by Daniel | Last Updated Jan 29th, 2022
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If you travel a lot and are looking to get more value from the money that spend doing so, both of the cards in this comparison are worth considering.
Whilst they are not exactly cheap on an annual basis to maintain, they actually offer quite a lot of benefits each year that can easily cover the annual fee and then some.
In this article, I’m going to review and compare both the American Express Platinum and Reserve Delta Skymiles cards.
I’ll go over what they cost on an annual basis, what you can expect to receive each year in terms of benefits and user perks, and then I’ll decide which card is the best and If it’s worth it.
Who are these cards good for?
The Platinum and Reserve Delta Skymiles cards are directly focused on providing as much value as possible to Delta flyers.
Both of these cards offer a wide range of different benefits, from complimentary lounge access to discounted food and drinks on Delta flights, and this can come in handy if you travel a lot, as little things like this really can make your travel experience that much better.
One thing that might be of concern to anybody who is trying to make a decision between the two cards is the fact the Reserve card cost more than twice as much as the Platinum card does for its annual fee.
But there is a good reason for the higher fee, as you will see in this video when I go over all of the benefits and perks that come with both cards.
APR
So let’s first start by taking a look at what the APR is, and for both of these cards it is the same.
And these rates will depend on what your creditworthiness is and will vary with the markets depending on what the Prime rate is.
So the APR for purchases is between 15.74% and 24.74%.
For cash advances, the APR is 25.24%, and finally, there is a penalty APR of 29.99% which can be applied to your account if you make one or more late payments or if your payment is returned by your bank.
And the penalty APR will be in effect for at least 6 months, and then will be reviewed every 6 months.
Once you have made consistent payments that are on time and have not had any returned payments over a 6 month period, you may have the Penalty lifted and you’re APR returned to normal.
Annual Fee
So now let’s take a look at what the annual fee is for each card.
Starting with the delta SkyMiles Platinum American Express Card there is an annual fee of $250, which is not exactly cheap but it is a fair bit less than the Reserve card.
Next up, with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, there is an annual fee of $550, which is more than twice the price of what the Platinum card is asking.
So even though the Reserve card is more than twice the price of the Platinum card on an annual basis, it does have a fair bit more to offer as you will see later in the article.
Sign-up Bonus
Next up let’s look at what the sign-up bonus is for each card, and if there is much difference.
Starting with the Platinum card you will earn 50,000 Bonus Miles and 5,000 Medallion Qualification Miles (MQMs) after you spend $2,000 within the first 3 months of opening the account.
You will also receive a $100 statement credit for use at restaurants within the US, and this also must be used within the first 3 months of card ownership.
Now Delta Skymiles are worth approximately 1.1 cents per mile, so the 50,000 bonus miles are worth about $550.
And the $100 statement credit makes the sign-up bonus worth around $650, which is pretty good and easily covers the cost of the annual fee.
The 5,000 MQMs that you will receive can be put towards eventually earning Delta Elite Status, and Silver status is the entry level tier and requires 25,000 MQMs.
Next up, with the Delta SkyMiles Reserve American Express Card, you will earn the same 50,000 bonus miles as the Platinum card, but you will need to spend 50% more to receive it, currently, you must spend $3,000 within the first 3 months.
There is also get the same $100 credit that can be used at US restaurants.
The only main difference is that you will get twice as many MQMs, 10,000 to be exact, which is ok I guess.
Now you would think that you might get a bit more value with the sign-up bonus with the Reserve card seeing that it costs twice the price of the Platinum card, but thats not the case.
Earning Miles
Next up let’s take a look at how you can earn miles with each of these cards.
And starting with the Platinum card there is quite a brand range of options from where you can earn miles.
First of all, you will receive 3x miles for purchases that are made directly with Delta.
You will also receive 3x miles for direct bookings with hotels.
Then from here, you will receive 2x miles at restaurants (which includes takeout and delivery.)
And all grocery purchases that are made from within the US will also receive 2x miles.
Then finally all other purchases will receive 1 mile per dollar spent.
Next up, let’s look at what the Reserve card offers in terms of earning miles, and interestingly enough it actually has fewer options for earning miles than what the cheaper Platinum card has.
So with the Reserve card, there are only two different options for earning miles, first of all, you will earn the same 3x miles for purchases that are made directly with Delta.
And then all other purchases will receive 1 mile per dollar spent.
So again, it’s a bit unusual that you actually get fewer reward options with the Reserve card than you do with the cheaper Platinum card.
Benefits and User Perks
So now let’s go over all of the benefits and user perks that are on offer with each card, and let’s hope that the Reserve card can actually offer a bit more value than the Platinum card can for this section.
Starting with the Platinum card, one of the more notable benefits that come with this card is the Annual Companion Certificate.
And with this, after you renew your card for the following year you will receive a free domestic return trip in the main cabin( which is basically just economy) each year, and depending on where you choose to fly with this benefit, it can be worth quite a lot.
The only thing you will have to pay for with this is any taxes and fees that are associated with the flight, which is capped at a maximum of $75.
Another nice benefit that is offered with this card is the ability to earn quite a lot of Medallion Qualification Miles.
Each year it is possible to earn 10,000 MQMs after spending $25,000 in pouches, and this is available 2 times per year.
So if you can send $50k within the year, you will be able to reach the minimum requirement of 25,000 MQMs, which will be enough for Silver tier status. (This includes the 5,000 MQMs that are included in the sign-up bonus).
Another benefit that comes with this card is a $100 credit that can be used for either TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
You will also get your first checked bag free on all Delta flights that are booked with the card, which can be worth up to $60 for a return trip.
