Delta flyers love Delta, touting their Delta Medallion Status like a badge of honor and proudly swipe their SkyMiles credit cards. And two of the most popular options are the *delta platinum* and the *delta reserve*.
The SkyMiles Platinum and Reserve cards are Delta's top offerings, charging higher annual fees in exchange for valuable perks like free checked bags, priority boarding, an annual Delta companion certificate, and Delta Sky Club access. While there are better options to rack up points and miles than a Delta card, those benefits and more can easily make it worth keeping one of these cards in your wallet.
But which one is better: The Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex? From annual fees to welcome offers to lounge access and more, there are plenty of differences (and similarities) to dissect between Delta's top travel cards.
Keep reading for a full breakdown of the Delta Platinum and Delta Reserve cards from American Express.
Want more info on all of the Delta SkyMiles cards? Check out the latest offers and a full comparison!
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Similarities & Differences
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Welcome Offer
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Earning Points
- Delta Platinum American Express vs Delta Reserve Amex: Annual Fee
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Companion Pass
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve American Express: Lounge Access
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Travel Perks
- Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Authorized Users
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Similarities & Differences
No matter which version of Delta SkyMiles American Express Card you choose, the real draw with these cards is the ongoing perks and benefits you get for being a cardholder. A big batch of SkyMiles is just a bonus.
Both cards come with valuable perks like a free checked bag, priority boarding, discounted award tickets, and an annual companion pass. But one card takes things a step further by providing access to Delta Sky Clubs and even Amex Centurion Lounges. Meanwhile, a different Delta card will earn you more SkyMiles on your everyday spending
Here's a brief breakdown of what you get with each card:
| Benefit | Delta Platinum Amex | Delta Reserve Amex |
|---|---|---|
| Welcome Offer | bonus_miles_full | bonus_miles_full |
| Earning SkyMiles on Delta Purchases | Earn 3x SkyMiles on Delta flights and Delta Vacations® | Earn 3x SkyMiles on Delta flights and Delta Vacations® |
| Earning SkyMiles on Everyday Purchases | Earn 3x SkyMiles on hotels, 2x SkyMiles at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, 1x SkyMiles on other purchases | Earn 1x SkyMiles on other purchases |
| Annual Companion Pass | Get a domestic Main Cabin roundtrip companion certificate each year upon card renewal. | Get a domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+® or Main Cabin roundtrip companion certificate each year upon card renewal. |
| Lounge Access | Pay $50 for Delta Sky Club access for cardholders and up to two travel companions when flying Delta. | Complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs, Amex Centurion Lounges, or Escape Lounges for cardholders when flying Delta - plus two one-time guest passes each year. |
| Free Checked Bag | Get your first checked bag free on all Delta flights. | Get your first checked bag free on all Delta flights. |
| Annual Fee | $250 | $550 |
As you can see, these two cards have quite a bit in common. But a few key differences could be enough to make one of them a better fit than the other, depending on what benefits you value most.
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Welcome Offer
Looking for a big welcome offer bonus? Here's what's available on both cards.
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card
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Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card
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Winner: Which Card Has the Better Welcome Offer?
You'll currently earn more points with the Delta Reserve, but you'll have to spend $2,000 more to do so. That said, you'll have a full six months to meet the spending requirement.
Learn more about the *delta reserve*
Thrifty Tip: Eligible for a small business credit card? You just might be … and there are even bigger SkyMiles bonuses available on the small business versions of these cards.
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Earning Points
When it comes to earning SkyMiles, one of these cards will help you rack them up much faster than the other.
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card
The American Express Delta Platinum Card earns 3x SkyMiles on all Delta purchases, 3x SkyMiles on purchases made directly with hotels, 2x SkyMiles at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets, and 1x SkyMiles per dollar on other purchases.
You can earn far more SkyMiles by spending on other Amex Cards. But if you're dead set on using your SkyMiles card for routine purchases, this is definitely the best of the two.
Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card
The American Express Delta Reserve Card will earn you 3x SkyMiles on all Delta purchases and 1x SkyMiles per dollar on other purchases.
Outside of Delta, there aren't any other bonus categories, making it a poor choice for your regular spending.
Winner: Which Card Earns More Points?
