Delta Air Lines has just announced plans to introduce new product names and travel experiences for flights as of this fall. The changes include more than just updated branding, though. Let’s discuss the details, which are live effective immediately, for flights as of October 1, 2025.
Continue reading: Major: Delta Updates Fare Types & Branding, With Basic, Classic, Extra
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Thank God they put "Delta" in front of the old names to reflect what airline was doing this...I would've gotten confused when it came time to book...
This is beyond stupid. Delta first and Delta one to the average person will sound like the same product. And it’s interesting that Delta Premium Select is listed ahead of Delta First. That’s just going to confuse people even more. In terms of upgrade tie-breaking priority, I guess Delta Main Extra is akin to the old days when you could book a full-fare, economy-class ticket and get instantly upgraded into domestic first-class. This is real sneaky on Delta’s part because the reality is the vast majority of people buying a Delta Main Extra ticket will not get upgraded in the first-class, unless Delta copies United’s playbook and starts adding more capacity to first-class and business-class. I am curious if the changes impact global and regional upgrade certificates or Sky Club lounge access. If I recall correctly, a Delta elite with Sky Team Elite or Sky Team Elite Plus statuses cannot access a Sky Club lounge with an economy-class ticket.
And what happens to tickets already purchased for the remainder of the calendar year? It seems like they should’ve rolled this out for January 1.
The names still suck. Why is first worse than premium and one? First class is associated with the top option
Wasn’t paying more within a cabin always a way to rank upgrade priority? I.e. economy fare class
This is basic and boring, not to mention ridiculous. Someone at Delta should spend more time training their ground staff to be more professional, over this rubbish.
I wish I could more easily filter out "basic" from searches. The current DL interface requires that I do it manually *every time*. (UA, as a point of contrast, doesn't allow it to be filtered out at all. So I guess there's that.)
So it cant be filtered out using no basic options.
Big change for OPM flyers too who have to book via corporate portals in the lowest main cabin, which had exclusions for basic before
Tickets already purchased for flights Oct 1 or later become Classic tickets (main => main classic; first => first classic, etc). So nothing changes for those people because the classic experience is ... well ... classic 😉
And regarding the nomenclature: someone who assumes that Delta First is the same as Delta One ... well, I guess, this person already assumed that Delta One is the same as First Class?
I think the new names are not worse or better than the old ones.
And no, Main Extra is well different from full-fare Y tickets. It replaces Main Cabin Refundable with minor extras like 2 additional miles earned per dollar (7, 9, 10, 11, 13 instead of 5, 7, 8, 9, 11) or the slightly higher upgrade priority.
Feels like they are just creating the infrastructure at this point. I'm sure they'll create Delta One Basic to not give lounge access, etc.
More interesting would be if they allowed Delta Main Extra to receive upgrades over Main Classic regardless of if you have status with Delta, although even there, upgrades are pretty hard to come by anyway. Otherwise hard to see what the incentive to buy Delta Main Extra is - a few extra miles and a boarding group? Being a little short on MQDs? Buy your own premium experience!
Dumb question on my side (have no experience on AA, UA, etc): is it only Delta that offers something like their domestic first class? I mean it's not surprising that international business class is considered better than domestic first class. But no matter what, I guess you won't find a flight that offers both, so indeed first is top option ... on flights where it's available.
Racing to the bottom in the name of the bottom line, what a surprise. Just an excuse now to charge the old Main Cabin prices for what is now Basic Econ. Novel thought, if an offering is radically different from the other two on the category, they shouldn't be IN the same category. Otherwise what is the point of the categorization? Rhetorical question, we all know what the point here is.
That's indeed a good question, why should one buy-up to main extra. The few extra miles don't seem worth it. And the earlier boarding? Well, maybe. You know, all those folks hoping to get onboard a little earlier than others to secure a spot in the overhead bin for their carry-on. Of course. it also depends on what the fare difference is. Most likely too much so it's not worth it. I don't know how many people bought refundable tickets ... and how many more needed the small extras to reach a tipping point to buy it?
As someone who buys refundable tickets most of the time I welcome a few extra miles per dollar thrown my way
Classic is exactly the same as what we are used to, so it's quite a fitting name one could say: 5, 7, 8, 9, 11 miles per dollar depending on your status (general, silver, gold, platinum, diamond).
Extra gives you 2 additional miles per dollar, so it's 7, 9, 10, 11, 13 miles per dollar.
So where does holding a delta reserve card fall in the hierarchy of tiebreakers ?
I guess it's nice that buying a refundable ticket comes with a few "Extra" perks, but it's not a buy-up incentive for someone who wouldn't otherwise be buying a refundable ticket and is fine with an e-credit. The perks are really just replicating what someone who already has the Delta Gold credit card would get (boarding group 5...). And if you have the Delta Platinum credit card for instance you can get on the upgrade list without status after Medallion status members and Reserve card holders. So just trying to think of what the buy-up incentive is here - maybe you get on the upgrade list as a Platinum or something. Just feels like there's more to come here.
