by Daniel | Last Updated Sept 6th, 2022
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With a wide variety of different airline credit cards available to choose from finding the right card can be a bit of a challenge.
And for this reason, I thought that it would be a good idea to review and compare all four of the Delta SkyMiles American Express Cards.
So hopefully this article can help you get a better understanding of what the difference is between each of the cards.
Who Are These Cards Good For?
Generally speaking, all of these cards are going to be suitable for anyone who travels with Delta Airlines more often than other airlines, as most of the benefits are directly related to Delta.
And there is a card for pretty much any budget, so if you are new to credit cards or are looking to add a new credit card to your collection there should be something just right for you.
Annual Fee
Now when it comes to the annual fee of these cards, there is the option to pay literally nothing each year the cheapest card all the way up to paying over $500 each year just for the privilege of having the card.
And starting first with the cheapest card on this list, the Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card has no annual fee.
So if you’re just new to credit cards, or are not looking to outlay extra money on another credit card, then this card is a good choice.
Next up, is the Delta SkyMilesGold American Express Card, and this card has no annual fee for the first year of card ownership, after this, it will cost $99 each year.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card the annual fee jumps up to $250, which is a fair bit more than the Gold card, but as you will see a little later in this video, it does come with quite a few more benefits and user perks.
Finally, the most expensive card out of these 4 credit cards is the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, which has an annual fee of $550.
And similar to the Platinum card, it also offers some pretty valuable benefits and user perks.
Sign-up Bonus
Now all of these cards come with a sign-up bonus that is given to you in the way of Delta SkyMiles, and as you might expect, the more you pay for a card, the better the sign-up bonus is.
And currently, Delta SkyMiles are worth approximately 1.1 cents per mile.
So starting first with the Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card it is currently possible to earn 10,000 Bonus Miles after spending $500 on purchases within the first 3 months of opening the account.
And this sign-up bonus is worth $110
Next up, with the Delta SkyMiles Gold American Express Card, it is currently possible to earn 40,000 Bonus Miles after spending $1,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of card ownership.
And these points are worth $440, which is 4 times more than what the Blue card is offering.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card, the sign-up bonus is slightly more than what you get with the Gold card, currently, it is offering 50,000 Bonus Miles & 5,000 Medallion Qualification, Miles, if you can manage to spend $2,000 on purchases within the first 3 months of opening the account.
So these points are worth $550.
And finally, with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, you will get the same 50,000 Bonus Miles as the gold card, but you will actually receive 10,000 Medallion Qualification Miles.
So the Reserve card has the same $550 sign-up bonus value as the Platinum card.
Earning Miles
Now the ability to earn miles with each of these cards does vary a bit, and this is an important part of how much extra value you can earn from these credit cards.
As if you do spend quite a lot on your credit card each year, it is possible to gain a lot of additional miles, which can be worth quite a lot of money.
So starting first with the Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card there are a few options for earning miles.
The first is the ability to earn 2x miles at restaurants worldwide and then for takeout and delivery services within the US.
It is also possible to earn 2x miles for any purchases that are made directly with Delta.
And then all other purchases will earn 1 mile per dollar spent
Next up, with the Delta SkyMilesGold American Express Card, there are a few more options when it comes to earning miles.
There is the ability to earn 2x miles at restaurants in the US, and this includes take and delivery services.
A nice added option over the blue card is the ability to earn 2x miles at US supermarkets.
There is the same 2x miles earning for direct Delta purchases.
And then all other purchases will earn 1 mile per dollar spent.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card, you get more options than the Gold card.
The first is the ability to earn 3x miles on direct Delta Purchases and direct hotel purchases.
Then there is the same 2x miles for purchases made at restaurants, takeout and delivery services, and when spending at US grocery stores.
Everything else will earn 1 mile per dollar spent.
And finally, with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, you actually get a lot fewer options for earning miles.
Basically, it is possible to earn 3x miles on direct Delta Purchases.
And then everything else that is charged to the card will receive 1 mile per dollar spent.
So it’s a little unusual to me that the most expensive card on offer has a lower points earning potential than the cheaper Platinum card, but in all fairness, it does have some pretty valuable benefits, which you will see in the next section of this review
Benefits and User Perks
Now when it comes to benefits and user perks, all of these cards have something to offer.
With the blue and gold card offering a reasonable amount of value and the Platinum and Reserve card offering a lot of value.
So starting first with the Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card there isn’t a whole lot that is on offer in terms of benefits and user perks.
Basically, the only thing that comes with this card is the ability to receive 20% back in the form of a statement credit when making inflight purchases on Delta for food, beverages, and audio headset.
Next up, with the Delta SkyMilesGold American Express Card, there is a bit more value to be had.
First of all, there is the ability to earn a $100 Delta Flight Credit after spending $10,000 on the card within the calendar year, It is then possible to get your first bag checked free on Delta flights.
And then there is the same 20% discount on inflight purchases made on Delta flights, which includes food, beverages, and audio headsets.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card, there is quite a lot more value than what you get with the gold card.
And the most valuable benefit that comes with this card is its Annual Companion Certificate.
Basically, each year that you renew your card
it is possible to receive a free domestic Main Cabin round-trip.
And this can be worth quite a lot of money, but just note that there may be additional taxes and fees associated with this benefit which will be capped at a maximum of $80.
There is then a $100 credit that can be used for either TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
Similar to the blue card it is also possible to get your first checked bag free of charge and receive a 20% discount for inflight purchases.