The Delta Platinum Card is the clear winner in this category. It offers the same 3x miles on Delta purchases that you get with the Delta Reserve but adds several additional bonus categories for things like hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets.
Learn more about the *delta platinum*
Delta Platinum American Express vs Delta Reserve Amex: Annual Fee
Paying an annual fee is never fun. Many travelers fear annual fees so much that they avoid them altogether.
But flyers need to do the math before ruling out cards with annual fees as the benefits and bonuses can more than offset even a high annual fee. Both the Delta Platinum and Delta Reserve cards are a perfect example of how things can shake out.
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card
The Delta Platinum Card carries a middle-of-the-road $250 annual fee (see rates & fees).
While that $250 annual fee might seem steep to some, it comes in well below the Delta Reserve. Meanwhile, it clocks in at a higher price than the *delta gold*. And unlike that entry-level Delta card, the Delta Platinum Card's $250 annual fee isn't waived for the first year.
But what makes the annual fee reasonable is what the card offers in return: an annual companion pass starting in your second year with the card after you renew, a first checked bag free for you and up to eight others on your reservation, and up to $100 in statement credits for TSA PreCheck or Global Entry enrollment. These are just a few of the benefits that you should consider when determining whether the card is worth its annual fee.
Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card
The Delta Reserve Card comes with a $550 annual fee (see rates & fees). But yet again, that doesn't tell the full story.
For $550 per year, you'll get most of the same benefits that Delta Platinum cardholders get. But most importantly, you get complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs and American Express Centurion Lounges, among others, when flying Delta that day. If you're a frequent Delta flyer, this complimentary lounge access could easily offset the card's annual fee and then some.
Winner: Which Card Wins on Fees?
From a pure cost perspective, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card is the winner when it comes to annual fees. But for some, paying more for the Delta Reserve will be worth it for the additional benefits alone.
Learn more about the *delta platinum*
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Companion Pass
What's a companion pass? Think of it as a once-a-year BOGO ticket for flights within the mainland U.S.
After your first full year with the Platinum or the Reserve card, you'll get a companion ticket good for roundtrip airfare anywhere in the continental U.S. – all you'll need to pay for are the taxes and fees on the ticket. It's as simple as that!
The value of the companion pass from either card can be huge, easily offsetting the card's annual fees.
Read our full guide on how to maximize Delta companion certificates!
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card
The Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card gets you an annual companion certificate to use on economy fares within the continental U.S. That means Hawaii and Alaska are off-limits.
Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card
The Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card comes with a companion certificate that's similar to the Delta Platinum, but it also works for Delta Comfort Plus and first class tickets within the continental U.S.
Winner: Which Card has the Better Companion Pass?
The value of these companion passes is close. But since the companion pass you get with the Delta Reserve Card can also be used for Comfort Plus or first class tickets – not just economy – the edge goes to the Reserve Card.
Learn more about the *delta reserve*
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve American Express: Lounge Access
Having access to an airport lounge can be a game changer for travelers.
While the quality of food and drinks can vary greatly depending on which lounge you're in, you can generally count on a solid experience at Delta Sky Clubs – especially newer lounges like in Los Angeles (LAX), Chicago-O'Hare (ORD), Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), and New York City-LaGuardia (LGA). At the very least, it's an oasis from the rest of a crowded airport.
Read our full review of the new Delta Sky Club at Minneapolis – St. Paul (MSP)!
There are several ways to access airport lounges. But these days, the easiest way to get in is by simply holding the right credit card – and with the Delta Reserve Card, you can do just that.
The Delta Reserve Card comes with complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs, Amex Centurion Lounges, and Escape Lounges when flying on a same-day Delta flight. As of now, you'll get unlimited access to Delta Sky Clubs with your reserve card, but that's going to be changing come Feb. 1, 2025. After that date, you'll be limited to 10 visits to the Sky Club each year, unless you also spend $75,000 on your card.
In order to get into Sky Clubs, you don't even need to have used your Reserve card to pay for your ticket. You will need to have paid for your airfare with an American Express Card in order to get into Centurion and Escape Lounges, though.
Thrifty Tip: Add your Reserve Card to your Delta wallet so you can simply scan your boarding pass and waltz into the Sky Club!