As a Platinum cardholder, you will get a discounted rate of $39 per person if you visit the Delta Sky Club, and this is not exactly cheap if you travel a lot and like to use airport lounges, over the year it could really add up.
And finally, there is a 20% statement credit for inflight purchase on Delta for food, beverages, and audio headset.
Now along with all of these perks, you will also get quite a lot of insurance-related coverage.
First of all, there is baggage delay insurance of up to $300 per trip with a maximum of 2 claims per account per 12 consecutive month period.
And this comes into effect if a cover reason delays your trip by more than 12 hours.
Along with this, you will also receive a baggage insurance plan that covers up to $1,250 for carry-on and $500 for checked baggage in the event that your luggage is lost, damaged, or stolen.
There is car rental loss and damage insurance which covers up to $50,000 for any damage or theft of a rental vehicle.
And for this to be valid you must decline the car rental agency’s collision damage waiver, and just note that not all types of cars are covered with this insurance.
Also, cars that are rented from within Australia, New Zealand, and Italy will not be covered.
There is purchases protection that covers you for up to 90 days and for up to $1,000 per item and up to a total of $50,000 per calendar year.
And finally, there is extended warranty protection that provides you with an additional 1 year of coverage on original manufacturers warranties that are 5 years or less, and this covers up to $10,000 per item and a total of $50,000 per calendar year.
So overall, you actually get quite a lot of benefits and insurance coverage with the Platinum card.
Next up, let’s take a look at the Reserve card and see what the difference is.
The first and probably the most valuable benefit that comes with this card is the Annual Companion Certificate.
And although you get one with the Platinum card, The Reserve card gives you the added benefit of actually using it for a domestic First class, Delta Comfort+ or economy round trip.
Now, this benefit has similar terms to the Platinum card and it will be issued to you after you renew your card for the following year.
Along with this, there is the opportunity of earning 15,000 Medallion Qualification Miles after you spend $30,000 on your card within a calendar year, and with the Reserve card, you will be able to do this up to 4 times within the year.
So if you can send $120,000 over the year you will be able to earn an additional 60,000 MQMs, and with the 10,000 MQMs that come with the sign-up bonus, this brings you easily to Gold tier status which requires 50,000 MQM’s, and just 5,000 MQMs short of Platinum tier status which requires 75,000 MQMs.
Simply put, if you do spend a lot on your credit card each year, the Reserve card has the ability to earn you a ton more MQMs than the Platinum card.
Next up, you will get free access to a variety of different airport lounges from all over the world.
The first is Escape lounges, which is a Centurion Studio partner lounge.
With 12 lounges in the US, these lounges offer unlimited freshly prepared food, a variety of alcoholic beverages, hi-speed wifi, and printing services if you need it.
There is also unlimited access to the Centurion Lounge which also offers a ton of nice benefits.
And finally, you will have unlimited free access to the Delta Sky Club on the same day that you are flying on a Delta-operated flight, and if you’re not on a Delta-operated flight there will be a $39 fee for access to the Lounge.
Now along with this, you will also receive two, one-time guest passes for the Delta Sky Club, which is worth up to $78.
As a Reserve cardholder, you will get Upgrade Priority which gives you priority upgrades over other Medallion members that are in the same Tier level as you.
There is a $100 credit that can be used for either TSA PreCheck or Global Entry.
Similar to the Platinum card you will also get your first checked bag free and you will receive the same 20% back on inflight purchases on Delta flights that include food, beverages, and audio headsets.
Now along with all of these benefits there is also a lot of great insurance coverage.
You get the same Baggage insurance plan as the Platinum card which covers $1,250 for carry-on luggage and $500 for checked luggage.
There is slightly better trip delay insurance which covers up to $500 per trip (as opposed to $300) and comes into effect if you are delayed by more than 6 hours (instead of 12 hours with the Platinum card)
With the Reserve card only, you will also get Trip Cancellation which covers up to $10,000 per trip and up to $20,000 per card per 12 month period, if your trip is canceled or interrupted by a covered reason.
There is similar car rental loss and damage insurance, but with higher coverage of up to $75,000 for the Reserve card compared to just $50,000 with the Platinum card.
Another benefit that only the Reserve card has is Return Protection, and this gives you the ability to receive up to $300 per item and $1,000 per year for an item that a merchant does not take back, and you will be given 90 days from the date of purchases to be able to use this benefit.
And finally, you will get the same extended warranty that is offered with the Platinum card, which is one extra year of coverage on US warranties that are 5 years or less.
Final Thoughts
So what are my overall thoughts about the American Express Delta Skymiles Platinum and Reserve cards?
Both of these cards offer some great benefits and perks that can quite easily offset the cost of the annual fee.
The Annual Companion Certificate that is offered with each card really makes both cards fantasitc value, as this can potentially save you a lot of money.
In my opinion, if you can afford the higher annual fee of the Reserve card, you get a lot more overall value, which is worth it if you do travel a lot.
First of all, the free access to different airport lounges will save you a ton of money, if you use the Delta Sky Club lounge with the Platinum card, it will cost you $39 for each visit, and after just 7 visits you will have spent $273, which enough to cover the difference in cost for the Reserve card.
And I don’t know about you, but I use multiple airport lounges each year a lot more than 7 times.
Now whilst the Platinum card does offer the Annual Companion Certificate, it is only for Economy flights, which is totally fine.
But with the Reserve card, you can use the certificate for First Class flights, which is worth a lot more and is a nice experience to have and something to look forward to each year (assuming you don’t travel First Class all the time).