The Complete Guide to Delta SkyMiles

One of the largest airlines in North America and the world, Delta Air Lines operates hubs at eight U.S. airports: Atlanta, Boston, Cincinnati, Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Salt Lake City and Seattle-Tacoma. It is also a member of the SkyTeam alliance and has more than 25 international airline partners.

If you live in a Delta-dominated city or you fly the airline regularly, you should check out the airline's frequent flyer program, Delta SkyMiles. The program is free to join and lets you earn Delta miles, achieve elite status and more.

Before you can start earning miles with Delta, you’ll need to sign up for a SkyMiles frequent flyer account. It’s free to join, and you can register here.

Beyond serving as the loyalty program name, SkyMiles are also the currency that members can earn and later redeem for flights with Delta or partners, hotel stays and other rewards.

You can generally earn miles by flying, spending on credit cards (Delta has several co-branded cards for its loyalists), traveling with partners, or dining and shopping through designated programs.

Delta SkyMiles do not expire, which is great news for infrequent travelers or those who have loyalty across multiple airline programs.

» Learn more: Considerations before joining airline loyalty programs

Based on the most recent analysis, NerdWallet values Delta Air Lines SkyMiles at 1.5 cents apiece. To determine the value of reward miles, we compared cash prices and reward redemptions for economy roundtrip routes across several destinations and dates. We divided the cost of the cash ticket by the cost of the reward ticket to determine a “cent per mile” value for each flight, then averaged this value across several flights and dates. Read more about how we arrived at these figures.

This is therefore a baseline value for Delta miles, based on real-world data collected from hundreds of economy routes; it is not a maximized value. In other words, you should aim for award redemptions that offer 1.5 cents or more in value from your Delta miles.

» Learn more: Better understand the value of Delta SkyMiles

Delta came in fifth place out of nine airlines in our most recent analysis on the best airline loyalty programs. But Delta is a bit of a funky airline in terms of its rankings. While some airlines rank consistently high or low across the board, Delta was all over the place.

It has low fees and operates incredibly well in terms of high rates of on-time performance and low rates of cancellations and baggage mishandling. Its in-flight offerings are pretty glorious thanks to seatback screens and Biscoff cookies.

If you book basic economy, you do get the free cookies and seatback screens, but that’s about it. Checked bag fees, no rewards and no seat choice mean Delta basic economy seats are rough.

And even for other fare classes that do earn miles, Delta’s mileage program isn’t all that rewarding anyway, as Delta miles just aren’t that valuable. However, if you have elite status, other perks are pretty nice.

Here's a closer look at how SkyMiles competed across categories:

• Seventh in rewards (mile) value.

• Second in operations.

• Third in elite status benefits.

• Ties for second in terms of total fees.

• Delta ties for offering the worst basic economy ticket.

• Second in in-flight experience.

• Seventh in most pet-friendly airlines.

Flying on Delta and its partner airlines is the easiest way to earn miles. But there are ways to rack up miles besides flying, such as using a Delta-branded credit card or spending money with Delta partner companies.

» Learn more: The best airline credit cards right now

The Delta SkyMiles you earn never expire as long as your account is open; this is different from how things work with some other frequent-flyer programs.

How are SkyMiles calculated?

Flying on Delta: Although they have "miles" in their name, the number of SkyMiles you earn on Delta flights is based on how much you spend, not how far you fly. The base earning rate is 5 miles per $1 spent, but you earn higher rates depending on whether you have elite status, which Delta refers to as "Medallion" status. (We'll have more on Medallion levels later — or you can jump ahead to that part now.) As of Dec. 9, 2021, you will no longer earn SkyMiles on any basic economy tickets.

You earn SkyMiles only on the base fare and fees imposed by the airline. You don't earn any rewards on taxes or government-imposed fees that are rolled into the cost of your ticket. So if you are a basic SkyMiles member and spend $150 on a flight, $50 of which is fees, you’ll earn 5 x 100 = 500 SkyMiles.

Flying on partner airlines: Each partner airline has its own rules for earning SkyMiles. In general, the rewards you earn on partner airlines are based on the distance of the flight — so they really are "miles." You can earn bonus miles based on the fare class (such as economy, business or first) and your Medallion status.

Spending on the right credit cards

Delta offers co-branded credit cards with American Express.

Our favorite Delta credit card is the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card. The card gives you 2 SkyMiles per dollar spent with Delta. When you pay for tickets with the card, you get the first checked bag free for you and up to eight other people traveling on your reservation. Terms apply.

There's a great welcome bonus for new cardholders, too: Earn 70,000 bonus miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months. Terms Apply. The annual fee is $0 intro for the first year, then $99.