While I've seen dumber things than this for sure, I really don't see how this moves the needle for anyone. I'm sure I will end up buying either Main Classic or Comfort (depending on fares/distance) as I already did.
I have a feeling they are going to use this to devalue business class award tickets by booking them into basic and stripping out the lounge access.
The real news… they accidentally slipped in a new product feature… higher MQD qualifying requirements coming soon to a medallion program near you. Anyone else catch the medallion tracker that said Gold $12,000 instead of $10,000. @Ben, can you ask Delta?
Wow, let's add additional seat class names and boarding groups so that the average consumer can now be even MORE confused. People already don't know how to board and deplane. Let's keep it that way says Delta.
Who knows what the future brings when basic is introduced to other cabins but for now Delta states that awards are booked in classic (you can't book extra with miles).
Delta is just copying AA - has had same breakdown for coach for some time. UA has similar.
Same for me but there were always people buying refundable tickets (like JustinB commented) ... so maybe there were also people always THINKING about buying refundable tickets ... and maybe for them the two extra miles earned are just the tipping point. Maybe ... I don't know if that's the case but possible.
If (when) D1/DPS Basic are launched, I'm curious what the overlap will be of purchasers would theoretically have lounge access through status or Amex. OR, will DL update the rules such that any Basic fare, regardless of cabin, does not get lounge access in order to attempt to reduce some crowding.
Still seeing 28K for Diamond on both the web and app, including logging out and incognito mode to make sure nothing was stored.
Makes sense - award tickets are refundable anyway. It'd be a real shiesty move to make award fares even higher.
Especially when you book an AF or Virgin flight and the ticket says the class is Delta One. Its crystal clear!
I am assuming that it’s a future change they’ll announce for next year and just accidentally included in this video.
They should work on standardizing the Delta One product before they worry about segmentation. Imagine seeing an image of someone drinking champagne on an A350, only to walk into a janky 767 with a 20-year old seat.
One buys a business fare for an exclusive (and yes that is a bit oxymoron) experience, not be nickeled and dimed to death).
Was on a flight last night. For pre-board, they included military veterans . . . not just active and retired. Is this new or just the gate agent exercising discretion?
It's really not that hard to understand, it's just a re-naming of what used to be "refundable economy." Pretty sure most people who bought those kind of fares, will continue to do so, and those who didn't, won't.
The only change from then to now, is that they've added the upgrade incentive (which as the article mentions, is meaningless, in a world where 30+ people were already trying to upgrade to the 1 or 2 seats available).
Any alien landing in the U.S. who is not used to the Delta terminology will simply walk away shaking their heads in disbelief. American and United, etc, must be laughing up their sleeves.
Thank goodness that Tim will be vertical soon to explain it to the ‘bears of very little brain’ …. 🙂
United does - there is an option to exclude Basic Econ fares. On mobile, it seems to stick for me as well.
Google Flights is also testing a filter to remove Basic Econ fares. I saw it for a week or so but it seems like I don't have it anymore.
I don't think this will have an impact on corporate portals. Guessing that Main Basic will still book into the basic fare class, which I assume corporate portals will continue to filter out based on corporate policy. This appears to be more of a cosmetic change while preparing the infra to easily add basic Delta One.
I always chuckle @ the 'Comfort' nomenclature..... I immediately ascribe "UNcomfortable" to the lower, preceding class ( which, at least is correct ).. I commend the transparency !
The 'bundles' wreak of the ULCCs...
Life is so less stressful off the 'hamster wheel' !
Always buy basic economy if you’re paying for it. Pay for extras only as needed. The airlines don’t care if you’re medallion or non member.
20 years would be too young for Delta’s 767s, they’re usually 25-30 years old. They are janky though!
This times a thousand! I'm a miles and points person and even I got mentally tired just reading this post.
Delta is getting a little big for its britches. My wife and I are planning a trip to Asia, looking at Emirates and Etihad, both have First Class seats for half the price of Delta. Delta One may be good, but it is not that good. A 15 year Diamond and my loyalty to Delta is gone.
It's not that hard. There's a huge number that says what boarding group you are on your boarding pass. The problem is people don't follow the rules. US airports need to copy European airports and have gates that won't open unless you scan a boarding pass with the correct zone.
They essentially are the same product. Delta First will be the highest class on domestic flights and Delta One will be the highest class on international flight. Delta Premium Select is essentially domestic first class on an international flight, but still less than Delta One.
I literally bought a first class ticket this week. Now I am only "Classic" and miss out on the extra miles, just because I didn't need a refundable ticket.
Still waiting on Delta to bring back hot towels, pillows, and blankets to domestic First Class. (Now Delta First Classic?) Pulled in the name of pandemic-era hygiene and have not returned, while Delta’s pricing often remains an order of magnitude higher than UA and AA for the same routes!
Was recently on a UA flight from EWR-MSP that had a huge pre-select menu, bluetooth IFE, warm nuts, hot towels, stemmed wine glasses, and blankets on request. Was also 1/3 the price of Delta’s “premium” 717 on the same route. What a contrast!
