passengers traveling on restrictive tickets to make itinerary changes — and without a fare difference.

What does the airline owe you after a flight cancellation?

The U.S. Department of Transportation is considering these disruptions to be "controllable" cancellations and delays, a spokesperson for the agency told TPG Friday.

That means the DOT sees these flight problems as the airline's responsibility — and is calling on airlines to fulfill promises made on the Airlines Customer Service Dashboard , found at FlightRights.gov , for guarantees like meals, hotel and ground transportation costs for stranded passengers.

"Our department has reminded airlines of their responsibilities to passengers," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg wrote on social media Friday. "As with any mechanical or technical failure, airlines are required in this case to take care of passengers experiencing long delays or cancellations.

Delta has made clear it's already providing those benefits to affected passengers.

Read more: 8 best credit cards with travel insurance of July 2024

Can you get a refund for a canceled flight?

Keep in mind, under DOT policy, if your flight is canceled or significantly delayed, you're entitled to a refund back to the original form of payment if you ultimately choose not to travel.

You don't have to accept a voucher or frequent flyer miles.

However, if you accept the airline's offer of rebooking, you wouldn't be refund-eligible.

A messy few days for air travel

Friday's IT outage at Austin-based cybersecurity firm Crowdstrike came during a system update, and affected Microsoft clients all over the world.

The outage caused disruptions to key digital infrastructure at numerous airlines, helping to fuel thousands of flight cancellations globally on Friday. Airlines canceled more than 3,400 flights in the U.S. alone Friday.

With Delta and United leading the way with lingering disruptions Saturday, those airlines' key hubs are among the most affected.

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport (ATL) — Delta's home base — has, by far, the most cancellations of any U.S. airport Saturday, FlightAware shows.

Other Delta and United hubs are also heavily affected, from Denver International Airport (DEN) to Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport (IAH), Chicago's O'Hare International Airport (ORD), Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW) and Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) — among others.

American Airlines, which canceled more than 400 flights Friday has largely seen its operation recover with just a few dozen cancellations Saturday — less than 1% of its operation, per FlightAware.

"That recovery was complete yesterday and our operation — the largest of all major network carriers — is off to a strong start today," American said in a statement to TPG Saturday.

Several other carriers are also reporting low cancellation rates, from Alaska Airlines to JetBlue and Southwest.

Among the budget airlines, Spirit has encountered the most significant challenges Saturday, with 125 cancellations, about 13% of its network.

Here's more on what you can do if your flight is canceled or delayed.

Related reading:

• When is the best time to book flights for the cheapest airfare?
• The best airline credit cards
• What exactly are airline miles, anyway?
• 6 real-life strategies you can use when your flight is canceled or delayed
• Maximize your airfare: The best credit cards for booking flights
• The best credit cards to reach elite status
• What are points and miles worth? TPG's monthly valuations

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Delta SkyMiles® American Express Cards

Earn 3 miles per dollar on Delta purchases using your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express​ Card or Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express​ Card ‡

‡Delta Platinum Benefit Terms  

‡Delta Reserve Benefit Terms   

Earn 1x miles on other purchases

No cap on the miles you can earn ‡

APPLY WITH CONFIDENCE

On personal card products, learn if you’re approved for a Delta SkyMiles® American Express Card before any impact to your credit score. If you’re approved and choose to accept a Card, your credit score may be impacted.

EARN 40,000 BONUS MILES

Earn 40,000 bonus miles after you make $2,000 in eligible purchases on your Card in the first 6 months.†

$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150 †​

† Offer Terms Rates & Fees

EARN 50,000 BONUS MILES

Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you make $3,000 in eligible purchases on your Card in the first 6 months.†

$350 Annual Fee

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EARN 60,000 BONUS MILES Earn 60,000 bonus miles after you make $5,000 in eligible purchases on your Card in the first 6 months.†

$650 Annual Fee​

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Earn 10,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 in eligible purchases on your new Card in the first 6 Months.†

$0 Annual Fee

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Find The Card That Is Right For You

There’s a Delta SkyMiles Card designed for the way you travel. Choose the Card that’s right for you.

Earn more miles with a Delta SkyMiles Business American Express Card, SkyMiles International Credit Card or with the Delta SkyMiles® Debit Card.

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Elevate your next business trip with a Delta SkyMiles® Business American Express Card and earn miles to turn your business vision into reality. Product issued only to residents of the U.S. and its territories.

