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Some of the world's largest airlines have abundant partners to make their operations work and add value and connectivity for their most frequent flyers. Delta Air Lines is no different.
From partner airlines to credit card partners — and more — Delta Air Lines has an overwhelming number of partners. Here's all you need to know about these partners.
Delta Airline Partners
Delta's roster of airline partners is massive, which is a huge value-add for those who need to travel worldwide and want to earn SkyMiles in the process.
Related: The Ultimate Guide to Delta SkyMiles
Delta SkyTeam Alliance partners
Delta belongs to the SkyTeam alliance, currently home to 19 airlines — excluding Delta. The number of member airlines makes SkyTeam the second-largest airline alliance. Only Star Alliance is larger, with 26 member airlines, while Oneworld's 14 members make it smaller. No matter where you need to go in the world, you can likely get there on one of these SkyTeam airlines:
- Aeroflot (temporarily suspended)
- Aerolíneas Argentinas
- Aeromexico
- Air Europa
- Air France
- China Airlines
- China Eastern
- Czech Airlines
- Garuda Indonesia
- ITA Airways
- Kenya Airways
- KLM
- Korean Air
- Middle East Airlines
- Saudia Airlines
- Tarom
- Vietnam Airlines
- Virgin Atlantic
- Xiamen Airlines
Delta non-SkyTeam partners
Delta also partners with a handful of airlines that don't belong to the SkyTeam alliance:
- AirBaltic
- Cape Air
- China Southern Airlines
- El Al Israel Airlines
- Hawaiian Airlines
- LATAM
- WestJet
Earning Delta SkyMiles With Partner Airlines
One of the most straightforward ways to earn Delta SkyMiles is to fly on Delta or a partner airline. And while it would be easy if Delta outlined earning rates for flights on its SkyTeam and non-SkyTeam partners, Delta doesn't operate that way. Instead, Delta divides its roster of partner airlines into two other groups: core and non-core.
You'll earn SkyMiles at better rates on Delta's core airline partners than on non-core partner flights. Irrespective of their core or non-core designation, most of Delta's partners award SkyMiles based on the distance flown, not the price paid for the ticket.
It's also worth noting that not every distance-based chart is identical. What you'll earn on Aeromexico flights differs from what you'll earn on LATAM, for example. Consulting the chart for the specific partner you're flying is a great way to avoid any unnecessary surprises when you see the mileage credit to your SkyMiles account.
But for flights on partner carriers that don't use distance-based charts, expect to earn SkyMiles at the rate you do on Delta-operated flights.
Earning SkyMiles on flights with Delta's core global airline partners
As a general rule, you'll enjoy the best SkyMiles earning rates on flights operated by Delta's seven core partners. As mentioned, each airline offers marginally different earning rates, depending on your flight class. These core partners are:
- Aeromexico
- Air France
- China Eastern
- KLM
- Korean Air
- LATAM
- Virgin Atlantic
Earning SkyMiles on flights with Delta's non-core global airline partners
A more extensive list, Delta has a substantial number of non-core partner airlines. Generally, the earning rates for flights operated by non-core partners are subpar compared to core partner-operated flights.
Some airlines utilize distance-based charts, while others use Delta's standard earning structure. Thankfully, Delta clearly displays the rates at which you'll earn SkyMiles on each airline on its website.
- AirBaltic
- El Al Israel Airlines
- Aerolíneas Argentinas
- Air Europa
- Cape Air
- China Airlines
- China Southern Airlines
- Czech Airlines
- Garuda Indonesia
- Hawaiian Airlines
- ITA Airways
- Kenya Airways
- Middle East Airlines
- Saudia Airlines
- TAROM
- Vietnam Airlines
- WestJet
- Xiamen Air
Earning Delta SkyMiles Through Credit Card and Point Transfer Partners
Outside of flying on Delta or a partner airline, you can earn SkyMiles by swiping a Delta credit card, converting transferable points to SkyMiles, or swapping your hotel points for SkyMiles.
Co-branded American Express credit cards
Delta has a cozy relationship with American Express, as evidenced by seven co-branded credit card offerings. For consumers and small businesses, a wide variety of credit card offerings with arrays of perks means there's something for everyone — from the most casual Delta flyer to the absolute road warrior.
You can earn Delta SkyMiles on your daily spending across four personal credit cards:
Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 10,000 bonus miles after you spend $1,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$0Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreGood, Excellent
- 2X miles per dollar spent on purchases made directly with Delta
- 2X miles per dollar at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.
- 1 mile on every eligible dollar spent on purchases
Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 65,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 2X miles per dollar spent on purchases made directly with Delta
- 2X miles per dollar spent at U.S. supermarkets
- 2X miles per dollar at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.
