Delta Medallion status: What it is and how to earn it
If you're a regular traveler, holding elite status with a major airline like Delta Air Lines can make your journeys more comfortable and rewarding.
However, deciding which airline loyalty program makes the most sense for you can be difficult, given the variations between the carriers regarding complimentary upgrades, bonus points or miles, and other valuable perks.
Also, is it even worth pursuing elite status at all?
This guide will dive into one of the major legacy programs and explain how its status tiers work, how to earn them through both travel and non-travel expenses, and ultimately if striving for elite status in it is even worth the effort.
Here is everything you need to know about elite status in the Delta SkyMiles program.
Earning Medallion status in 2024
Before getting into the details, it's important to highlight the recent major news related to Delta status.
Earlier this fall, Delta announced that it was making it significantly harder to earn Medallion status in 2024. Rather than use a combination of spending and flying, your qualification progress next year will be entirely based on how many Medallion Qualification Dollars you earn. Gone are Medallion Qualification Miles and Medallion Qualification Segments.
The public reaction was so immediately negative that Delta has softened some of the changes (for 2024, at least), though it will still be harder to earn Medallion status in 2024 than it was in 2023.
What is Delta Medallion status?
Delta gives the most loyal of its more than 100 million SkyMiles members elite status each year, rewarding them with various benefits to make their travel more comfortable and easier.
There are four published tiers of elite status:
- Silver Medallion
- Gold Medallion
- Platinum Medallion
- Diamond Medallion
Delta also has an invite-only status tier called Delta 360, though the exact qualification criteria for it are not public. However, you can receive complimentary annual Delta 360 status by reaching 5 million lifetime miles flown.
Related: Your guide to Delta Air Lines lifetime elite status
In 2023, Medallion status is earned through a combination of two metrics:
- How far SkyMiles members fly on Delta or its partner airlines each calendar year (MQMs) or how many individual flights they take (MQSs)
- How much SkyMiles members spend each calendar year (MQDs)
Through Dec. 31, 2023, cardmembers of select Delta American Express cards (discussed below) are exempt from the MQD requirements when they reach certain spending thresholds on those cards.
However, starting Jan. 1, 2024, this perk will disappear, as will MQMs and MQSs. Medallion status will only be measured by MQDs.
You earn the status as soon as you reach the above requirements and hold it for that calendar year through January after the end of the following calendar year. So, if you reach the status requirements in June 2024, you will hold the status through Jan. 31, 2026.
Status levels reset every year in January, so you must keep earning the requirements every year to maintain your status.
How to qualify for Delta Medallion status
Until Dec 31. 2023, SkyMiles status is earned as follows:
- Silver Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 25,000 MQMs or 30 MQSs and 3,000 MQDs
- Gold Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 50,000 MQMs or 60 MQSs and 8,000 MQDs
- Platinum Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 75,000 MQMs or 100 MQSs and 12,000 MQDs
- Diamond Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 125,000 MQMs or 140 MQSs and 20,000 MQDs
In order to waive the MQD requirements for Silver Medallion, Gold Medallion and Platinum Medallion status, travelers could spend $25,000 in the 2023 calendar year on the following Delta cards:
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card
However, earning a waiver for the Diamond Medallion MQD requirements means spending a whopping $250,000 in a calendar year.
Starting Jan. 1, 2024, the waiver will no longer be in effect. Instead, Delta will only use MQDs as criteria for qualification — and the thresholds are increasing significantly from the 2023 levels.
- Silver Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 5,000 MQDs
- Gold Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 10,000 MQDs
- Platinum Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 15,000 MQDs
- Diamond Medallion: SkyMiles members who have earned 28,000 MQDs
Read more: Is Delta Air Lines status worth it? What this disappointed soon-to-be-Diamond Medallion thinks
Delta Medallion status levels and benefits
Here are some key benefits of each of Delta's status tiers.
SkyMiles Silver Medallion
This is the entry tier in Delta's program, and you'll receive benefits like:
- Complimentary first-class upgrades on domestic and short-haul international flights from 24 hours before departure
- Upgrades to Comfort+ within 24 hours of departure
- Priority boarding and check-in
- One complimentary checked bag
- 7 miles per dollar spent
SkyMiles Gold Medallion
Delta's mid-tier status includes some higher priority and enhanced perks, including:
- Complimentary first-class upgrades on domestic and short-haul international flights from three days before departure
- Upgrades to Comfort+ within three days of departure
- Waived same-day confirmed changes
- Two complimentary checked bags
- 8 miles per dollar spent
SkyMiles Platinum Medallion
In addition to the previously mentioned Silver Medallion and Gold Medallion perks, you'll get the following:
- Complimentary first-class upgrades on domestic flights and short-haul international flights from five days before departure
- Upgrades to Comfort+ at the time of booking
- Three complimentary checked bags
- Your pick of a Choice Benefit
- 9 miles per dollar spent
SkyMiles Diamond Medallion
You'll get everything detailed above, plus some even better perks (discussed in more detail below):
- Three additional Choice Benefit options
- Complimentary Clear membership
- Higher upgrade priority
- 11 miles per dollar spent
Can a credit card help earn Delta status?