Although, with the Platinum card you will also get Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding which is a nice benefit to have.
As part of the sign-up bonus, this card will also reward you with 5,000 Medallion Qualification Miles, and this helps to increase your Delta Status.
Now if you can manage to spend $25,000 on the card within a calendar year it is possible to receive an additional 10,000 MQMs.
And this is available two times each year, so if you spend at least $50,000 within one given year it will be possible to earn up to 20,000 MQMs
Finally, it is possible to receive an exclusive per-visit rate to the Delta Sky Club, and this will be $39 per person and will allow you to bring up to 2 guests.
But just know that it will only be valid to use when you are flying on a same-day Delta Marked flight.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, you get even more value.
And the most valuable benefit is the Delta Reserve Annual Companion Certificate.
And this can be used on most domestic flights from within the US and will allow you to book either a First class, Comfort+, or Main Cabin round trip fare.
Also, just like the Platinum card, it becomes available when you renew your card for the following year.
it will also have taxes and fees up to a maximum of $80.
Now another fantastic benefit that comes with this card is complimentary access to both the Delta Sky Club and The Centurion Lounge.
But this is only available when you fly on a same-day Delta-marked flight.
Each year it is possible to receive two one-time guest passes to the Delta Sky Club, and this is something nice to have if you want to bring a travel companion along with you into the lounge.
As with all of the other credit cards, there is a 20% discount on inflight Delta Purchases that includes food, beverage, and audio heads sets.
And there is the same $100 credit for use on either TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
It is possible for you and up to 9 people on the same reservation as you to get their first checked bags free on Delta flights that are booked with the card.
Also, when you are traveling on Delta there is Upgrade Priority which gives you priority over other Medallion members that are at the same medallion level as you.
Then as part of the sign-up bonus, there is the ability to receive 10,000 Medallion Qualification Miles.
And if you manage to spend at least $25,000 on purchases within a 12-month period it is possible to waive the Medallion Qualification Dollar Waiver towards Platinum, Gold, or Silver Medallion Status.
Then if you spend $30,000 in a calendar year it is possible to earn 15,000 MQMs.
And this can be done up to 4 times in a given year.
So if you spend $120,000 or more over a 12-month period, it is possible to earn up to 60,000 MQMs
Insurance-related coverage
Now all of these cards come with some pretty decent insurance coverage, and just like the previous sections of this review, the more you pay for a given card, the more insurance coverage you will receive.
So starting first with the Delta SkyMiles Blue American Express Card there is Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance that covers up to $50,000 in the event of any damages of theft or a rental vehicle.
Then there is Purchase Protection which provides 90 days of coverage on new purchases and covers up to $1,000 per occurrence and a total of $50,000 a year.
Finally, there is an Extended Warranty that provides you with one additional year of coverage on warranties that are 5 years or less.
And this covers up to $10,000 per item and $50,000 per calendar year.
Next up, with the Delta SkyMilesGold American Express Card you get all of the same coverage as the Blue card but will also receive a Baggage insurance plan that covers up to $500 per covered person for checked baggage and up to $1,250 for carry-on baggage.
Now with the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card, everything is the same as the Gold card but you will also receive the following coverage:
- Cell Phone Protection which covers up to $800 per claim with the ability you make 2 claims in a 12-month period, and each claim will incur a $50 deductible fee
- Trip Delay Insurance that provides up to $300 per trip if it is delayed for more than 12 hours, and this can be claimed no more than 2 times in a 12-month period
Finally, with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, you get even more coverage with higher limits.
So you will receive Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance that covers up to $75k.
The Trip Delay insurance comes into effect if you are delayed for more than 6 hours and will cover up to $500 per trip, with a maximum of 2 claims in a 12-month period.
There is then trip cancellation that covers up to $10,000 per trip and a total of $20,000 in a 12-month period.
Purchase Protection provides the same 90 days of coverage as the other cards but will cover up to $10,000 per occurrence and the same $50,000 per year.
And similar to this is Return Protection which covers the same 90 days of coverage for any items that a merchant won’t take back, and this covers up to $300 per item and a total of $1,000 per year
Then finally the Cell Phone Protection and Baggage Insurance Plan are the same as the other cards.
APR
Now for the last section of this review, I’m going to go over what the current APR is for all of these cards and what associated fees are charged for getting a cash advance or having a returned payment.
And it just so happens that all cards are exactly the same.
So currently the APR for purchases is between 17.99% to 26.99%.
Then getting a cash advance will have an APR of 27.49%, it will also carry a fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of each cash advance, basically whichever amount ends up being more.
If you make a late payment or have a payment returned by your bank, it is most likely that you will be put on a Penalty APR of 29.99%.
There will also be a fee of up to $40 for each penalty.
And then finally, there are no foreign transaction fees associated with any of these cards.
Final Thoughts
So that pretty much covers everything there’s to know about all of these cards.
And as you can see, the more you pay for a given card, the more benefits and value you will receive.
With the sign-up bonus alone, it is possible to cover the cost of the annual fee for any of the cards that actually have one.
Now choosing a card will ultimately come down to how much you want to spend on an annual fee for a credit card and then what benefits will make the most sense for your situation.
I personally think that the Delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card is the best value out of all of these cards.
It has the best miles earning potential, and very similar benefits to the Reserve card but costs $300 less on an annual basis.
Now if are interested in either the Delta SkyMiles Platinum or Reserve American Express Card or already have one, why not read my review where I got into more detail about the ins and outs of The Delta Companion Certificate