- 1X miles on all other eligible purchases
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 85,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $4,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$350Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 3X miles per dollar spent on purchases made directly with Delta
- 3X miles per dollar at hotels
- 2X miles per dollar at U.S. supermarkets
- 2X Miles per dollar at restaurants worldwide, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.
- 1 mile on every eligible dollar spent on purchases.
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 95,000 Bonus Miles after you spend $6,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$650Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 3X miles per dollar spent on purchases made directly with Delta
- 1X miles on every eligible dollar spent on purchases.
Or, if you run a small business, you have three additional options for Delta credit cards that reward your business purchases with Delta SkyMiles:
Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 75,000 Bonus Miles after spending $6,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 2X miles per dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta
- 2X miles per dollar on eligible U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (annual cap of $50,000 in eligible purchases)
- 2X miles per dollar on eligible U.S. shipping purchases (annual cap of $50,000 in eligible purchases)
- 2X miles per dollar on eligible dining purchases
- 1X miles per dollar on all other eligible purchases
Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 95,000 Bonus Miles after spending $8,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$350Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 3X miles per dollar spent on eligible purchases made directly with Delta
- 3X miles per dollar spent on eligible purchases with hotels
- 1.5x miles on eligible purchases over $5,000 (up to 50,000 bonus miles annually)
- 1.5X miles on eligible transit and U.S. shipping purchases*
- 1X miles per dollar on all other eligible purchases.
*If your purchase qualifies for a category that has a higher mileage accelerator, only the higher accelerator will apply.
Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card
Welcome OfferEarn 110,000 Bonus Miles after spending $12,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership. Offer ends 7/17.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$650Rates & Fees
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- 3X miles per dollar spent on purchases made directly with Delta
- 1.5X miles per dollar on eligible transit, U.S. shipping, and U.S. office supply store purchases, plus all eligible purchases after spending $150K per calendar year
- 1 mile on every dollar spent on all other eligible purchases.
Related: How To Choose the Right Delta Credit Card for You
Delta transfer partners
Delta's list of transfer partners isn't as extensive as you'll find with other airlines. The only transferable points you can convert to Delta SkyMiles are American Express Membership Rewards and Diners Club Rewards points.
From
To
Transfer Ratio
Min.Transfer
Average Time
Amex (Membership Rewards)
United States
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
1,000:1,000
-
Immediate
Diners Club (Club Rewards)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
5,400:5,000
-
Unknown
Comparatively, American Express Membership Rewards are the easier to earn than Diners Club Rewards points. Amex offers a lengthy list of consumer and small business credit card products that earn those points. Even better, you can transfer your points to Delta at a 1:1 ratio.
On the consumer side, you could use cards like these to earn Membership Rewards and then transfer those to Delta:
Amex EveryDay® Credit Card
Welcome OfferEarn 10,000 Membership Rewards® points after you use your new Card to make $2,000 in purchases in your first 6 months.
Annual Fee$0
Credit ScoreGood, Excellent
- 2x points at US supermarkets, on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1x)
- 1x points on other purchases
- Use your Card 20 or more times on purchases in a billing period and earn 20% more points on those purchases less returns and credits.
American Express® Gold Card
Welcome OfferEarn 60,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $6,000 on eligible purchases with your new Card within the first 6 months of Card Membership.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$250Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreGood, Excellent
- 4X Membership Rewards® Points at restaurants, plus takeout and delivery in the U.S.
- 4X Membership Rewards® points at U.S. supermarkets (on up to $25,000 per year in purchases, then 1X)
- 3X Membership Rewards® points on flights booked directly with airlines or on amextravel.com
- 1X on other eligible purchases
- Earn up to a total of $10 in statement credits monthly when you pay with the Gold Card at Grubhub, The Cheesecake Factory, Goldbelly, Wine.com, Milk Bar and select Shake Shack locations. This can be an annual savings of up to $120. Enrollment required.
The Platinum Card® from American Express
Welcome OfferEarn 80,000 Membership Rewards® Points after you spend $8,000 on eligible purchases on your new Card in your first 6 months of Card Membership.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$695Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- Earn 5X points for flights booked directly with airlines or with American Express Travel (up to $500,000 in purchases per calendar year).
- Earn 5X points on prepaid hotels booked with American Express Travel.
And for those who run small businesses, you have a few more options that can handsomely reward your business spending with transferable points:
American Express® Business Gold Card
Welcome OfferEarn 70,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $10,000 on eligible purchases with the Business Gold Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$375Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
Get 4X Membership Rewards® points on the 2 categories where your business spent the most each billing cycle from the list below:
- U.S. purchases for advertising in select media (online, TV, radio)
- U.S. purchases made from electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers
- U.S. purchases at gas stations
- U.S. purchases at restaurants, including takeout and delivery
- Transit purchases including trains, taxicabs, rideshare services, ferries, tolls, parking, buses, and subways
- Monthly wireless telephone service charges made directly from a wireless telephone service provider in the U.S.
