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The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card has no annual fee for its first year ($99 after that), 1%–2% cashback rewards, and some unique bonuses for frequent Delta flyers. But limited rewards and redemption opportunities make it less flexible than other travel and dining rewards cards.
Quick Review
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card lets you earn miles on everyday purchases and offers some great perks to make your Delta journey cheaper. However, it lacks some of the utility and value of its non-branded competitors (e.g., a travel rewards card that isn’t associated with a particular airline).
With rewards rates ranging from 1% on everyday purchases to 2% on purchases made with Delta, restaurants, and supermarkets, this card allows you to build up credit card miles as you spend throughout the year. However, other rewards cards offer ranges of 1.5%–5% in the same or similar categories, some with a lower or no annual fee, placing this card behind much of its rewards card competition.
Of course, if you’re considering this card, you probably already fly with Delta regularly—and the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card comes with some excellent benefits for Delta flyers. Priority boarding and a free checked bag for up to nine people per reservation are both great conveniences, and if you tend to take long flights and eat on the plane, you’ll appreciate being reimbursed for 20% of the cost of your in-flight purchases.
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card also comes with some unique American Express benefits, like a complimentary ShopRunner membership, four types of insurance coverage, and access to exclusive entertainment events.
Overall, the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card has the most value for frequent Delta flyers (especially groups or families), but those who travel less often may find the lack of non-Delta redemption options restrictive and look to the card’s more versatile competition.
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card Important Details
Basic Card Details
- Credit card issuer: American Express
- Annual fee: $0 for first year, then $99
- Purchase APR: 19.49%–28.49% (variable)
- Rewards rate: 1%–2%
- Grace period: 25 days after end of billing cycle
Additional Information
- Earn a $100 Delta eCredit each year when you spend $10,000 or more.
- Earn a statement credit equal to 20% of your eligible in-flight purchases.
- Reserve tickets to exclusive entertainment events through American Express Access and other programs.
- Get insurance coverage for your bags, rental vehicles, and other purchases.
- Set spending limits for your authorized users.
- Make small payments towards your balance with Pay It.
- Use Plan It to create a payment plan for your purchases.
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card Feature Breakdown
Here’s a look at the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card’s fees, interest rates, rewards, and other major features.
Fees
- Annual fee: $0 for first year, then $99
- Cash advance fee: $10 or 5% of advance (whichever is greater_
- Foreign transaction fee: None
- Late payment fee: Up to $40
One of the major benefits of this card is that it doesn’t charge the usual American Express foreign transaction fee.
Interest Rates
- Purchase APR: 19.49%–28.49% (variable)
- Cash advance APR: 27.49% (variable)
- Penalty APR: 29.99% (variable)
Rewards
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card earns you unlimited miles at the following rates:
- 2x miles per dollar on Delta purchases
- 2x at restaurants around the world, including takeout and delivery services
- 2x at supermarkets in the US
- 1x on all other eligible purchases
Delta purchases eligible for 2x miles include:
- Ticket purchases
- Seat upgrades
- Miles purchased from Delta
- Delta Sky Club membership fees
- Delta Vacations packages
- Eligible in-flight purchases on Delta flights, like food and drinks
Miles can be redeemed in a few ways:
- Pay with miles when you book flights with Delta and Delta Connection partners through delta.com
- Redeem for Delta gift cards
- Gift or transfer miles to another Delta SkyMiles account
- Donate miles to charity
- Redeem for merchandise from select retailers through the SkyMiles Marketplace
- Redeem for subscriptions to magazines and newspapers
When you purchase Delta and Delta Connection partner flights with miles, you also earn Medallion Qualification Miles, which go towards earning or upgrading Medallion status for your SkyMiles account.
Miles must be redeemed in 5,000-mile ($50) increments. Hypothetically, that makes each mile worth $0.01; however, if your purchase is not a multiple of 50, the value of your miles may vary, as they are rounded up to the nearest multiple.
Qualifying cardholders who live in Japan can also redeem up to 30,000 miles per year for SkyMiles JTB Japan Package Tour vouchers for domestic tours.
If you fail to pay your minimum payment on your balance by the due date, you will automatically forfeit any miles you earned during that billing period. However, you can reinstate your miles within the next 12 months if you pay a $35 fee and your balance is not past due.
