Delta SkyMiles has rolled out a new perk for those with select co-branded American Express cards, which has the potential to be pretty valuable. This coincides with the cards getting excellent new welcome offers.
In this post:
Save 15% on Delta SkyMiles awards with an Amex
Delta and American Express have rolled out a new benefit for those with a co-branded credit card. Specifically, those who have a personal or business version of the Delta SkyMiles Gold, Delta SkyMiles Platinum, or Delta SkyMiles Reserve card, are eligible (in other words, only those with the Delta SkyMiles Blue aren’t eligible).
With this new benefit, cardmembers can save 15% when booking award travel using Delta SkyMiles:
- This discount will automatically show up if you log into your Delta SkyMiles account and are also the primary cardmember on an eligible Delta Amex card
- This is only valid when your itinerary is entirely operated by Delta, including its Delta Connection partners; this won’t be available if your itinerary includes travel on partner airlines
- Only travel booked through Delta’s website and app qualifies for the discount
- Pay with Miles, Miles + Cash, and seat upgrades purchased after the initial flight booking, don’t qualify for this discount
- The discount only applies to the mileage portion of the award ticket fare, and not to the taxes and fees, which must be paid using the eligible card
Keep in mind that Delta SkyMiles also offers a “Pay With Miles” feature for those with a Delta Amex, whereby cardmembers can redeem their miles for one cent each toward the cost of a Delta ticket (in certain increments).
Should you redeem Delta SkyMiles with a 15% discount?
I tend to think that the way to maximize most mileage currencies is to redeem for long haul first and business class travel, especially on partner airlines. Unfortunately that’s an area where Delta SkyMiles lags a bit, and it’s also why I “only” value Delta SkyMiles at 1.1 cents each.
For example, when Virgin Atlantic has saver level Upper Class (business class) award space from London to Tampa, you can book this award for 47,500 Virgin Atlantic Flying Club points or 375,000 Delta SkyMiles (taxes & fees are the same).
Nowadays there are few lucrative Delta SkyMiles redemptions on partner airlines, at least for travel to or from the United States. I don’t want to say there aren’t any good uses, but most of the decent premium cabin redemption values are for travel not even touching the United States, on carriers like Middle East Airlines, Saudia, etc.
With that in mind, I tend to think the best ways to redeem Delta SkyMiles is for travel on Delta, typically within the United States, or for short haul international flights:
- You can either redeem for an award ticket, which uses dynamic award pricing, often offering a bit over a cent per mile of value
- You can use the “Pay With Miles” option, where you can redeem miles for one cent each toward the cost of a ticket, in increments of 5,000 miles
So I have to say, I actually think this 15% award discount is pretty compelling. Take a one-way Delta first class ticket from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles, as an example. The cash fare would be $619.
If you have a co-branded Delta credit card, that means you could redeem 60,000 SkyMiles and then pay $19.
However, if you just price out the award, you’ll see it costs 56,000 SkyMiles. Now there’s a new 15% discount, meaning you’d pay 47,600 SkyMiles. That’s a significantly better deal than the “Pay With Miles” option. You’re getting nearly 1.3 cents toward the cost of a Delta ticket, not accounting for the miles you’re forgoing by not paying cash.
So I’d say this is quite a positive development, because with a 15% discount, you can pretty consistently get 1.2+ cents per mile through award redemptions (and sometimes even much more than that).
Now, what’s Delta’s motive for this objectively positive change?
- Clearly this is part of Delta’s continued effort to get just about everyone to pick up a Delta Amex, since the airline makes billions of dollars through its contract with Amex
- One has to wonder if at some point we might see a devaluation to these types of awards, once just about everyone has these cards
Bottom line
Delta has introduced a new 15% award discount for those with most co-branded Delta Amex cards. Given the limited uses of Delta SkyMiles for travel on partner airlines, this is a pretty exciting development. It should increase the value of SkyMiles for members considerably, and in many cases this will work out better than Delta’s “Pay With Miles” option. This is a genuine improvement.
What do you make of the new Delta Amex award discount?