*4X points applies to the first $150,000 in combined purchases from these 2 categories each calendar year; then earn 1 point per dollar.
The Business Platinum Card® from American Express
Welcome OfferEarn 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within the first 3 months of Card Membership.
Apply Now
Annual Fee$695Rates & Fees
(Terms apply)
Credit ScoreExcellent, Good
- Earn 5X Membership Rewards® points on flights and prepaid hotels on amextravel.com.
- Earn 1.5X Membership Rewards® points on each eligible purchase of $5,000 or more.
- Earn 1.5X Membership Rewards® points on each eligible purchase with U.S. construction material and hardware suppliers.
- Earn 1.5X Membership Rewards® points on each eligible purchase with U.S. electronic goods retailers and software & cloud system providers.
- Earn 1.5X Membership Rewards® points on each eligible purchase with U.S. shipping providers.
- 1.5X earning rates are subject to a cap of $2 million in purchases per calendar year.
The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express
Welcome Offer:Earn 15,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $3,000 in eligible purchases on the Card within your first 3 months of Card Membership.
Apply Now
Annual FeeNo annual feeRates & Fees
(Terms Apply)
Credit ScoreGood, Excellent
- Earn 2X Membership Rewards® points on everyday business purchases such as office supplies or client dinners. 2X applies to the first $50,000 in purchases per year, 1 point per dollar thereafter.
Related: All of the Cards That Earn American Express Membership Rewards Points
Delta hotel partners
While a poor use of points, you can convert various hotel points to Delta SkyMiles. The subpar transfer ratios make this one of the lowest-return uses of your hotel points. You'll get more mileage out of your hotel points in virtually every instance by booking award stays.
From
To
Transfer Ratio
Min.Transfer
Average Time
Marriott Bonvoy
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
3:1
3,000
1 day - 2 days
Accor Group (ALL - Accor Live Limitless)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
4,000:2,000
-
Unknown
Hilton (Honors)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
10,000:1,000
-
Unknown
Hyatt (World of Hyatt)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
1,250:500
Bonus for transferring 50,000+ points
5,000
Unknown
IHG Hotels & Resorts (One Rewards)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
10,000:2,000
-
Unknown
Shangri-La (Circle)
➔
➔
Delta Air Lines (SkyMiles)
500:500
1,000
Unknown
Redeeming Delta SkyMiles With Partner Airlines
In recent years, Delta has steadily devalued its SkyMiles program, which has resulted in exponentially higher award fares — especially for Delta-operated flights.
While not wholly immune to higher pricing, partner airlines have partially weathered the onslaught of higher pricing and continue to be a go-to use for SkyMiles. Let's take a look at two of the best-value redemption options on partner airlines.
Related: The Unofficial Delta SkyMiles Award Chart for Flights from the U.S.
Flights originating in non-U.S. countries
Starting your journey outside the U.S. is a creative way to extract fantastic value from your Delta SkyMiles. Here are a few examples of partner airline flights to showcase this stellar pricing.
For an almost 14-hour flight between Ho Chi Minh City (SGN) and London (LHR), you'll redeem just 80,000 SkyMiles for a one-way business class ticket.
Or, if you want to originate from Tokyo-Narita (NRT) and visit Paris (CDG), you can do so for an identical 80,000 Delta SkyMiles in Air France business class.
And by now, you probably get the gist of it, but here's one more prime example. You can fly from São Paulo (GRU) to Rome (FCO) in ITA Airways business class for 105,000 SkyMiles. Epic.
Long-haul flights to Asia
On a typical day, long-haul flights to Asia from the United States and Mexico can cost upwards of 360,000 SkyMiles. Flying a partner airline, such as Aeromexico, can substantially trim those high costs.
For example, a one-way business-class itinerary between Mexico City (MEX) and Tokyo-Narita (NRT) prices at 115,000 SkyMiles — a steal when compared to Delta's rates.
Final Thoughts
Delta Air Lines has a vast number of partners — and they include more than just other airlines. Part of what makes this deep bench of partners valuable is that there's no shortage of ways to earn and redeem your Delta SkyMiles.
From credit cards to crediting flights, you should take advantage of Delta's partner network to continuously grow your SkyMiles balance.
For rates and fees of the cards mentioned in this post, please visit the following links: Delta SkyMiles® Blue American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Gold Business American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card (Rates & Fees), Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card (Rates & Fees), American Express® Gold Card (Rates & Fees), The Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees), American Express® Business Gold Card (Rates & Fees), The Business Platinum Card® from American Express (Rates & Fees), and The Blue Business® Plus Credit Card from American Express (Rates & Fees)
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