American Express Delta Reserve vs. AmEx Platinum: Benefits Showdown

The American Express Platinum and the Delta American Express cards are known for their status: these are premium credit cards, carried less for their rewards rate (and certainly not for saving on annual fees) than for the luxury benefits that they deliver. In fact, the AmEx Delta comes in three forms: the Gold, the Platinum, and the high-brow Reserve, which differ in perks and fees. But given that the Delta Reserve has the same annual fee as the AmEx Platinum, which card deserves our respect?

Credit or charge?

The first vital difference between the American Express Delta Reserve and the AmEx Platinum is that the former is a credit card, while the latter is a charge card. Credit cards allow you to have some debt outstanding at the end of the billing period, and pay it back over time with interest. They come with credit limits, prohibiting you from borrowing more than a certain amount. And they impact your credit score, for better or for worse. Charge cards, on the other hand, have no pre-set spending limit but require you to pay your balance in full each month or face severe penalties. Charge cards do not impact your credit score, since you aren’t extended a line of credit.

The showdown

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, we’ll move on to the main event: can the AmEx Platinum’s much-lauded benefits stand up against the Delta Reserve’s? Both have the same annual fee – $450 – and 1% base rewards rate. But past that, the cards’ paths diverge.

The Platinum Card® from American Express	Delta Reserve Credit Card
Signing Promo
Earn 25K Membership Rewards® points after you spend $2,000 during your first three months of Card membership	10,000 Delta Miles Bonus
Intro APR Promo
N/A[You must pay your balance in full each month]	Purchase: None Bal Trans: None
Annual fee
$450	$450
Details
Earn 25K Membership Rewards® points after you spend $2,000 during your first three months of Card membership Premium travel benefits: access over 600 lounges worldwide when you enroll in Priority Pass™ Select, no foreign transaction fees Receive up to $200 annually in a statement credit with the airline of your choice to use towards baggage fees, flight-change fees, in-flight food and beverage purchases and more 24/7 Platinum Card® Concierge service for assistance with reservations, travel, gifts, and more Entertainment benefits: get Advance Tickets before the public and access once in a lifetime events with By Invitation Only® Terms and restrictions apply	Earn 10,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) with your first purchase, and Miles Boosts(SM) of up to 30,000 MQMs when you spend $60,000 in a calendar year Annual complimentary First-Class companion ticket with Card renewal Delta Sky Club(TM) access for you and your guests Check your first bag free on every Delta flight Rated 4 out of 5 stars in Overall Satisfaction Rating, based on feedback from current Delta Reserve Credit Cardmembers from American Express

The Delta offers double miles when you spend at the airline itself, and also has a signup bonus of 10,000 Medallion Qualifying Miles to move you closer towards elite status. You can earn an additional MQM boost of up to 30k miles if you spend in excess of $60,000 a year.

The AmEx Platinum pays out not in Delta miles but in Membership Rewards points, one of the best rewards programs out there. You can transfer points 1-1 to most airlines and hotels, or redeem for gift cards and the occasional travel option, all at full value. As a Platinum cardholder, you can also get an advance on your points of up to 60,000 points.

Here’s a breakdown of each card’s benefits:

In the end, it’s going to be a subjective decision. Delta’s free checked bag benefit is extremely lucrative, saving to $50 per person roundtrip. That’s far better than the Platinum’s $200 incidentals credit.

The Platinum has better lounge access: Priority Pass gets you into about 600 lounges worldwide, while Delta lounges don’t have that coverage. You also get much better fringe benefits, like benefits at AmEx’s partner hotels and a credit to the Global Entry program, which lets you skip customs lines.

Past that, you need to make a decision about what you prefer. If you often fly business or first class, you’ll prefer the Platinum’s unlimited companion tickets. If you don’t, Delta’s more flexible about their companion tickets, though you only get one a year.

However, we tend to err on the side of Platinum. If you’re springing for a $450 annual fee, you probably prefer the finer things in life. And when it comes to small (and some not so small) luxuries, the Platinum beats out the Delta card by sheer number of shiny perks.