I do not see how AWARDS can be discounted 15% (or any percentage) if "Pay with Miles" doesn't qualify. Can anybody explain ?
Let me do some quick math here.
15% off 750,000 miles for a ticket to Europe.
= 637,500
Nope.
Data point--I booked two tickets to Aruba today and saw the 15% discount. Interestingly, the flight I book went up in cost (number of miles required) by 8.8% between last night and this morning (I took a screen shot last night but figured I'd book in the morning). So, my pricing with the new program today was better than it was yesterday (which I appreciate), but increasing the pricing overnight just to give you a...
Data point--I booked two tickets to Aruba today and saw the 15% discount. Interestingly, the flight I book went up in cost (number of miles required) by 8.8% between last night and this morning (I took a screen shot last night but figured I'd book in the morning). So, my pricing with the new program today was better than it was yesterday (which I appreciate), but increasing the pricing overnight just to give you a discount the next morning is one heck of a . . . let's say . . . coincidence!
I also saw a comment on another site that the web site booking engine was erroring out constantly today. I errored out four times on the purchase screen (did all the usual stuff--closed all other windows, etc), and decided to try the app on my mobile device. Worked on the first attempt.
I am now seeing this live. On my primary Delta route, it seems there's been an underlying devaluation. The 15 percent brings it only modestly better than a month ago. Other data points?
As @AGrumpyOldMan_GA found out, Delta pushed some major devaluations in late 2022. There really is very little value left in the program. (Who really cares about domestic redemptions) This 15% is basically them pi$$ing on us and calling it rain.
Responding also to grumpy, Omar, and Anthony-
I also found no change in the redemption values over the last few years (I have been tracking this), but that is because I have limited this analysis to DOMESTIC awards only- in that setting, Anthony and I are correct that there has been no devaluation.
The disagreement in this has to do with the international (especially Biz) awards, where a devaluation has certainly happened. It just...
Responding also to grumpy, Omar, and Anthony-
I also found no change in the redemption values over the last few years (I have been tracking this), but that is because I have limited this analysis to DOMESTIC awards only- in that setting, Anthony and I are correct that there has been no devaluation.
The disagreement in this has to do with the international (especially Biz) awards, where a devaluation has certainly happened. It just would have never occurred to me to consider that as I felt that most award in that setting were of too low value to consider anyway.
As to Nick- " (Who really cares about domestic redemptions)"- I will argue with you a little bit. That is pretty much the only use of this program and frankly where most flyers use Skymiles anyway. It is a US domestic airline after all. I'd like to think most of us are using foreign airlines for international travel as they (generally) are higher quality and better value for awards in most cases.
I think you are mistaken in saying most redeem domestically. The real value has always been in redeeming for business class on partners and Delta metal. I personally don't see the value of using miles for a flight which is a few hundred dollars anyway. I also don't need domestic first class. For example I was eyeing a redemption from Amex to Delta to redeem on Virgin Atlantic and Air France. Would have been about...
I think you are mistaken in saying most redeem domestically. The real value has always been in redeeming for business class on partners and Delta metal. I personally don't see the value of using miles for a flight which is a few hundred dollars anyway. I also don't need domestic first class. For example I was eyeing a redemption from Amex to Delta to redeem on Virgin Atlantic and Air France. Would have been about 480K DL miles for the both of us RT. This is now well over a million. Luckily there are other options.
Nick - I redeem for international business class on Delta metal - but ONLY during flash sales. Last year I got two tickets, round trip JFK to BCN for 148K each round trip (74K each way). Great value
Outside of that, I use SkyMiles for domestic. Why? International “normal” business class redemptions are a poor value relative to alternatives (Flying Blue, American Airlines, Aeroplan, whatever) while domestic redemptions are in line with other options....
Nick - I redeem for international business class on Delta metal - but ONLY during flash sales. Last year I got two tickets, round trip JFK to BCN for 148K each round trip (74K each way). Great value
Outside of that, I use SkyMiles for domestic. Why? International “normal” business class redemptions are a poor value relative to alternatives (Flying Blue, American Airlines, Aeroplan, whatever) while domestic redemptions are in line with other options. Plus, domestic SkyMiles redemptions are eligible for comp upgrades, can be upgraded with RUC/GUC, etc. It is worth it to upgrade on long haul domestic (JFK to LAX, LAX to Hawaii, SEA to BOS/JFK, etc)
Nick-
I will still argue with you a little bit, while acknowledging that we are probably very saying very similar things!
