Delta Gold Card Review: An Affordable Choice for Delta Loyalists

Delta Gold Benefits

The Amex Delta Gold comes with useful perks that can save you money and make your travel experience a little easier.

Welcome Offer and Ongoing Rewards

New cardholders can earn 80,000 Bonus Miles after spending $3,000 on purchases in the first six months of account opening. That’s a nice kick-start to your Delta SkyMiles balance and potentially enough for a couple of round-trip domestic award flights, depending on route and demand.

For regular spending, you’ll earn miles on every eligible purchase, and the card offers a couple of everyday bonus categories that can help you boost rewards earning even further. Cardholders earn:

• 2x miles on purchases made directly with Delta (including airfare, upgrades, seat selection and in-flight food and drinks)
• 2x miles at restaurants worldwide and on takeout and delivery in the U.S.
• 2x miles at U.S. supermarkets
• 1x miles on other eligible purchases

These rewards rates aren’t jaw-dropping, and outside of the bonus categories you’ll only earn 1 mile per dollar.

Free First Checked Bag

With the Delta Gold Card, you’ll get a free first checked bag on Delta flights for yourself and up to eight companions on the same reservation. Delta charges $35 for the first checked bag, so this perk could save you $70 round-trip if you fly alone — and much more if you travel as a family or group.

There’s no requirement to use the card to pay for your ticket to receive the benefit; it’ll activate as long as your Delta SkyMiles number is listed on your reservation. I’ve used the Amex Delta free checked bag several times while traveling with my family, and the savings on a single trip completely wiped out my annual fee cost.

Priority Boarding

Similarly, the card comes with Group 5 priority boarding for you and up to eight companions on the same reservation as long as your SkyMiles number is on the booking. Group 5 boards with Main Cabin Extra and some elite passengers, giving you extra time to find overhead bin space for your bags.

When my kids were little, this was probably my favorite card perk after the free checked bags. Getting to board earlier, with more time to get organized and settled, made a huge difference in everyone’s (well, my) mood as we started our journey.

Flight Discounts

All Delta co-branded credit cards with an annual fee, including the Delta Gold, offer a benefit called TakeOff 15. Cardholders receive a 15% discount on the miles cost of Delta award tickets, which can help you stretch rewards. Note that the discount only applies if the entire itinerary is on Delta or Delta Connection flights; partner award flights aren’t eligible.

In addition, cardholders receive a 20% savings on Delta in-flight purchases in the form of a statement credit when they use their card to pay. Eligible prepurchased meals and in-flight food and drink qualify for the discount; however, in-flight Wi-Fi does not.

Annual Delta Stays Credit

When you book prepaid hotels through Delta Stays with your Delta Gold Card, you can receive up to $100 per year in statement credits, which can help outweigh the annual fee. Delta Stays is a third-party booking platform, similar to Expedia or Orbitz, through which cardholders can earn 2x miles on hotels and vacation rentals.

$200 Delta Flight Credit

If you spend $10,000 or more with your Delta Gold Card in a calendar year, you’ll unlock a $200 Delta flight credit to use in the future. This credit could be as good as cash for frequent Delta flyers, but be aware it expires one year from the date it’s issued, and can only be used toward Delta airfare (not upgrades, fees or other Delta ancillary charges).

Travel and Purchase Protections

The Delta Gold Card comes with built-in travel insurance and protections that can reimburse you if things go awry with a trip or purchase. Cardholders receive:

• Car rental insurance: Use the Delta Gold to pay for your rental and decline the rental agency’s collision damage waiver (CDW) or similar coverage, and you can be covered for damage to or theft of your rental car. Coverage is secondary, which means the plan will only pay for costs not reimbursed by your personal insurance policy, if you have one.
• Baggage insurance plan: When you use your card to pay for travel on a common carrier (such as airlines, trains, ships or buses) and your bags are lost, damaged or stolen, you can be reimbursed up to $1,250 for carry-on baggage and up to $500 for checked baggage. New York state residents have different limits, so be sure to read the terms and conditions.
• Purchase protection: If you paid for an eligible item with your card and it gets damaged or stolen within 90 days of the purchase date, you can be reimbursed up to $1,000 per covered purchase, up to $50,000 per calendar year.
• Extended warranty: Eligible items paid for with your Delta Gold Card can have one extra year added to the original manufacturer’s warranty. This perk only applies to warranties of five years or less on purchases made in the U.S. or its territories.

Delta Gold Drawbacks

Annual Fee

The Delta Gold Card charges a $0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $150. After the first year, you’ll have to decide if the card’s rewards and benefits are worth the cost; for regular Delta flyers who check bags, it could be relatively easy to recoup the annual fee in just a few trips, for example.

But if you don’t often check bags and can’t use the card’s additional benefits, you might consider a more general travel rewards credit card with a lower price tag.

Few Premium Benefits

Delta loyalists who are looking for more upscale perks won’t find them on the Delta Gold. Benefits like earning MQD for spending, companion certificates and airport lounge access are absent from the card, as are features that are common on travel cards, such as a Global Entry or TSA PreCheck application fee credit.

The card’s travel protections are also weak compared to some travel cards with similar annual fees. For example, the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, one of the best credit cards for travel insurance, comes with broad coverage and only charges $95 per year.

Statement Credit Limitations

The ability to earn a $200 Delta flight credit for future trips sounds very appealing, but the spending required to unlock this benefit can be prohibitive for many — $10,000 in a calendar year is no small sum.

Additionally, while the Delta Stays credit adds value, it’s only valid for prepaid hotels booked through the platform. And because these are third-party bookings, you typically won’t earn hotel points and elite status credits, and may not have your hotel elite status recognized during your stay.

Who Is the Amex Delta Gold Best For?

The American Express Delta Gold Card is ideal for those who travel Delta at least a few times a year and want to earn SkyMiles for their spending. Its day-of-travel benefits may be sufficient for more casual Delta flyers, but hard-core loyalists may want to consider a more premium Delta card.

Is It the Right Card for You?

The Delta Gold Card can be a good choice if any of the following apply:

• You fly Delta and often check bags
• Priority boarding privileges are important to you
• You plan to spend $10,000 per year on the card to unlock the annual Delta flight credit
• You’ll use other perks, such as the TakeOff 15 discount and Delta Stays credit
• You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars for a premium credit card

If you don’t think you’ll maximize the card’s benefits but you still want to earn Delta miles from spending, consider opening a card that earns American Express Membership Rewards® points, such as The Platinum Card® from American Express or American Express® Gold Card, both advertising partners. Delta SkyMiles is an Amex transfer partner, which means you can convert points earned from these cards into Delta miles at a 1:1 ratio.

Alternatives To Consider

If the Amex Delta Gold doesn’t quite feel like the right fit, consider these other Delta credit cards instead:

• Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card (an advertising partner): With a $350 annual fee, the Delta Platinum Card is a level up from the Delta Gold. Along with a free first checked bag and priority boarding on Delta flights, it offers an annual companion certificate after each card anniversary and the ability to earn MQD toward elite status. It also comes with more statement credits and slightly better travel protections.
• Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (an advertising partner): The Delta Reserve charges $650 per year, but that can be well worth it for the most loyal Delta flyers. Cardholders receive 15 complimentary visits per year to Delta Sky Club airport lounges when flying Delta, along with a companion certificate, MQD earning, higher-value from statement credits and upgraded travel protections.