Unlock the World with Delta Skymiles Amex Card
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Being a 28-year-old and living in New York, it’s not hard to imagine that my budget of expenses runs pretty thin most days. That’s why people I meet and even those I hang out with in social circles wind up fairly baffled when I head off to my latest luxury vacation. It’s usually someplace warm, tropical, with incredible beaches and everything you could want on a night out. I love to travel, I love to see places I’ve never been before, meet the locals, swap stories, and have a whole lot of days and nights to remember before I fly home to reality and the grind of the 9-to-5. I’m pretty sure most people think I’m up to my ears in credit card debt as well because of how much I flash my AMEX card before, during, and after my latest excursion. But that’s before I let it slip that I pay either very little or absolutely nothing for every flight I’m taking thanks to the partnership between American Express and Delta.
Look, I’ve flown on a lot of airlines in my three decades on this planet, and a lot of them are great - great service, great people, comfortable planes, the in-flight entertainment, the whole thing. This isn’t about a staring contest between the big players and the international contingent on who is going to do the job the best when you’re in the air, taxiing up the runway, or hopping on one of those little in-airport dune buggies to speed along to your connecting flight that always seems to 354 gates away from where you just landed.
But Delta’s SkyMiles program pretty much laps the field when it comes to freebies. Because you’re not just getting bonuses when you’re at the Delta gate or in the terminal or doing in-flight entertainment. The SkyMiles are racking up when you’re buying coffee, going to the grocery store, basically just living your life. It’s a great thing, because you don’t feel like you’re going out of your way to purchase things that you don’t really need just to get to the next set of perks. It’s like that great old episode of “Seinfeld” where Elaine keeps buying sandwiches from a sub shop that she doesn’t like simply so she can punch her ticket for a free sub at the end of the card. You should get rewards for spending money on things you need, not on crap that just happens to be affiliated with the airline, right?
Even better is that Delta isn’t shy about rolling out some of its best destinations as rewards for piling up the points. I mean, the list of places I’ve gone in the past six years reads like the opening lyrics to the Beach Boys’ smash hit “Kokomo”.
We’ve got Aruba, Jamaica, is Delta going to take you? But there’s also Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and even Spain!
The AMEX cards can get you to all these places and more and turn your everyday purchases into once-in-a-lifetime savings. But enough of me bragging about how well the AMEX / Delta combination has worked for me in the past six years. Let’s get to the good stuff about what it can do for you.
Delta’s Difference
Frankly, I wouldn’t mind living on a Delta jet after all the time I’ve spent up there. They keep racing ahead with new technology and comfort items that have you feeling more and more like you’re very much at home even when you’re 33,000 feet in the air. Their latest big moves include complimentary in-flight Wi-Fi for everyone and tons of streaming options while you’re in the air. Even that flight across the Atlantic to Spain goes roaring by in a flash when I’m knocking out a binge of “Stranger Things” or “Succession” in my seat. It comes as no surprise therefore, that Delta cleaned up during the 2023 award season like “Oppenheimer” at the Golden Globes, taking home:
Best North American Business Class
Best Business Class to Central/South America
Best North American Airline for International Travel
Best Airline for Domestic Travel
Best Frequent Flyer Program
Best Wine Selection on Domestic Carriers in Business Class
Best Airline App Best Airport Lounge in North America
Best On-Time Airline in North America
And it’s not just New York City where you’re getting all these great perks at the terminal, like the exclusive lounge where you can have a drink, have a moment of Zen, or recharge yourself and your electronics. Delta has 11 major hubs in the US crisscrossing the country from sea to shining sea.
The Delta AMEX Cards
I can think of a couple of times when someone’s told me about an amazing perk associated with a card, only to find out I didn’t even come close to qualifying for it. Delta and AMEX aren’t looking to cater to just the upper echelon of society with their incredible deals. I mean, I wouldn’t be writing this if you had to be a millionaire and 20 years into your career to qualify, right? Instead, they have a quartet of cards that employ their SkyMiles systems for all sorts of travelers. They are designated as:
● Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
● Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
● Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
● Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
Now for some of the exclusives between Delta and AMEX, you’re getting universal perks, and it’s pretty brilliant because they go after the things that really can sour your experience at the airport. Namely:
Free checked bags:
That’s right, no more paying for baggage fees. No more hoping beyond hope that the scale reads 49.9 pounds instead of 50.1 pounds, so you don’t have to fork over the extra bucks.
Priority boarding:
Do you know who I am? I’m the guy you shake your head at and probably swear under your breath when you see me waltz in front of you to get on a plane. I’m not someone needing extra time, I’m not under 18, none of that. I’m just a Delta SkyMiles member and they let me get on the plane way before everyone else to make sure I’m comfortable and cozy and have everything I need.
But those two things are just the tip of the iceberg. You start feeling the power of the SkyMiles cards the moment you sign up, let’s take a look.
Welcome Bonuses
You’re going to get to the opening bonuses really quickly, and that’s exciting, because once you hit them, you unlock the next set, and on and on until you’re in my atmosphere - using bonuses to fly for next to nothing, and then using that trip to get closer to the next milestone. Here’s how they break down.
● Gold Card: 40,000 bonus miles after $2,000 in purchases within 6 months
● Platinum Card: 50,000 bonus miles after $3,000 in purchases within 6 months
● Reserve Card: 60,000 bonus miles after $5,000 in purchases within 6 months
● Blue Card: 10,000 bonus miles after $1,000 in purchases within 6 months
Some people see those purchases and roll their eyes thinking they’ll never buy even $1,000 of airline tickets in 6 months. But then the light comes on. It’s not about the tickets. It’s about grocery bills, paying your utilities, taking a Lyft to a ballgame or a concert, meeting your best friend for a Sunday Starbucks. The list of places and items that qualify for miles is so long that if I put them all here, I’d triple my word maximum, and the boss man wouldn’t like that. SO, like I said at the top, all you have to do is the things you normally do, and it pays off every darn time you take out that AMEX card or scan the app through your phone.
