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If you fly Delta Air Lines often, having a Delta credit card can help you earn enough miles for your next award flight and enjoy other perks with the airline, such as a free checked bag.
Luckily, you have no shortage of options to consider; Delta has seven credit cards that are co-branded with American Express, ranging from the no-annual-fee Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card to the premium Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card with a Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card annual fee and annual companion certificate perk.
Read on to learn more about the various Delta cards for consumers, and see which one is best for you. If you’re not locked into a particular airline, make sure to check out our guide to the best airline credit cards.
Best for occasional Delta flyers: Delta SkyMiles Gold cards
Best for frequent Delta flyers: Delta SkyMiles Platinum cards
Best for airport lounge access: Delta SkyMiles Reserve cards
Best with no annual fee: Delta SkyMiles Blue card
Comparing the best Delta credit cards
Delta SkyMiles are worth, on average, 1.1 cents apiece based on Insider’s 2022 points and miles valuations. Be sure to check out our guide to earning and redeeming Delta miles to find out the best ways to make the most of your rewards.
Delta miles aren’t just good for booking flights on Delta. You can redeem them for award tickets on other SkyTeam alliance carriers, including Air France, KLM, Korean Air, and other non-alliance partners like Virgin Atlantic and WestJet.
Amex Gold Delta card
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card is the best option for someone who flies Delta a couple of times a year but doesn’t travel regularly enough to use the heftier cards’ perks (more on that later). Right now, it’s offering an intro bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card. That’s worth Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card in travel, per Insider’s valuations.
One of the biggest perks: The card offers a free first checked bag on Delta flights for the cardholder and up to eight companions on the same reservation. Delta charges $30 each way for the first checked bag, so this can save up to $60 per person on a round-trip itinerary.
Cardholders and travel companions also get Main Cabin Zone 1 priority boarding. This means you can board the plane sooner, giving you plenty of time to settle into your seat or find overhead space for any carry-on luggage. Zone 1 is after most Delta elite frequent flyers and premium-cabin passengers, but is usually within the first half of passengers to board.
Other perks include a 20% discount on inflight purchases (in the form of a statement credit), such as food or drinks, $100 Delta flight credit after you spend $10,000 on the card in a calendar year, and no foreign transaction fees.
When you have any Amex Delta card, you can access Delta’s Pay With Miles feature, which allows you to redeem miles toward paid airfare at a flat rate of 1 cent each — without worrying about award charts or availability.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express card review
Amex Gold Delta Business card
If you’re a small-business owner, you might want to consider the business version of this card — the Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card — which also has an annual fee of Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card.
The main difference is that the business version offers 2x miles on eligible U.S. purchases for advertising in select media and on eligible U.S. shipping purchases rather than on purchases at U.S. supermarkets. Both versions offer 2x miles on Delta purchases and restaurant purchases.
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card is currently offering an intro bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card. You should have no trouble getting an average of Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card from this bonus, per Insider’s valuations.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Gold Business card review
Amex Platinum Delta card
If you fly Delta somewhat regularly, the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card is a better option, thanks to an often-overlooked benefit that can completely cover the annual fee each year. This card offers an intro bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card. That’s worth an average of Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card in Delta flights, according to Insider’s valuations.
The Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card has most of the same perks as the Gold version, like priority boarding and free checked bags on Delta flights. The card also offers a Global Entry application fee credit of up to $100, and it gets cardholders access to Sky Club lounges at a discounted rate of $39.
However, the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card comes with another huge perk. After your first year with the card, you’ll get an annual domestic companion certificate each year at your cardmember anniversary. A Delta companion certificate is essentially a buy-one-get-one-free coupon. When you book an economy-class flight for yourself anywhere within the continental US, you can get a second ticket for free, other than minimal taxes and fees.
The companion pass can easily cancel out the card’s Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card annual fee. Plus, each year that you spend $25,000 or more on the card, you earn a bonus of 10,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) — up to two times — and have the Medallion Qualifying Dollar (MQD) requirement for most elite status levels waived.
When you have Medallion status, you can enjoy things like free upgrades to first class or extra-legroom seats whenever you fly, subject to availability.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express card review
Read our comparison of the Delta SkyMiles Gold and Delta SkyMiles Platinum cards to find out which version is a better pick for you.
Amex Platinum Delta Business card
If you’re a frequent Delta flyer and you want a small-business card, check out the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card, which also has a Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card annual fee. One unique benefit of this card is the ability to earn 1.5 miles per dollar on single eligible purchases of $5,000 or more (up to 50,000 additional miles per calendar year).
