Esepcially if you save them for a Delta SkyMiles flash sale. Oftentimes, in my experience, the cost of the upgrade whether paying cash or using SkyMiles can be just as expensive if not more expensive than you paid for the ticket in the first place.
And on a flight that is four hours or less, I would personally rather save my money or SkyMiles. If you can make it work for your travel plans, avoiding travel during peak business travel times should naturally improve your odds of an upgrade. Planning your travels Tuesday through Thursday or on a weekend should improve your chances of an upgrade as you will simply be battling with top-tier Medallion members.
In that same vein, avoiding mainline Delta routes should also improve your upgrade odds. When you are flying between Delta hub cities, the number of elite Medallion members is much larger than flights from say, Minneapolis — St. Welcome to the world of fare classes. And because of the way these classifications work, paying more for your ticket — getting a higher fare class — will put you higher on the upgrade list, assuming you have Delta Medallion status.
If the Medallion status between two members is equal and there is only one seat available for an upgrade, Delta turns next to the fare class. Put simply, higher-priced fares are ranked ahead of lower-priced fares. As you can see below, somebody who purchased a full economy fare Y fare class will be higher in the upgrade order than somebody flying on a discounted main cabin fare H fare class.
Fare Classes can be confusing. Read our guide on fare classes , which will help explain why flight costs change so much. But if you have status and want to improve your chances of an upgrade, these are the five things you can do to improve your odds of sitting up front. Only allowing elites to upgrade to Premium Select degrades much of this value, as this cabin has fewer amenities and is generally priced much lower than the Delta One cabin. Under the new rules, if an elite member wants to upgrade to Delta One on a three-cabin flight, they have to pay more for a Premium Select ticket and then apply a GUC if upgrade space is available.
Or, the elite can book Main Cabin, upgrade to Premium Select and hope that they clear the waitlist within 24 hours of the flight. Neither sounds appealing when compared to a confirmed upgrade. Both of these upgrade instruments still allow elites of their respective airlines to upgrade from economy to business class, putting Delta at the back of the pack in regards to confirmed upgrades on international flights.
On the flip side, having last-seat access to Premium Select may be good for those traveling to business-heavy destinations like Tokyo, London and Sydney, where upgrade space is often hard to find.
The same goes for using GUCs to upgrade to first class on domestic flights — last-seat upgrade availability may be useful when flying to Alaska, Hawaii or other distant-but-technically-domestic destinations. After all, it takes a lot more flying from the East Coast to get to Hawaii or Alaska than it does to some of Europe. The change also comes at a less-than-ideal time as the world is finally starting to reopen, so elites will either have to scramble to book international travel before Feb.
Related: What is Delta Air Lines elite status worth in ? Starting in February, Delta Diamond Medallion members will only be able to use their Global Upgrade Certificates for one-cabin upgrades. Instead of jumping right from Main Cabin to Delta One, elites will instead upgrade to Premium Select and be added to a Delta One waitlist 24 hours prior to departure. Terms Apply. Disclaimer: The responses below are not provided or commissioned by the bank advertiser. Responses have not been reviewed, approved or otherwise endorsed by the bank advertiser.
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This site does not include all credit card companies or all available credit card offers. Please view our advertising policy page for more information. Skip to content. Advertiser Disclosure. How does Delta prioritize its upgrade list — especially after these recent moves? The first and most important factor for a complimentary upgrade with Delta is having some level of status. The higher your status, the better the chances are of your upgrade clearing.
There are four primary levels of status overall: Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. First-class upgrades for these top-tier status holders will begin to clear five days before departure assuming there are still first-class seats available. As part of a recent Delta announcement , Medallion Status for will be automatically extended for the Medallion Year.
That means anyone with current Delta status will retain all those benefits all the way through next year. And because of that, starting Feb. If the Delta Medallion status between two members battling it out for a complimentary upgrade is equal and there is only one seat available, Delta turns next to the fare class. Put simply, higher-priced fares are ranked ahead of lower-priced fares.
As you can see below, somebody who purchased a full economy fare Y fare class will be higher in the upgrade order than somebody flying on a discounted main cabin fare H fare class. And Delta basic economy fares are not eligible for complimentary upgrades, period — no matter your level of Delta Medallion status.
Airline fare classes can be confusing. Read our guide on fare classes , which also helps explain why flight costs change so often. The card will even get you access to the American Express Centurion Lounges as long as you are flying with Delta.
And the reason to hold it is certainly not for the small chance that it will help you get upgraded. Assuming all other things are equal, customers traveling on business with an employer who has an active Delta Corporate Sales Agreement will be given priority in the Delta Medallion upgrade order.
If all else is equal, co-branded Delta credit cardholders who have earned the Medallion Qualification Dollar MQD Waiver in the current calendar year will receive higher priority in the upgrade order. That means the earlier in the year you earn the MQD waiver on your SkyMiles credit card, the better off you will be as it relates to breaking the tie for a complimentary upgrade.
MQMs can be earned from actually flying with Delta, and by meeting certain spending thresholds on the Delta SkyMiles credit cards. Finally, flying 6 million or more lifetime miles with Delta will get you Diamond medallion status for life.
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