I really would not start the title with "Major," because this "new" branding seems pretty minor and technical. As a mostly Delta flyer, what is majorly annoying is how searching for Main Cabin fares in the app now defaults to showing you the Basic fare price, saying "Delta Main One-Way From 4600 miles," and only after you click on the fare does it then show Basic vs. Classic pricing. The app used to default to showing Main fares. And you can select "Delta Main" under the "More Search Options", but IMO that often reverts back to "Delta Main Basic" after changing other search parameters.
This sucks again,,, Delta really wants peeps to go elsewhere,,They are further complicating what can be already confusing to customers... add to this the IT disaster when they try to program this into their existing system!!! ALso now they can gouge us more for less product... What are the powers that Be thinking or NOT??
The lack of pillows and blankets is an issue. Especially on midcontinental or non-Delta One transcontinental routes.
Needlessly complicated, rooted in zero actual customer experience and a change no one asked for. Just about par for the course for the marketing folks. Although I'll be charitable and assume management just asked them to put lipstick on the "we want to squeeze more money from the customer" pig.
From apps to airlines, the strategy and UX folks at these companies/agencies are the most useless and overpaid people in business. No one ever thinks to focus test this stuff at a minimum. It's amazing.
+1. There was nothing broken. The idea that they needed to slap "Delta" in front of every new cabin category as some sort of brand retention masterclass is an insult to their customers' intelligence.
How long before Delta One Basic with paid seat selection, changes for a fee, and no lounge access? And how long before UA and AA copy DL, as is tradition?
A quick search of a flight on Nov 1 resulted in a Main Extra fare ($647) that was MORE than the advertised Comfort fare ($602)! Why would anyone do that? Why would Delta even offer that?
They're basically removing existing benefits from current members and framing it as a new benefit. I must now book the 'Extra' to get all the same stuff I currently get including upgrade priority. Even the higher tiers have an 'Extra' fare to charge you more for what you already have.
Terrible! As a Diamond, I’ll try the Classic couple of times - if I find out that not buying Extra impacts my upgrades, then I’m done with Delta!
Also agree with others: First, Business, Economy!! What’s this nonsense D1, PS, Comfort and now we add Delta to the name!!
Does Delta's marketing group brainstorm these asinine ideas while drinking copious amounts of alcohol? It's deceptive and misleading to see a price and then click on it to find more pricing. Delta is making it easier and easier to not be loyal.
This seems confusing and convoluted. Maybe just a new method to get travelers to pay more for a potential perk? Not getting it right now, but I’m wondering if being a Platinum Medallion matters, or just what ticket category I purchase when I fly.
Delta still doesn’t seem to understand what its loyal customers actually value. Their marketing team appears completely out of touch. For my part, I’ve decided not to pursue Diamond status this year—for the first time in years—because the reality is that upgrades have become so rare, there’s no longer a meaningful benefit to maintaining status.
I shouldn’t need an MBA in airline strategy to figure out a path to an upgrade that’s unlikely to happen anyway. Other companies have learned the hard way what happens when they alienate their customer base. Delta seems determined to learn that same lesson the hard way.
Customers understood the difference between refundable and non-refundable fares. Now we’re left trying to decode “Classic” and “Extra,” which only adds confusion where clarity once existed. If it wasn’t broken, why fix it?
If they want to know why business revenue is down ask the geniuses in marketing. i already told you why i am done
make it easier they said, simplify it for the customer they said. this IS what simple looks like to Delta? "i do not think that word means what you think it means"
I consider myself a pretty content customer of Delta. I have been very happy with their level of attention with respect to customer service. However, I am concerned the regional and global upgrade certificates provided to Platinum and Diamond Mediallion will be devalued further with the introduction of the multiple clase fares this October. To me, the Global and regional upgrade certificates are the big perks of being Platinum and Diamond Medallion. There was a time maybe 3-4 years ago, you could upgrade your economy ticket to first class or business class by applying the upgrade certificate. It is no longer the case. And now, with the introduction of these extra fare classes, the upgrade certificates will be further devalued. At this point, I do not see the benefit of booking all my flights through Delta any more.
Further proof DL mgmt is high on their own supply.
Don't worry; the Diamonds and MM's will be rushing for the exits and a buncha dorks will still be touting the carrier's moves as some "first mover" nonsense. Bank on it.
I think these new class of fares are going to be more confusing. Too many options and too much confusion to understand. Really, 11 options for fare choices. It is all about us the travelers spending more to get perks which I will not do. This is totally not a good idea. I am a seasoned travelers and administrator on our company's Sky Bonus account and I am confused.
It’s pretty simple for me. If they keep chipping away at the value of status then I’ll just go with the best flight times cost per flight for me and my team.
The changes are totally confusing to me. My wife and I are Long time and faithful Delta customers. However, after sitting down and looking at the seat choices , we just don’t understand the differences. We usually spend some time just selecting flight times and dates without worrying about choosing from such a confusing group of seats. It looks like we are going to pay more for the same seats Than those we usually take whether we choose comfort or first class. However, we don’t yet know which ones are the equivalent of what were comfort or first class. Bottom line at this point, we are going to look at another airline after our upcoming trip.