Right now, the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card welcome bonus offer is Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card. That’s worth Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card in travel, according to Insider’s valuations.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Platinum Business card review
Amex Delta Reserve card
The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card has a higher Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card annual fee, but it has a few additional perks that can make it worthwhile for some frequent flyers. Right now, it’s offering an intro bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. That’s worth an average of Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card in travel, per Insider’s valuations.
Like the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card , it offers an annual domestic companion certificate. However, the Delta Reserve’s pass can be used for first-class tickets, not just economy.
Additionally, the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card offers access to Delta Sky Club airport lounges whenever the cardholder is flying with Delta. Plus, Reserve cardholders can now access Amex Centurion Lounges when they’re flying Delta and pay for their ticket with a US-issued American Express card. Centurion Lounges are known for their high-end complimentary food and drink, so this is a great added value.
Other recently added benefits include two Delta Sky Club one-time guest passes, up to $100 for a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit, and access to complimentary upgrades for non-elite Delta members.
Through August 3, 2022, new and existing Delta Reserve American Express cardholders can request a limited-edition card design made from retired Boeing 747 aircraft metal.
The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card has one other major perk, which can be crucial for travelers who hold Delta Medallion elite status. Delta Medallion members are eligible for complimentary, space-available upgrades to first class and Delta One on flights within the US and the region, including Mexico and Central America, and extra-legroom seats on international flights.
Upgrades clear in a hierarchical order based on a number of factors, including each passenger’s status level, the original fare class they booked, and a few other factors. The first tiebreaker for people with the same Medallion level and fare class: whether they hold the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card. Reserve cardholders will be prioritized over those without it. If there’s only one seat left and two members are still tied and both have the Reserve, it continues down the list of tiebreakers.
For travelers who fly a lot and frequently find themselves one or two upgrade-list spots away from getting that first-class seat, holding the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card can be extremely valuable.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Reserve card review
Amex Delta Reserve Business card
There’s also the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card, which offers similar benefits for small-business users, but there’s a difference in earning rates. With the business version, after you spend $150,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year, you can earn 1.5 miles per dollar on eligible purchases for the rest of the calendar year.
The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card offers an intro bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card. This is the highest bonus of the bunch, and is worth Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card in travel, on average (per Insider’s valuations).
Review: Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business card review
Amex Delta Blue card
If you want to earn Delta miles on your everyday spending without paying an annual fee, the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card could be worth a look, with a bonus of Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card.
It offers relatively limited benefits, but it waives foreign transaction fees, and you’ll get 20% off eligible inflight purchases on Delta when you pay with the card.
If you already have an American Express card that earns Membership Rewards points, like The Platinum Card® from American Express or The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express, remember that you can transfer your points to Delta at a 1:1 ratio, so you may not need a Delta co-branded card if you don’t want the additional perks offered by the options with annual fees.
Review: Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express card review
Delta credit card frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Are American Express Delta cards worth it?
All but one Delta credit card come with an annual fee.
While these annual fee-incurring cards have a variety of Delta-centric benefits, the one with the most measurable value is its free first checked bag for the cardholder and up to eight companions. If you fly Delta and check bags, this perk alone can make having a card more than worth the annual fee.
Can you upgrade a Delta Amex card?
It’s possible to upgrade and downgrade your Delta personal card to a different Delta personal card. And it’s possible to do the same from one Delta business card to another. You can often achieve this simply through the Amex chat feature.
However, you may forfeit a welcome bonus offer by product changing your Delta card. American Express occasionally will target cardholders for valuable bonuses when upgrading their card, but there is no guarantee you will ever receive one of these offers. Therefore, it’s usually better to apply for a new Delta card instead of product changing.
What are the normal Delta credit card offers?
Delta credit cards regularly offer intro bonuses between 35,000 and 50,000 miles after meeting minimum spending requirements. American Express tends to boost these offers a handful of times each year.
Are there other ways to enter Delta Sky Club without having a Delta Amex card?
Holding an Amex Delta Reserve card is the cheapest way for those without Delta elite status to gain unlimited access to Delta Sky Clubs whenever you fly with Delta. However, The Platinum Card® from American Express and The Business Platinum Card® from American Express also offer Delta Sky Club access whenever you fly with Delta and carry your Platinum card.
Where is the Delta American Express login page?
Your Delta Amex account and your Delta airline account are completely separate. If you want to pay your credit card bill, you’ll need to head to your American Express account page — not the Delta website.