Delta® Air Lines is regarded as the premier airline in the United States. The company is consistently praised for being on time and caring about its customers. Delta® Air Lines may be your only option for nonstop flights to most locations if you are near one of the airline's main hub cities like Minneapolis (MSP), Atlanta (ATL), Detroit (DTW), or Salt Lake City (SLC). Clients flock to Delta credit cards because of the airline's stellar reputation. However, knowing which Delta credit cards are worthwhile can be tricky because it depends on how often you fly and what kind of bonuses you want.
What is a Delta® Credit Card?
Delta® Air Lines is the second largest airline in the country and has a wide range of eligible Delta purchases, flight times, destinations, and amenities. This makes Delta-branded credit cards a popular and valuable way to get perks and credit card rewards. If you fly Delta often, the right credit card will help you earn more Delta® SkyMiles toward free Delta flights, other travel perks, and maybe even Delta elite status credits.
A Delta SkyMiles credit card is a great way to earn bonus miles toward in-flight purchases and enjoy other perks if you are a loyal Delta flyer. The top credit card for you has features and benefits that easily outweigh the annual fee. If you fly Delta often, you might want to get one of the best Delta credit cards.
Types of Delta® Credit Cards
- Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card is an excellent choice for Delta Air Line's frequent fliers, with an introductory annual fee of $0 for the first year and $99 after one year. It has a reasonable introductory offer, no foreign transaction fees for using the card or making other purchases, and perks like free checked bags and priority boarding that make it more valuable than a standard credit card. Even though the last benefit of the card is that you can use it to buy a single-visit pass for $29, and Delta Sky Club lounges have been taken away, many loyal Delta flyers still find it worth it because they can use it to buy other things. For frequent flyers, you may more than justify the annual fee with perks like one free checked bag per trip.
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card is still one of the most crucial business credit cards for Delta passengers. You can pay for Walmart with your Platinum Card monthly, and each month, you'll receive a statement credit equal to the cost of your Walmart subscription and applicable local sales tax, up to $12.95. Despite its high annual fee of $250, the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card doesn't charge foreign transaction fees. After the first year, you'll receive a Delta companion certificate for the price of a round-trip domestic economy ticket for a friend or family member flying Delta with you. For example, AmEx Platinum earns 5 points for each dollar spent on airfare and prepaid hotels booked directly with airlines. In particular, the card comes with an annual companion certificate, the chance to spend your way to a Medallion Qualification Dollar (MQD) waiver, and the opportunity to earn bonus Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs). If you apply through an authorized enrollment provider and choose Global Entry or TSA PreCheck® as your fast entry option, you can get your fee back.
- Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card. This Delta credit card that doesn't have an annual fee is the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card. It's ideal for folks who like to keep their credit card fees low, don't travel often, and strongly prefer Delta flights. If you're a loyal Delta customer, this card could be helpful, but don't mind missing out on luxuries like priority boarding and airport lounge access. Delta loyalists who plan to rack up miles on Delta purchases through restaurants worldwide will also benefit from this card. You may earn 8,000 points, worth $123 toward a domestic Delta flight, by spending $300 per month on dining out for a year and buying a $400 roundtrip ticket annually.
- The Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card from Delta Air Lines is a high-end credit card. The Delta Sky Clubs and American Express Centurion Lounge access are fantastic perks for frequent fliers, but the card isn't ideal for day-to-day use. Although the $550 annual fee is steep, Delta devotees who make the most of the card's perks and make other eligible purchases each year may find the expense worthwhile. If you get a Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card and a flight on the same day, you can get free Delta Sky Club access (a $545 annual value) by showing your boarding pass. Passengers who fly on flights run by a Delta partner that Delta doesn't advertise can get in for $39 less than average. With the two annual guest cards, each of your guests can visit the lounge for free once a year. Once you've used your passes, you can bring up to two guests at a $39 per person discount on your next Delta flight. There will be no more than $80 in government-imposed taxes, and it does not charge foreign transaction fees.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card. If you book a lot of flights with Delta Air Lines, the card's travel perks and access to lounges could be worth the annual fee. After all, a yearly membership to the Delta Sky Club costs $545, and this card gives you two free passes to use whenever you have guests in town for a fraction of the price. If you often travel through Miami, Las Vegas, Houston, or Hong Kong, paying for your trip with your Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card can be very helpful because it gives you free access to The Centurion® Lounge or Escape Lounge (The Centurion® Studio Partner).