Earn Miles on Your Spending
Here’s a closer look at how those purchases turn into points.
● Gold Card: 2X miles at restaurants worldwide, 2X miles on Delta purchases, 1X mile per dollar on other purchases
● Platinum Card: 3X miles on hotels worldwide and Delta purchases, 2X miles at restaurants worldwide, 1X mile per dollar on other purchases
● Reserve Card: 3X miles on Delta purchases, 1X mile per dollar on other purchases
● Blue Card: 2X miles at restaurants worldwide and on Delta purchases, 1X mile per dollar on other purchases
Here’s a little extra bonus that you’re not going to get with most other cards. There’s no limit to the number of SkyMiles you can rack up. Not 1 million, not 10 million, not 378 trillion, NO LIMIT.
Perks For Delta Flyers
We’ve already hit on the baggage and boarding perks when you get on board with the Delta AMEX cards. But that’s just scratching the surface. You can practically feel the stress leaving your travel brain when you see what else Delta has in store for you.
No foreign transaction fees: None, zero, zilch. That means when you use the card in another country, you’re not taking it on the nose from their tax systems.
20% inflight savings:
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten to the airport and suddenly you’re starving but they’re calling your boarding group. Food and drink are priced at a premium in controlled environments like sporting arenas, airplanes, and theme parks. I mean, seriously, the last time I went to Disney World I paid $18 for a turkey leg. The 20% discount on food and drink gets things down to a reasonable cost. Heck, you might buy your whole row a round on you!
If you go all in on the Reserve card, you get a couple of extra perks as well, including:
Delta Sky Club Access: Yes, I’ve thought about going to the airport just to hang out here. Great people, great service, and a calming presence in the middle of an airport full of chaos.
Guest Access Benefit: That’s a fancy term of saying you can bring two friends into the Delta Sky Club. So if it’s a frat brothers thing or a girls’ trip or you’ve got a new someone special in your life, time to impress!
Annual Companion Certificate: Every time you hit a card anniversary, you get a free round-trip certificate to take anyone you want to anyone you want anywhere you want for just the price of taxes and fees.
Apply with Confidence
What happens when you apply for a credit card and you get the very formulaic, very disappointing “To Whom It May Concern” email saying you didn’t qualify? When it happened to me, I felt like somewhere between a loser and a failure, and neither of those is a healthy state of mine. American Express does itself no favors by making credit cards seem like the domain of only the financially elite, and sending out rejection letters is one of their least-favorite things to do. To keep that from happening more than is absolutely possible, the company has a very cool algorithmic process called the Application Confidence service. It calculates the odds of your approval before you ever apply by asking a few questions and giving you a percentile rank in return. Then you only have to proceed with the application if you’re feeling good about it.
Redeem Miles in a Minute
It’s a cold hard fact that there are plenty of businesses where the right hand has no idea what the left hand is doing. That’s often true with apps and offers where it seems like a great idea in the lab, but when it’s time for people to cash in, the process is clear as mud. I’ve got a discount card for an ice cream place by my house that I’ve racked up some point system on over several years and I’ve never once qualified for anything.
Delta is different, which I hope you can see for yourself at this point. There’s a great website here that allows you to see exactly how many points it will take to go from Point A to Point B. It’s so convenient and lets me see where I can go right now and how close I am to my next dream trip. There are no ifs, ands, or buts to foul you up. No blackout dates, no award chart; it's all there in black and white, or actually blue and red, because, well, it’s Delta after all.
Which Delta Credit Card Is Right for You?
So, while most of the same perks apply across all four cards, they do have significant differences that you should be aware of to ensure you’re getting the right fit for your needs.
Here’s the breakdown:
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
Earn 10,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $1,000 in purchases on your new Card within your first 6 months.
No Annual Fee
not a frequent traveler but still wants to earn miles on everyday spending
rewards for everyday purchases
Pay with Miles
No Foreign Transaction Fees
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
Earn 40,000 Bonus Miles after you make $2,000 in purchases on your new Card within your first 6 months.
$0 intro Annual Fee for the first year, then $99
Travels once or twice a year with Delta
Travels with family for vacation as well as for business
Occasionally travels internationally.
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
Earn 50,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
Annual Fee | $250
Travels frequently
Travels internationally
Reach Medallion® status or achieve the next level
3X Miles at Hotels
3X Miles on Delta Purchases
2X Miles at Restaurants
2X Miles at U.S. Supermarkets
Global Entry or TSA Pre✔® Fee Credit
That comparison chart might have left your head spinning, but the long and short of it is that the Blue card is for the more casual flyers mong you, while the Gold, Platinum, and Reserve cards are for people that are more frequently on the move and want as many of their purchases as possible to help them earn significant travel advantages.
For most, the Gold, Platinum, and Reserve cards provide far more value than their annual fees cost due to the travel perks and mileage earning potential. The Blue card makes sense for casual flyers who don’t need baggage or lounge perks. But for frequent air travelers, an upgraded Delta card is a smart choice to offset flight costs.
What Are You Waiting For?
You love to travel. You love to save money. You love to get rewarded for purchasing items that power your life. Delta’s credit cards give you the best of all of those worlds combined and throw in a ton of bonuses that have you traveling stress free, spending less for in-flight expenses, and enjoying the finer things in life while you’re setting course for the next fantastic voyage. I’ve reached the point where I’m reaching for my AMEX out of habit, often forgetting that I’m getting rewarded for my loyalty, at least until I head off to my Delta account and see just how impressive my stack of miles has become.
