How long does delta status last

First, like American, United reduced its qualification requirements across the board. United also began the year by giving all current United elites a deposit of Premier Qualifying Points. And then the quarterly promotions began kicking in. Then, with a promotion that ended this week, members could earn up to 3, bonus PQPs , based on their status level and completed trips.

I would like to subscribe to The Points Guy newsletters and special email promotions. The Points Guy will not sell your email. Please enter a valid email address Please check mailing preferences. Sign-up Successful! Welcome to The Points Guy! Ethan Steinberg Ethan's been a frequent flier for as long as he can remember, from studying abroad in Paris to moving to Shanghai after graduating college where he now serves as TPG's eyes and ears for all things travel in the Asia-Pacific region.

LifeMiles improves Canadian award prices, makes awards more valuable. Carnival Cruise Line names new ship, reveals Texas homeport. A dream trip to the Stanley Cup made possible using points and miles. Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.

Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery and at U. Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases. Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. Companions traveling with you are also eligible for complimentary upgrades, though it gets a bit convoluted.

Companions must have a SkyMiles membership to be eligible for upgrades. A companion booked on the same reservation as you will get upgraded at the highest tier of the two. Finally, basic economy E fares are not eligible for any complimentary upgrades, so think twice before booking these tickets for long-haul flights.

Delta offers a unique choose-your-own benefit option for both Platinum and Diamond Medallion members. Package of four regional upgrade certificates.

Gift of Silver Medallion status to a friend. Individual membership to Delta Sky Clubs unlimited access for self; guests pay a fee. Executive membership to Delta Sky Clubs unlimited access for self and two guests — this option counts as two choices.

Package of as many as eight upgrade certificates eight regional, four global, or two global and four regional. Gift of Gold Medallion status to a friend. All Medallion holders get one extra free piece of luggage on partner flights.

Most partners offer their own combination of benefits to these two groups. The value of Delta Medallion status depends on a host of personal factors, including how much you actually use the status and how much you value perks like first-class upgrades.

To determine the estimates below, we performed a comprehensive analysis of those aspects of airline elite status which offer the most tangible benefits. As you can see, the higher elite levels Platinum and Diamond not only offer more overall value, but a better elite earning rate. In other words, the higher levels offer more bang for your airfare buck. Delta offers several helpful ways to give you a leg up on earning Medallion status or help you get it back after lapsing.

To qualify you must:. Not have received a status match from Delta in the past three years. Have elite status from another qualifying airline. Be able to prove that you have this status and that you earned it from flying not through another status match.

In fact, you can extend your Medallion status through the entire following year if you begin your status match after July 1. This helpful program is essentially parental leave for airline elite status. That is, if you were a Medallion status member who had a major life event that caused you to lose your status, Delta will let you reclaim your previous status in a similar way to the matching program above. Delta also has partnerships with both hotel and car rental companies where you can transfer points into Delta SkyMiles at varying transfer rates.

One of interest is Marriott. For every 60, Bonvoy points transfer, a bonus 5, SkyMiles will be added. Earning SkyMiles extends well beyond what has been covered. Delta carries partnerships with Lyft, Airbnb and a slew of hotel and car rental companies which include some names such as Marriott, Hertz, National and more. Delta also has its own shopping portal. By using its shopping portal, users can earn SkyMiles while shopping online.

While you can use any form of payment, pairing it with a SkyMiles-earning credit card will boost your balance even more. Finally, you can purchase SkyMiles directly from Delta. Generally, SkyMiles are worth around 1. Purchasing directly from Delta costs 3. Delta utilizes a dynamic pricing for its award redemption flights, meaning that award redemption prices are somewhat tied to cash prices.

Delta uses factors such as the equivalent cash price, demand, and location being traveled to and from to formulate a mileage cost for a trip. That said, there are no blackout dates, so as long as there is an operating flight for that day with seats available, it can be booked with SkyMiles.

While there is no official award chart, with enough research, you can start to see a baseline in what a flight may cost. For example, searching New York to Paris reveals that the minimum amount of SkyMiles needed for an award flight in economy could be 40, SkyMiles plus taxes and fees roundtrip in coach.

For this specific search, prices are as high as 68, SkyMiles, though can go for more on peak dates. Being as flexible as much as you can with award booking dates can save you thousands of SkyMiles. One thing that makes SkyMiles versatile is the ability to book more than just Delta-operated flights.

If there is saver-level available award space on a SkyTeam Alliance member or a non-alliance partner airline, it can be booked using SkyMiles. Most award space can be viewed online, but for some, calling Delta to book the flight may be required. In the search results on a specific day, you can see which airline operates the route on award space. With these, Delta offers a discounted rate when using your SkyMiles to pay for the trip. For example, in late February , Delta was offering trips as low as 5, SkyMiles in basic economy and 20, in first class on specific routes.

A sample routing that was offered during this deal was Seattle to Cancun, which is quite the distance for so few miles. These deals come up without much notice, so act fast if it is a deal you can leverage. SkyMiles can be used for more than just award flights.