In addition to your own free pass into the Sky Club, cardholders receive two free guest passes to the Delta Sky Club each year. That means two guests can come with you into the Sky Club for free or one guest twice. After that, you'd simply pay $50 per guest – with the ability to bring up to two guests into the Sky Club at a time. These annual guest passes will be sticking around in 2025 and won't count against Reserve cardholder's 10 visit allotment.
If you've got the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express in your wallet, you can currently buy one-time Sky Club access for $50 per entry – but this too is changing. Beginning Jan. 1, 2024, Delta Platinum cardholders will no longer be able to buy guest access, period.
Unlike other airlines, there are no day passes to the lounge available for everyday flyers. That means the Delta Reserve is one of your only options for getting in. Earlier this year, Delta even killed off annual memberships for travelers without Delta Medallion status in its ongoing efforts to combat lounge overcrowding.
Winner: Which Card Offers Better Lounge Access?
The Delta Reserve card opens far more lounge doors than the Delta Platinum does. With this card you'll get access to not only Delta Sky Clubs, but also American Express Centurion Lounges, and Escape Lounges. And that makes it the clear winner when it comes to lounge access.
Learn more about the *delta reserve*
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Travel Perks
Stop me if you've heard this before: Your primary reason for getting either the Delta Platinum or Reserve Card shouldn't be to earn SkyMiles.
The real value of these cards is in the perks and travel benefits to make your trip better. And both of these cards bring a lot of additional perks to the table.
First Checked Bag Free
One of the biggest travel perks of both the Delta Platinum and Reserve card is getting a free checked bag on all Delta flights – a savings of at least $60 on each roundtrip.
By simply attaching your SkyMiles number to your itinerary, you'll automatically receive this benefit for yourself … and up to eight other passengers booked on the same reservation. There's no need to even pay for your flight with your Delta card!
Getting a free checked bag on every Delta flight can go a long way to offsetting either card’s annual fee. And the math works out even better if you’re flying with family or friends, as it allows you to get a free bag for up to nine passengers in total.
Both cards offer the exact same free baggage benefit.
TakeOff 15
TakeOff 15 is a new benefit for Delta SkyMiles American Express cardholders that provides a 15% discount on award tickets when redeeming SkyMiles for Delta-operated award flights.
This discount works the same way regardless of whether you have the Delta Platinum or Delta Reserve American Express Card. In fact, you'll even get this benefit with the cheaper *delta gold*. Only the no-annual fee *delta blue* misses the cut.
This benefit couldn't be any simpler: You'll see the discounted price automatically applied when logged into your SkyMiles account and searching for award flights. The discount even applies to additional passengers in your travel party, meaning the savings can add up in a hurry if you're using your SkyMiles to book flights for a group.
Unfortunately, this discount is only available to the primary cardholder – authorized users on your card won't get a 15% discount of their own.
20% Back on In-Flight Purchases
Whether you're in need of a light bite to eat or are looking for something to help take the edge off, it'll cost you on most Delta flights. But thankfully, there's a way to save on these purchases with both the Delta Platinum and Reserve Cards.
If you hold either card, you'll get 20% back on in-flight purchases in the form of a statement credit for any food or beverage purchase. This 20% credit does not apply to anything else purchased onboard like inflight Wi-Fi … though the days of paying for internet are numbered as Delta continues rolling out free onboard Wi-Fi.
TSA PreCheck or Global Entry Credit
Both of these cards give you up to a $100 credit to cover the cost of Global Entry or TSA PreCheck every four and a half years. And that's enough to cover the entire cost of either program.
This benefit might seem a bit redundant, as a lot of travel cards offer a credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck these days. But even if you're already enrolled in one of these trusted traveler programs, it could still be useful when it comes time to renew. Otherwise, you could just pay the application fee for a friend or family member and make their next airport experience a bit less stressful.
Here's how it works: Just pay the application fee with your card and poof – the credit kicks in to automatically cover the cost. Once enrolled, membership lasts for five years – that means you’re set to keep your enrollment up to date with either program.
Can’t decide which to go with? Global Entry is the best of both worlds as it also comes with TSA PreCheck benefits as well as getting you into a designated customs and immigration line when returning to the U.S. from abroad.