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Tech outage eases after widespread disruption

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• CrowdStrike software update triggers outages for Microsoft users
• Systems coming back online, delays affect range of industries
• Questions grow over whether cybersecurity is overly concentrated
• CrowdStrike shares plunge 12%, cybersecurity rivals gain

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Embraer's Eve rolls out flying taxi prototype, cash needs covered until 2027

Electric aircraft maker Eve has showcased for the first time the full-scale prototype of its "flying taxi," achieving a milestone as the company aims to obtain certification and enter service in 2026.

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Table of Contents

What does this value mean?

Delta skymiles calculator, how do delta miles compare with other airlines, how flexible are delta miles, how has this value changed over time, how did we determine what delta miles are worth.

Delta SkyMiles are worth about 1.2 cents each for economy tickets.

This is the fourth highest among domestic airlines.

The value is consistent across dates and routes (it's hard to find sweet spots).

With no award chart and no set value, it can be hard to figure out (without a tarot deck) how much Delta SkyMiles are actually worth.

But we did the digging and calculating for you.

Based on our analysis , the Delta miles value is about 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.

» Learn more: The complete guide to SkyMiles

Our data-driven value of 1.2 cents per Delta SkyMile is a baseline value. This is effectively the value you could expect to get from your Delta miles if you chose to book a random main cabin ticket with miles rather than cash.

To squeeze more value from Delta miles, check out our complete guide to redeeming them, as well as some easy tips for extracting the most value .

Keep in mind that the Delta SkyMiles program offers fewer "sweet spots" compared with other programs because of its dynamic awards. So, while researching can help boost the value of your miles, you’re unlikely to score redemptions worth multiple times our estimate, for example.

» Learn more: Credit cards that earn SkyMiles

With our SkyMiles-to-dollars calculator below, you can quickly figure out how much your Delta miles are worth based on our estimated value.

The calculator offers a handy way to let you know what your miles are actually worth. So, if you have a certain number of Delta miles, punch that number into the calculator to see what their value is.

» Learn more: The best airline credit cards

Delta offers slightly above-average value for its SkyMiles compared with other programs. However, the range of values is generally much lower, as the cost in miles is tightly connected to the cash cost. So you’re less likely to get outsized value from a particular redemption, even if the baseline value is high.

In one sense, Delta SkyMiles are very flexible, as they can be used to book flights on both Delta and its 20-plus airline partners . They can also be used to upgrade existing bookings.

On the other hand, SkyMiles cannot be transferred to other programs or used in other more elaborate redemptions.

» Learn more: What you need to know about SkyTeam

on American Express' website

$0 intro for the first year, then $150 .

• 2 miles per dollar on purchases made directly with Delta.

• 2 miles per dollar at restaurants worldwide plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.

• 1 mile per dollar on all other eligible purchases.

• 2 miles per dollar at U.S. supermarkets.

• 3 miles per dollar on eligible purchases made directly with Delta

• 3 miles per dollar on eligible hotel purchases.

• 2 miles per dollar at restaurants plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.

1 mile per dollar on all other eligible purchases.

• 3 miles per dollar on eligible purchases made directly with Delta.

• 1 mile per dollar on other eligible purchases.

• No foreign transaction fees.

Terms apply.

• First checked bag free.

• Priority boarding.

• Companion certificate (main cabin).

• Airport lounge access.

• Companion certificate (first class, Delta Comfort+ or main cabin).

• Credit for application fee for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry

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 .

Delta miles are down from 2022. The airline went from having the highest valued miles in 2022 to the fourth highest in 2023.

We collected hundreds of data points comparing the cash value to award (mile) value for the same routes and dates. That is, we compared the cost of a given ticket in either cash or miles, across many tickets.

» Learn more: Don't just redeem SkyMiles — redeem them wisely. Here's how

This method differs from many others in that it looks at real-world redemptions rather than hypothetical, maximized redemptions. The advantage of this approach is that it provides an actual, real-world indication of how much these miles are worth on average. That said, it doesn’t take into account the high-value redemptions that some points enthusiasts seek.

» Learn more: How much are your airline miles and hotel points worth?

10,000 Delta miles are worth about $120.

25,000 Delta miles are worth about $300.

50,000 Delta miles are worth about $600.

80,000 Delta miles are worth about $960.

