At Delta’s 2024 investor day last November, the airline’s corporate chieftains disclosed a staggering statistic: Cardholders charged a total amounting to nearly 1% of U.S. GDP on Delta co-branded American Express cards over the prior 12 months. That’s a lot of SkyMiles.
But here’s the problem: If you are one of the millions of Delta Amex cardholders, you’re competing with an enormous pool of people when you redeem those miles. So is earning SkyMiles still worth it? The answer may depend on where in the plane you want to sit.
Shrinking redemption opportunities, growing upgrade lists
Delta presently sells tickets for approximately 88% of its available first-class seats—and that means there’s a dearth of premium award seats available. This is a dramatic shift from 2011, when the company sold tickets for only 14% of its premium seats.
Investing in technology has helped Delta achieve this impressive goal, especially the company’s mobile app, which allows customers to make instant upgrade purchases under a dynamic pricing model.
“Low availability means that First Class or Delta One award tickets can be exorbitantly priced,” says Jon Nickel-D’Andrea, author and credit cards expert.
You may have noticed the impact if you’ve tried to redeem miles for a premium award ticket. A round-trip Delta One flight to Europe can cost over 500,000 SkyMiles, while the same route can be less than half that price using another loyalty program.
It’s worth noting that Delta Amex cards offer the TAKEOFF15 benefit, which gives a 15% discount on award flights that are operated by Delta. While the discount can help, it’s still usually cheaper to find premium cabin awards with other loyalty programs.
One benefit of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card that Amex heavily promotes is addition to the complimentary upgrade list after Delta Medallion members. However, with only 12% of seats available to Medallion members to begin with, the chance of someone getting an upgrade with just a Delta Amex is slim to none. You may get lucky and score a Delta Comfort seat, but that’s about all you can expect with this “benefit”.
You don’t have to earn SkyMiles to earn an award ticket on Delta Air Lines
If you have a Delta Amex because you like to spend your miles on Delta but you don’t need the benefits, such as free checked bags, that Delta co-branded cards provide, consider an Amex card that earns Membership Rewards, such as the The Platinum Card® from American Express or American Express® Gold Card. Membership Rewards is a transferable travel currency that you can use on well over a dozen airlines, including Delta.
But you don’t have to redeem Membership Rewards for SkyMiles in order to book a Delta award ticket. SkyTeam partners Air France/KLM Flying Blue and Virgin Atlantic Flying Club, which also partner with Amex Membership Rewards, have tickets on Delta Air Lines available within their respective programs. Prices on partner airlines for Delta flights can actually be lower than those booked with SkyMiles.
Nickel-D’Andrea recommends the Amex Platinum for flyers looking for alternatives to premium Delta co-branded cards. He says, “The Amex Platinum card does everything possible to make the travel experience better by getting you through the airport quickly, giving you Delta Sky Club access, and more. It has one of the strongest value propositions for Delta flyers and those who travel with any regularity. “
If you redeem SkyMiles for coach, there’s still plenty of value in earning SkyMiles
That said, Nickel-D’Andrea notes that main cabin and basic economy flights are still very attainable.
“Flights up and down the coast can be had for as few as 10,000 miles round trip throughout the year in basic economy, meaning that your daily spending could net you more than a few round trip flights,” he says. For more inspiration, check out the Delta SkyMiles Award Deals page.
You will lose the ability to choose your seat if you choose a basic economy ticket, so if that’s important to you be sure to select a main cabin fare. There’s also a fee assessed in miles to cancel a basic economy ticket so the flexibility may also make a main cabin fare worth the extra miles.
If you use the benefits, Delta Amex cards can be worth it
Most Delta Amex cards give you a free checked bag benefit, which would apply even on basic economy flights. If you travel as a family and choose to check bags, it’s a no-brainer to keep at least the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card as the benefit extends to up to 8 travel companions listed on the Card Member’s reservation — for a total of 9 passengers.
The Delta SkyMiles Platinum and Delta SkyMiles Reserve cards also offer companion certificates that can help offset the carrying costs of the card. While both companion certificates are used in the same way, the one offered on the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card is more restrictive and can only be used when flying main cabin.
By contrast, the certificate that comes with Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card and Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card has no restrictions when it comes to the class of service you’re booking, allowing you to choose which cabin you’d like to fly, including first class.
The Takeaway
The best advice about Delta Amex cards, and airline cards in general, is to get them for the benefits, but consider using a card with transferable points for your actual spending. This advice doubly applies if you have a lie-flat seat in your sights as award availability in premium cabins on Delta is likely the least of any U.S. airline. But if you’re content traveling in the back of the bus, you’ll likely be fine using your Delta card on the daily.
