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The Delta SkyMiles loyalty program can be frustrating at times. The absence of a defined award chart, sometimes astronomical award pricing, and all too frequent devaluations are cringe-worthy — such as the massive change to the program announced in September. Knowing which awards present great (or even fair) value is a challenge — even for those who regularly pay attention to the program.
To alleviate some of the award price unclarity, we've tracked tens of thousands of Delta award prices since the beginning of 2023. Below, you'll find the cheapest and average prices that we've seen this year.
Here's a look into the new unofficial Delta award chart and an overview of the state of the SkyMiles program.
Why Delta Removed Its Award Charts
Airlines like Delta Air Lines have done away with award charts to move toward dynamic award pricing models. Rather than defining how many miles it costs to fly from city A to city B, most airlines now adjust the price of awards based on a ticket's demand. Without an award chart, award rates are unpredictable — as is often the case with Delta.
Generally speaking, eliminating an award chart is better for the airline than the consumer. Airlines can more effectively capture revenue by altering award prices to meet demand instead of fixing them to a chart. With sky-high demand for air travel and travelers with tons of miles to use, it's unsurprising that dynamic pricing models are becoming an industry-wide trend.
Getting outsized value out of points like SkyMiles is more challenging when pricing is dynamic instead of fixed. And that's part of the goal for airlines.
Dynamic pricing doesn't mean the end of points and miles but encourages us to help keep the airline transparent. The unofficial award chart will show the minimum number of SkyMiles required to book flights sold and operated by Delta. These saver-level awards do not show partner awards, whose pricing is more or less at parity with Delta's own flights.
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Delta SkyMiles Award Chart for Flights From the U.S.
Here's the minimum number of SkyMiles you can expect to pay for Delta award flights originating from the United States.
| From U.S. Lower 48 to | Basic Economy | Main Cabin | Premium Select | First | Delta One |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Lower 48 | 3,000 | 5,500 | N/A | 9,500 | 63,000 |
| Alaska | 6,000 | 11,500 | N/A | 17,000 | N/A |
| Hawaii | 7,500 | 17,000 | N/A | 40000 | 90,000 |
| Canada | 5,500 | 6,000 | N/A | 14,000 | N/A |
| Central America | 6,000 | 14,000 | N/A | 33,000 | N/A |
| Caribbean | 5,500 | 6,000 | N/A | 15,000 | 36,000 |
| Northern South America | 5,000 | 25,000 | N/A | 37,000 | 38,000 |
| Southern South America | 19,000 | 35,000 | 46,000 | N/A | 135,000 |
| Europe | 20,000 | 37,000 | 50,000 | 285,000 (Iceland only) | 170,000 |
| Israel | 52,000 | 58,000 | 110,000 | N/A | 235,000 |
| Japan | 23,000 | 25,000 | 64,000 | N/A | 175,000 |
| South Korea | 56,000 | 54,000 | 94,000 | N/A | 145,000 |
| China | N/A | 235,000 | 225,000 | N/A | 410,000 |
| Australia | 70,000 | 50,000 | 170,000 | N/A | 410,000 |
| New Zealand | 56,000 | 80,000 | N/A | N/A | 400,000 |
| French Polynesia | 35,000 | 25,000 | 50,000 | N/A | 92,000 |
| South Africa | 72,000 | 78,000 | 125,000 | N/A | 270,000 |
Finding the bare minimum award can be challenging at times. So, as a better point of reference, we've also included the average SkyMiles award price for the same destinations. Here's the average number of SkyMiles you can expect to pay for Delta award flights from the United States:
| From U.S. Lower 48 to | Basic Economy | Main Cabin | Premium Select | First | Delta One |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Lower 48 | 16,436 | 38,198 | N/A | 53,459 | 99,282 |
| Alaska | 23,519 | 64,259 | N/A | 92,440 | N/A |
| Hawaii | 27,993 | 64,159 | N/A | 123,056 | 157,193 |
| Canada | 19,704 | 54,168 | N/A | 74,236 | N/A |
| Central America | 32,730 | 69,419 | N/A | 105,120 | N/A |
| Caribbean | 23,496 | 56,543 | N/A | 82,405 | 92,069 |
| Northern South America | 39,973 | 78,357 | N/A | 107,440 | 181,619 |
| Southern South America | 76,913 | 145,091 | 155,069 | N/A | 348,062 |
| Europe | 63,476 | 108,299 | 185,064 | 370,797 (Iceland only) | 357,146 |
| Israel | 53,296 | 108,601 | 211,221 | N/A | 439,267 |
| Japan | 71,185 | 128,609 | 175,160 | N/A | 391,617 |
| South Korea | 96,058 | 120,115 | 173,663 | N/A | 370,198 |
| China | N/A | 455,506 | 382,845 | N/A | 491,995 |
| Australia | 95,005 | 121,659 | 275,297 | N/A | 428,502 |
| New Zealand | 87,362 | 154,217 | N/A | N/A | 425,367 |
| French Polynesia | 59,807 | 75,474 | 138,667 | N/A | 340,905 |
| South Africa | 82,473 | 144,600 | 257,367 | N/A | 468,648 |
From what we've seen, the maximum SkyMiles award pricing is generally 495,000 SkyMiles each way. In some cases, this extraordinarily high rate is even charged for one-way economy awards.
Delta SkyMiles Award Price Updates
We've done our best to track Delta's award pricing updates over the years. Unfortunately, many changes may have gone unnoticed as saver-level award prices were slightly increased.
