Incomes airline elite standing can convey quite a lot of advantages for frequent vacationers — and Delta Air Traces Medallion standing is not any exception. Nonetheless, final fall, the provider introduced main modifications to the way you earn elite standing within the SkyMiles program, and people modifications are actually dwell.
Briefly, there’s only a single metric for qualification now: Medallion Qualification {Dollars}. And in making this transformation, Delta has additionally overhauled how bank cards might help in your pursuit of standing.
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This is how one can spend your approach to Delta Medallion standing in 2024 with out even setting foot on a airplane.
Delta Medallion standing necessities
As famous beforehand, you now qualify for Delta standing primarily based solely on MQDs (gone are Medallion Qualification Miles and Medallion Qualification Segments). Delta’s unique announcement featured excessive thresholds, although these have been softened a bit for 2024 in response to buyer backlash.
Listed below are the present necessities to earn Delta Medallion standing in 2024:
- Silver Medallion: 5,000 MQDs
- Gold Medallion: 10,000 MQDs
- Platinum Medallion: 15,000 MQDs
- Diamond Medallion: 28,000 MQDs
On most Delta-marketed tickets, you will earn 1 MQD per greenback spent (minus the taxes), although you’ll not earn on primary economic system fares. You may additionally earn greater than 1 MQD per greenback on partner-issued tickets credited to Delta SkyMiles. Nonetheless, these incomes charges have been largely minimize as of Jan. 1. Make sure to examine Delta’s web site to learn the way many MQDs you’d earn when flying a partner-marketed flight.
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Earn Medallion standing with bank cards
In earlier years, choose Delta bank cards allowed you to earn Medallion Qualification Miles primarily based on spending. Now that MQMs have been retired, the provider has overhauled methods to use these playing cards to speed up your progress towards standing.
Briefly, Delta now lets you earn MQDs throughout 4 of its cobranded playing cards with American Categorical. The precise particulars differ from card to card, however there are two common methods to make use of these playing cards to speed up your progress to Medallion standing.
MQD Headstart
In early February, Delta applied a brand new perk referred to as MQD Headstart for the next playing cards:
For every of those playing cards in your pockets, you will now obtain a one-time deposit of two,500 MQDs originally of every qualification 12 months. This places you midway to Silver Medallion standing — although if in case you have two playing cards, you will robotically hit Silver Medallion earlier than you even set foot on a Delta airplane.
As well as, vacationers with the Delta Reserve card previous to Feb. 1 acquired an additional 1,000 MQDs this 12 months. I presently maintain that card, and I acquired an e-mail Feb. 1 with the topic “Updates To Your Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Card” and the next particulars:
This implies current Reserve cardholders acquired a complete of three,500 MQDs in 2024 — although this can drop again to 2,500 MQDs beginning in 2025.
Nonetheless, the flexibility to earn standing on these playing cards does not finish there.
New standing boosts
As talked about beforehand, Delta Platinum and Reserve cardholders might beforehand earn bonus MQMs primarily based on spending. That perk ended as of Jan. 1. As an alternative, now you can earn MQDs primarily based on spending:
- Delta Platinum and Delta Platinum Enterprise playing cards: Earn 1 MQD for each $20 spent.
- Delta Reserve and Delta Reserve Enterprise playing cards: Earn 1 MQD for each $10 spent.
The phrases of this perk point out that it will possibly take eight to 12 weeks for the MQDs to hit your account. Nonetheless, I’ve discovered that it has been a lot sooner, as my first purchases of 2024 (each on Feb. 5) have been posted to my SkyMiles account simply two days later.
These standing boosts (coupled with the MQD Headstart) imply which you could successfully spend your approach to standing annually since there isn’t any restrict to the MQDs you’ll be able to earn annually on these 4 playing cards.