» Jump ahead to other credit cards that earn SkyMiles

Other ways to earn Delta SkyMiles

Delta's non-airline partners include:

• Hotels and Airbnb: You can earn SkyMiles at thousands of properties in most major hotel chains. In some cases, you earn a flat number of points per stay; in others, you earn points based on how much you spend. You can also earn miles at Airbnb. See hotel partners and earning rules here.

• Auto rentals and Lyft: Several major rental agencies have an option to earn SkyMiles. And if you prefer rental car alternatives, here's a deal from Turo: Delta SkyMiles Members who link their SkyMiles number to their Turo profile will be able to earn 2,000 miles on their first Turo trip and 500 miles on every trip thereafter. You can also earn miles using the Lyft ride-hailing service. Details here.

• Dining: Register your credit card with SkyMiles Dining and earn up to 5 miles per dollar when you use that card at thousands of participating restaurants. (You can use any credit card; it doesn't have to be a Delta-branded card.)

• Shopping: Earn miles at hundreds of online merchants through the airline's shopping portal, SkyMiles Shopping.

• Transfer from other programs: Delta SkyMiles is a transfer partner for both American Express Membership Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy.

Purchase SkyMiles

You can buy additional SkyMiles through the Delta website, but this generally isn't a good value. SkyMiles cost 3.5 cents apiece when purchased like this, which means you're paying more than three times what the miles are worth on average.

» Learn more: Your guide to earning Delta Air Lines SkyMiles

If your top-of-mind question is: “How do I use points from Delta SkyMiles?”, you’ve come to the right section of this Delta guide. Know this: Not all redemptions are created equal. Keep the following tips in mind to get more value out of your Delta SkyMiles redemptions.

Good redemption options

SkyMiles are redeemable for flights through Delta Air Lines and its partners. In most cases, you redeem by booking through Delta's website. Certain Delta cardholders can even get 15% off award travel booked with Delta through the TakeOff 15 perk.

To book award travel, go to the booking tool and choose the option for seeing the price in miles. Then enter information about when and where you want to travel, and choose your fare class: Basic economy, main cabin, Delta Comfort+ (premium economy), first class, Delta Premium Select or Delta One.

How many SkyMiles are needed for a flight? It depends on your destination, but SkyMiles members can redeem as few as 4,500 SkyMiles for a domestic short-haul flight.

Unlike some other airlines, Delta doesn't publish an award chart showing you exactly how many miles you need for a given flight. You have to figure it out the hard way — by entering your flight information and seeing what it costs in terms of miles.

Delta advertises that there are no blackout dates for award travel.

You can also use miles to purchase seat upgrades; membership to Delta Sky Clubs airport lounges; vacation packages; exclusive experiences; merchandise, gift cards, hotel stays and car rental in the SkyMiles Marketplace; or donations to charity through Delta SkyWish. See details about these and other options here.

If you happen to have at least 2.5 million SkyMiles in your account — and who doesn't? — you can redeem them for private jet travel. According to Delta, those 2.5 million points are "enough to take up to four passengers round-trip from Atlanta to South Florida."

» Learn more: Plan your next Delta SkyMiles redemption with our airline points tool

Bad redemption options

For the most part, using SkyMiles for anything other than flights will result in below-average redemption values. Delta and its partners might push promotions for these unorthodox redemption options, but don’t take the bait. Unless the offer is really extraordinary, you’re almost always better off using miles for flights.

» Learn more: Complete guide to redeeming Delta SkyMiles

Anyone can join the Delta SkyMiles program for free, but to move up from basic membership to elite status (where the real perks are), you need to fly the airline regularly.

Changes in 2023

Beginning Jan. 1, 2023, the Medallion program will see significant changes to status-earning requirements and benefits, including increased earning requirements for some status tiers. You can read more on that here.

Delta SkyMiles program levels and benefits

The SkyMiles Medallion program has four levels. We'll start by looking at what you get at each level, then how to get there.

All Medallion members get priority check-in and priority boarding. All levels above Silver get priority security lane access and priority baggage service at select airports, waived baggage fees and are eligible for upgrades 24 hours before departure. They match to Skyteam Elite level and earn 7 miles per dollar spent.

Higher-level Medallion benefits include:

For Platinum and Diamond status only: Choice benefits

Medallion members at the Platinum and Diamond levels are eligible for "Delta Choice Benefits," in which they choose the premium benefits they want from a list.

How are MQMs calculated for earning SkyMiles Medallion status?

To earn Medallion status, you'll need to understand the terms MQD, MQM and MQS:

• MQDs are Medallion Qualifying Dollars. You earn 1 MQD for every dollar you spend on Delta flights. This includes the fare and airline fees, but not taxes and government fees.