A trivial point- the vast majority of redemptions in the Skymiles program most certainly domestic. It is possible that is not the behavior of people in the 'points game', but that is true of the bulk of domestic flyers using their points. Their data shows that. But- point made and taken on your end...
Nick-
I will still argue with you a little bit, while acknowledging that we are probably very saying very similar things!
A trivial point- the vast majority of redemptions in the Skymiles program most certainly domestic. It is possible that is not the behavior of people in the 'points game', but that is true of the bulk of domestic flyers using their points. Their data shows that. But- point made and taken on your end that you (and many points enthusiasts) wouldn't book that way.
I personally wouldn't bother using Skymiles for international flights. (I only redeem points for international biz or FC; no point in redeeming for international coach, just pay cash)
Why redeem for international on Delta? Terrible redemptions outside so- called "flash sales" or rare outliers which rarely are useful to me at those exact dates and locations. Why bother chasing that when I have so many other high- yield options for international flights at reasonable redemptions elsewhere? I can fly First on JAL, ANA, LH or in Qatar Q suites multiple times for how long it would take to get a useful Delta international redemption.
So I view skymiles (and Southwest's program also) kind of like my grocery store points program. It's a little rebate that sometimes gives me a few bucks of "free" stuff. I'm not saving it for some lifechanging redemption. So, of course I'd use on domestic flights, because it's so worthless and low yield international. The domestic awards are especially useful as they give me a backdoor fully refundable ticket when I absolutely need to be somewhere and need a backup flight. The program plays its (limited) role for me in that way.
So anyway- It looks like we both have the same general feelings re Skymiles value and make the best of it in our own way.
If you can find international premium cabin with SkyMiles that is of value to you- then I tip my hat at your good fortune and I wish you happy hunting.
Yeah basically the same thing. I think they think they can keep making these cuts and no one cares. Though until the partner devaluation in October I still had an excuse to give Delta my business even as a 2nd or 3rd choice program. There was still some value….
I paid 80,000 miles for a round trip to Sydney last year on a flight that was going for over $2,000 from all airlines. Very little value indeed.
Jetiquette- good for you! glad you could get value from that.
I find reasonable redemptions on Delta to be too much of a "treasure hunt" to find many good redemptions; doesn't work for me, it's great if it works for you. Keep doing what works for you!
And I assume your flight was in coach. I wouldn't have redeemed for that, I'm not flying across an ocean in coach. 80k miles via AA got...
Jetiquette- good for you! glad you could get value from that.
I find reasonable redemptions on Delta to be too much of a "treasure hunt" to find many good redemptions; doesn't work for me, it's great if it works for you. Keep doing what works for you!
And I assume your flight was in coach. I wouldn't have redeemed for that, I'm not flying across an ocean in coach. 80k miles via AA got me JAL each way to Tokyo, each leg goes for >$10k each way on a RT. But again, what works well for one person doesn't for another and that's OK! Value is subjective, and you got great value from your points by your estimation.
I am glad you touched on the value issues for SkyMiles redemptions. Living in Atlanta, Delta is my prime airline, though for international, I try to fly foreign carriers on awards as much as possible. However, I have done several ATL-Europe and Europe-ATL award flights in the past as I was often able to find the best deals for Delta One.
A few weeks ago I started searching for award tickets for our first trip...
I am glad you touched on the value issues for SkyMiles redemptions. Living in Atlanta, Delta is my prime airline, though for international, I try to fly foreign carriers on awards as much as possible. However, I have done several ATL-Europe and Europe-ATL award flights in the past as I was often able to find the best deals for Delta One.
