Yes, you read that headline correctly. Yes, it's a hot take. And yes, I mean every word.
At a time when virtually every other airline program is getting worse – raising both award rates and fees, throttling award availability, and often all three – Delta SkyMiles are somehow getting inarguably better. Deeply discounted SkyMiles flash sales are cheaper, more widespread, and far more frequent than they've been in years – especially in Delta One business class, where we've seen an unprecedented slew of deals to Europe, Tokyo-Haneda (HND), Hong Kong (HKG), and beyond … for as low as 80,000 SkyMiles each way!
I first unleashed this take in front of 300-some diehard travelers during our live podcast in Minneapolis … to some audible gasps. Almost two months later, I'd say the case has only gotten stronger.
Sure, Delta SkyMiles are still hit-or-miss and remain unpredictable – you're still likely to see some disgusting rates close to home as well as abroad. But now, the upside of Delta miles is undeniable.
It might sound like blasphemy, but it's time to get out of the echo chamber: Calling SkyMiles “worthless” is so 2024. It's time to give Delta SkyMiles some credit – and make them part of your strategy.
Deal After Deal Flying Delta
Just over three years ago, we bemoaned the sad state of SkyMiles, largely due to the disappearance of once-excellent flash sales. Award rates were so insulting, we told everyday travelers and diehard Delta loyalists alike to reconsider swiping their SkyMiles Amex cards anywhere.
In 2026, it's a different story entirely. We're more bullish on SkyMiles than we've been at any point in 11-plus years of finding flight deals … because the Delta deals just keep coming.
Even as many flight prices have soared, the dirt-cheap economy redemptions travelers have come to know and (sometimes) love Delta for haven't gone anywhere. That includes:
- Regular roundtrips to Mexico and the Caribbean for as low as 8,000 SkyMiles total
- Ditto for domestic redemptions, though cheap rates have gotten harder to find as airfare has exploded
- But European trips are regularly a bargain, with a slew of deals under 30,000 SkyMiles and some record-low prices to London-Heathrow (LHR) at just 19,000 SkyMiles roundtrip
- Delta recently slashed rates on its new route to Hong Kong to below 29,000 SkyMiles – not each way, but roundtrip
- And then there's what could go down as the deal of the year: roundtrip fares to Brisbane (BNE), Sydney (SYD), and Auckland (AKL) from just 25,000 SkyMiles roundtrip!
But it's the flood of discounted Delta One redemptions that has us really reassessing where Delta SkyMiles fits into the points-and-miles landscape. Get this: In the last two months or so, we've sent our Thrifty Traveler Premium members…
- Delta One Suites over this peak summer to Rome (FCO), Venice (VCE), Dublin (DUB), Barcelona (BCN) for as low as 97,000 SkyMiles each way
- Plus another nonstop deal to London-Heathrow (LHR) for the same rates from both Atlanta (ATL) and Salt Lake City (SLC) – two Delta hubs notorious for higher rates
- And another one to Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland this summer, again for 97,000 SkyMiles
- And then one more on the relatively new route to Naples (NAP), also for just 97,000 SkyMiles
- A nationwide flash sale to Taipei (TPE) for 170,000 SkyMiles roundtrip flying Delta One Suites
- Record-low pricing for Delta One Suites on the new route to Hong Kong (HKG) – just 85,000 SkyMiles each way
- And to Tokyo-Haneda (HND) in Delta One Suites for under 80,000 SkyMiles, the lowest rate we've seen in more than six years!
All but a few of those deals shared a few things in common:
- They were bookable at those rates for two to four or more passengers
- At rates a fraction of what Delta typically charges
- Many were available from 100-plus airports nationwide
- And Delta didn't advertise a single one of them!
Deals like those are few and far between on other major carriers. While American might charge 57,500 AAdvantage miles for a one-way business class redemption to Europe, good luck finding availability at those rates over the peak summer…
Now, that doesn't mean getting an amazing SkyMiles deal is a slam dunk now. Delta's dynamic award pricing can cause pricing to swing wildly out of control. You're still likely to see rates of 100,000 miles or more for a roundtrip to Europe or Hawaii and five times that sum in business class.
But the good deals are better and more frequent than at any time in recent history. That's worth calling out.