For instance, as an instance you’ve a private Delta Reserve card. Yearly, you will obtain 2,500 MQDs. You possibly can then earn 1 MQD for each $10 you spend on the cardboard. This implies you’ll be able to unlock Medallion standing with the next spending thresholds:
- $25,000: Silver Medallion (2,500 MQDs from spending; 2,500 from the top begin)
- $75,000: Gold Medallion (7,500 MQDs from spending; 2,500 from the top begin)
- $125,000: Platinum Medallion (12,500 MQDs from spending; 2,500 from the top begin)
- $255,000: Diamond Medallion (25,500 MQDs from spending; 2,500 from the top begin)
Now, there isn’t any debating that each one of those numbers characterize numerous spending. On the low finish, it is nonetheless greater than $2,000 monthly, whereas reaching Diamond standing requires greater than $21,000 in month-to-month spending! As well as, these Delta playing cards supply comparatively poor incomes charges on most purchases. In terms of incomes precious rewards, you’d possible be higher off with a prime bank card for on a regular basis spending.
Nonetheless, nearly all of Delta cardholders possible fly with the airline at the very least considerably steadily. In that context, spending in your Delta card can shut the hole to the next tier of standing.
Must you get a Delta bank card to spend your approach to standing?
For those who’re not presently a cardholder, the flexibility to earn standing with spending may very well be a robust incentive to get one.
For instance, as an instance you spend $7,000 per 12 months on Delta flights, with a mix of enterprise and leisure journey. And not using a Delta card, you are taking a look at Silver Medallion standing since $7,000 in spending interprets to 7,000 MQDs. Nonetheless, should you utilized for the Delta Reserve card, you’d get a one-time enhance of two,500 MQDs, leaving you simply 500 MQDs wanting Gold Medallion standing. You possibly can earn these MQDs with simply $5,000 in spending on the cardboard because you’re incomes 1 MQD for each $10 spent.
As well as, now is a good time to think about one in every of these playing cards, as they launched limited-time, elevated welcome provides (to coincide with an overhaul of their advantages):
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Extra methods to earn Delta standing shortly
Past getting (and utilizing) these 4 Delta playing cards as a shortcut to Medallion standing, there are just a few different methods to earn MQDs exterior of flying.
Make the most of a standing problem
In early 2024, Delta launched a brand new standing problem for elite vacationers with different airways. If you have not participated in a Delta problem within the final three years and earned standing with one other provider final 12 months, you might be eligible for complimentary Medallion standing (as much as Platinum) for 3 months. Then, should you accrue a set variety of MQDs throughout that three-month window, your standing can be prolonged by means of Jan. 31, 2026.
Earn on award journey
While you guide Delta (or accomplice) flights utilizing SkyMiles, you will earn 1 MQD for each 100 SkyMiles you redeem. This implies a 20,000-mile award ticket will internet you 200 MQDs.
Keep in mind that you additionally get a 15% low cost on Delta-operated award flights as a Delta cardholder.
Earn with Delta Holidays
Final 12 months, the Delta Holidays platform was overhauled, and also you now earn 1 MQD for each $1 spent throughout the complete bundle (excluding taxes and charges). You additionally earn redeemable miles when reserving this fashion.
Restricted-time MQD provides
Lastly, Delta will sometimes supply limited-time strategies to earn MQDs for choose actions. For instance, by means of Feb. 29, you’ll be able to earn 1 MQD for each greenback spent on lodge stays and automotive leases booked by means of Delta Stays (with a checkout date on or earlier than Could 31).
Simply remember that it is a third-party reserving web site, which signifies that you would not be eligible to earn lodge factors or make the most of elite advantages by reserving a property that is a part of a significant lodge loyalty program.
Backside line
There are many methods to earn Medallion standing with out boarding a airplane. Via the airline’s cobranded bank cards, you’ll be able to spend your approach to a number of elite standing tiers.
Whereas most vacationers will possible mix the above bank cards with some precise flying, it is good to know that you need to use a number of Delta American Categorical playing cards to spice up your Medallion qualification prospects.