Below, you can see the significant changes we've caught when they were adjusted. Thankfully, Delta hasn't made any large-scale devaluations in quite some time, instead focusing on making gradual tweaks to partner award pricing.
- October 2016: Delta jacked up the award rates on business class awards to India by 40%
- August 2017: Delta increases prices on partner Premium cabin awards to Europe/Asia booked within 21 days of departure
- March 2018: Delta lowers the cost of partner award fares to North Asia, dropping business-class redemptions from 95K to 85K and dropping economy pricing from 40K to 35K
- April 2018: Delta lowers the cost of partner award fares to Europe, dropping business-class redemptions from 85K to 75K and dropping economy pricing from 35K to 32.5K
- April 2018: Increased Southern South America economy class prices from 30k to 35k. The date that the increase occurred is unknown.
- June 2018: Delta-operated flights to Europe increased from 70k to 82k for one-way bookings in Delta One (business class)
- March 2019: Delta-operated flights to Europe increase to 105K one-way in Delta One. The lowest partner awards remain at 75K, although most are now 86K.
- October 2020: Delta devalues partner awards to Europe and Asia without notice
- February 2021: Delta SkyMiles further devalues partner awards to Europe and Asia
- September 2023: A previous sweet spot for business-class awards included starting in Mexico before flying to Australia or Europe for cheaper pricing, but Delta has removed this.
Best Credit Cards to Earn Delta SkyMiles
Even though they can be somewhat of a challenge to redeem for true value, Delta still makes it incredibly easy to earn SkyMiles. This is due in large part to its expansive co-branded credit card lineup.
You can earn SkyMiles via any of Delta's seven co-branded American Express cards:
- Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card
Given how frustrating the Delta SkyMiles program can be, you might find more value in earning transferable points with your credit card swipes instead of SkyMiles. For example, Membership Rewards points transfer to Delta at a 1:1 ratio. You can transfer points to Delta if you find a Delta flight you want to book. Otherwise, American Express has a long list of other Amex transfer partners where you can maximize your Membership Rewards.
Cards that earn Membership Rewards include:
- The Platinum Card® from American Express
- The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
- American Express® Gold Card
- American Express® Business Gold Card
Related: When Does It Make Sense to Buy Delta SkyMiles?
The TakeOff15 Benefit
In early 2023, Delta added a perk to its American Express co-branded credit card lineup, letting cardholders save 15% on select SkyMiles awards tickets booked through Delta. Depending on the route, this perk could provide decent value, such as on short-haul economy awards and saver business awards — should you find one.
For example, you could snag a flight between Raleigh-Durham (RDU) and Orlando (MCO) for as little as 3,800 SkyMiles plus $6 — if you were a Delta SkyMiles American Express cardholder.
Delta's award price hikes could quickly negate the benefit offered by this perk, so booking an award ticket at or around the minimum saver-level price would provide the most value.
Unfortunately, the Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card doesn't qualify for the benefit.
Delta SkyMiles Partner Award Pricing
Like award flights on its metal, Delta doesn't publish an award chart for partner airlines. The absence of partner award charts is also frustrating, given that partner awards used to be a sweet spot for SkyMiles usage — as we noted when we first drafted an unofficial Delta award chart two short years ago.
When comparing partner award prices to Delta award prices nowadays, you'll likely notice that the fares are similar — a function of dynamic pricing.
Here's an example of a one-way flight between Atlanta (ATL) and Amsterdam (AMS) later this year. For illustrative purposes, we looked at November 13, 2023 — one of the “cheapest” days of the month to fly between the two airports using SkyMiles.
Air France and Delta economy class fares are almost identical — separated by only a couple thousand SkyMiles.
These award prices are (comparatively) extremely high.
When looking at another SkyTeam loyalty program, such as Flying Blue, there's value to be found by flying Delta (or a SkyTeam partner) to Amsterdam on November 13, but not when booked with SkyMiles.
Unfortunately, booking partner flights with Delta isn't the value haven it used to be.
SkyMiles Partner Awards More on Flights Less Than 60 Days Away
Travelers should note that the price of partner awards increases closer to the departure date. For those seeking greater flexibility — and to extract greater value from their SkyMiles — booking awards more than 60 days out is critical.
For example, if you were trying to book a flight on Virgin Atlantic between Los Angeles (LAX) and London (LHR), you'll find greater value in booking for later in the year than next week. A few months apart, here's a price comparison on the same route.
For September 6, 2023:
And for December 6, 2023:
If you plan on booking a partner award flight, you'll want to ensure it's far enough out that you're paying a reasonable amount for the ticket. It could mean the difference between paying 109% more for the same award.
The Bottom Line
Maximizing Delta SkyMiles has become more difficult since the airline eliminated its award chart in 2015. Frequent program devaluations over the past few have complicated matters even more. To alleviate some of the unclarity with Delta's award pricing, we've revamped our unofficial award chart for Delta flights from the United States.
Knowing the minimum and average number of SkyMiles required to book a Delta-operated flight sets a helpful baseline as you book your next award.
Delta's consistent devaluation of the SkyMiles program is also a reminder to consider taking advantage of flexible rewards programs like Chase Ultimate Rewards, American Express Membership Rewards, Citi ThankYou Rewards, and Marriott Bonvoy. Transferable point programs take the stress out of managing expectations with a program such as Delta SkyMiles. Instead, you can move points to partner airlines to book award flights that provide the best value for your points.
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