100,000 Delta miles are worth about $1,200.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are some of the best travel credit cards of 2024 :

Flexibility, point transfers and a large bonus: Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card

No annual fee: Bank of America® Travel Rewards credit card

Flat-rate travel rewards: Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card

Bonus travel rewards and high-end perks: Chase Sapphire Reserve®

Luxury perks: The Platinum Card® from American Express

Business travelers: Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card

IHG One Rewards Premier Credit Card

Earn 5 free nights at an IHG property after $4k in spend (each night valued at up to 60k points).

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What We Know About the Global Microsoft Outage

Airlines to banks to retailers were affected in many countries. Businesses are struggling to recover.

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By Eshe Nelson and Danielle Kaye

Eshe Nelson reported from London and Danielle Kaye from New York.

Across the world, critical businesses and services including airlines, hospitals, train networks and TV stations, were disrupted on Friday by a global tech outage affecting Microsoft users.

In many countries, flights were grounded, workers could not get access to their systems and, in some cases, customers could not make card payments in stores. While some of the problems were resolved within hours, many businesses, websites and airlines continued to struggle to recover.

What happened?

A series of outages rippled across the globe as information displays, login systems and broadcasting networks went dark.

The problem affecting the majority of services was caused by a flawed update by CrowdStrike , an American cybersecurity firm, whose systems are intended to protect users from hackers. Microsoft said on Friday that it was aware of an issue affecting machines running “CrowdStrike Falcon.”

But Microsoft had also said there was an earlier outage affecting U.S. users of Azure, its cloud service system. Some users may have been affected by both. Even as CrowdStrike sent out a fix, some systems were still affected by midday in the United States as businesses needed to make manual updates to their systems to resolve the issue.

George Kurtz, the president and chief executive of CrowdStrike, said on Friday morning that it could take some time for some systems to recover.

How a Software Update Crashed Computers Around the World

Here’s a visual explanation for how a faulty software update crippled machines.

What was affected?

It is more apt to ask what was not affected. Everything from airlines to banks to health care systems in many countries was hit.

In Australia, passengers were stuck in long lines at Sydney airport as information screens went blank, and programming was disrupted at the national broadcaster. Airports in Britain, Germany and Taiwan had long delays at check-ins and flights were delayed or canceled. At an airport in South Korea, handwritten boarding passes were being slowly handed out.

How the airline cancellations rippled around the world (and across time zones)

Share of canceled flights at 25 airports on Friday

50% of flights

Ai r po r t

Bengalu r u K empeg o wda

Dhaka Shahjalal

Minneapolis-Saint P aul

Stuttga r t

Melbou r ne

Be r lin B r anden b urg

London City

Amsterdam Schiphol

Chicago O'Hare

Raleigh−Durham

B r adl e y

Cha r lotte

Reagan National

Philadelphia

1:20 a.m. ET

Flights continued to be disrupted at some U.S. airports into the morning because of the cascading effect of flight delays and cancellations. The Federal Aviation Administration said in a statement that ground stops and delays would be “intermittent” at some airports as airlines grapple with residual technology issues.

The outage affected emergency 911 lines in multiple states, the U.S. Emergency Alert System said on social media — but most if not all of the emergency system problems appeared to be resolving themselves by midmorning.

A few hospitals in Germany said they would cancel elective procedures; and in Britain, some doctors in the National Health Service were unable to gain access to systems. Kaiser Permanente, a medical system that provides care to 12.6 million members in the United States, said all of its hospitals’ systems were affected, and it activated backup systems to keep caring for patients.

At some banks, including JPMorgan Chase, there were delays in processing trades because bankers could not log into their work systems. TD Bank, the 10th largest in the United States, said customers complained that they could not access their online accounts.

But the problems were not uniform. London’s Heathrow Airport said that its flights were still operating. The London Stock Exchange said that it could not publish news updates but the exchange, where trades take place, was working as normal. The auction system at the Norwegian central bank was briefly interrupted, but other major central banks, the European Central Bank and Bank of England, said there was no effect on their systems.

In some cases, issues were resolved relatively quickly. In Ukraine, Sense Bank and the mobile operator Vodafone reported brief problems with their services. At Dubai International Airport, two airlines switched to alternative systems, allowing operations to resume.

Major grocery chains in the United States appeared largely unaffected, with most stores operating as usual. But the world’s biggest logistics companies, including United Parcel Service and FedEx, did report disruptions, causing delivery delays in some regions. A spokesman for UPS said the company’s computer systems in the United States and Europe were affected.