A few weeks ago I started searching for award tickets for our first trip to Europe since 2018. I was SHOCKED that I was unable to find nearly any D1 awards for less than 300k - 375k miles. I wound up booking outbound on AF business for 123k Flying Blue (nonstop ATL-CDG which has been hard to get in the past regardless of carrier) and 60k MileagePlus miles in United Polaris (though domestic economy for EWR-ATL) for the return. (I had stashes of both due to the cancellation of our 2020 trip.)
If this is indicative of the value of international SkyMiles going forward, 15% off won't be of any use. Fortunately, I fly almost exclusively DL domestically being in Atlanta. I may start to use miles for domestic flights. I have always thought the SkyPesos label was a bit harsh and unwarranted, but I am beginning to see that the shoe may very well fit now.
People have already forgotten they devalued these redemptions by exactly 15-20% just a few months ago. The devaluation already occurred.
Don't think this is correct - domestic redemptions have been about 1.1 cents to 1.3 cents for a few years on Delta. No devaluation in recent months.
Not true, it was about 1.3-1.5 cpm then devalued to 1.1-1.3 very recently.
They devalued partner redemptions, basically removing the saver level.
https://frequentmiler.com/delta-devalues-sky-miles-again/
A lot of people saying that Delta will just "increase the miles required by 15%" are missing a key limiter here - through "Pay with Miles," Delta allows you to redeem points at a cash value of 1 cent per point. In contrast, regular award redemptions (where you need enough points to cover the entire award) typically are about 1.1 cents to 1.3 cents per mile, in order to make that option more worthwhile.
What...
A lot of people saying that Delta will just "increase the miles required by 15%" are missing a key limiter here - through "Pay with Miles," Delta allows you to redeem points at a cash value of 1 cent per point. In contrast, regular award redemptions (where you need enough points to cover the entire award) typically are about 1.1 cents to 1.3 cents per mile, in order to make that option more worthwhile.
What does that mean? Delta really can't raise its "regular" award prices by 15% because it then makes Pay with Miles cheaper on an ongoing basis.
I've looked, so have others this morning, this is a real discount of 15% off of the standard rate for domestic redemptions. This is actually a real positive development. I earn a lot of SkyMiles, but also burn them on stuff like domestic trips, especially those I have a good shop of getting upgraded on for free or even using a certificate like an RUC. Burning 40K miles one way to Hawaii, for example, and upgrading via an RUC just became 15% cheaper. And remember, you earn MQM on award trips.
Honestly I am now looking for ways to get more SkyMiles into my account!
Not sure the math works out- If the cash prices remain the same and get purchased by "pay with miles", you still get 1cpp- same exact cost.
If you require (around) 15% or so more points for an award redemption for that same cash price, the redemption now works out to about 1cpp, give or take (slightly better but not much). Only with the 15% "discount" for cardmembers do you get back to the 1.2...
Not sure the math works out- If the cash prices remain the same and get purchased by "pay with miles", you still get 1cpp- same exact cost.
If you require (around) 15% or so more points for an award redemption for that same cash price, the redemption now works out to about 1cpp, give or take (slightly better but not much). Only with the 15% "discount" for cardmembers do you get back to the 1.2 cpp we typically see today.
So- if the regular awards get devalued so that the (approximately) 1cpp matches the "pay with miles" rate, it doesn't make PWM a better deal in that setting. They can adjust the math as they see fit to keep a 1cpp redemption on regular awards be a "floor" so PWM is not "better"
Try it with a few dummy bookings or run the math- you'll see what I mean. I'd also certainly take a look if you come up with different results, I'd be glad to see what others come up with (running the math isn't always my strong suit)
Of course, this is just all my speculation based on past Delta statements and behavior. It's what I'd do if I were running Delta and trying to optimize return on the Skymiles program and increase cardholder numbers (where a lot of the real money lies) at the same time
A 15% discount could save you like 4 million SkyPesos on a RT business-class award to Europe!
maybe a skeptic... but with DL I feel like we'll see at least a 15% increase (or ~17.64% for math nerds) so the net price remains the same.
Agreed!