Welcome Bonus
As an introductory bonus, you’ll get 40,000 extra miles if you spend $1,000 in your first 3 months.
Cash Advance
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card lets you take out cash advances (i.e., withdrawing money from your credit card through an ATM). When you take out a cash advance, it’s subject to a variable 27.49% APR and a fee of either $10 or 5% of the amount of your advance (whichever is greater).
Delta Travel Benefits
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card offers the following Delta-specific travel benefits:
- Delta Flight Credit: Earn an annual $100 Delta eCredit towards a Delta flight purchase when you spend $10,000 or more in a year with your card—on any purchases, not just with Delta.
- 20% In-Flight Savings: Earn a statement credit equal to 20% of the cost of your eligible in-flight purchases.
- No blackout dates: No blackout dates for Delta flights. Blackout dates may still apply to flights with Delta partner airlines.
- Priority boarding: Take advantage of Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding on Delta flights for yourself and up to eight other people on your reservation.
Other Travel Benefits
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card users can also enjoy some general travel benefits, including:
- Exclusive entertainment tickets: Reserve seats to exclusive entertainment events through American Express Access, American Express Early Access, American Express Experiences, and Card Member Performances.
- Destination Family: Get special amenities like connecting rooms or complimentary breakfasts when you book a family vacation at a participating resort through American Express Travel.
- Free checked bag: The fees for your first checked bag for each member on your reservation (up to nine bags) will be automatically waived when you check in, for flights booked using your card.
- Global Assist Hotline: Get help with translation and other services and referrals to local emergency services while traveling outside the US.
- Hotel price match: If you book a hotel online through American Express Travel and later find a better price listed somewhere else, American Express will refund you the difference.
Insurance Benefits
Like certain other American Express cards, the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card provides several forms of insurance coverage:
- Baggage insurance: Up to $1,245 in coverage for qualifying checked-in or carried-on luggage.
- Car rental loss/damage insurance: Up to 30 days of coverage for damage or theft of a rental vehicle.
- Extend warranties: Add an extra year to an eligible warranty of five years or less.
- Purchase protection: Up to 90 days of purchase protection for eligible purchases charged to your card, with up to $1,000 in coverage per claim and up to $50,000 per year.
Other Benefits
The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card also comes with a few miscellaneous perks:
- No fraud liability: You won’t be held liable for any fraudulent charges made with your card.
- Payment options: Use Pay It to make payments of less than $100 on your balance, or use Plan It to set up long-term payment plans for purchases over $100.
- Amex Offers: Earn statement credits when you shop at select retailers when you enroll through Amex Offers.
- Instant card number: Start making purchases before your card physically arrives with a card number sent to you after approval.
- Send & Split: Send money directly to PayPal or Venmo users through the American Express mobile app.
- ShopRunner membership: Get a free ShopRunner membership for the life of your Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card account.
- Spending limits for authorized users: Set a unique spending limit for each authorized user on your card.
You can also earn additional miles per dollar when you shop at affiliated retailers through SkyMiles Shopping—a perk that anyone with a SkyMiles account can use, not just Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card users.
Credit Reporting
American Express reports credit activity to Experian, Equifax, and Transunion every month.
Should You Get the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card?
FinanceJar verdict
While dedicated Delta customers will reap the maximum benefits from the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card, you can find higher rewards rates and more flexible redemption opportunities in other travel cards. Some perks are definitely top-shelf, but others can be found in other Gold-level or higher American Express cards, making it worthwhile to check out your other options.
Who is this card for?
- Frequent Delta travelers: If you regularly travel with Delta or its affiliated carriers, you’ll appreciate the ability to stockpile miles through everyday expenses and the reasonable $99 annual fee after your first year. The insurance protections and other travel perks offered by American Express certainly don’t hurt, either.
- Family vacationers: Traveling families can take advantage of free checked bags and priority boarding for up to nine people per reservation, plus some other family vacation-specific perks through Destination Family.
Comparable Cards
Here’s how the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card compares to similar credit cards.
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card vs. Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card vs. American Express® Gold Card
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card vs. Chase Sapphire Preferred® Credit Card