Who’s to blame?

Mr. Kurtz said CrowdStrike took responsibility for the software bug, sent in a system update, that caused the outage. He said in a post on X that Mac and Linux users were not affected.

The incident was not a cyberattack, Mr. Kurtz said, adding that customers remain “fully protected.” But Mr. Kurtz warned on NBC’s “Today” show that the fix could take some time to put in place.

“We understand the gravity of the situation and are deeply sorry for the inconvenience and disruption,” Mr. Kurtz said. Microsoft offered suggestions to users to help resolve the issue, including restoring backup systems.

While CrowdStrike is at fault for the software bug, J.J. Guy, chief executive of cybersecurity company Sevco, said poor resiliency of Microsoft’s operating system is to blame for extent of the damage.

“Bugs happen all the time and are unavoidable, the result of business complexity and technology,” Mr. Guy said. “But this became a catastrophic incident because of the remediation procedures. The resiliency of the operating system was not sufficient to mitigate the risk of that.”

Microsoft did not immediately respond to requests for comment on its operating system. The company’s chief executive, Satya Nadella, said in a post on X that Microsoft is working with CrowdStrike to offer customers technical guidance and bring systems back online.

Eshe Nelson is a reporter based in London, covering economics and business news for The New York Times. More about Eshe Nelson

Danielle Kaye is a business reporter and a 2024 David Carr Fellow, a program for journalists early in their careers. More about Danielle Kaye

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Higher costs and low base fares send Delta’s profit down 29%. The airline still earned $1.31 billion

FILE - A Delta Airlines jetliner taxis on a runway at Denver International Airport after a winter storm swept through the region on Jan. 16, 2024, in Denver. Delta reports earnings on Thursday, July 11, 2024. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

FILE - Travelers move through the terminal near a Delta Airlines desk at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Jan. 27, 2024, in Atlanta. On Thursday, July 11, 2024, Delta Air Lines said its second-quarter profit is down 29% from a year earlier, and it’s giving a disappointing outlook for the third quarter. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

FILE - A Delta Air Lines plane lands at Logan International Airport, Jan. 26, 2023, in Boston. On Thursday, July 11, 2024, Delta Air Lines said its second-quarter profit is down 29% from a year earlier, and it’s giving a disappointing outlook for the third quarter. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer)

FILE - A Delta Air Lines plane lands at Logan International Airport, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2023, in Boston. On July 11, 2024, Delta Air Lines said its second-quarter profit is down 29% from a year earlier, and it’s giving a disappointing outlook for the third quarter. (AP Photo/Michael Dwyer, File)

FILE - A man looks out a window at a Delta Airlines plane at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Jan. 27, 2024, in Atlanta. On Thursday, July 11, 2024, Delta Air Lines said its second-quarter profit is down 29% from a year earlier, and it’s giving a disappointing outlook for the third quarter. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart, File)

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Americans are traveling in record numbers this summer, but Delta Air Lines said Thursday that it saw second-quarter profit drop 29% due to higher costs and discounting of base-level fares across the industry.

The airline is also predicting a lower profit than Wall Street expects for the third quarter.

On a call with analysts and reporters, Delta CEO Ed Bastian sent a clear message to low-cost carriers: Slow your growth to end the oversupply of seats on domestic routes.

Delta shares tumbled 6% in midday trading Thursday, and the shares of other carriers were dragged down as well. JetBlue, American, United and Southwest fell between 3% and 6%.

Delta said it earned $1.31 billion from April through June, down from $1.83 billion a year earlier.

Revenue rose 7% to nearly $16.66 billion — a company record for the quarter. That is not surprising to anyone who has been in an airport recently. The Transportation Security Administration screened more than 3 million travelers Sunday , a single-day high.

“Demand has been really strong,” Bastian said in an interview. “International, business (travel), our premium sector all outperformed.”

Delta’s results showed a continuing divide between passengers who sit in the front of the plane and those in economy class. Revenue from premium passengers jumped 10% — about $500 million — but sales in the main cabin were flat with a year earlier.

Wealthier Americans are benefiting from strong gains in stock prices and the value of their homes, according to economists, while middle-class families are more likely to be holding back on spending because high inflation over the last three years has eroded their paychecks.

