Delta flights Earning 6x the Miles?

Delta Flights earn more miles?

While the title may seem misleading, the information really isn’t – you can earn 6x the miles on every Delta flight, and I’ve really never seen this discussed before, so I thought I’d mention this here.

To clarify, this post will reference Delta mileage earning rates after January 1, 2015.

First off, as you’re probably familiar, you earn at least 1 mile per dollar spent on Delta eligible flights. Depending on your medallion status, you’ll earn ever more than that. But, even as a non-medallion, it’s still possible to guarantee yourself 2x the miles on every Delta flight. If you’re a Medallion, or you have the Delta co-branded American Express credit card, you’ll earn even more.

Let’s look at the mileage earning rates for Delta.

Let’s take a $100 trip to make the explanation easy. As a general Delta member, you’ll receive 500 miles.

Enrolling in SPG‘s Crossover Rewards with Delta, you’ll earn 1 Starpoint per dollar spent at Delta. So, for this ticket example, you’ll earn 100 Starpoints.

Here’s where this gets interesting. SPG points can be transferred into Delta SkyMiles. In fact, for every 20,000 points you transfer into miles, SPG will add in another 5,000 miles for free.

So, not only are you earning at least 5x the miles per dollar on Delta, you’re also earning an additional 1.25 points on Delta, by enrolling in SPG Crossover Rewards, and then transferring those SPG points back to Delta. That’s a minimum of 6.25x miles for every dollar spent.

Sure, it’s going to take a minimum of 20,000 spend to get these 25,000 miles, but if you’re a heavy spender with the airline, this could work in your advantage.

Now, let’s make this even more fun. Let’s say you use an American Express Premier Rewards Gold card to purchase your $100 Delta ticket. Since you are 3x the Membership Rewards points for purchasing the ticket directly through Delta (and Delta is a transfer partner with Amex), that’s an additional 300 points. Now, with that $100 ticket, you’ve earned 5x for being a general member, 1.25 for transferring your Crossover Rewards points back to Delta, and now an additional 3x for purchasing your ticket through Delta. That’s 925 miles.

Even without a credit card, you’re earning 6.25 for every dollar spent. While I won’t be transferring my loyalty to Delta anytime soon thanks to their elite program devaluation, this earning tactic may come in handy for avid Delta flyers.