While Other Airlines Fall Behind
A big piece of why Delta SkyMiles are looking up has nothing to do with Delta and everything to do with other airlines … whose mileage programs are getting considerably worse.
While they might not have gone quite as far as Delta (yet), every major U.S. airline has embraced dynamic award pricing. Pointsflation is out of control with ever-increasing award rates, as are fee increases on award tickets. Airlines are increasingly throttling award space, hoarding what little availability there is to book business or first class with points for their own members. And now, even transferring credit card points to airlines is taking a hit with removals and subpar transfer ratios as airlines across the globe rethink how much of the U.S. points market they really want.
We posed the question earlier this year: “Is the points party ending?” Looking at much of the airline industry, the answer is starting to feel like a resounding “yes.”
In comparison, Delta is a bright spot. Cheap redemptions are more prevalent than they've been in years. You'll almost never pay more than just the mandatory government taxes and fees on award tickets, which means redemptions start at just $5.60. And SkyMiles are incredibly flexible, giving you the ability to cancel and instantly get your SkyMiles right back on virtually every redemption.
To be clear, Delta still has a ways to go to close the gap with the likes of American AAdvantage and especially Alaska Atmos Rewards. But at a time when both programs are taking hits left and right – alongside almost every other airline on the planet. – Delta is bucking the trend.
… But Why?
I'm going out on a limb here, but I think the folks down in Atlanta have had a change of heart about how they view SkyMiles. They must have.
For the last decade and change, Delta could afford to treat its loyalty program like an afterthought … and that's exactly what the airline did. Delta knew its superior service, seatback screens, free Wi-Fi, reliability, and the “premium” halo all of that (and more) created would keep flyers coming back. Other airlines might have needed a solid mileage program to keep customers coming back, but not Delta – especially not at the hubs like Atlanta (ATL), Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), and Detroit (DTW), where Delta is practically the only game in town.
But the times, they are a-changin'.
While Delta has repeatedly insisted it's the premium airline in the U.S. – and it has a head start on United, let alone American Airlines and others – that's becoming more and more competitive as other carriers level up their own offerings. Even its reputation as the “on-time machine” is slipping with a shoddy track record for reliability so far in 2026.
And it's not just the other airlines pressuring Delta. The transferrable points programs from the likes of Chase, American Express, and Capital One have grown far more popular over the course of the last decade, which means Delta has competition in consumers' wallets, too.
All of that complicates Delta's goal of earning $10 billion a year from its co-branded relationship with American Express – where Delta really makes its money. To get there, Delta needs to convince more travelers to open up a SkyMiles credit card and swipe it day in, day out.
And to do that, Delta has to make the case that SkyMiles are valuable and worth earning. That has forced Delta to throw out more “clearance meat”: deeply discounted deals that grab headlines and travelers' attention like these.
Related reading: Delta’s New ‘Basic’ Biz Class Fares Add to Its Growing Loyalty Problem
A few other elements could be at play here, too:
- You might think airlines would love nothing more than customers sitting on a mountain of unused miles, but they consider that a liability … and Delta's is massive. Since 2019, Delta's “deferred loyalty revenue” has grown from $6.7 billion worth of SkyMiles to $9.5 billion and counting, including a sharp uptick so far in 2026. Better deals could convince SkyMiles members to burn some of those miles.
- Delta CEO Ed Bastian has practically bragged about his plans to keep fares high even after jet fuel prices drop … but if seats are going out empty as travelers begin to balk at prices, slashing SkyMiles rates is an elegant way to fill up planes while protecting their current (higher) price points.
At the end of the day, I can't say for sure. Delta doesn't talk about pricing … least of all with a company laser-focused on finding flyers better deals.
But because we've been searching for 10-plus years, I can say without a shred of doubt that something has changed with Delta SkyMiles. And for once, it's for the better.
Bottom Line
This isn't an advertisement or some phony award. It's an honest (and honestly, probably long-overdue) assessment of Delta SkyMiles … sans the usual groupthink in the points and miles world.
Delta SkyMiles aren't worthless. While virtually every other airline program in the U.S. makes changes for the worse, SkyMiles are on track to overtake the rest of the pack in the not-too-distant future.
We didn't have that on our 2026 bingo cards.