With this Amex card, you can earn three miles on every dollar spent with Delta and one mile on anything else. If you use your card to make single eligible purchases of $150,000 or more in a regular year, you'll earn 1.5 miles per dollar (an extra half mile per dollar) for the rest of the year. Only the higher mileage accelerator will apply if your purchase falls into a category with multiple accelerators, but only one of them is higher than the other.
In the case of a company like Delta, for example, you receive three miles for every dollar spent. Aside from the standard card perks, the card also provides certain additional travel perks. If approved for the card, you can get 100,000 bonus miles after spending $6,000 on eligible purchases within the first three months.
Why you need a Delta® Credit Card?
Delta SkyMiles is best for dedicated customers that often fly with the company. You can expect to get the most out of the Delta SkyMiles program if you are a frequent flyer on Delta flights, a traveler who values flexibility above value, or a traveler who frequently takes overseas flights and values excellent customer service.
The Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card may be overkill for everyone except the most infrequent fliers. It's not worth considering unless you absolutely must have SkyMiles and absolutely refuse to pay anything more than zero dollars in annual fees because of the lack of incentives, like free checked bags. Perhaps you'd get more out of a cash-back credit card that's easier to use.
For frequent Delta flyers, choosing between the Gold and Platinum versions of the Delta SkyMiles® American Express Card may be the closest call. Choose the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card if you want to make use of the companion pass. Differentiating features of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card include airport lounge access and a domestic companion pass good for first class travel. In the end, it's up to you to weigh the benefits of each card against the cost of an annual membership.
How to get a Delta® Credit Card?
American Express is the credit card issuer of the Delta co-branded credit cards. You can submit an application for a Delta card by visiting either the Delta website or the American Express website and comparing the cards offered there. When you submit your Delta application, you'll need to make sure you have certain information on hand, including the sum of your annual income and your Social Security number.
Before you send in your application, check your credit score to make sure it is where you want it to be. When you apply for a credit card, a hard pull will often be performed on your credit history. This will typically result in a temporary reduction of a few points on your credit score. In most cases, having an excellent credit score is required in order to qualify for the most profitable credit cards, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express. A FICO credit score between 660 and 850 is required for approval of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card. You need to have a credit score of 660 or higher to even be considered.
You should begin by seeing if you are pre-qualified for any of the Delta credit cards by submitting a pre-approval application if one is available. Therefore, you will have a notion of what you are eligible for, and after you have received an offer of pre-approval, you will be able to instantly submit an official application.
How to use a Delta® Credit Card?
In addition to being accepted in over 160 countries and territories worldwide, Delta Skymiles cards may be used at over 8.5 million locations in the United States. Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom, India, and Mexico are among the countries with the widest acceptance of American Express outside the United States.
Once you've signed up for Delta's SkyMiles program, booking a flight with them and entering your SkyMiles number will instantly earn you 5X miles for Main Cabin seats or higher. With Medallion Status, you can increase your mileage earnings on any Delta purchases from 7X to 11X.
Credit cards with the Delta SkyMiles program offer not only bonus miles for spending on Delta flights but also offer rewards in a wide range of common spending areas. The Delta SkyMiles Blue Card offers double miles on dining at restaurants worldwide, while the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card offers double miles on dining at restaurants globally and at U.S. supermarkets.
You can use Pay with Miles to book your next flight as long as you are a Delta Amex Card Member and have at least 5,000 miles per passenger. Discounts of $50 for every 5,000 miles, $100 per 10,000 miles, etc., are available to all Delta Amex Blue, Gold, Platinum, and Reserve Card Members.