Living in AMS, I'm typically flying DL to and from the US. Skymiles are nearly impossible to redeem at any reasonable value... flights nearly a year out are only available for 500-600K miles roundtrip in business class. Completely absurd! 15% of these prices is still insane, and especially for a card that earns worthless Skypesos rather than more valuable chase points, etc.
For me the only decent use of Skymiles is on KL, AF, and...
Living in AMS, I'm typically flying DL to and from the US. Skymiles are nearly impossible to redeem at any reasonable value... flights nearly a year out are only available for 500-600K miles roundtrip in business class. Completely absurd! 15% of these prices is still insane, and especially for a card that earns worthless Skypesos rather than more valuable chase points, etc.
For me the only decent use of Skymiles is on KL, AF, and other partners like CI. So in other words, a worthless offer.
@Lucky This is in stark contrast to what you actually think is the best use of skymiles - Dom P.
problem is that DL have stopped offering DP
So, SkyMiles is certainly not a program with high value redemptions, thus all the hate from all the "points hacking" people. No sweet spots here for the most part.
That said, Delta and Southwest's program share one feature- you always know exactly what your redemption value is. They are pretty much close to fixed value points, so no time wasted calculating your "best deal". When figuring out your "cost" to acquire each point, you know...
So, SkyMiles is certainly not a program with high value redemptions, thus all the hate from all the "points hacking" people. No sweet spots here for the most part.
That said, Delta and Southwest's program share one feature- you always know exactly what your redemption value is. They are pretty much close to fixed value points, so no time wasted calculating your "best deal". When figuring out your "cost" to acquire each point, you know exactly what you will be able to get.
I find "value" (notice the quotes) in both programs in that they allow me to book any domestic flight, anytime knowing I can fully refund them. Great for "backup" flights or flights I'm not sure I'll take.
So, this minimally increased the point value- although I think it's likely temporary. You pretty much get 1.2 cpp on Delta commonly at this time. As we know Delta wants to get their points value to be 1cpp, I speculate we will see a 15% increase (or more) in award redemption costs in the future across the board to compensate for this; In other word, they will devalue the points (again), and allow cardmembers to be made "whole" .
Given the refundability of mile redemptions relative to non-refundable classes, Ben should probably be using the $7xx price for refundable F in his example, which would make this an even better redemption value.
To be fair, Ben is among the most honest point valuators in this. Using miles close-in when only more flexible cash tickets for J/F are available exaggerates the value of the miles (e.g. I just booked AF in J with my family...
Given the refundability of mile redemptions relative to non-refundable classes, Ben should probably be using the $7xx price for refundable F in his example, which would make this an even better redemption value.
To be fair, Ben is among the most honest point valuators in this. Using miles close-in when only more flexible cash tickets for J/F are available exaggerates the value of the miles (e.g. I just booked AF in J with my family next month... 300k miles (plus $500) roundtrip with Flying Blue per person, but my cash fare (need the XP) is $11k: plenty would use that to justify 3.5 cpm for FB miles, but if this was a trip I'd been planning for a while, I'd've had a somewhat cheaper cash fare but I doubt the mile price would have been that much cheaper).
For those with the DL AX cards, there's always been a floor value of 1cpm (and those being redeemable in a much more flexible increment of 5k miles is worth something as well). The typical mile redemption has to stay better than that to encourage float, though with the pandemic restructuring of the program behind the scenes, maybe that changes.
This is a positive move from DL/AmEx and as a Reserve CC holder and frequent SkyClub guest I'm very glad they extended this to not only the Reserve but also the Platinum and Gold cards, otherwise I would have expected to see a decent number of people move up to the Reserve card adding even more pax eligible for club access.
I just booked a complicated itinerary last week with a Delta Diamond agent...
This is a positive move from DL/AmEx and as a Reserve CC holder and frequent SkyClub guest I'm very glad they extended this to not only the Reserve but also the Platinum and Gold cards, otherwise I would have expected to see a decent number of people move up to the Reserve card adding even more pax eligible for club access.
I just booked a complicated itinerary last week with a Delta Diamond agent that took over an hour on the phone. Now I'm really struggling with the desire to call and have the whole thing re-booked to save the 15% in miles, but it comes at a cost of real time...