Delta Air Lines

Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card

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• See Rates & Fees. Terms Apply.
• On American Express' Secure Website

Annual Fee

$0 introductory annual fee for the first year, then $99.

APR

15.74%-24.74% Variable

Credit Needed

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Good/Excellent

Editor's Rating

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• Earn 50,000 bonus miles after you spend $2,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months, Offer Expires 10/28/2020.
• Earn 2X Miles on Delta purchases, at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery and at U.S. supermarkets.
• NEW! Earn now. Travel when you're ready. After you spend $10,000 in purchases in a calendar year, you will receive a $100 Delta Flight Credit to inspire your next travel.
• Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta Flights.
• Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.
• Enjoy a $0 introductory Annual Fee for the first year, then $99.
• Terms Apply.

+ see card details

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Our thoughts on this card

The Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card is the best credit card for earning Delta SkyMiles, as it offers multiple spending categories — including restaurants, U.S. supermarkets and Delta purchases — for a modest annual fee. Cardholders Earn 2X Miles on Delta purchases, at restaurants worldwide and at U.S. supermarkets. Earn 1X Mile on all other eligible purchases.

In addition to a solid rewards program, you'll get to board sooner, since the card gets you Main Cabin 1 Priority Boarding. This can help ensure you have overhead space for your carry-ons, even on crowded flights. If you'd like to check your bag instead, the Delta SkyMiles® Gold American Express Card card also allows you to check your first bag for free on Delta flights.

What to watch out for

This card previously gave discounted entrance into Delta Sky Clubs. However, once the portfolio of Delta credit cards was refreshed, that benefit has now been removed. If you’re an avid traveler looking to relax in Delta Sky Clubs between flights, only the Delta SkyMiles® Reserve American Express Card (which comes with a hefty $550 annual fee) includes Delta Sky Club and American Express Centurion Lounge access.

How useful are Delta SkyMiles?

Delta SkyMiles offer a solid value when redeemed for flights. We estimate each mile to be worth 1.2 cents, but of course, the actual value you receive will depend on your specific itinerary. You’ll get the best value for SkyMiles when booking domestic travel and business class on international flights. We’ve put together a comprehensive overview on how to get the best value out of Delta SkyMiles.

Where you can use Delta SkyMiles

Delta is part of the SkyTeam airline alliance, which consists of more than a dozen airlines to which you can transfer miles. The sheer number of airlines in this alliance makes Delta SkyMiles a highly dynamic airline rewards currency:

Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card

Our thoughts on this card

Of the three Southwest Rapid Rewards Credit Cards offered, we found that the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card offers the best value based on sign-up bonus, annual fee and anniversary points.

Having a Southwest credit card helps you earn the Southwest Companion Pass, a prized benefit in the airline credit card world. With the pass, you can choose a travel partner to get free tickets (less taxes and fees) on all of your itineraries for a full calendar year, plus the remainder of the year in which you earn the pass. You’ll have to earn 125,000 Rapid Rewards miles in one year, and the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card’s 40,000 point sign-up bonus can get you one step closer to that pass.

Beyond the boost toward earning the Southwest Companion Pass, the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card offers some additional unique perks and rewards. For example, you’ll earn 6,000 bonus points after your cardmember anniversary. While those points may not get you a free roundtrip flight, they can certainly help you close the gap. The points you earn with the Southwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit Card can be utilized for flights, hotel stays and gift cards, among other things.

What to watch out for

Southwest mostly offers domestic flights, so if you're dreaming of international travel, then it may make more sense to pick a different card. An airline miles credit card is only as good as the travel options provided by the airline and any partners associated with it — that said, it should be noted that Southwest is an excellent airline carrier offering very competitive mile redemption rates for domestic flights.

Southwest Airlines expanded service to Hawaii

In March 2019, Southwest Airlines launched service to Hawaii. This destination has been a long time coming for Southwest Airlines and gives its customers access to one of the most enviable vacation destinations. And if you earn the Southwest Companion Pass, flying to Hawaii on Southwest Airlines may be one of the most affordable ways to travel there with a friend or family member.

Where you can use Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards

Unfortunately, Southwest Rapid Rewards can’t be transferred to other airlines, but Southwest offers the option to redeem your rewards directly for international flights via the More Rewards functionality on Southwest's site.

The More Rewards section is a shopping portal for Southwest Rapid Rewards members to use their points on a variety of purchases. You can buy gift cards, electronics, jewelry and a myriad of other items — and among those items are travel-related purchases like flights.

When you search for a flight, you will see a list of airlines flying where Southwest does not, along with the flight price in Southwest Rapid Rewards points. Unfortunately, in many cases, the redemption value is very low. To ensure you are getting the best value for Southwest points, stick to using Rapid Rewards points on Southwest flights.

You'll have to be sure to shop around to confirm you’re getting a decent redemption value for your Rapid Rewards.

Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite™ Mastercard®

Our thoughts on this card

Of the five American Airlines co-branded credit cards, we believe the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite™ Mastercard® offers the best value proposition through a strong rewards earning structure. You Earn 2 AAdvantage® miles for every $1 spent at gas stations, restaurants, and on eligible American Airlines purchases

On top of a strong rewards structure, the card offers one of the best sign-up bonuses available. If utilized correctly, the miles you earn in the first year could be enough for an international round-trip flight.

What to watch out for

The Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite™ Mastercard® charges an annual fee of $99, waived for first 12 months. If you plan to spend more than $20,000 on the card every year, you’ll earn a $125 American Airlines flight discount for reaching that spend amount, which would offset the card’s annual fee.

How useful are American Airlines miles?

From a value perspective, we believe American Airlines miles are some of the most valuable airline currencies around, as we estimate that each AAdvantage mile is worth 1.4 cents. Of course, the actual value you’ll get from each mile will be highly dependent on several factors, but you can use this figure as a benchmark.

However, we’ve found it's a bit harder to maximize the value of American Airlines miles when compared to other airline currencies. While cardholders may find incredible redemption values, they'll need to maintain a measure of flexibility. If you're OK with this, then the Citi® / AAdvantage® Platinum Select® World Elite™ Mastercard® is an excellent choice for an airline miles credit card.

Where you can use your American Airlines miles

You can redeem AAdvantage miles with any oneworld airline alliance member. We’ve also compiled a thorough guide on the best ways to redeem American Airlines AAdvantage miles. Currently, there are 15 airlines that make up the oneworld alliance:

Plus, Alaska Airlines recently joined the oneworld alliance, bringing the airline group to 16 member airlines.

AAdvantage® Aviator® Red Mastercard®

Our thoughts on this card

The AAdvantage® Aviator® Red Mastercard® offers one of the easiest ways to accrue a sizable amount of American Airlines miles.

The annual fee shouldn't be a deterrent, since the miles earned from the sign-up bonus should be enough to book a round-trip domestic flight.

On top of having a simple sign-up bonus, the card offers decent benefits and perks. You'll earn 2 miles for every dollar you spend on American Airlines purchases and 1 mile for every dollar you spend on all other purchases. On domestic American Airlines itineraries, you will get your first checked bag free for you and up to four companions traveling on the same reservation. In addition, you will earn a Companion Certificate that is good for one guest at $99, plus applicable taxes and fees. To earn the Companion Certificate, you need to meet the requirements for the sign-up bonus. Lastly, you will have several types of travel coverage, such as travel accident insurance, rental car insurance, baggage delay insurance and trip cancellation/interruption insurance.

Aside from the benefits of the card, this card is worth applying for because the sign-up bonus is incredibly simple to earn.