Right now its possible to earn up to 50,000 SkyMiles and 10,000 Medallion Qualifying Miles (MQMs) with the suite of co-branded Delta credit cards issued from American Express. But just how many miles you can earn will depend on the specific card you are looking at.
But credit cards are serious business. No amount of SkyMiles is worth digging yourself into credit card debt – if you can’t afford to immediately pay off the $2,000 to $6,000 you need to spend in the first three months to earn these bonuses, it’s not worth it.
Already got a Delta credit card in your wallet? You can apply for a different Delta card and still earn these big bonuses!
Delta SkyMiles can be a mixed bag, but there are plenty of valuable ways to redeem SkyMiles for your future travels: Think insanely cheap SkyMiles flash sales like 10,000 SkyMiles roundtrip to Hawaii, 5,000 miles to Alaska and back, 32,000 SkyMiles round trip to Spain, or 70,000 SkyMiles (or less!) to get to Australia and back.
Read on for more details on each of the current Delta credit card offers, and everything you need to know to take advantage.
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
- Earn 40,000 SkyMiles after you spend $1,000 in purchases in the first three months of card membership.
- Check your first bag free on every Delta flight – savings of at least $60 on each round-trip flight, per person.
- Priority boarding (even with a basic economy ticket)
- Earn 2x SkyMiles per dollar spent at both restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets
- Earn 2x SkyMiles per dollar on eligible Delta purchases and 1x mile for all other eligible purchases.
- Earn a $100 Delta flight credit towards future travel if you spend $10,000 on the card in a calendar year.
- Get 20% off in-flight purchases such as food & drinks in the form of a statement credit
- No foreign transaction fees
- $0 introductory annual fee for the first year (then $99 per year). See rates & fees.
Click Here to learn more about the Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express Card.
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
- Earn 50,000 SkyMiles & 5,000 MQMS after you spend $2,000 in purchases in the first three months of card membership.
- Check your first bag free on every Delta flight, savings of at least $60 on each round-trip flight, per person.
- Priority boarding (even with a basic economy ticket)
- Get a domestic main cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon card renewal – one of this card’s best benefits!
- Earn 2x SkyMiles per dollar spent at both restaurants worldwide and U.S. supermarkets.
- Earn 3x SkyMiles per dollar spent on eligible Delta purchases, and at hotels.
- Get up to a $100 credit to cover the cost for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck once every four years. You can use this benefit every four years for Global Entry and every 4 1/2 years with TSA PreCheck®
- Get 20% off in-flight purchases such as food & drinks in the form of a statement credit
- Get into the Delta Sky Club when you’re flying Delta by paying $39 (and bring up to two guests for $39 each)
- No foreign transaction fees
- $250 annual fee. See rates & fees.
Click Here to learn more about the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card.
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
- Earn 50,000 SkyMiles & 10,000 MQMs after you spend $3,000 in the first three months of card membership.
- Check your first bag free on every Delta flight – savings of at least $60 on each round-trip flight, per person.
- Priority boarding (even with a basic economy ticket)
- Complimentary Delta Sky Club access when you are flying Delta. You’ll also get two, one-time guest passes each year to the Delta Sky Club.
- Complimentary access to the American Express Centurion Lounges when you are flying Delta on a ticket purchased with your Reserve card. You can also bring up to two guests in with you for a fee of $50 each.
- Get a domestic main cabin or first-class round-trip companion certificate each year upon card renewal.
- Earn 3x SkyMiles per dollar spent on Delta purchases.
- Get up to a $100 credit to cover the cost for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck once every four years. You receive this benefit every four years for Global Entry and every 4 1/2 years with TSA PreCheck®
- Complimentary space-available upgrades, even for non-Medallion members: A great way to improve your upgrade chances.
- Enjoy 20% off in-flight purchases such as food & drinks in the form of a statement credit.
- No foreign transaction fees
- $550 annual fee. See rates & fees.
Click Here to learn more about the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card.
Should You Upgrade Your Existing Delta Credit Card?
If you already hold a Delta SkyMiles Gold or Platinum Card, does it make sense to upgrade your card to the next tier? The short answer is no.
Delta and American Express constantly push cardholders to upgrade. But upgrading your current Delta card is typically not a smart move, as it will make you ineligible to earn the welcome bonus offers these cards have.
With American Express, you can simply apply outright for a new account to earn the huge SkyMiles bonus and then close out an older account after you are approved. That’s because American Express lets you earn a welcome bonus on all of their credit cards once per lifetime.
For example, you can apply for the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card even if you’ve already got the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card in your wallet. If you take the upgrade offer, you’d make yourself ineligible for the 50,000-SkyMile bonus.
That said, we have seen some compelling upgrade offers in the past, with a combination of some bonus miles with a statement credit to upgrade from the Gold to the Platinum card – or Platinum to Reserve. Still, it’s often a much better deal to apply for a new card outright.
Read more: Already Had a Delta SkyMiles Credit Card: Can You Still Get Another Bonus?