Delta and United -- with their focus on premium customers, a bigger share of business travel and extensive international routes — have emerged from the pandemic as the most profitable U.S. carriers. Others that cater to budget-conscious leisure travelers, including Southwest, JetBlue and Spirit, have posted losses and cut prices to fill seats.

The changing market has caused Southwest to consider adding premium seats for the first time in its half-century history.

“Our more affluent customers are contributing meaningfully to our growth, and that’s why we continue to bring more and more product to them,” Bastian said.

Bastian, however, disputed any notion that middle-class travelers are pulling back on spending. He said it is simply supply and demand — the airline industry, including low-fare carriers, is adding flights even faster than demand is growing, leading to lower fares. “The discounting is in the lower-fare bucket,” he said.

Delta’s passenger-carrying capacity grew 8% in the second quarter, but it plans to throttle back to between 5% and 6% growth in the third quarter. Bastian said other, less-profitable airlines should do the same.

“You cannot, if you are on the lower end of the industry’s food chain, continue to post losses, particularly given the health of the demand set we have all seen over these last couple of years,” he told analysts. “There is a lot of other work that others need to lift … there is only so much more we can do on our own.”

The signal to other airlines about capacity was remarkable. During the Obama administration, the Justice Department investigated whether U.S. carriers colluded by signaling each other during events such as conference calls to raise prices by reducing the number of seats for sale. That investigation ended without charges, although Southwest and American later paid to settle private lawsuits that made similar accusations.

Delta doesn’t disclose average fares, but passengers paid 2% less per mile in the second quarter, and there were a couple more empty seats on the average flight, compared with a year earlier.

Delta’s increase in revenue was more than offset by higher costs. Expenses jumped 10%, with labor, jet fuel, airport fees, airplane maintenance and even the cost of running its oil refinery all rising sharply.

Spending on labor grew 9% over last year. The airline hired thousands of new workers when travel began recovering from the coronavirus pandemic, but hiring now is mostly limited to replacing workers who leave or retire. Delta laid off an undisclosed number of nonunion office employees last fall in a sign that management considered the company overstaffed.

Atlanta-based Delta said its earnings, excluding one-time items, worked out to $2.36 per share, a penny less than the average forecast among analysts in a FactSet survey.

The airline said its adjusted profit in the third quarter will be between $1.70 and $2 per share, below analysts’ forecast of $2.04 per share. Delta repeated its previous prediction that full-year profit will be $6 to $7 per share.

Koenig reported from Dallas. Christopher Rugaber in Washington contributed to this report.

Delta hints 'basic business' fare could be on horizon

Delta Air Lines' premium cabins could be ripe for "unbundling" — the airline industry trend that's seen passengers increasingly paying for services once included in the price of a ticket.

For decades, unbundling has been a well-known part of traveling in coach, from the introduction of checked bag fees in the 2000s to more restrictive tickets rolled out in the 2010s that stripped away free perks like complimentary seat selection, or — on some airlines — a free full-size carry-on bag, in exchange for a cheaper base fare.

Could a similar trend be on its way to first or business class?

Last week, Delta leaders seemed to signal that some sort of "business light" or "basic business" (our terminology, not Delta's) could be around the corner.

Want more airline-specific news? Sign up for TPG's free biweekly Aviation newsletter .

Delta signals business unbundling possible

To be clear, nothing has been announced yet.

But last week, on the company's second-quarter earnings call, a Wall Street analyst asked Delta president Glen Hauenstein whether the carrier might ever consider bringing unbundling to its front cabin.

Hauenstein acknowledged those talks are, in fact, in the works. He even went so far as to tease a potential announcement at Delta's fall Investor Day, the company's annual shareholder meeting at which executives typically share detailed future plans.

"We've talked conceptually about that," Hauenstein said. "I think we'll be giving you more details. … But we're not ready to talk about the details of those plans moving forward. Investor Day this year should be very exciting."

As you might expect, Hauenstein's comments on the topic have generated a lot of buzz among industry followers — and speculation on what this could mean for Delta One , First Class and Premium Select passengers.

While no firm details have been shared, any such changes could introduce an additional layer of decision-making for customers who likely take "all-in" pricing for granted when booking expensive business-class fares.

Related: Best Delta credit cards this month

An evolution of unbundling

Over the course of this century, airlines have methodically unbundled services in the main cabin.

Following the advent of checked bag fees in the 2000s amid rising fuel prices and the economic crisis, Delta and its competitors rolled out restrictive basic economy fares in the 2010s as a way to better compete with the budget airlines — changes that required passengers flying in coach to look a lot more closely at what's included (and what's not) when booking a flight.