Earning Elite Status
As it stands today, there are three building blocks to earning Delta status for 2024:
- Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs): a measure of how many miles you've flown with Delta,
- Medallion Qualification Segments (MQSs): a measure of how many flight segments you've taken with Delta
- Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQDs): a measure of how much money you've spent with Delta or Delta partner airlines.
Outside of qualifying for Delta status, MQMs, MQSs, and MQDs have no value and can not be redeemed for flights like Delta SkyMiles can.
You need to earn a certain amount of either MQMs or MQSs as well as a certain number of MQDs to qualify for every level of Delta status from Silver to Diamond Medallion.
However, if you hold either the *delta platinum* or the *delta reserve card* you can get an MQD waiver to satisfy the MQD requirement for earning status by spending at least $25,000 on your card in a calendar year.
That waiver is enough to satisfy the MQD requirement for Silver, Gold, and Platinum status. To get an MQD waiver for Diamond status, you need to spend a whopping $250,000 on your card in a calendar year.
That's all changing starting on Jan. 1, 2024, as Delta flyers begin working towards re-qualifying for Medallion status for the 2025 year.
The biggest change? Delta flyers will earn only MQDs, and will no longer earn Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) or Medallion Qualifying Segments (MQSs).
That said, Delta is giving flyers more ways to actually earn MQDs beyond just spending on Delta and its partner airlines.
How to Earn Delta MQDs Starting in 2024
- You'll earn 1 MQD per $1 spent on the ticket price for a Delta-marketed flight operated by Delta or a Delta partner airline.
- If you hold the *delta reserve card* or the *delta reserve business*, you'll earn 1 MQD for every $10 you spend.
- If you hold the *delta platinum* or the *delta platinum business*, you'll earn 1 MQD for every $20 you spend.
- You'll earn 1 MQD per $1 spent on completed car rentals booked through Delta.
- You'll earn 1 MQD per $1 spent on completed hotel stays booked through Delta.
- You'll earn 1 MQD per $1 spent on Delta Vacations package bookings.
- There will no longer be an MQD waiver for meeting a spending threshold on the Delta Platinum and Reserve credit cards.
- There will be no path to earning MQDs for spending on the *delta skymiles gold card*.
Read more: Is Delta Medallion Status Worth It?
Delta Platinum Amex vs Delta Reserve Amex: Authorized Users
Adding an authorized user to your credit card means that person will get their own physical card, which they can use to make purchases on your behalf.
Doing so can be a great way to work toward the minimum spending requirement with either of these welcome offers. It's also a good option for spouses and families – especially if you want to help a minor get off on the right foot by building their credit early.
Both of these cards allow you to add an authorized user to the main account, but what benefits you get with that additional card range from “not much” to “well worth it.”
Delta SkyMiles Platinum Card
Authorized users can be added to the Delta Platinum Card for no additional cost. Outside of being able to use the card for purchases – earning additional SkyMiles – there aren't really any other benefits for the main cardholder or authorized users to take advantage of.
Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card
With the Delta Reserve Card, you can add authorized users for an additional fee of $175 per year. The main benefit to adding an authorized user to your Delta Reserve Card is that they will then get complimentary access to Delta Sky Clubs, American Express Centurion Lounges, and Escape Lounges when flying Delta.
With the changes to Sky Club access coming in 2025, Delta Reserve authorized users will get their own allowance of 10 Sky Club visits each year, separate from the main cardholder.
When compared with to the cost of purchasing a Sky Club Membership outright (if you can), this is far and away the better alternative.
Winner: Which Card Has the Best Authorized User Benefits?
Although it'll cost an additional $175 a year to add an authorized user, getting Sky Club and other lounge access can be well worth it for families that travel together. The Delta Reserve is the clear winner in terms of authorized user benefits.
Learn more about the *delta reserve*
Bottom Line
By the numbers, both cards won three categories and finished in a draw through our head-to-head comparison. But that doesn't tell the full story.
If you're after top-tier credit card perks like lounge access or an even faster path toward building Delta Medallion Status, the Delta Reserve is the clear winner. Meanwhile, the Delta Platinum is a far cheaper alternative that still offers many of the same great benefits.
Ultimately, deciding which card is best is a personal decision: You have to look at all the cards' features and benefits and decide which one fits your travel plans – and your budget for annual fees. If you're a frequent Delta flyer looking for additional perks to make your travel life a little easier, you really can't go wrong with either card.