Our Take on These Delta Credit Card Offers
Delta SkyMiles can get a bad rap, especially after a slew of devaluations that drastically increased the costs of flying economy or business class on partner airlines like Air France, KLM, or Korean Air. Delta just did it again in April, increasing the rate to fly business class to the Middle East from 85,000 SkyMiles to 130,000 SkyMiles with no warning.
But these miles are still far from worthless.
We regularly see domestic fares under 10,000 SkyMiles roundtrip. But the real value of SkyMiles comes from frequent SkyMiles flash sales. Just take a look at some of the SkyMiles flash sales we’ve found and sent to Thrifty Traveler Premium members.
- 32,000 SkyMiles roundtrip to Spain!
- 10,000 SkyMiles from Seattle (SEA) to Hawaii roundtrip!
- 10,000 SkyMiles to Mexico roundtrip!
- 5,000 to 10,000 SkyMiles to Alaska roundtrip!
- Nationwide flights to Hawaii from just 14,000 SkyMiles total
- Costa Rica for 11,000 SkyMiles!
- A flash sale to Argentina for just 30,000 SkyMiles roundtrip
Plus, SkyMiles never expire. With the ability to easily cancel award tickets and get your miles back – plus any taxes and fees (as long as you book a main cabin ticket or higher) – we think SkyMiles are one of the best ways to book travel. It’s a great time to apply if you are eligible.
Whether the Gold, Platinum, or Reserve Card is right for you can be a tough call. The value of the companion ticket on the Delta Platinum Card can be huge, easily offsetting the card’s $250 annual fee. You essentially get a BOGO ticket for flights within the mainland U.S. after your first full year with both the Platinum and the Reserve card.
Read more: How to Maximize the Companion Ticket on Your Delta Platinum Card
Not sure if you are eligible to earn the bonus? See our post on the Amex welcome offer eligibility tool. And make sure to read our guide on Understanding Delta SkyMiles before you book your next trip.
And make sure to read our post on the best credit cards for Delta Flyers in 2022.
Bottom Line
If you often fly with Delta, having a SkyMiles credit card will provide you with a free checked bag and priority boarding on every Delta flight. Those perks alone put these credit cards on many travelers’ radar.
You can earn up to 50,000 SkyMiles by spending just $2,000 in the first three months of card membership.
Is there a downside for you and your spouse to open up 2 separate accounts for the bonus miles? Other than the annual fee? Or is it not allowed….
It’s most certainly allowed. As long as you can be responsible with the line of credit, there isn’t a downside. Double your mileage 😎
Is there a way to check whether or not you’ve received a bonus in the past? I thought I recall seeing comments on previous posts that if you apply for the card, there is a screen at some point that tells you if you are ineligible. Is that true?
Hey Paul. If you apply and are not eligible to receive the welcome bonus, American Express will give you a pop-up warning before you submit the application and give you a chance to cancel it. If you don’t receive that pop-up, you are good to go!
I’ve heard conflicting reports on if new cardmembers are eligible for the restaurant credits or if it was only for existing folks. Any way to confirm? It’s a slam dunk to apply for the Delta Platinum if that’s the case.
Hey Andre, I’ve heard that as well. It’s possible this might not be available to new card members as you mentioned. I’ll confirm when we know more.
I have the Gold card & my husband is an “additional card holder”. Can he apply for his own card (gold) & still get the bonus?
He absolutely can!
If I already have existing sky miles do those also cancel out July 28, or is this just referring to the new promotional miles? Thanks.
On July 28, the current bonus offers on the credit cards will be ending. Any Skymiles you earn are yours to keep and SkyMiles never expire.
Two questions…. can you transfer a balance from a different card to go towards the $2000 spending requirement and do the balances have to paid off every month?
Hi Janet,
Most cards do allow a balance transfer option. however, the balance transfer will not count towards the minimum spending requirement to earn the welcome bonus points.
The Platinum and Gold card are both offering an introductory 0% APR period for the first 12 months, so for the first year, there will not be a penalty for carrying a balance from month to month. However, after the first year, the APR % is very high, and paying interest on the unpaid debt will likely wipe out any benefit you will get from the miles. We don’t recommend it.
If I have 25,000 miles on my Gold card and end up closing it after I get approved for the platinum card, can I get those miles transferred to the Platinum card plus the 90,000 bonus miles?
As long as the cards are associated with the same SkyMiles number, you won’t need to transfer anything. They will all pool into the same account.
Current platinum member 4/2021. I want to open a platinum business card. Will this make me ineligible for the new limited-time 90,000-SkyMiles bonus or will the business be treated as a separate entity so I can take advantage of this promotion.
Hi Kimberly. You are absolutely eligible for the business version. They are two separate products.
Buyer beware. The Delta Amex Reserve card will charge you $175 per add’l card ANNUALLY. Doesn’t say that anywhere until you read the comprehensive agreement (about four levels deep into the application process).