Premium passengers typically immune

But passengers purchasing a premium ticket on Delta (and its legacy competitors in the U.S.) can typically book worry-free, with the higher-end tickets generally all-inclusive.

Sure, Delta does already offer an upsell to passengers flying in Delta One to make the ticket fully refundable, as shown on this $3,050 round trip from New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport (CDG).

Loyalty basics: Best ways to earn airline miles

But this ticket itself would come with two free checked bags, seat selection and lounge access — including, in this specific case, access to the carrier's new Delta One Lounge at JFK.

Ancillary fees a boon

Wall Street analysts are quick to point out the success airlines have had charging main cabin passengers ancillary fees, which aren't subject to the same taxes that fares are (a big reason why budget airlines base so much of their business model off of the tactic).

"Unbundling and segmenting the rear cabin has been such a success for Delta," J.P. Morgan Chase analyst Jamie Baker — who posed the question about premium unbundling to Hauenstein — said during last week's call.

Collectively, U.S. airlines made more than $7 billion in 2023 just from checked baggage, according to data from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Business lite fares do exist

Delta wouldn't be the first major airline in the world to introduce some sort of "business lite" or "basic business product."

Airlines from Emirates to Qatar, Finnair, Air France and KLM have taken similar steps in recent years.

Depending on the carrier and ticket, the cheaper business fares can strip away some of the perks that help make up the business-class experience.

For years, British Airways has charged for seat selection in its lie-flat international business-class cabin. High-level Oneworld Alliance elites are exempt from the fare, but for others the add-on charges can be an unwelcome surprise after purchasing a ticket that can cost thousands of dollars.

Here's another example, on Emirates: Let's say I'm booking a business-class flight from Dulles International Airport (IAD) to Dubai International Airport (DXB).

The cheapest ticket, in this case, starts at $2,747, round trip.

By not paying the additional $574 for the "Saver" fare, though, I'll lose lounge access, complimentary seat selection, chauffeur services and the ability to upgrade to first class.

Delta's plans still unclear

It's not clear what, if anything, Delta might restrict if it ultimately does go down the premium unbundling road.

Today, travelers flying on a Delta basic economy ticket can't select a seat until after check-in. They're not allowed to make itinerary changes for flights originating in the U.S., Canada or the Caribbean. They're last to board, they don't earn SkyMiles or Medallion status credit and they're not allowed into SkyClubs, even if they carry a Delta American Express credit card that would ordinarily grant them access.

But that's basic economy. The carrier would likely want to tread carefully with its premium cabin, regularly touted by company leaders as a focal point of its business model — one that's helped Delta maintain an edge over just about all of its U.S. competitors in recent years, even as it disappointed Wall Street analysts with lower-than-expected profitability in the second quarter.

The word "premium" was mentioned 37 times on Delta's call with analysts last week, the event's transcript shows.

Yet unbundling the premium cabin would undermine that stature, critics argue.

Map watching: The award for "sexiest new route" of the year goes to ...

"This talk of adding fees to the premium cabin demonstrates, to me, an ancillary revenue mantra run wild. Short-term benefits, but long-term warning signs," said Jay Sorensen, president of the airline consultancy IdeaWorks.

"The global network carriers continue to promote themselves as premium airlines," Sorensen added. "When you behave like a [low-cost carrier], your brand will eventually become an LCC, and your employees will take on LCC-like habits."

Of course, Delta executives regularly note the company's sterling brand reputation, and that's not without merit: Even after fallout from a SkyMiles crackdown last year, the carrier was a top finisher in both the recent J.D. Power airline rankings and the 2024 TPG Best Airlines report .

Bottom line

If Delta were to unbundle its premium cabin, it's certainly possible other carriers could follow suit; look no further than all three of the legacy U.S. carriers doing away with change fees a few years ago — or quickly following one another in hiking checked bag fees earlier this year.

Time will tell whether this trend takes hold in the front of the plane. Suffice to say, we'll be keeping a close eye on Delta's Investor Day, set for November.

Related reading:

• Your complete guide to the Delta SkyMiles program
• Best Delta credit cards
• What is Delta Air Lines elite status worth?
• Maximize your airfare: The best credit cards for booking flights
• The best credit cards to reach elite status in 2023
• How to survive basic economy on Delta Air Lines