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Best Credit Cards For Delta SkyMiles

Find the credit cards that will help you earn the most Delta SkyMiles and unlock exclusive travel benefits.
By Robert Flowers III - 2024-02-01

Looking for the best Delta credit card? Delta offers seven co-branded cards that will earn you SkyMiles on everyday purchases, plus a range of additional perks like priority boarding and free checked bags. You can also maximize your SkyMiles earnings by taking advantage of transfer partners such as American Express Membership Rewards.

Here are our favorite credit cards for earning Delta SkyMiles:

Use Our Calculator To Maximize Your Delta SkyMiles

Discover personalized credit card options that match your spending habits and maximizes your Delta SkyMiles.

Simply input your monthly and yearly spend amounts into our easy-to-use calculator to find the best options for you!


The Platinum Card® from American Express

Best For Luxury Travel & Lounge Access
  • Earning Rate: Earn 5X points on airfare booked direct or through American Express Travel (on up to $500,000 of these purchases per year) and 5X points on prepaid hotel bookings through American Express Travel. All other purchases will earn you 1X.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $300 in Equinox statement credits, up to $240 in digital entertainment statement credits, up to $200 in airline fee statement credits, $200 in Uber Cash (up to $15 per month and up to $35 in December), up to $200 in statement credits for purchases made with Fine Hotels + Resorts® or The Hotel Collection credit on 2 night minimum bookings, $189 CLEAR® Plus statement credit, $155 Walmart+ statement credit (up to $12.95 per month, subject to auto-renew), and up to $100 in statement credits for Saks Fifth Avenue ($50 credit bi-annually).
  • Main Highlights: Global lounge access (Centurion lounges, Delta SkyClub lounges, Airspace lounges, Escape lounges, and Priority Pass lounges), superb purchase insurance, complimentary elite status with Hilton and Marriott, and up to a $100 statement credit every 4 years for Global Entry or up to $85 statement credit every 4.5 years for TSA PreCheck application fee.
  • Transfer Ratio: Every 1,000 Membership Rewards Points converts to 1,000 Delta SkyMiles.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 80,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $8,000 on purchases on the Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
  • Annual Fee: $695. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: The card offers thousands of dollars in annual value and while you may not use every single benefits/credit it offers, it's still fairly easy to offset the annual fee. For Delta, yourself and all additional Platinum cardholders will be able to enjoy complimentary Delta SkyClub access which is a fantastic deal (and the main reason I personally hold onto this card).

American Express® Gold Card

Best For Restaurants & U.S. Supermarkets
  • Earning Rate: Earn 4X Membership Rewards points on restaurant purchases worldwide, 4X at U.S. supermarkets (up to $25,000 per year, then 1X), 3X points on airfare purchased direct or through American Express Travel, and 1X points on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $120 in annual dining credit ($10 per month) and up to $120 in annual Uber Cash ($10 per month).
  • Main Highlights: Book hotels through The Hotel Collection with American Express Travel and receive a $100 hotel credit and room upgrade upon arrival (when available) when booking at least a two consecutive night stay.
  • Transfer Ratio: Every 1,000 Membership Rewards Points converts to 1,000 Delta SkyMiles.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 60,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
  • Annual Fee: $250. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: This is one of the best credit cards for earning travel rewards on restaurant and supermarket purchases. If you plan on transferring your Membership Rewards points to Delta or any of AMEX's other airline and hotel partners, this is a must have.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card

Best For Frequent Delta Flyers
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3X SkyMiles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels, 2X SkyMiles at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets, and 1X SkyMiles on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $120 in Resy credits, up to $120 in rideshare credits, and up to $150 in Delta Stays Credit.
  • Main Highlights: Companion Certificate on Main Cabin domestic, Caribbean, or Central American roundtrip flights to select destinations each year after renewal of your Card, first checked bag free, $2,500 Medallion® Qualification Dollars each Medallion Qualification Year, Main Cabin 1 priority boarding, 15% off award travel booked through delta.com, the ability to earn Medallion® Qualification Dollar on spend, and complimentary Hertz Five Star® Status.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 90,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
  • Annual Fee: $350. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: The annual companion certificate and the ability to earn MQMs and MQDs are the main selling points for this card. You can conver the entire annual fee of the card with just the companion certificate alone. Everything else is just the cherry on top.

American Express® Green Card

Best For Travel & Dining
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3X Membership Rewards points on travel, transit, and at restaurants, and 1X on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $189 in CLEAR credit and up to $100 in LoungeBuddy credit.
  • Transfer Ratio: 1,000 Membership Rewards Points = 1,000 Asia Miles.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 40,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on your American Express® Green Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
  • Annual Fee: $150.
  • Summary: The Green Card lives in the shadows of The Platinum Card and the American Express Gold Card. It's a great option if you frequently travel and spend across it's three featured categories.

Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card

Best For Saving On Checked Bags
  • Earning Rate: Earn 2X SkyMiles on Delta purchases, at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery in the U.S. and at U.S. supermarkets. All other purchases earn 1X SkyMiles.
  • Annual Credits: Annual $200 flight credit after spending $10K and a $100 Delta Stays Credit.
  • Main Highlights: First checked bag free for yourself and up to 8 others on the same reservation, priority boarding in Main Cabin 1, save 15% on award travel on Delta-operated flights, and access to Delta's Pay with Miles.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 70,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
  • Annual Fee: $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: In my opinion, this card is for the free checked bag benefit. It will cost you $30 for the first checked bag per person, per direction meaning that you'll save $60 per person round-trip.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card

Best For Frequent Delta Business Flyers
  • Earning Rate: Earn 3 SkyMiles per $1 spent on Delta and hotel purchases, 1.5 SkyMiles per $1 spent on large, single, non-category purchases of $5,000+ and 1 SkyMile per $1 spent on all other purchases.
  • Annual Credits: Up to $120 Resy Credit and up to $120 in rideshare credit.
  • Main Highlights: Annual Main Cabin companion pass, 15% discount on Delta Award travel, 20% discount on in-flight purchases, $2,500 Medallion Qualification Dollars (MQDs) each Medallion Qualification Year, and free checked bag (up to 8 people).
  • Intro Bonus: Limited Time Offer: Earn 100,000 Bonus Miles after spending $8,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer Ends 3/27/24.
  • Annual Fee: $350. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: Same selling point as the consumer/personal version. Valuable companion pass that can easily get you a few hundred in value depending on the flight. You can also earn bonus MQDs each year which is great if you're aiming for Delta Medallion status.

The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express

Best For Small Business
  • Earning Rate: Earn 2X Membership Rewards points on the first $50,000 in annual purchases, then 1X for the remainder of the year.
  • Main Highlights: The 2X points at no annual fee.
  • Intro Bonus: Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
  • Annual Fee: $0. (See Rates and Fees)
  • Summary: The Blue Business Plus is the best credit card for small businesses but it is also the best credit card for miscellaneous purchases. You can pair this card with any business or personal Membership Rewards credit card to make sure you're always earning at least 2X points on your purchases which is the equivalent to earning 2X SkyMiles on all purchases.

Delta Miles Calculator: Which Credit Card Is Best For You?

Use the Delta SkyMiles Calculator to find out which credit cards will earn you the most Delta SkyMiles based on your spend.

Results will be sorted by net return which is the average value of the rewards earned, plus annual credits, and minus annual fees. You'll want to take into consideration the benefits a card offers as well on top of the estimated value calculated.

Results will consist of top-rated credit cards that either earn Delta SkyMiles directly or earn rewards that can be transferred directly to the Delta SkyMiles program.

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Calculator Options
What Type of Rewards Do You Want To Earn?
This calculator can output the best credit cards for a general rewards type or compile a list of the best credit cards for earning rewards with a specific loyalty program.
Frequent Flyer Programs
Select the frequent flyer program that you want to earn rewards for. Results will include all co-branded credit cards offered by the selected airline and all credit cards partners that allow you to transfer rewards to the selected airline.
Hotel Loyalty Programs
Select the hotel loyalty program that you want to earn rewards for. Results will include all co-branded credit cards offered by the selected hotel program and all credit cards partners that allow you to transfer rewards to the selected hotel program.
Other Loyalty Programs
Select the program that you want to earn rewards for. Results will include all credit cards offered by the selected program and all credit cards partners that allow you to transfer rewards to the selected program.
Personal Or Business?
Are you looking for personal (consumer) credit card or business credit cards? You can also include both in the results.
Include Intro Bonuses?
If set to yes, intro bonuses will be included for a card's calculation ONLY IF you have met the monthly spend criteria based on what's entered into the tool.
Do note that we do not have intro bonuses for all credit cards and we cannot calculate intro bonuses for some cards due to the complexity of some spend requirements.
Enter Your Monthly & Yearly Spend Amounts
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Search for categories and click 'Add Category' to add it to the calculator. If you want to be more specific, you can specify domestic or international spend.
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About Spend Region: Some credit cards feature categories that only earn rewards when spending in a certain region. Changing this category to Domestic or International spend will calculate such for those cards, otherwise it's assumed by Default.

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These estimates are to help guide you towards making the best decision when it comes to picking up a rewards credit card. They should be used for illustrative purposes only.