Until Jan. 1, 2024, SkyMiles members can earn bonus MQMs on the following cards:
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card: Earn 15,000 MQMs for every $30,000 you spend on the card (up to a total of 60,000 MQMs after spending $120,000) through Dec. 31, 2023.
- Delta SkyMiles® Reserve Business American Express Card: Earn 15,000 MQMs for every $30,000 you spend on the card (up to a total of 60,000 MQMs after spending $120,000) through Dec. 31, 2023.
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card: Earn 10,000 MQMs when you spend $25,000 on the card in a calendar year, and earn another 10,000 MQMs when you spend $50,000 in a calendar year through Dec. 31, 2023.
- Delta SkyMiles® Platinum Business American Express Card: Earn 10,000 MQMs when you spend $25,000 on the card in a calendar year, and earn another 10,000 MQMs when you spend $50,000 in a calendar year through Dec. 31, 2023.
As mentioned earlier, the above cardholders will be exempt from the MQD requirements for Silver Medallion, Gold Medallion and Platinum Medallion status when they spend $25,000 on the card in a calendar year — though you must spend $250,000 to enjoy the MQD waiver for Diamond Medallion status.
Both the MQD waiver and the bonus MQMs will no longer be available starting Jan. 1, 2024. Instead, to make it easier to earn elite status in 2024, Delta will give eligible frequent flyers who are also cobranded credit card holders a head start on the 2024 MQD metrics, with a boost of 2,500 MQDs toward status qualification at the start of the 2024 year.
The MQD head start is awarded per card, so you'll enjoy more than one 2,500 MQD boost if you have multiple primary eligible cards. Additionally, you'll be able to enjoy bonus MQDs based on everyday spending on these cards.
Specifically, the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Amex and the Delta SkyMiles Reserve Business Amex will accrue 1 MQD for every $10 spent. Meanwhile, both the Delta SkyMiles Platinum Amex and the Delta SkyMiles Platinum Business Amex will accrue 1 MQD for every $20 spent.
There is no limit to how many MQDs you can earn from credit card spending, so you could potentially earn elite status just from credit card spending. However, that's a ton of money to spend, especially when there are better options for your everyday purchases.
It's also a major step back from the current requirements. Depending on which card you use, that $25,000 in spend that previously granted an MQD waiver will only turn into either 1,250 or 2,500 MQDs in 2024 — not even enough to put you halfway to entry-level Silver Medallion status. Even if you're a big spender who used to hit the $250,000 MQD waiver, that spending will now translate into 12,500 or 25,000 MQDs.
Is Delta Medallion status worth it?
If you earned Delta elite status in 2023, it's valid through Jan. 31, 2025. If you qualify in 2024, your status will last until Jan. 31, 2026.
It's critical to think about how much you'll be traveling in the future to decide if Medallion status is worth it. If you push hard to reach Diamond Medallion, for example, the valuable perks outlined above apply only when traveling. With the higher MDQ requirements in 2024, you would need to spend a significant amount of money with the airline or on a cobranded credit card to earn this top-tier status, so you must also ensure you are traveling enough to enjoy it.
That said, many of you may wind up within striking distance of the next tier, so consider whether the benefits are worth pushing for. There's no sense in going out of your way for perks that don't matter to you. Pursuing elite status with an airline you can't feasibly fly regularly is a fool's errand. Consider Delta's service from your home airport(s) and how easy it is to reach your desired destination.
This hobby has many trade-offs, and one of the most common is deciding whether to use your preferred airline or hotel chain when it's not the most convenient or cheapest. Would you book a one-stop Delta flight if Southwest had a cheaper nonstop option? If the answer is no, it may not be worth going out of your way to earn Delta elite status (or any elite status, for that matter).
The final consideration involves travel rewards credit cards. Many airline cobranded cards offer perks that mirror what you'd enjoy as an elite member. For example, the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card includes a free checked bag, priority boarding and a 20% inflight discount. The card has an introductory annual fee of $0 for the first year, then $99 (see rates and fees).
Meanwhile, the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card provides complimentary Sky Club access when flying Delta along with complimentary upgrades (behind all Medallion members) and an annual companion certificate (valid for round-trip domestic flights in economy, Comfort+ or first class). If you can pay a flat annual fee for one of these cards and gain access to perks that matter to you without going out of your way to earn elite status, that may be a good plan.
Note: Effective Feb. 1, 2025, Reserve cardmembers will receive 15 visits per year to the Delta Sky Club; to earn an unlimited number of visits each year starting on Feb. 1, 2025, the total eligible purchases on the card must equal $75,000 or more between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2024, and each calendar year thereafter.
Bottom line
Earning airline elite status carries an array of perks that can make your entire travel experience more comfortable.
However, not all levels with all carriers are created equally, so analyzing which elite status program best aligns with your typical travel patterns and what you value most as a traveler is critical. Given the recent negative SkyMiles changes, it is harder than ever to earn elite status unless you are spending considerable amounts of money, either with the airline, on cobranded credit cards or a combination of the two.
If you're considering switching your loyalty in 2024, we hope this detailed look at Delta's elite status program has helped your decision.
For rates and fees of the Delta Gold Card, click here.