• MQMs are Medallion Qualifying Miles. You earn these based on how far you fly and the fare class of your ticket. With regular economy class tickets, you earn 1 MQM per mile flown. For higher classes, it may be 1.5 or 2 MQMs per mile flown.

• MQSs are Medallion Qualifying Segments. You earn these based on how many takeoff-to-landing flights you fly. A nonstop flight from Seattle to New York, for example, would earn 1 MQS. But if you changed planes in, say, Minneapolis, then you would earn 2 MQSs.

You earn status by spending a certain amount of money (that is, earning MQDs) and earning either a minimum number of MQMs or a minimum number of MQSs. Note that, as of Dec. 9, 2021, travelers won't earn MQDs, MQMs or MQSs on any basic economy fares.

Medallion status for a given year is earned based on activity in the previous calendar year. Your status is generally good until Jan. 31 of the following year. For example, your Medallion status for 2023 is based on your activity in 2022 and will last until Jan. 31, 2024.

MQMs roll over from one year to the next. Say you earned 65,000 MQMs in 2022. That's enough for Gold status (which requires 50,000 MQMs) but not for Platinum (75,000). The "unused" 15,000 MQMs roll over to 2023 to give you a head start on your next year's earning.

Status matching

You can match your Delta status in another airline loyalty program. You must have current elite status with a qualifying airline, and you cannot have used the match in the previous three years. Once you’re accepted in the match program, you get complimentary Medallion status for three months. To keep it for the rest of the year, you need to earn it during those three months:

• Silver: 6,250 MQMs / 8 MQSs and $750 MQDs / MQD waiver

• Gold: 12,500 MQMs / 15 MQSs and $1,500 MQDs / MQD waiver

• Platinum: 18,750 MQMs / 25 MQSs and $2,250 MQDs / MQD waiver

» Learn more: What you need to know about Delta Medallion elite status

Delta is one of 19 airlines in the international SkyTeam alliance, which allows you to earn and use SkyMiles on flights aboard carriers other than Delta.

Skyteam member airlines include:

Delta also had partnerships with these non-SkyTeam airlines:

• Cape Air.

• China Southern.

• Hawaiian Airlines.

• Virgin Atlantic.

• WestJet.

» Learn more: The complete guide to Delta partners: earning, redeeming, elite perks

Delta's credit cards are issued by American Express. All of the cards offer different spending rewards.

Personal cards

Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card

• 2 miles per $1 spent on purchases directly from Delta.

• 2 miles per $1 spent at eligible restaurants.

• 1 mile per $1 on all other eligible spending.

• Annual fee: $0.

Terms apply.

Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card

• 2 miles per $1 spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta.

• 2 miles per $1 spent at eligible restaurants and U.S. supermarkets.

• 1 mile per $1 spent on all other eligible purchases.

• Annual fee: $0 intro for the first year, then $99.

Terms apply.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card

• 3 miles per $1 spent on purchases directly from Delta.

• 3 miles per $1 spent on eligible hotel purchases.

• 2 miles per $1 spent at restaurants and U.S. supermarkets.

• 1 mile per $1 spent on all other eligible purchases.

• Annual fee: $250.

Terms apply.

Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card

• 3 miles per $1 spent on purchases directly from Delta.

• 1 mile per $1 spent on all other eligible purchases.

• Annual fee: $550. This includes access to Delta Sky Clubs airport lounges.

Terms apply.

Small business cards

Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card

• Earn 2 miles on every $1 spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta.

• Earn 1 mile on every $1 spent on other eligible purchases.

• Annual fee: $0 intro for the first year, then $99.

Terms apply.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card

• Earn 3 miles on every $1 spend on eligible purchases made directly with Delta and on every eligible dollar spent on purchases made directly with hotels.

• Earn 1.5 miles per $1 spent on single eligible purchases of $5,000 or more.

• Earn 1 mile on every $1 spent on other eligible purchases.

• Annual fee: $250.

Terms apply.

Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card

• Earn 3 miles per $1 spent on Delta purchases.

• Earn 1 mile per $1 spent on all other eligible purchases.

• Includes benefits like free checked bags and complimentary access into Delta Sky Clubs and AmEx Centurion Lounges (or Escape Lounges) when flying Delta.

• Annual fee: $550.

Terms apply.

» Learn more: Which Delta Air Lines credit card should you get?

We've covered all the basic details of the Delta SkyMiles program, including how to use Delta SkyMiles for maximum value. But if you still aren't sure whether a frequent flyer program is worth the effort, see our beginner's guide to frequent flyer programs.