Delta and American Express have no increased offers for their co-brand credit cards, and a new reason to get them – being a cardmember is now the only way to get the lowest-priced award redemptions through SkyMiles, a new 15% off redemption benefit. Offers at these links end at some point on 3/29/23..

Increased Initial Bonus Offers For Delta Amex Cards

Alongside the new 15% off redemption credit for most Delta credit cards, there are big up front offers for the cards. You both need a Delta card if you’re engaged in SkyMiles, and they make it easy and rewarding to get one.

If they want to offer 70,000 to 100,000 miles as an up front bonus offer, you should take advantage of that to get this new 15% off benefit, even if you don’t continue to use the card much on an ongoing basis. Here are the offers.

Consumer cards:

• Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card has an offer to earn 70,000 bonus miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months. It has a $0 annual fee the first year, then $99. See Rates & Fees.

  Don’t think SkyMiles are worth a ton, you can redeem them against the cost of a ticket – $50 off for every 5,000 miles you redeemed via Pay with Miles at delta.com.

• Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card has an offer to earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

  You can earn up to 20,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) with Status Boost per year. After you spend $25,000 in purchases on your card in a calendar year, you can earn 10,000 MQMs up to two times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status.

  You’ll receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required.

  Benefits include first checked bag free on Delta flights. Plus enjoy Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding. This is a $250 annual fee card. See Rates & Fees.

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card has an offer to earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $6,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.

  You can earn up to 60,000 Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) With Status Boost® per year. After you spend $30,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, you can earn 15,000 MQMs up to four times per year, getting you closer to Medallion® Status.

  This is the card provides complimentary access to the Delta Sky Club for you when travelling on a Delta flight. Enjoy complimentary access to The Centurion Lounge when you book a Delta flight with your Reserve Card. With your Card receive upgrade priority over other Medallion Members within the same Medallion level and fare class.

  Benefits include your first checked bag free on Delta flights and Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding on Delta flights; Domestic First Class, Delta Comfort+ or domestic Main Cabin round trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. $550 Annual Fee. See Rates & Fees

Business cards:

• Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card has a limited time offer: Earn 75,000 Bonus Miles after spending $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 3/29/23.

  This card has a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99 annual fee. See Rates & Fees.

• Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card has a limited time offer: Earn 95,000 Bonus Miles after spending $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 3/29/23.

  Spending on this card can help earn Delta elite status: earn 10,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $25,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, up to 2x per year getting you closer to Medallion Status.

  You can receive a domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $80 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. This is a $250 annual fee card. See Rates & Fees

• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card has a limited time offer: Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after spending $6,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months. Offer ends 3/29/23.

  The card includes complimentary access into Delta Sky Club when traveling Delta. There’s no basic economy exclusion for entry as there is now with a paid membership. Plus get two Delta Sky Club One-Time Guest Passes each year. In addition when you purchase a Delta flight with your Delta SkyMiles Reserve Card, you will receive complimentary access to The Centurion® Lounge or Escape Lounge Centurion Studio Partner.

  Spending on this card can help earn Delta elite status: earn 15,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $30,000 in purchases on your Card in a calendar year, up to 4x per year getting you closer to Medallion Status.

  This is a $550 annual fee card. See Rates & Fees.

Delta Cardmembers Save 15% On Redemptions

Delta and American Express have a new benefit TakeOff 15 where cardmembers of their consumer and small business Gold, Platinum, and Reserve cards receive 15% off the SkyMiles cost of award travel.

• The discount is for Delta flights only, doesn’t apply to partner awards, and must be booked online or via mobile app while logged into your account.

• And it applies only to miles-only redemptions, not ‘pay with miles’ (using miles towards the cash cost of a ticket) or miles and cash.

• Taxes and fees on awards aren’t discounted, and must be paid using an eligible Delta co-brand American Express card.

Delta can, of course, increase the cost of awards to compensate for this. Another way of looking at this is that they already have increased the cost of awards.

I don’t know whether anyone will get a ‘better deal than before’ but they’ll get a better deal ‘than they otherwise would’ if they have a qualifying card.

TakeOff 15 Means It Only Makes Sense To Engage SkyMiles If You Have Their Card

What TakeOff does is say you only get the best value out of your miles if you’re a co-brand cardmember. And that dovetails well with recent moves the airline has made to push customers to card. Already they suggest they’re converting 1 in 8 members to the products.

For instance if you want access to Sky Clubs you can only buy a membership if you’re an elite frequent flyer, the cost of memberships has gone up, and club members are excluded from access on Basic Economy fares. All of those conditions do not apply to customers accessing clubs via card.

Under Delta’s current deal with American Express, which is driving multi-billion dollar increases in revenue, you’re clearly a valuable customer to the airline if you have a card and not so much if you don’t. (Delta Reserve cardmembership is also an upgrade tie-breaker.)

It doesn’t make sense to fly Delta without joining the program, because SkyMiles members get inflight wifi for free. And now the new TakeOff 15 benefit is a clear message to customers that if they’re going to engage with SkyMiles, they need to do it with a card.

Does this take things too far? It certainly leaves out those who can’t or won’t get a co-brand American Express card including most of their international members. But the message is clear that a member’s value to them comes from co-brand cardmembership.

They Make It Easy To Engage With Big Bonuses

You don’t need to be an active SkyMiles member to get free wifi, just a member. And you don’t have to spend money on a Delta co-brand card on an ongoing basis in order to have the program’s lowest redemption costs, you just need to have the card.

That’s great because it makes sense to get the card when they’re offering an elevated bonus to do so, like they are right now. It can make sense to keep the card for its benefits, including now 15% lower redemption costs. But unless you’re using card spend to count towards SkyMiles elite status it doesn’t make sense to put ongoing spend on the card.

Even if you wanted SkyMiles as your primary currency, many people can earn points faster (due to better accelerators) with Membership Rewards cards like the American Express® Gold Card (see Rates and Fees) which lets you earn 4X Membership Rewards Points at Restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S., and earn 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per calendar year in purchases, then 1X) plus 3X Membership Rewards points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com. Those points transfer to SkyMiles or to other programs.

But by all means if you aren’t a Delta American Express co-brand customer, you should now get one, and the new limited-time offers are a great opportunity to do so.

For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card, click here./i>
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card, click here.
For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, click here.

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